Godfrey of Bouillon was a preeminent leader of the First Crusade, and the first ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem from 1099 to 1100. Although initially reluctant to take the title of king, he agreed t
Godfrey of Bouillon, from the Roman de Godefroy de Bouillon by Maître du Roman de Fauvel, c. 1330
Godfrey's claim to Bouillon Castle was challenged by Albert III of Namur.
The "sword of Godfrey of Bouillon" displayed at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem since 1808 (1854 photograph)
Godfrey with his brothers Eustace and Baldwin meeting with Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos
The First Crusade was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, which were initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the Middle Ages. Their aim was to return the Ho
Godfrey of Bouillon
…Godfrey of Bouillon (c. 1060 – 18 July 1100) was a preeminent leader of the First Crusade, and the first ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem from 1099 to 1100. Although initially reluctant to take the title of king, he agreed to rule as prince…
Miniature of Peter the Hermit leading the People's Crusade (Egerton 1500, Avignon, 14th-century)
Anatolian Seljuk horseman, in Varka and Golshah, mid-13th century miniature (detail), Konya, Sultanate of Rum.
Pope Urban II at the Council of Clermont. Illustration from a copy of Sébastien Mamerot's Livre des Passages d'Outremer (Jean Colombe, c. 1472–75, BNF Fr. 5594)
An illustration showing the defeat of the People's Crusade, from Sébastien Mamerot's Livre des Passages d'Outre-mer (Jean Colombe, c. 1472–75, BNF Fr. 5594)