The Crusades, the Genoese and the Latin East - DSpace at ...

Individual Genoese and Genoese ships hastened
to the Latin East as soon as the news of he crisis
in the kingdom of Jerusalem reached them. Especially valuable was the contribution of the
Genoese contingent that sailed to Tyre in 1189. Careful examination of the list of Genoese
crusaders showed that many of them perished during the crusade while others were taken captive.
The notarial records contain evidence of Genoese crusaders who joined the French and English
contingents also in 1190. Some merchants who could not join the crusade themselves had donated
money and supplies for their fellow crusaders. The Genoese aid was therefore offered by
supplying the ships for the transportation of the crusaders but also by providing supplies to the
crusaders who were suffering from hunger at the siege of Acre.
The people of Genoa, however, also expected to profit from the crusade. The shipping
contract signed between the consuls of Genoa and the French at the beginning of 1190 was
followed by preparations for the embarkation. The consuls of Genoa did not hesitate to charge the
king of France high price for the despatching of his army. It was made clear that individual
merchants anticipated high profit too. Thus, the Genoese wine-merchant Mabilia Lecavello sold
her wine for higher price than usual. Moreover, sailors in cargo ships loaded with grain travelled
to the Latin East to assist the crusaders. However, they suspiciously requested their payment in
grain which they could obviously sell for a much higher price than their usual salary. The
shipping of the crusaders involved social aspects, such as the relationship between the
shipowners, the merchants, the crusaders and the sailors. The reconstruction of these travel
experiences was one of the main achievements of the analysis of the notarial records from the
years of the Third Crusade. It also highlights the gap in the story of the Third Crusade by the lack
of such documents from the year 1189, in which Genoese
took direct part in the crusade and the
defence of what remained of the kingdom of Jerusalem.
Another aspect of the crusade which was examined in this chapter was the impact of the
crusade on the Genoese web of commerce. Trade in English clothes was one such effect but also
remarkable were some social aspects of the crusade witnessed through the English experience in
Genoa, when a community of English merchants began to establish itself in the city. Other people
who travelled through the port of Genoa enriched the locals with the unfamiliar products and
must have exposed them to new cultures and ideas. Bankers profited from the pilgrims and
crusaders who required more money. Genoa was a crossroad to all these people during the time of
the Third Crusade. The inhabitants of Genoa bequeathed the crusade with their maritime and
legal experience and were also influenced by the travellers who visited their city.
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