Crusade Eschatology as Seen by St. Bernard in the Years 1146 to 1148

Abstract

The Second Crusade had ended a failure; indeed, it had proved to be an utter disaster. Harsh criticism was levelled against the man who had been its principal driving force, Bernard of Clairvaux. The impact of his strong personality had a lasting effect all the same. The Cistercian Order, soon after his death, in an attempt to achieve his formal canonization, was obliged to play down the degree of Bernard’s commitment to the Crusade. It would not be difficult to show how the Order at Clairvaux deliberately minimized Bernard’s role, creating a gap in the tradition.¹