The Fourth CrusadeIs karma the reason for the slow but evident sinking of Venice into the Mediterranean? Perhaps it is compensation for Venice's cruel, selfish acts during the Fourth Crusade. The Venetians together with the Crusaders robbed Constantinople for personal gains. The Fourth Crusade should be an example of how cruel and unjust it is to attack other men for no reason. The Crusades were a series of battles and short wars against Muslims. In the 11th century, Jerusalem was conquered by the Turks. This triggered the Crusades, which ended up lasting 200 years. The Third Crusade was considered unsuccessful because Jerusalem was still in Muslim hands. In 1198, Pope Innocent expressed the need for a Fourth Crusade. The excitement was stirred up by the priest Faulk of Neuilly after he preached at a tournament of knights (Williams 103). In other areas the recruitment work "was carried out on tour by major prelates, who preached sermons aimed at inducing listeners to take up the cross" (103). At the time Egypt was the center of Muslim power, so Egypt was the intended target. Unknown to the crusaders, ambassadors from the Doge of Venice Enrico Dandolo were in Egypt to negotiate with the sultan and assure him that Egypt would not be attacked (Williams 104). Dandolo wanted to attack Constantinople. The leader of the crusaders, Count Boniface, agreed with Dandolo. In Venice, Dandolo agreed to provide enough ships for 33,500 men and 4,500 horses, as well as an additional 50 armed galleys (Williams 104). At the scheduled departure date there were only 10,000 men ready to leave (Robinson). Subsequently, 30,000 men arrived but a new problem arose. The men had only 51,000 marks when the price of the ships was set at 85,000. Dandolo agreed to suspend the debt if... middle of paper... a new throne and Catholicism was the new state religion (Cooke). However, “the gains gained by the Fourth Crusade vanished, as water vanishes on a hot stone” (Williams 116). What seemed like a simple attack on Egypt turned into the destruction of the greatest city on earth. It was done out of greed and by selfish people. Everyone in the hierarchy was involved up to the Pope who saw his treasure rise from the gold of Constantinople. Dandolo was a good strategist but a rough man. Today many people still resent him and one scholar was asked if he knew the location of Dandolo's grave and he replied "Yes, I go there and spit on it" (Cooke). Venice reached new heights in terms of wealth, but this came at a price. Venice is sinking into the Mediterranean. Maybe it's karma and I hope this was a lesson that it's unfair to attack your fellow man out of greed.