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Crusader
Crusaders were participants in a holy war sanctioned by the Pope. They were tasked with recovering holy lands from the Muslims in the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries.

Etymology
The original crusaders were know by various terms including fideles Sancti Petri (the faithful of Saint Peter) or milites Christi (knights of Christ). They also are referred as disputants advocating reform and a warrior who engages in a holy war. They saw themselves undertaking an iter, a journey or a pilgrimage. The word "crusade" developed with "taking of the cross." Each crusader took a vow to be fulfilled upon reaching Jerusalem and were granted a cloth cross (crux) to be sewn on their attire. The crux eventually became associated with the entire journey; the word "crusade" (coming into English from the Medieval French croisade and Spanish cruzada) develops from this.

Crusader Origins
The Crusades were a series of religious expeditionary wars blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church, with the stated goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem. The Crusades were originally launched in response to a call from the leaders of the Byzantine Empire for help to fight the expansion into Anatolia of Muslim Seljuk Turks who had cut off access to Jerusalem. The immediate cause of the First Crusade was the Byzantine emperor Alexios I's appeal to Pope Urban II for mercenaries to help him resist Muslim advances into territory of the Byzantine Empire. Although attempts at reconciliation after the East–West Schism between the Catholic Church in western Europe and the Eastern Orthodox Church had failed, Alexius I hoped for a positive response from Urban II. The Council of Clermont was called in 1095 and Pope Urban II launched the crusades. Urban's solution was announced on the last day of the council when the pope suddenly proclaimed the Crusade against the infidel Muslims. He called for Christian princes across Europe to launch a holy war in the Holy Land. He charged Christians to take up the holy cause, promising to all those who went remission of sins and to all who died in the expedition immediate entry into heaven.

Incentive of the Crusader
Several hundred thousand soldiers were named Crusaders after taking vows coupled with the Pope granting them plenary indulgences. In Catholic theology, an indulgence is the full or partial remission of temporal punishment due for sins which have already been forgiven. The indulgence is granted by the Catholic Church after the sinner has confessed and received absolution. Crusaders also received plunder from the war which allowed them to head home with a sum of wealth if they were not wealthy before. Freedom from serfdom was another incentive as serving in the "Army of God" allowed them to escape a life a life of oppression and toil.

Arms and Armor
Crusaders and their arms changed over the course of the eight Crusades. The crusader soldier wore a helmet, a shield and a hauberk during the First and Second Crusades. Soldiers typically wore Chain or Scale mail, though the price was quite high. Protection became more imperative in the Crusades following. The emergence of the famous Heaume followed along with Steel Plating increased the ability to survive in combat.