Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights:#1 When Saewulf visited Jerusalem, he was able to see and feel the power of prayer magnified by the presence of relics and holy sites. Jerusalem was not just seen, but felt as well.#2 The most holy place of all, and the real object of every Christian pilgrimage, lay within Jerusalem. It was the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which Saewulf called more celebrated than any other church. It was a double-storied complex of interlinked chapels and courtyards, many of which commemorated the central events in the Passion.#3 The city of Jerusalem had been under Muslim control since the seventh century, when an Arab army wrested it from Byzantine Christian rule. In 1096, major parts of the Holy Land was conquered by the armies of the First Crusade, led by noblemen from France, Normandy, England, Flanders, Bavaria, Lombardy, and Sicily.#4 The First Crusade was a series of Christian victories that brought the Seljuq empire to its knees. The Christians took the major northern cities of Edessa and Antioch, as well as smaller towns. Other coastal towns, such as Arsuf, Acre, and Caesarea, agreed to pay tributes and were left alone.