The Second Crusade (1147-1149 AD) began as a result of the fall of Edessa, a European "Crusader state" in the Middle East, to Muslim forces. Pope Eugene III called a crusade to recapture Edessa, and King Louis VII of France and King Conrad III of Germany answered that call.
The two Christian kings marched separately into the Middle East. Each army suffered defeats en route by the hands of the Seljuk Turks. Once Louis and Conrade reached Jerusalem--another Crusader state--they united their armies and took their 50,000 soldiers to attack the Muslim-controlled stronghold of Damascus. The Muslims soundly defeated the Europeans, who dejectedly retreated to Jerusalem and eventually home to Europe.
The failure of the Second Crusade was a great embarrassment to Catholic Europe, especially to Louis and Conrad.
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