Bernard of Clairvaux Advocates Second Crusade

Bernard of Clairvaux delivered a compelling sermon at Vézelay, calling for the Second Crusade in front of an assembled crowd, including King Louis VII of France. In this influential discourse, Bernard emphasized the spiritual duty of Christians to reconquer the Holy Land, notably highlighting the plight of the church and the loss of Jerusalem to Muslim forces. Louis VII, inspired by Bernard's passionate appeal, pledged his support and joined the Crusade, marking a significant moment in the history of the ecclesiastical and political landscape of 12th-century France. This event galvanized many to take up the call for a new crusade.