Christianity in the 11th century when the Seljuk Turks closed Christian pilgrimages and assailed the Byzantines, defeating them at the Battle of Manzikert. Emperor Alexius I asked for aid from Pope Urban II for help against Islamic aggression. Urban II called upon the knights of Christendom in a speech made at the Council of Clermont on 27 November 1095, combining the idea of pilgrimage to the Holy Land with that of waging a holy war against infidels. The First Crusade captured Antioch in 1099 and then Jerusalem. A traditional numbering scheme for the crusades totals nine during the 11th to 13th centuries. Elements of the
Guilliaume de Montfort Guilliaume de Montfort Guilliaume de Montfort () (died 27 August 1101) was a French bishop, most notably the Bishop of Paris from 1095 to 1101. Montfort's date of birth is not known, but it was some time before the death of his father, Simon I de Montfort in 1087. He was Bishop of Yves some time before becoming the Bishop of Paris. In 1095, Pope Urban II held the Council of Clermont at Clermont-Ferrand, France. It excommunicated Philip I of France and Bertrade de Montfort, William's sister, for adultery. William had been noted as a great supporter of Urban II,