The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1895-02-02
THE OHILDREN's CRUSADE.
An Ancient Young Peoples Movement.
BY MARY d. DODGE.

owed by a DARKNESS SO great that 1t
is almost impossible for us, in the
nineteenth century, to imagine it.
AS we glance back at those far away
times picture rises before us of
bloody wars, and of wretched homes,
few of the inhabitants of which could
read or write. A sad ignorance of
the first principles of Christianity
prevailed even among the clergy, and
yet it was at this time that Pope In
nocent III. was exerting his power
in behalf of the cause of Christ and
earnestly preaching the sixth crusade.
The Christians in Palestine were in a
most pitiable condition; the Ssviour's
tomb had been wrested from them,
and was in the hands of the Saracens,
they had now but three cities in their
possession and the Saracens were
gathering large army with which
to defeat them utterly. Every art
that the Pope could devise was used
to arouse the people to aid the cru
saders, but younger hearts than those
he had meant to touch were the first
to respond to the appeal, and the re-
suit was "The Children's Crusade"
The records of this great move
ment by the little ones are few and
short, and this meagerness of detail
is very strange. 1t may partly be
accounted for by the fact that much
less thought was given to children
then than now, and the chroniclers
were SO busy recording what seemed
to them the more important events,
that small space was left for the his
tory of the little Crusaders.
The movement started in France in
the year 1912. Its first preacher was
Stephen of Cloyes, poor shepherd
boy about twelve years old, who was
made to believe by priest that he
was divinely called to lead the child
rem to recover the tomb of the Saviour.
At the same time Nicholas, ten year
old German boy, was urged by his
father to similar undertaking.
Stephen went at once to ST. Denys
and Nicholas to Cologne, and both
enthusiastically proclaimed their It'd
ings to ever increasing numbers.
The children were already stirred
by the powerful appeals of the Pope,
and now, on receiving this special
call, responded with joy and eager
ness. The majority of the children
were inspired by pure, high motives,
but there were some who joined the
ranks from desire for glory, or
wish to escape from the restraints of
home. There were with the little
crusaders many adults, also some
priests, filled with the same enthusi-
asm as the little ones, and some
wicked men and women who hoped
to plumber the unsuspecting children.
But by far the greatest number were
children of ten or twelve years, who
were fired with religious motives, and
so strong was their zeal that their pa
rents and friends were powerless to
keep them at home. They rushed to
join the crusade, encouraged by the
approval of many, and by the stories
they had heard from their infancy of
the wonderful deeds of the Crusad
ers, and by their own dreams of sue
cess and renown. The Pope en-
couraged the crusade, for he thought
that it would awaken an interest on
the part of the older people. There
were many sorrowful homes from
which the children had departed and
many parents mourned for the little
ones whom they would never see
again. But the children knew no
thoughts of defeat. Stephen and
Nicholas declared that God had
promised to provide dry path across
the sea, and, they reasoned, would
not he, who was to perform SO great
a miracle for them, surely give them
glorious victoryi
Stephen had appointed Vendome
as the starting place, while Nicholas
chose Cologne, and to these two
places the children focked in great
numbers, gathered from nearly all
parts of France and Germany by
"minor prophets" as they were called.
A few months after the first preach
ing of the crusade the two bands
started, the Germans numbering
about twenty thousand and the
French thirty thousand The Ger
mans soon divided into two armies,
one led by Nicholas and the other by
a boy whose name is unknown. The
route of the former was over Mount
Gents and that of the latter over st.
Gothard.
No words can describe the hard,
ships of the children on their long
march to the sea. Many were cap
tured on the way and spent their lives