The signal for the First Crusade was given by the
conquests of the Seljuk Turks. These barbarians, at first the mercenaries
and then the masters of the Abbasid caliphs, infused fresh energy into Islam.
They began a new era of Mohammedan expansion by winning almost the whole of
Asia Minor from the Roman Empire in the East. One of their leaders established
himself at Nicaea, the scene of the first Church Council, and founded the
sultanate of Rum (Rome).
APPEAL OF EMPEROR TO POPE
The presence of the Turks so close to Constantinople was a
standing menace to all Europe. The able emperor, Alexius I, on succeeding to
the throne toward the close of the eleventh century, took steps to expel the
invaders. He could not draw on the hardy tribes of Asia Minor for the soldiers
he needed, but with reinforcements from the West he hoped to recover the lost
provinces of the empire. Accordingly, in 1095 A.D., Alexius sent an embassy to
Pope Urban II, the successor of Gregory VII, requesting aid. The fact that the
emperor appealed to the pope, rather than to any king, shows what a high place
the Papacy then held in the affairs of Europe.
