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Abstract
This thesis examines Western Christianity in the eighth and ninth centuries to illustrate what I argue is the growth of the crusader ideology. The forced conversion of the Germanic Saxons by command of the Holy Roman Emperor, Charlemagne contributed to the growth of this ideology. This thesis will survey Western Christianity in late-Antiquity and the early Medieval periods and expose a clash of empires: one Christian and Frankish, and the other Saxon and Pagan. Looking at the methods missionaries took in order to address the repercussions of forced conversion I will highlight one specific piece of missionary literature known as The Heliand and how it demonstrates accommodative tactics utilized by the missionaries to assuage the new converts. Then I will present my conclusion, that centuries of Christianitys institutional transformation drastically altered the theology or Christology of Jesus which would eventually lead to the development of the crusader mentality.