Questions about Fourth Crusade
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Why did the Fourth Crusade attack Constantinople instead of Egypt?
The Fourth Crusade attacked Constantinople due to a combination of financial debt and political opportunity. After the crusader army arrived at Venice in 1202 with far fewer men than contracted, they could not pay the 85,000 silver marks owed. Doge Enrico Dandolo proposed they offset the debt by attacking Zara, and later by backing the Byzantine prince Alexios IV Angelos, who promised 200,000 silver marks and military support if they placed him on the Byzantine throne.
Who called the Fourth Crusade and what was its original goal?
Pope Innocent III called the Fourth Crusade in January 1198. Its stated goal was to recapture Jerusalem from Muslim control by first defeating the Ayyubid Sultanate in Egypt, which was the dominant Muslim power in the eastern Mediterranean. The crusaders planned to sail directly to Cairo.
What was the sack of Constantinople in 1204?
The sack of Constantinople in 1204 was a three-day plundering of the Byzantine capital by crusader and Venetian forces. The city was looted of an estimated 900,000 silver marks in total. Ancient and medieval works of art were stolen or destroyed, churches and monasteries were looted, and civilians were killed. Eyewitness accounts were left by Niketas Choniates, Geoffrey of Villehardouin, Robert of Clari, and the anonymous author of the Devastatio Constantinopolitana.
What was the Frankokratia and how long did it last?
The Frankokratia was the period of Latin and Venetian rule over former Byzantine territories following the Fourth Crusade. It encompassed multiple states, including the Latin Empire of Constantinople, the Kingdom of Thessalonica, the Principality of Achaea, and the Duchy of Athens. The period lasted at different durations by region; most of these territories were absorbed by the Ottoman Empire between the 14th and 17th centuries, though some Venetian holdings persisted until the end of the Republic of Venice in 1797.
What long-term damage did the Fourth Crusade do to the Byzantine Empire?
The Fourth Crusade left the Byzantine Empire depleted of soldiers, resources, and money, with most of the Balkans, Anatolia, and the Aegean islands lost. Though the Nicaean Empire retook Constantinople in July 1261, the restored empire was territorially and financially weakened. These conditions made Byzantium vulnerable to the expanding Ottomans, who conquered Constantinople in 1453 under Sultan Mehmed II.
Who opposed the Fourth Crusade's diversion to attack Constantinople?
Several prominent crusaders refused to participate in the attacks on Zara and Constantinople, including Enguerrand II of Boves, Simon de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester, and Guy of Vaux-de-Cernay. Pope Innocent III had explicitly forbidden attacks on Christian states and excommunicated the crusader army after the fall of Zara. The French Byzantinist Jonathan Harris noted that many who remained in the army agreed to the diversion only very reluctantly, under financial and emotional pressure.