The Crusader Sword Elite Series

The first crusade took place between 1096 and 1099. Led by the Roman Catholic church, under Pope Urban II, as a military expedition. The goal was to regain the holy lands lost to Muslims in the conquest of Levant (632-661 A.D.). The crusades started when Christians’ access to Jerusalem was cut off by the Seljuk Turks after the defeat of the Byzantine army. What followed were a series of crusades that ran for nearly two centuries (1096-1272). The last being led by Edward I. With the influence of the Catholic church, all men at arms were bound to use the cruciform sword, with its symbolic cross-section, forever historically tied to the imagery of the Crusading Knights. The cruciform guard was imposed by the church to remind all soldiers of their Christian religion and the ‘greater’ purpose of the war. Ultimately the crusades led to the mass slaughter, rape, and devastation on both sides. The Crusader sword, like many of its historical counterparts, is regarded as the quintessential sword