![]() ![]() ![]() Behind many crusaders stood a large body of men and women who were prepared to sacrifice interest to help them go. The same is true of the crusading movement. I have already stressed that no one can treat the phenomenal growth of monasticism in this period without taking into account not only those who entered the communities to be professed, but also the lay men and women who were prepared to endow new religious houses with lands and rents. Parents, brothers and sisters, wives and children had to face a long absence and must have worried about them: in 1098 Countess Ida of Boulogne made an endowment to the abbey of St Bertin 'for the safety of her sons, Godfrey and Baldwin, who have gone to Jerusalem'.83 And they and more distant relatives - cousins, uncles and nephews - were prepared to endow them out of the patrimonial lands. ![]() It makes much more sense to suppose, in so far as one can generalize about them, that they were moved by an idealism which must have inspired not only them but their families. Given their knowledge and expectations and the economic climate in which they lived, the disposal of assets to invest in the fairly remote possibility of settlement in the East would have been a stupid gamble. “In the light of the evidence it is hard to believe that most crusaders were motivated by crude materialism. Ulrich von Hutten and the German Reformation If the harvest fails in any year, then follow dire poverty, unrest, and turbulence.” There is harrowing, sowing, fertilizing, reaping, threshing: harvest and vintage. The fields must be ploughed and spaded, the vines tended, trees planted, meadows irrigated. The day is full of thought for the morrow, constant disturbance, continual storms. One hears the bleating of sheep, the lowing of cattle, the barking of dogs, the shouts of men working in the fields, the squeaks or barrows and wagons, yes, and even the howling of wolves from nearby woods. Our doors are open to practically all comers, either because we do not know who they are or do not make too diligent inquiry. The horsemen come and go, among them robbers, thieves, and bandits. Then there are dogs and their dung, a sweet savor I assure you. The castle, whether on plain or mountain, must be not fair but firm, surrounded by moat and wall, narrow within, crowded with stalls for the cattle, and arsenals for guns, pitch, and powder. These are our rural delights, our peace and tranquility. And among whom does all this take place? Not among strangers, my friend, but among neighbors, relatives, and those of the same household, even brothers. One concession unlooses a clamor of demands. Then there are frequently quarrels between our retainers and others, and scarcely a day passes but some squabble is referred to us which we must compose as discreetly as possible, for if I push my claim to uncompromisingly war arises, but if I am too yielding I am immediately the subject of extortion. We cannot visit a neighboring village or go hunting or fishing save in iron. On that account, we must have a large equipage of horses, arms, and followers, and all at great expense. We cannot go unarmed beyond to yokes of land. Where I looked for protection I was ensnared. If fortune is adverse, the half of my estates will be forfeit as ransom. If I go away from home I am in peril lest I fall in with those who are at war or feud with my overlord, no matter who he is, and for that reason fall upon me and carry me away. But even if I do make such an attachment hope is beclouded by danger and daily anxiety. Otherwise every one will look upon me as fair plunder. I must attach myself to some prince in the hope of protection. Nevertheless the utmost effort is put forth that it may be bountiful and plentiful, for we must be diligent stewards. The return is exceedingly sparse in proportion to the labor expended. Those by whose labors we exist are poverty-stricken peasants, to whom we lease our fields, vineyards, pastures, and woods. We live in fields, forests, and fortresses. “Such is the lot of the knight that even though my patrimony were ample and adequate for my support, nevertheless here are the disturbances which give me no quiet. ![]()
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