The Fourth Crusade - Chronicles of Baldwin The Mad

**The Fourth Crusade - The Chronicles of Baldwin the Mad:**

Baldwin III Of France, called a visionary by the men of the south and a lunatic by the people of north. A polarized figure representing the divide between the north and south, the Christian and the Muslim.

With this simple wiki we will try to explain the divide between between historians of old and of modern as to the true nature of Baldwin III of France.

Was the man who doomed the crusade and countless crusaders to their deaths, who butchered them in their sleep, who tore up the chest of the Holy Roman Emperor open in a pagan sacrifice to dark gods truly mad; some Muslim historians still doubt the truth, but we all know they can't hide from it forever. He doomed France France to civil war, but was he truly mad? Or was he doing it for the greater good?

**The Legendary Saga of Baldwin: Book One - The Holy League Assembles**

-The Holy Roman Empire, the Papal State, the Kingdom of Alba and Brittany, the High Kingdom of Eire, the Kingdom of the Isles, the Republic of Venice, the Republic of Genoa, the Republic of Pisa, and the Kingdom of France under the House of Flanders attacked the Almoravid Caliphate and the Spanish Empire.

-The Crusade lands in Valencia and takes the city, but the Andalusian Field Army begins to assemble to take back Valencia.

-The Kingdom of Portugal joins the War and occupies the more lands in the South.

-The Almoravid Army begins to mobilize to go to Iberia.

-The Spanish Army engages the Portuguese in a Stalemate Battle.

-The Duke of Burgundy and Count of Burgundy form an independent Kingdom known as the Diarchy of Burgundy. The Count however betrays the Duke to become the sole King.

**The Legendary Saga of Baldwin: Book Two - the Siege of Valencia**

-The City of Valencia is surrounded by Almoravid Forces, and the Holy League's Army is trapped within.

-Baldwin the Mad, called Baldwin the Visionary in Iberia and Amazighia(North Africa), meets with the Steward of Al-Andalus to secretly betray the Fourth Crusade lead by the Holy Roman Emperor for the Holy Roman Emperor, also the Duke of Burgundy in France, will inherit the House of Blois soon, which will render the King of The Franks in a much weaker position if both lands rebel. The Almoravids agree to aid Baldwin the Visionary.

-Baldwin asks for Catalonia in exchange for switching sides in an effort to placate the Blois into supporting him.

-Baldwin slaughters the Crusader Army leadership in their sleep and presents Valencia to the Almoravids as a sign of his trustworthiness, effectively burning his bridges with the rest of Europe to gain the trust of the Almoravids. This shocks the World. Even his Almoravid and Spanish Allies who weren't informed of his plan.

**The Legendary Saga of Baldwin: Book Three - The Fall of France**

-The Venetians blockade the West Mediterranean, and the Eastern Roman Empire occupies the Island of Cyprus to secure a Naval Base for future activities against the Ayyubids.

-The Holy Roman Emperor is executed via the Blood Eagle Method outside of Valencia, and Baldwin is excommunicated by the Pope, in addition the Pope decries the Eastern Roman Occupation of Cyprus and the Eastern Romans are added as a target for the Fourth Crusade.

-The Kingdom of France dissolves into the United Kingdoms of Aquitaine and Occitania under the House of Blois, who also rule the Kingdom of Naples and the Crusader State of Jerusalem.

-With the betrayal of the House of Blois, Baldwin The Mad gives his illegitimate blessing to the Almoravids to take back Catalonia.

-The Eastern Roman Empire sends an invasion force onto Italy forcing the Italian States to fight them. Their invasion is disastrous and they suffer a major defeat at the hands of the united Italian States under the Holy Roman Empire with their heavy horsemen being cut down by rows and rows of Papal pikemen and thus the Holy Roman Empire didn't even send any men to help them.

**The Legendary Saga of Baldwin: Book Four - The Unstoppable Army**

-The Almoravid Army sets off to invade the United Kingdom of Occitania. They occupy much of Occitania. The Almoravids purge the Aristocracy from any lands they conquer, but leave the common folk alone. The Cheateux of Southern France are pillaged beyond repair and anyone who can afford it flees in advance of the Almoravid Army.

-Meanwhile, a Ship from the Republic of Pisa mistakenly attacks a Genoan Warship reigniting the War of the Guelphs and Ghibellines in Italy. The Lombard League reforms into the Duchy of Lombardy in this War and later into the Kingdom of Lombardy. Many historians think this was a part of Almoravid deception tactics to try to flame wars to weaken their enemies.

-The Almoravids then conspire with the Eastern Romans to lure the Venetian Navy away from the Western Mediterranean by having the Eastern Roman Fleet blockade the Republic of Venice. This forces the Venetian Navy to withdraw from the Western Mediterranean in a rush and they are sunk decisively in a battle outside Venice by the Eastern Romans.

**The Legendary Saga of Baldwin: Book Five - Duel of the Fates**

-However, as the Spanish Army was enroute conquer the City of La Rochelle and crossing the Dordogne River, they are ambushed by a new Holy Roman Emperor as they cross the River and destroyed. The Almoravids and Spanish maintain that he died a valorous death standing his ground, but the Holy Roman Emperor declares he drowned like a Dog in the Dor**dog**ne River. The Almoravid Army was further uphill the River to take the City of Brive.

-The Joint Army turns back to catch the Holy Roman Emperor, but he is a slippery one and he has disappeared by the time they arrive.

-The Almoravid Caliph declares the Imperial Cathar Republic of Occitania, the first true Republic in Europe since the Romans. However, the new Holy-Roman Army is reinforced by the Army of the Kingdom of Bohemia, and the Burgundian Army and they advance to the City of Beziers in the Imperial Cathar Republic of Occitania.

-The Almoravid Caliph cedes the Title of Emperor of Occitania to the Spanish Emperor, who is more suited to rule such lands due to the fact that both the Cathars and the Spanish Communion is despised by the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church.

-Meanwhile Baldwin decides to sneak away to the face the Pretender King of France, his very own Brother by Blood. He challenges him to duel, and defeats the man so decisively, that many question if Baldwin is truly favored by the Lord Above. In the aftermath, the Supporters of Baldwin and his Brother get into heated arguments which eventually devolve into a riot. During the Riot Baldwin mysteriously disappears and was presumed to have been trampled.

**The Banyuls-Sur-Mer Evacuation and the End of the War**

-As the Almoravids flee from their enemies because of their lack of supplies and heavy losses they are encircled by the Holy Roman Emperor's Armies. When all hope seems lost, the Almoravid Navy saves the day as they whisk away the Almoravid Army from a decisive defeat to Barcelona where a new front line was formed.

-The Almoravids settle in for a long and slow fight, however, neither the Holy Roman Empire, nor the Almoravid Caliphate wish to continue the war and a white peace is signed between the Holy Roman Emperor and the Almoravid Caliphate.

-The Spanish gain the Kingdom of Catalonia as a vassal state.

-The Holy Roman Empire reinstates the House of Blois in Occitania.

-The Balearic Islands were occupied by the Venetians and members of the House Hohenstaufen