Chapter Ninety-nine

 

 

The Cry to Arms

 

 

As Pope Urban and his hosting entourage of French archbishops arrived at the pavilion, the crowd fell still, knowing that what they were about to witness would be a monumental moment for the entirety of Christendom. And as Pope Urban began to speak, nary a single person moved, nor even whispered.

“Oh, race of Franks from across the mountains,” he began with immediate passion, “race chosen and beloved by God as shines forth in your very many works set apart from all nations by the situation of your country, as well as by your Catholic faith and the honor of your Holy Church! To you our discourse is and for you our exhortation is intended! We wish you to know what a grievous cause has led us to your country, what peril is threatening you and all the faithful.

“From the confines of Jerusalem and Constantinople, a horrible tale has gone forth, namely that a race from the kingdom of the Persians, an accursed race, a race utterly alienated from God has invaded the lands of those Christians and has depopulated them by the sword, pillage, and fire. They destroy the altars, after having defiled them with their uncleanness. They circumcise the Christians, and the blood of the circumcision they either spread across the altars or pour into the vases of the baptismal font. When they wish to torture people by a base death, they perforate their navels, and dragging forth the extremity of the intestines, bind it to a stake… and what shall I say of the abominable rape of women? To speak of it is worse than to be silent!

“Let the deeds of your ancestors move you and incite your minds to manly achievement, glory and greatness of your kings who have destroyed the kingdoms of the pagans. Travel the road to the Holy Sepulchre, wrest that land from the wicked race, and subject it to yourselves accordingly; undertake this journey to the remission of your sins, with the assurance of the imperishable glory of the Kingdom of Heaven!”

When Pope Urban had said these things and many other things exhorting Christians to take up the sword against the Saracens, he ended by proclaiming, “Dieu le veut! God wills it!”

The massive crowd, so utterly inflamed by his descriptions of Saracen torture and the defiling of Christian icons, surged forward and as one body echoed his call, “Dieu le veut! God wills it!” And as this deafening cry reverberated up and down the open meadow, ten thousand knights raised their banners and struck their shields with their swords, creating such a clamor that the ground shook and the pavilion on which Pope Urban stood began to quake.