The Appeal and Preparation for the Third Crusade

The cataclysmic defeats of the forces of the Kingdom of Jerusalem at Cresson and Hattin and the subsequent loss of Jerusalem to Saladin in October 1187 reverberated throughout the Latin West. The news was said to be so disturbing that Pope Urban III suffered a fatal heart attack on hearing the reports. Yet despite the significance of the Holy Land to the West, the new pope Gregory VIII's appeal for aid came at a time when internal political strife in Europe threatened any call for a crusade. The conflict between King Louis VII of France and King Henry II of England, and Emperor Frederick I's support of anti-popes had previously frustrated attempts to aid the Holy Land, while the death of Thomas Becket had further jeopardised Henry's departure. In 1172 papal legates secured an agreement that Henry would provide 200 knights and take the cross personally, but his departure was further impeded by revolt in England in 1173, the uprising of his sons, the spreading of hostilities to Normandy, and insurgence in France.

Despite the non-aggression pact between Louis and Henry in 1177, neither king's participation in a crusade was forthcoming. The renewal of the treaty of Ivry in 1180 which secured a formal alliance between Philip Augustus and Henry II did not resolve this situation; the crusade clause remained conditional not absolute. Moreover, the conflict between King Philip of France and Count Philip of Flanders exacerbated this political disharmony and caused further damage to the prospects of the crusade. Relations between France and Flanders remained strained because the young king resented the influence that Philip of Flanders had exerted over both King Louis VII's final years and the early stages of Philip Augustus’ own reign. The count had exploited conflicts between the French and German rulers and acted unofficially as the young king's guardian. In 1182, Philip Augustus’ alliance with Henry II alienated both Flanders and Champagne. In the early 1180s Philip of Flanders joined forces with Baldwin V of Hainault and Frederick Barbarossa against Philip Augustus, although in 1185 these allegiances broke down and the Fleming was forced to accept the French king's terms under the peace of Boves. Following these events Philip Augustus made a concerted effort to erode the autonomy of counties such as Flanders, and to assert his own royal authority.