Recovery of the Holy Land
The theme of recovery of the Holy Land (Latin: recuperatio Terrae Sanctae) was a genre in High–Late Medieval Christian literature about the Crusades.
[2] In the bull Salvator noster (31 March 1272) and again in 1273, Gregory X issued similar requests for advice in writing in preparation for the Second Council of Lyon.
Gilbert of Tournai's Collectio de scandalis ecclesiae, probably written in response to the appeal of 1273, saw the solution to the problem of the crusade in moral reform and regeneration in the West.
The only one of these early treatises to somewhat resemble those that came later is the Opus tripartitum of Humbert of Romans, which argued against criticism of crusading and for careful planning prior to any expedition.
The most important source for Gregory X's discussions with secular rulers concerning the crusade is the autobiographical Llibre dels fets of King James I of Aragon.
"[4] The first of the recovery treatises that can be precisely dated, the Liber de recuperationis Terrae Sanctae of Fidentius of Padua, had its genesis in Gregory X's appeals, but took so long to complete that it was not finished until 1290 or 1291, just before loss of Acre.
All three advocated a first attack on Mamluk Egypt to establish a beachhead, followed by a naval blockade, before making an assault on the Holy Land.
King Charles II of Naples, who claimed the throne of Jerusalem, wrote a restrained and practical proposal that was probably not published until the 1292–1294 papal interregnum.
Around the same time, the Armenian Hayton of Korykos visited Europe and produced a recovery treatise at Clement's express request.
[4] Several independent treatises were also written during the pontificate of Clement V. In 1305, Lull wrote a new proposal addressed to King James II of Aragon.
With papal support, a crusade against Algeciras was launched by James of Aragon and Ferdinand IV of Castile in August that year.
[18] In 1306, Pierre Dubois wrote De recuperatione Terre Sancte, divided into two parts dedicated, respectively, to Edward I of England and Philip IV of France.
[19] The anonymous Descriptio Europae Orientalis, written around 1310–1311, is a crusade proposal for the recovery, not of the Holy Land, but of the Empire of Constantinople.
[23] Simultaneously with Philip V's final council, Marino Sanudo Torsello presented to John XXII his Liber secretorum fidelium crucis, which was to become the most famous of recovery treatises.
[25] Sanudo witnessed some of the negotiations between John and Charles over an expedition to aid Armenia, in which the king proposed a three-stage crusade with progressively larger forces.
[24] The last proposal intended for Charles IV was written by García de Ayerbe, who laid stress on a Franco-Spanish alliance.
He had previously requested and received written advice from the Republic of Venice, urging the blockade of Egypt and defensive actions against the Anatolian Turks.
In 1335, Guido da Vigevano wrote Philip an unusual treatise about maintaining his health while on crusade and about various contraptions Guy had designed for prosecuting the war.
[27] Around that time, Roger of Stanegrave dedicated a treatise to King Edward III of England, who was planning to join Philip's crusade.
Pope Benedict XII cancelled Philip's projected crusade in 1336 amid the rising tensions that would lead to the outbreak of the Hundred Years' War in 1337.
