Today is April 12th; the anniversary of the Crusaders' attack on the city of Constantinople in 1204AD. I wonder how many Christian churches will be celebrating their massive victory? Probably not very many of them. The last thing a Christian preacher wants to do is remind his flock that the Christians of 800 years ago were as cruel and depraved as the ISIS terrorists today. Even worse, this particular Crusade finished up with Christians killing Christians so the apologists can't even shift blame onto their usual scapegoat; the Muslims.
Here are the high lowlights that occurred in the days following April 12th, 1204:
- Thousands of Christians were killed by the invading Christians.
- Bronze statues dating back to the time of Alexander the Great were melted down and sold for cash.
- Constantinople Library utterly destroyed.
- All the churches were looted.
- The tombs inside the St Apostles church were desecrated.
- Civilian women (and also Nuns) were raped and killed.
Pope Innocent III was really pissed off. He had paid cold, hard cash for the Crusaders to go down to Jerusalem and beat the shit out of the Muslims, but here they were in Constantinople killing Christians. He gave them a real talking-to:
It was your duty to attend to the business of your legation and to give careful consideration, not to the capture of the Empire of Constantinople, but rather to the defense of what is left of the Holy Land and, with the Lord's leave, the restoration of what has been lost. We made you our representative and we sent you to gain, not temporal, but rather eternal riches. And for this purpose, our brethren provided adequately for your needs.
The Pope also had some harsh words to say about the rape and murder committed by the holy Crusaders. He wouldn't have minded so much if the victims had been pagans, but this time they were Christians - and he thought that was a bit harsh:
As for those who were supposed to be seeking the ends of Jesus Christ, not their own ends, who made their swords, which they were supposed to use against the pagans, drip with Christian blood, they have spared neither religion, nor age, nor sex. They have committed incest, adultery, and fornication before the eyes of men. They have exposed both matrons and virgins, even those dedicated to God, to the sordid lusts of boys.
But the thing that really upset the Pope more than the rape and murder was the Crusaders' stealing valuable treasures from the church...
Not satisfied with breaking open the imperial treasury and plundering the goods of princes and lesser men, they also laid their hands on the treasures of the churches and, what is more serious, on their very possessions. They have even ripped silver plates from the altars and have hacked them to pieces among themselves. They violated the holy places and have carried off crosses and relics.
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