Fulcher of Chartes

Definition: Fulcher of Chartes was born in 1059 and was a religiously educated man from France. He lived his life as a cleric and attended the Council of Clermont with Stephen of Blois, Robert of Normandy, and Robert of Flanders (Peters 47) . Later, when he reached Edessa, Fulcher went to Jerusalem with Baldwin when Baldwin was crowned king. Fulcher of Chartes became a canon of the Holy Sepulcher and eventually retired to write a first-hand account of the First Crusade (“Fulcher of Chartes”).

Importance: Fulcher of Chartes provides us with one of the most comprehensive accounts of the First Crusade. He exhibits a remarkable ability to comprehend the complexity of the Crusade with very little hindsight. This is inexplicably important, as most documentation from this time has been lost or was never recorded in the first place. Much of what we know about the First Crusade comes from Fulcher of Chartes’ narrative.

source: http://chain.eu/?m3=22624