Sunday, June 25, 2023

Snappy Answers to History Questions VII

Why didn't the crusaders invade Egypt?

They actually did. The Fifth, Baron’s and Seventh Crusades each had a significant Egyptian component to them. The Baron’s Crusade in fact was defeated by the Ayyubid Egyptians at the Battle of Gaza in 1239. The Earlier Fifth Crusade (1217–1221) proved to be a failure and the Seventh (the first of Louis IX’s two Crusades) saw the Crusaders routed by the Egyptians at Mansurah and Fariskur (both in 1250).


Why was John Hus convicted of heresy?


The Czech Jan Hus was one of the early church theologians who was associated with the Bohemian Reformation and the Hussite Movement (named after him). He lived between 1372 and 1415 and was the predecessor to later Protestant reformers - Luther, Calvin and Zwingli.

His main heresy from the perspective of Rome was that he spoke out against Pope Alexander V and the Antipope John XXIII over the selling of indulgences. For his troubles he was excommunicated, exiled, then asked to recant (which he refused), imprisoned and then burnt at the stake. His famous line was "I would not for a chapel of gold retreat from the truth!".

After his death pro and anti-Hussite factions (largely championed by the Catholic Church) would clash in what became known as the Hussite Wars (1420–1431) with the followers of Huss eventually growing to become a majority in Bohemia and Moravia.

Hus was also critical of other aspects of the Catholic church including ecclesiology and the Eucharist.

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