Muslim political authorities initially failed to mount a strong defense against the crusaders attack which led to many deaths. One of the major reasons as Ansary (2009, p.142) claims is the disunity among the Muslim believers. They did not perceive the attacks as based on ideologies but believed that it was an attack on individuals, states, and cities. Despite the efforts of a few Muslim preachers trying to provoke resistance among the Muslims, most of them did not see any sense in it. The second reason is the pride that Kilij Arslan, the Muslim ruler, had after he first overpowered and killed some crusaders. News of the second attack did not arouse any alarm as Kilij Arslan was sure that it would not be a hard task for him. The result was however devastating and he had to run away. The rivalries that existed at this time were purely ideological differences based on religious beliefs. In the quest to conquer Jerusalem, the Pope sent forth crusaders to kill the Muslims with the promise of partial remission of sins if they killed (Ansary, 2009, p.137).
The crusaders burnt up almost the whole community of Jews in Jerusalem. This happened when the Jews decided to take refuge in a big common synagogue praying for deliverance. The crusaders blocked all doors and windows and set the structure on fire, killing all of them (Ansary, 2009, p.141). The Eastern Christians were not safe either since the crusaders sent them to exile after seizing their belonging. The crusaders looked at the Easter Christians as undecided fellows who neither believed in Christianity nor Islam. Ansary (2009, p. 140) records that the crusaders regarded the Eastern Christians as worse than heathens because of their lukewarm nature.
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Reference
Ansary, T. (2009). Destiny disrupted: A history of the world through Islamic eyes . Public Affairs.
