Historical eventOctober 211096

First Crusade

First Crusade: At the Battle of Civetot, the Seljuk forces of Kilij Arslan destroyed the army of the People's Crusade as it marched toward Nicaea.

Everything on October 21Original source

In context

When
Tuesday, October 21 1096930 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
11th century · 1090s
Calendar
Julian — as recorded at the time
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

Dates before 15 October 1582 are in the Julian calendar, so the weekday shown follows the Julian reckoning of the time.

At a glance

Dates: From 1096.

What happened

The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, which were initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the Middle Ages. Their aim was to return the Holy Land—which had been conquered by the Rashidun Caliphate in the 7th century—to Christian rule. By the 11th century, although Jerusalem had then been ruled by Muslims for hundreds of years, the practices of the Seljuk rulers in the region began to threaten local Christian populations,

October 21 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1096First Crusade
  2. 1994Agreed Framework
  3. 1994Seoul
  4. 1994Seongsu Bridge disaster
  5. 2003Eris (dwarf planet)
  6. 2007Kimi Räikkönen
  7. 2011Iraq War
  8. 20182018 Yilan train derailment
  9. 2019Canada
  10. 2019Democratic Republic of the Congo
  11. 2021Rust shooting incident

Sources

Cite this page

“First Crusade”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/first-crusade-1096-october-21, accessed October 28, 2026.

Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.

Questions about this entry

When did First Crusade happen?

October 21 1096 — 930 years ago, on a Tuesday.

Is this a Julian or a Gregorian date?

It is the date as recorded at the time, on the Julian calendar. The Gregorian equivalent falls about ten days later; sources from different countries may give either.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

How do I cite this page?

Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.

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