Sæwulf

[1] His Latin written account of his pilgrimage tells of an arduous and dangerous journey; and Sæwulf's descriptive narrative provides scholars brief but significant insight into sea travel across the Mediterranean to the new Kingdom of Jerusalem that was established soon after the end of the First Crusade.

Sæwulf's telling of his travels on pilgrimage to the Holy Land start in Apulia on 13 July 1102 with his boarding ship at Monopoli.

He noted the road between Jaffa and Jerusalem "was very dangerous...because the Saracens are continually plotting an ambush...day and night always keeping a lookout for someone to attack".

[4] He noted the presence of many corpses of pilgrims abandoned on and near the road, unburied because of the rough ground and reasons of safety, as "[a]nybody who did this would dig a grave not for his fellow Christian but for himself.

"[5] For Jerusalem, Sæwulf related guidebook-like details highlighting important sites for pilgrims,[6] including the famous Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Illuminated manuscript depicting city map of Jerusalem under Crusader control , c. 1200s.