crusade

[kroo-seyd] /kruˈseɪd/
noun
1.
(often initial capital letter) any of the military expeditions undertaken by the Christians of Europe in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries for the recovery of the Holy Land from the Muslims.
2.
any war carried on under papal sanction.
3.
any vigorous, aggressive movement for the defense or advancement of an idea, cause, etc.:
a crusade against child abuse.
verb (used without object), crusaded, crusading.
4.
to go on or engage in a crusade.
Origin
1570-80; earlier crusada < Spanish cruzada; replacing croisade < Middle French. See cross, -ade1
Related forms
crusader, noun
noncrusading, adjective
post-Crusade, adjective
pre-Crusade, adjective
British Dictionary definitions for crusades

crusade

/kruːˈseɪd/
noun
1.
(often capital) any of the military expeditions undertaken in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries by the Christian powers of Europe to recapture the Holy Land from the Muslims
2.
(formerly) any holy war undertaken on behalf of a religious cause
3.
a vigorous and dedicated action or movement in favour of a cause
verb (intransitive)
4.
to campaign vigorously for something
5.
to go on a crusade
Derived Forms
crusader, noun
Word Origin
C16: from earlier croisade, from Old French crois cross, from Latin crux; influenced also by Spanish cruzada, from cruzar to take up the cross
Word Origin and History for crusades

crusade

n.

1706, respelling of croisade (1570s), from Middle French croisade (16c.), Spanish cruzada, both from Medieval Latin cruciata, past participle of cruciare "to mark with a cross," from Latin crux (genitive crucis) "cross." Other Middle English forms were croiserie, creiserie. Figurative sense of "campaign against a public evil" is from 1786.

v.

1732, from crusade (n.). Related: Crusaded; crusading.

crusades in Culture

Crusades definition


A series of wars fought from the late eleventh through the thirteenth centuries, in which European kings and warriors set out to gain control of the lands in which Jesus lived, known as the Holy Land. At that time, these areas were held by Muslims. The Crusaders conquered Jerusalem in 1099 but failed to secure the Holy Land, and they were driven out by the late thirteenth century. Nevertheless, the Crusades had several lasting results, including the exposure of Europeans to the goods, technology, and customs of Asia.

Note: The Crusades left a legacy of bitterness against Europeans and Christians among Muslims.