The directions for this assignment are also on page 6 of the Crusades FV Lesson! Assignment Directions:
Step 1

Read the portions of the letters written by King Richard I of England and Malek Nasser Yusuf Saladin, Sultan of Egypt and Syria.

The image shows a drawing of Richard I of England.
Richard I of England© Archive Photos / Getty Images / Universal Images Group / Image Quest 2015

In 1191, Richard I of England reportedly wrote these words in a letter to Saladin:

Greet him, O my letter, and tell him that both [Muslims] and Franks are reduced to the last extremity; their towns are destroyed and the resources of both sides in men and goods are reduced to nothing. Surely we have had enough of this state of things, and it is only a question of Jerusalem, the Holy Cross and [our old] possessions.…Jerusalem we are resolved not to renounce so long as we have a single man left.

The image shows a drawing of Malek Nasser Yusuf Saladin, Sultan of Egypt and Syria.
Malek Nasser Yusuf Saladin, Sultan of Egypt and Syria© Hulton Archive / Hulton Archive / Getty Images / Universal Images Group / Image Quest 2015

Saladin wrote this passage in response:

To us, Jerusalem is as precious, aye and more precious, than it is to you, in that it was the place whence our prophet made his journey by night to heaven and is destined to be the gathering place of our nation at the last day. Do not dream that we shall give it up to you or that we can be so obliging in this manner. As to the land—it belonged to us originally, and it is you who are the real aggressors.

Step 2

Use what you know about primary sources to analyze, or break down, the meaning of these excerpts. Then, answer each of the following questions in complete sentences:

What was Richard I saying? (2 or more sentences)
What was Saladin saying? (2 or more sentences)
What do these letters reveal about why people fought in the Crusades? (2 or more sentences)