[DariusBane]

I love two word replies because they do so much to create a thesis and defend it, as I defended my thesis in subsequent posts. However IF, and I emphasis IF (because it is very difficult for me to respond to your challenge to my thesis) you are having a knee jerk conservative response, Arabs bad, Crusades good, then we do have a disagreement. The times of the crusades were very complicated politically, in fact they were byzantine in their complexities. Factions upon factions. But if you are arguing that the fourth crusade did not bring about a 200 year decline to the empire you are not studying your history. Lets do better than "uh no".

[Antoninus]

The crusades did more to destroy the Byzantine Empire than the Turks.

That was your statement. It's ridiculous on its face and doesn't deserve much more than a two word answer.

The Sack of 1204 was a terrible blot on the Crusading movement and did much to weaken the Empire. But it did not do more than 400 years of incessant Turkish/Islamic attack. To even posit the idea is ludicrous.