The Crusades were a series of religious wars fought between Christians and Muslims over control of the Holy Land. Traditionally, they took place between 1095 and 1291. The Holy Land was and still is a place that is very important for the three major monotheistic religions: Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. There are many important religious sites in the Holy Land. This is the land now called Israel or Palestine. Jerusalem, Nazareth, Bethlehem and other religious sites fell under the control of Muslims during the Caliphate of Omar (634-44).
There were many different crusades. The most important and biggest Crusades took place from the 11th century to the 13th century. There were 9 large Crusades during this time. They are numbered 1 through 9. There were also many smaller Crusades. Some crusades were even within Europe (for example, in Germany, Austria and Scandinavia). The smaller Crusades continued to the 16th century, until the Renaissance and Reformation.

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