The Byzantine empire was where the eastern empire of Rome used to be, with its capital being Constantinople.
Alexios I Comnenos, Constantinople
They used the situation to weaken their greatest commercial competitor, the Byzantine Empire.
Holy Roman Empire, England, and The Byzantine Empire
During the Crusades, the Byzantine Empire was a crucial player, particularly in the First Crusade (1096-1099). The empire, under Emperor Alexios I Komnenos, sought military assistance from the West to reclaim lost territories from the Seljuk Turks. However, as the Crusades progressed, relations between the Byzantine Empire and the Western Crusaders became strained, leading to tensions and conflicts, notably during the Fourth Crusade (1202-1204), which culminated in the sack of Constantinople in 1204, severely weakening the empire.
Alexios I Komnenos was the Emperor of the Byzantine Empire during the First Crusade, which occurred largely as a result of his appeals to Western Christendom for help against the tide of Islam.
The Byzantine Empire did not recover from the fall of Constantinople to the Turks because the Turks were a strong local power which captured all of the remaining byzantine territory. Whereas the 4th Crusaders were few in number after they divided up the empire and they only captured part of the Byzantine Empire, the remainder of the Empire split into independent Byzantine powers, one of which the Empire of Nicaea eventually recaptured Constantinople and restored the Byzantine Empire.
In the fourth crusade the Christian Byzantine Empire was attacked by Italian sailors (the Venetians). It was not a true crusade; no Muslim powers were attacked.
Saw an opportunity to neutralize the Byzantine empire and diverted their army to Constantinople.
Saw an opportunity to neutralize the Byzantine empire and diverted their army to Constantinople.
Pope Urban II agreed to help Byzantine Emperor Alexius I because he wanted to unite the Christian church and support the Byzantine Empire against Muslim invaders during the First Crusade.
The city of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, was sacked and partially destroyed by the armies of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. This attack on fellow Christians caused a centuries-long schism in the church and allowed the Turks to conquer parts of the Byzantine Empire.
Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos played a crucial role during the First Crusade by seeking to reclaim territories lost to the Seljuk Turks and securing military assistance from the Western Christian states. He requested that the crusaders take an oath of loyalty to him, which aimed to ensure that the crusade would align with Byzantine interests. While he initially supported the crusaders by providing them with supplies and troops, he later became wary of their intentions, leading to tensions between the Byzantine Empire and the crusading forces. Ultimately, his actions helped shape the course of the crusade and the relationship between the East and West.