Robert II, Count of Flanders was Count of Flanders from 1093 to 1111. He became known as Robert of Jerusalem or Robert the Crusader after his exploits in the First Crusade.
Fulcher of Chartres was a priest who participated in the First Crusade. He served Baldwin I of Jerusalem for many years and wrote a Latin chronicle of the Crusade.
Hugh VI, called the Devilish, was the Lord of Lusignan and Count of La Marche, the son and successor of Hugh V of Lusignan and Almodis de la Marche.
Hugh II was the count of St. Pol in Artois, after having succeeded his brother Guy I who died without issue. He was the son of Hugh I. He participated in the First Crusade (1096–99) with his son Enguerrand, where they both won fame as military leaders. Being vassals of Eustace III of Boulogne, they probably travelled east in his company, among the retinue of Godfrey of Bouillon.
Blessed Gerard Sasso, known also as Gérard de Martigues, was a lay brother in the Benedictine Order who was appointed as rector of the hospice in Jerusalem at Muristan in 1080. In the wake of the success of the First Crusade in 1099, he became the founder of the Order of St John of Jerusalem, also known as the Knights Hospitaller, an organization that received papal recognition in 1113. As such, he was the first Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller.
Marmoutier Abbey — also known as the Abbey of Marmoutier or Marmoutiers — was an early monastery outside Tours, Indre-et-Loire, France. In its later days it followed the Benedictine order as an influential monastery with many dependencies.
William V was the Lord of Montpellier from 1068 until his death. He was the son of William IV.
Rotrou III, called the Great, was the Count of Perche and Mortagne from 1099. He was the son of Geoffrey II, Count of Perche, and Beatrix de Ramerupt, daughter of Hilduin IV, Count of Montdidier. He was a notable Crusader and a participant in the Reconquista in eastern Spain, even ruling the city of Tudela in Navarre from 1123 to 1131. He is commonly credited with introducing Arabian horses to the Perche, giving rise to the Percheron breed. By his creation of a monastery at La Trappe in memory of his wife, Matilda, daughter of Henry I of England, in 1122 he also laid the foundations of the later Trappists.
Dodo of Cons , lord of Cons-la-Grandville, a nobleman from the Lotharingian territories, son of Adelon (Adelo) de Cons. Dodo was originally from Konz, above Trier at the confluence of the Moselle and Sauer rivers. Dodo had taken the cross and joined in the First Crusade and was lucky enough to return unscathed along with his wife, a countess of Chiny.
The role of women in the Crusades is frequently viewed as being limited to domestic or illicit activities during the Crusades. While to some extent this is true, some women also took part in other activities, including armed combat in the battles of the Holy Land. This article focuses on the first Crusades and identifies known participants. It also highlights some of the more famous women of the later crusades. For a discussion of the sociological and religious aspects of the mixing of women with the predominantly male crusaders, the reader is referred to the referenced documents.
Abbey of Saint Mary of the Valley of Jehosaphat was a Benedictine abbey situated east of the Old City of Jerusalem, founded by Godfrey of Bouillon on the believed site of the Tomb of the Virgin Mary.
Gilduin of Le Puiset was the son of Hugh I of Le Puiset and Alice of Montlhéry, daughter of Guy I of Montlhéry. Monk at St. Martin-des-Champs, prior at Cluny Abbey, prior at Lurey-le-Bourg, abbot of St. Mary of the Valley of Jehosaphat.
Robert of Bounalbergo, son of Gerard (Girard) of Buanalbergo and his wife whose name is unknown. Gerard was father to Alberada of Buonalbergo, who married Robert Guiscard and mother to Bohemond I of Antioch.
The army of Hugh the Great was formed after the Council of Clermont, led by Pope Urban II in November 1095. Hugh, son of Henry I of France, and his wife Anne of Kiev, was Count of Vermandois, de jure uxoris, due to his marriage to Adelaide of Vermandois. In August 1096, Hugh and his small army left France in prima profectione, the first army of the third wave to leave France, and travelled to Bari, Italy, and then crossed the Adriatic Sea to the Byzantine Empire, in an armada commanded by Arnout II, Count of Aarschot. When Hugh entered Constantinople, he carried a Vexillum sancti Petri, a banner given to him by the pope, Hugh being the last such noble to carry the banner.
The armies of Bohemond of Taranto, formed in 1097, include a major component of the First Crusade. He is regarded as the real leader of the First Crusade. He formed a second army in 1107 to defend Antioch but instead used it to attack the Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos, resulting in the Treaty of Devol, codifying Bohemond’s defeat. Runciman estimates that the first army included 500 cavalry and 3500 infantrymen and other estimates that the second army was at 34,000 personnel strength are likely greatly exaggerated.
Robert II of Flanders' army was formed shortly after that of his kinsman Godfrey of Bouillon, arriving in Constantinople considerably later. His wife Clementia of Burgundy was regent of Flanders in his absence. The known members of the army, mostly Flemish, included the ones listed below, as reported in histories of the First Crusade. Unless otherwise noted, references are to the on-line database of Riley-Smith, et al., and the hyperlinks therein provide details including original sources. The names below are also referenced in the Riley-Smith tome, Appendix I: Preliminary List of Crusaders. Those references are not shown unless they appear elsewhere in the text of the book. Articles that are hyperlinked to a more detailed article in this encyclopædia rely on the latter for references.
The army of Robert Curthose, Duke of Normandy, left for the Holy Land on the First Crusade. Robert was the eldest son of William the Conqueror and brother to William Rufus, king of England. He was reportedly so poor that he often had to stay in bed for lack of clothes. In order to raise money for the crusade he mortgaged his duchy to his brother William II of England. His army joined the contingent of Robert II, Count of Flanders, and Stephen, Count of Blois.
Ilger Bigod was a Norman knight in the army of Bohemond of Taranto and constable of Tancred, Prince of Galilee. He fought with Bohemond's army in the First Crusade, not returning home until after 1099.
The army of William IX on the Crusade of 1101 was formed by William IX “the Troubador,” Duke of Aquitaine, to fight in the minor Crusade of 1101. His army was destroyed by the Turks at Heraclea. Defeated, he reached Antioch with only six companions still alive.
Anselm of Ribemont was a Frankish noblemen from Flanders and a participant in the First Crusade. His letters to archbishop Manasses II of Reims are key pieces of eyewitness accounts to the First Crusade.
