Vasilief, A History of the Byzantine Empire

Byzantium and the Crusades

Policies of Manuel I and the Second Crusade 

Page 6

When the news of the successful invasion of the Normans into Greece reached the French, who were standing under the walls of Constantinople, the latter, already irritated by the rumors of an agreement between Manuel and the Turks, became agitated. Some of Louis' chiefs suggested to him that he seize Constantinople. In the face of this danger the Emperor turned his mind to transporting the French also into Asia Minor. A rumor circulated that the Germans were meeting with success in Asia Minor, and Louis consented to cross over the Bosporus and even took the oath to Manuel. Only when Louis made his appearance in Asia Minor did he learn the truth about the disaster of the German army. The sovereigns met and marched on together. The Franco-German troops are known to have suffered a complete failure at Damascus. The disappointed Conrad left Palestine on a Greek vessel and sailed for Thessalonica, where Manuel, who was preparing to open hostilities against the Normans, had his residence at the time. Manuel and Conrad met there, examined the general situation, and concluded a definite alliance against Roger. Thereafter Conrad returned to Germany.

Meanwhile the crusade accomplished nothing. Louis, who remained in the East, realizing the complete impossibility of doing anything with his own resources, returned some months later to France via southern Italy where he met with Roger.

Thus the Second Crusade, which had started so brilliantly, ended in the most miserable way. The Muslims in the East were not weakened; on the contrary, they gained in courage and began even to hope to destroy the Christian possessions in the East. Besides that, the strife between the French and German troops as well as between the Palestinian and European Christians did not add to the prestige of the crusaders. Manuel himself was glad to see the crusade finished, because now, strengthened by the conclusion of a formal alliance with Germany, he was free to proceed in his western policy against Roger. Nevertheless it would be unjust to charge the whole failure of the crusade upon the Emperor; the failure of the enterprise must be rather attributed to the lack of organization and general discipline among the crusaders. Also by his attack upon the islands of the Adriatic and Greece, Roger had fatally affected the project of the crusade. Generally speaking, the religious basis of the crusading enterprises was receding and the worldly political motives showed themselves henceforth more and more clearly.

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