The rise of Islam was a shock to the Christian world. The Islamic conquest swept through Persia, Syria, Palestine, Egypt and north Africa. The Christian world became split between east and west. The rise of the Norman power gave the western church strong fighting force. A monk named Peter the Hermit called for the capture of the Holy Sepulcher from the Infidels. What follows is a series of military campaigns that target Jews, the Eastern Church and the Muslims. Crusader Kingdoms were established and eventually defeated. The battles exposed the backwardness and weakness of the Christian world in the face of superior Muslim technology.
