Introduction

In the call to crusade that ignited the idea of holy war in the minds of the western European populace, Pope Urban II painted a picture of evil “infidels” torturing and massacring the Christians of the Holy Land. However, when the armed pilgrims of the First Crusade crossed over into Asia Minor, the situation was not as they had been led to believe – not least because they found a Christian population living alongside their supposed mortal enemies. Speaking to a range of expert historians in this third episode of our latest HistoryExtra podcast series, we follow the crusaders from hardship to hardship, as they face their first conflict and struggle across Asia Minor en route to the Levant.

The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices