MONGABAY.COM
Mongabay.com seeks to raise interest in and appreciation of wild lands and wildlife, while examining the impact of emerging trends in climate, technology, economics, and finance on conservation and development (more)
WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
|
|
Lebanon
Index
The occupation of the Christian holy places in Palestine and
the destruction of the Holy Sepulcher by Caliph Al Hakim led to a
series of eight campaigns, known as the Crusades, undertaken by
Christians of western Europe to recover the Holy Land from the
Muslims. The first Crusade was proclaimed by Pope Urban II in 1095
at the Council of Clermont-Ferrand in France. After taking
Jerusalem, the Crusaders turned their attention to the Lebanese
coast. Tripoli capitulated in 1109; Beirut and Sidon, in 1110. Tyre
stubbornly resisted but finally capitulated in 1124 after a long
siege.
Although they failed to establish a permanent presence, the
Crusaders left their imprint on Lebanon. Among the conspicuous
results of the Crusades, which ended with the fall of Acre in 1291,
are the remains of many towers along the coast, ruins of castles on
hills and mountain slopes, and numerous churches.
Of all the contacts established by the Crusaders with the
peoples of the Middle East, those with the Maronites of Lebanon
were among the most enduring. They acquainted the Maronites with
European influences and made them more receptive to friendly
approaches from Westerners. During this period the Maronites were
brought into a union with the Holy See, a union that survived in
the late 1980s. France was a major participant in the Crusades, and
French interest in the region and its Christian population dates to
this period.
Bitter conflicts among the various regional and ethnic groups
in Lebanon and Syria characterized the thirteenth century. The
Crusaders, who came from Europe, the Mongols, who came from the
steppes of Central Asia, and the Mamluks, who came from Egypt, all
sought to be masters in the area. In this hard and confused
struggle for supremacy, victory came to the Mamluks.
Data as of December 1987
|
|