What Happened to the Children of the Children’s Crusade?
The children and young people of the Children’s Crusade of 1212 met a variety of fates, most of them tragic. The best modern study is Gary Dickson’s The Children’s Crusade: Medieval Fact, Modern Fancy? (2008), which is the place to start. Some returned home, some died of disease or starvation on the journey, and some, according to the most famous version of the story, were sold into slavery in North Africa. The question of what happened to the children has been the subject of intense historical debate, and the popular tradition, which emphasises the sale into slavery, has shaped modern perceptions of the episode. The most famous version — the one in which Marseille merchants led the children onto ships and sold them to slave traders in North Africa — is found in several medieval sources, but it is not in all of them, and the modern consensus is that it is at least partly a later embellishment. The historical truth is more complicated and harder to recover than the popular legend suggests.
For the broader context, see the main article on the Children’s Crusade, the Nicholas of Cologne article, and was the Children’s Crusade real.
The Departure from Germany
The German branch of the Children’s Crusade set out from various cities in the Rhineland and southern Germany in the summer of 1212. According to the contemporary accounts, the participants included young men and women, mostly in their teens and twenties, but also some older participants and some younger children. The numbers reported by the chroniclers are unreliable, with some sources claiming 7,000 or more participants. The modern consensus is that several thousand young people were involved, perhaps as many as 20,000 or 30,000.
The participants came from a variety of social backgrounds. Some were from the lower classes, drawn by the apocalyptic mood of the period. Others were from better-off families, including some students from the cathedral schools and possibly from the University of Paris. The participants were drawn by the preaching of Nicholas of Cologne, and by the general religious enthusiasm of the period.
The departure from Germany was a major event. The participants marched in groups, often singing hymns and carrying crosses. They were welcomed in many places, with the local population providing food and shelter. The ecclesiastical authorities were divided in their response: some bishops supported the movement, while others tried to stop it. Pope Innocent III, who was preoccupied with the Fourth Crusade and its aftermath, eventually forbade the movement.
The Journey to the Sea
The journey to the sea was a difficult one. The participants marched on foot, often for weeks at a time, and they suffered from heat, thirst, and disease. The march was particularly hard on the youngest participants, who were not used to the physical demands of long-distance travel. Many of the participants fell ill or died on the journey, and many others returned home out of exhaustion or discouragement.
The journey was also marked by various acts of kindness and cruelty. In some places, the local population welcomed the participants, providing food and shelter. In other places, the participants were viewed with suspicion or hostility, and they were turned away or even attacked. The participants were also vulnerable to robbers and other criminals, who took advantage of the chaos of the movement.
The march reached the Italian and French coasts in late July 1212. Some groups reached the sea, where they expected a miracle that would allow them to walk to the Holy Land. The miracle did not happen, and the participants were forced to consider other options.
The Sale into Slavery
The most famous version of what happened to the children of the Children’s Crusade is that they were sold into slavery in North Africa. According to this version, two merchants from Marseille offered to transport the children to the Holy Land by ship. The merchants, however, were slave traders, and they sold the children into slavery in North Africa.
The story of the sale into slavery is found in several medieval sources, including the chronicle of Alberic of Trois-Fontaines and the Chronica regia Coloniensis of Cologne. The story has shaped the popular tradition, and it is one of the most tragic episodes in medieval history. According to the most famous version, two of the merchants were hanged when they returned to Marseille, but the children were never seen again.
Modern historians have questioned the details of the story. Some have argued that the children who reached North Africa were pilgrims, not slaves, and that the story of their enslavement is a later embellishment. Others have argued that the story is based on real events, but that the children were sold as servants rather than as slaves. The truth is probably a mixture, with some children being sold into slavery and others being taken into service.
The Return Home
Some of the participants of the Children’s Crusade returned home. According to the contemporary accounts, the local ecclesiastical authorities in many places urged the participants to abandon the movement and to return to their families. Some of the participants did so, and they were welcomed home. Others, however, were too embarrassed or too committed to return, and they continued on their way.
The return home was a difficult experience for many of the participants. They had been caught up in a religious enthusiasm that they could not sustain, and they were often met with suspicion or hostility by their families and communities. The ecclesiastical authorities tried to reintegrate them into normal life, and the local bishops issued pastoral letters urging the faithful to welcome the returning children. The reintegration was a slow process, and many of the participants carried the psychological scars of the experience for years.
The Death of Nicholas
The fate of Nicholas of Cologne, the leader of the German movement, is one of the most poignant aspects of the Children’s Crusade. According to the most famous version, Nicholas was one of those sold into slavery in North Africa. His parents eventually learned of his fate and sent an emissary to ransom him, but the emissary found him already dead.
The story of Nicholas’s death is found in the Chronica regia Coloniensis of Cologne, written in the second half of the 13th century. The chronicle is a late source, and the details of Nicholas’s death are not confirmed by other sources. Modern historians have questioned the story, but it has shaped the popular tradition.
The Long-Term Impact
The Children’s Crusade had a limited long-term impact on the medieval world. The participants were mostly young people, and the survivors returned to their normal lives. The memory of the Children’s Crusade, however, persisted, and it has been the subject of numerous works of literature, art, and music. The Children’s Crusade has also been invoked in various political contexts, including campaigns against human trafficking and in the defense of children’s rights.
The Children’s Crusade is also significant for what it tells us about the medieval world. The movement was a vivid illustration of the religious enthusiasm of the period, and of the dangers of apocalyptic thinking. It also shows the limits of papal authority, the difficulty of controlling popular religious movements, and the vulnerability of young people in the medieval world. The Children’s Crusade, in this sense, is a microcosm of the medieval world, with all its faith, its violence, and its tragedy.