1096. Over the last few years, nothing has really happened, we lived our lives normally, and for a long period of time, the kingdom was peaceful. Until Pope Urban II sent out a message to all the cities and towns and manors saying that all your sins will be erased if you go on this journey to the Holy Land. On the 15th of August, Prince Peter arrived on the doorstep to my castle. He said we would be going. And so my journey began, a journey that was filled with hardship. Men and women were marching side by side to the Holy Land. They died of disease along the way. Muslim peasants refused to provide us with food, resulting in the capture of Ma'arrat al-Numan. Many soldiers resorted to cannibalism due to hunger. After 4 years, on the 7th of July, 1099, We arrived to the city of Jerusalem. We knights and Templar marched through the gates capturing the city, killing mercilessly. I didn't want to be a part of any of that, nor does Prince Peter. But, that was how it went, they were the enemy, we should hate them for trespassing into our Holy Land, but this was there Holy Land too, this is where their prophet Muhammad traveled to. At the end of the battle, a few were captured as prisoners. We were greeted by the King of Jerusalem Baldwin IV. |
The Muslims weren't going to give up so easily. A man by the name of Saladin gathered soldiers from towns and villages, assembling his own army to fight against us. Saladin showed great respect for our leader, King Richard, or better known as The Lionheart. Sometimes it seems as though they would have been friends, if it weren't for the war. At the end, the Muslim forces over-powered ours, so they recaptured Jerusalem, that's when we left with our heads bowed down in defeat. Even thought thousands of us had died, the journey was worth it. Many of us got to see new landscapes and cultures that can never be found in Germany or England. |
You see, even though we slaughtered and killed, we also learned something. The religion of Islam and our Christianity aren't that different, we both worship the same god, but we call Him different names, for the Muslims, its Allah. For Judaism, its Jehovah. Their "Bible" is their Koran, they read from it just like us. I've learned that they have what is called the 5 Pillars of Islam.
1. Shahada - there is no god except God, and Muhammad is God's Messenger.
2. Salat - the Islamic Prayer.
3. Zakat - giving to the poor.
4. Sawm - Ritual Fasting.
5. Hajj - A pilgrimage to a city known as Mecca.
Year 1112, I've started to see things that I've never seen before. Later learning that these ideas were brought back with us from the Holy Land. This is called cultural diffusion, it is where two cultures collide. All my sins are now forgiven, but my memories of the Crusade will not be easily forgotten.
1. Shahada - there is no god except God, and Muhammad is God's Messenger.
2. Salat - the Islamic Prayer.
3. Zakat - giving to the poor.
4. Sawm - Ritual Fasting.
5. Hajj - A pilgrimage to a city known as Mecca.
Year 1112, I've started to see things that I've never seen before. Later learning that these ideas were brought back with us from the Holy Land. This is called cultural diffusion, it is where two cultures collide. All my sins are now forgiven, but my memories of the Crusade will not be easily forgotten.