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What Were the Crusades?
Mention the word "crusade" to anyone and you'll engender visions of either wild-eyed religious fanatics charging off to kill the infidels, or esteemed holy warriors taking up the burden of a religious mission far greater than themselves. There's no single judgment that can be made about the Crusades or even crusading generally, but it is a subject which merits closer attention than it usually receives.

Crusading Against Christians
Although members of other religions obviously suffered at the hands of good Christians throughout the Middle Ages, it should not be forgotten that other Christians suffered just as much. Augustine's exhortion to compel entry into the church was used with great zeal when church leaders dealt with Christians who dared to follow a different sort of religious path.

Military & Political Outcome of the Crusades
The first and perhaps most important thing we should bear in mind is that when all is said and done, from a political and military perspective the Crusades were a massive failure. The First Crusade was successful enough that European leaders were able to scratch out kingdoms which included such cities as Jerusalem, Acre, Bethlehem, and Antioch. After that, though, everything went downhill.