The Crusades and it's effect on Medieval Art Research Paper

The Crusades and it's effect on Medieval Art - Research Paper Example Historically, seven main Crusades have been recorded with the earliest being in 1095 and the last in 1291 marked by the fall of Acre. These seven Crusades have more recently been referred to as â€Å"The Great Crusades†. The Crusades comprised of a volunteer army ranging from peasant to laborers where women were encouraged to participate only by giving money; Moreover, a number of the crusades were named; for example the Albigensian Crusade, Northern or Baltic Crusades and Children’s Crusade (â€Å"Crusade Basics†). Impact on Medieval Art The Crusades were unsuccessful considering their initial aim as no lasting conquests over the Holy Land were made. The mutual respect between Muslims and Christians was instead destroyed and replaced by a harsh intolerance (â€Å"The Christian Crusades†). Nevertheless, not all was bad; the Crusades played an enormous role in boosting the economy of Europe as trade interactions expanded. The Medieval period was between 300 AD, end of the Roman era, and 1400AD, beginning of the Renaissance era (â€Å"Introduction to the History of Medieval Art†). ... However, at the start of 1150, the styles changed, and this gave birth to the period termed by historians as the Gothic period. This change was attributed to a combination of aspects of art, religion and philosophy (â€Å"Introduction to the History of Medieval Art†). The major difference between churches built at this time and those built using the Romanesque style is that they featured narrow-pointed arches coming from high pillars. Hence, this architecture gave rise to cathedrals as the structures became bigger in size than they were. This together with the unique design of stained glass was meant to relay an image of Heavenly Jerusalem, a place where human matters were to be forgotten (â€Å"Introduction to the History of Medieval Art†). Effect on gathering of new relics and uprising of pilgrimages For assisting and protecting pilgrims to the Holy Land, military orders were established: the Knights Templar and the Knights Hospitaller. They were monastic orders where the members had to take vows of poverty and chastity and in addition, undergo military training (Snell). The Crusade era was characterized by production of sacred relics that included rings, crosses, holy water flasks and terracotta souvenir pilgrim flasks. Some of the artifacts had images that symbolized religious actions such as receiving of blessings. These artifacts were possessed by both the crusaders and the knights that accompanied them, and they went on to improve trade relations across Europe. The relics gathered during this era consisted of not only holy items, but also the remains of holy people and sites (â€Å"Art of the Crusades Era†) Through the Crusades period, the expedition from various destinations within Europe