Sack of Constantinople and Venice during the Fourth Crusade

Sack of Constantinople and Venice During the Fourth Crusade
Name
University
Course
Date
Sack of Constantinople and Venice During the Fourth Crusade
The sack of Constantinople and Venice was undoubtedly a critical time for both the Muslim and Christian sides. To assault, seize, and loot the Byzantine city of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade, the Crusaders were forced to divert their attention away from the Holy Land, dividing and dissipating Christian efforts to sustain the struggle against the Muslims. Venice enlisted in the Fourth Crusade to safeguard and advance her own financial and diplomatic interests. The initial plan for the Crusade was for the crusaders to sail from Venice aboard the Venetian navy and infiltrate the Islamic nations via Egypt, which was considered to be the weakest of the Muslim-occupied territories at the time. The city of Constantinople was attacked and plundered by the Venetians and European crusaders throughout the Middle Ages. Immediately after the fall of Constantinople, the Venetians and European crusaders joined forces to form the Latin Empire. This paper will critically analyze three articles and their recollection of the siege of Constantinople and the activities of the crusaders and Venetians.
The first article, Memory and Propaganda in Venice after the Fourth Crusade by Luigi Andrea Berto, demonstrates, via an examination of the first Venetian chronicle produced following the Fourth Crusade, how the Venetian governing elites wished to convey their recent history to the public. Arguably many historians had in many events contemplated and related the experiences of the fourth Crusade and how the byzantine cities were attacked, how Venice took part in the war, the implication of their participation and how Constantinople suffered under the hands of the crusaders. In no doubt, the crusades were started to 'cleanse' the lands and rid them of other non-Christian religions. However, by the time the fourth Crusade started, the Christians were already fighting against each other. The article tries to relate the events that happened from a Venetian perspective. The chronicle makes it evident that the author's purpose is to educate the public about the Venetians' history, adding that, since God has always bestowed honours, wealth, and glory upon them, everyone should be aware of the Venetians' past. Without a Venetian viewpoint on the Fourth Crusade, it is impossible to have a comprehensive knowledge of the event in question. It also deprives the historian of an essential element in constructing the civic and ecclesiastical context of medieval Venice.[Berto, Luigi Andrea. "Memory and Propaganda in Venice after the Fourth Crusade." Mediterranean Studies 24, no. 2 (2016): 111-138.]
Specifically, it demonstrates that the author of the peculiar Venetian chronicle and many of his compatriots sought to draw attention to the fact that the Venetians provided essential help toward the protection and building of the City of Jerusalem without demanding any pecuniary compensation. Here, the chroniclers argue that though Venice was responsible for the fall of Constantinople, their initial relationship was far from violent. The Venetians had been excellent friends and partners of the Byzantines for centuries. The breakdown of this partnership and the capture of Constantinople had to be ascribed to the rulers of the Byzantine Empire's reckless conduct and ungratefulness. By exaggerating or omitting a few incidents, they also hoped to illustrate that Venice had always enjoyed perfect internal peace and, as a result, portrayed a utopian state to the rest of the world.[Berto, Luigi Andrea. "Memory and Propaganda in Venice after the Fourth Crusade," 2016]
On a similar note, "The Venetian Version of the Fourth Crusade: Memory and the Conquest of Constantinople in Medieval Venice” by Thomas F. Madden argues that the war or the fourth Crusade was indeed a significant battle. Sadly, it was told primarily from the perspective of other crusaders, the besieged cities and the actual war. Like Berto, Madden tries to analyze some Venetian texts describing events before and during the Crusade. He argues that though we can illustrate and understand the events that transpired, memoirs, recollections, and literature from the Venetian side would have improved the historiographical understanding of the individual soldiers who participated in the war. For instance, he writes of a will by a wealthy Venetian man who left for war believing that he was going to fight a holy war, and he left all his belongings to his wife. There was no explanation of what transpired after that, but it implied that the Venetians reacted to the request promptly. The soldiers will stress the religious aspect of this mission. It indicates that his countrymen acted in a way fitting for this kind of expedition by describing that the doge and many Venetian nobilities took up the cross. After receiving a holy flag from the Pope, they set off for the Holy Land in the name of Christ. Nonetheless, this gives a different perspective of war and the...