The crusades impacted the way we live today in many ways. In the outcome, there were both positives and negatives associated with the crusades. It was violent, deceased many, and turned cities into ruins but it also was a job opportunity for merchants and brought many new luxuries to certain places. Some motivation for people to fight in the crusades were different than its organizers. The original reason many wanted to come fight in the crusades is that it would relieve them of all of their sins. Others thought of the crusades as a commercial opportunity and used it to trade and sell items as they were traveling. One more reason people went to fight in the crusades is to settle down. They went with the crusades but once they were in the Muslim …show more content…
The economic impact, positive effects, and a bit of the legacy greatly influenced the crusades and the future. The merchants in Venice created a group of large ships in order to travel to the holy land carrying crusader. Later on, they used these same fleets in the Crusaders' states to open up markets so the merchants could sell and trade their items. The Italian merchants traded items such as “sugar, cotton, rice, and muslin” (document 2). This economically impacted how people live and created a lot of economic activity and trading routes. Some positive effects of the crusades were the Established communities that were created in the crusader states by European merchants. Trades between these European merchants/businessmen were still encouraged. “The Muslim rulers still encouraged trades” between the Europeans and the Muslims because it benefits both customer and seller/trader (document 5). Legacy’s of the crusades are still remembered and greatly make an impression on the future. Luxuries and more were brought to Europe when the crusaders returned. The luxuries that returned with the crusaders consisted of spices, sugar, and silk. All of these items had new and special used to the Europeans. “The silk replaced wool in the clothing of many lords and ladies. Spices were used to keep foods from spoiling”(document 8). The merchants and nobles were so pleased by these new luxuries that they wanted