Vilnius Its Jewish influence has led to it being described as the "Jerusalem of Lithuania" and Napoleon named it "the Jerusalem of the North" as he was passing through in 1812. In 2009, Vilnius was the European Capital of Culture, together with the Austrian city of Linz. The name of the city originates from the Vilnia River. The city has also been known by many derivate spellings in various languages throughout its history: "Vilna" was once common in English. The most notable non-Lithuanian names for the city include: , , , , , , ("Vilne"). A Russian name from the time
History of Jerusalem during the Kingdom of Jerusalem Jerusalem, who, despite difficult circumstances, struggled amid the waves of death and destruction, and rebuilt the fallen city. The conquest of Jerusalem became the prime objective of the First Crusade, which was launched in 1095 with Pope Urban II's call to arms. Four main crusader armies left Europe in August 1096. On June 7, 1099, having given up on the unsuccessful siege of Arqa, the crusaders arrived at Jerusalem. The city was besieged by the army on June 13. Attacks on the city walls started on July 14, and on July 15 they raised a siege tower. By noon the