Crusades

From the Latin crux , a “cro .” A term applied to the military expeditions undertaken by Christian powers in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries for the recovery of Palestine, or the “Holy Land,” from the Mohammedans. They were originated by Peter the Hermit, an enthusiastic French officer of Amiens, who turned pilgrim. There were in all eight crusades, from 1096 to 1270. The last one ended in the Christians being driven out of Syria.