Editing History of Lebanon (section)

===Crusader kingdoms===
{{Main|Crusader states|Kingdom of Jerusalem|County of Tripoli}}
{{Further|History of the County of Tripoli}}

Following the fall of Roman/Christian Anatolia to the Muslim [[Seljuk dynasty|Turks]] of the [[Seljuk Empire]] in the 11th century, the Romans in Constantinople appealed to the Pope in Rome for assistance. There resulted a series of wars known as the [[Crusades]], launched by Latin Christians (of mainly French origin) in Western Europe to reclaim the former Roman territories in the Eastern Mediterranean, especially Syria and Palestine (the ''[[Levant]]''). Lebanon stood in the main path of the [[First Crusade]]'s advance on [[Jerusalem]] from Anatolia. Frankish nobles occupied areas within present-day Lebanon as part of the southeastern [[Crusader States]]. The southern half of present-day Lebanon formed the northern march of the [[Kingdom of Jerusalem]] (founded in 1099); the northern half became the heartland of the [[County of Tripoli]] (founded in 1109). Although [[Saladin]] eliminated Christian control of the [[Holy Land]] around 1190, the Crusader states in Lebanon and Syria were better defended.

[[File:Liban des Croisades vers 1180 EC.jpg|thumb|A map of Mount Lebanon c. AD 1180]]

One of the most lasting effects of the Crusades in this region was the contact between the crusaders (mainly French) and the [[Maronites]]. Unlike most other Christian communities in the region, who swore allegiance to [[Constantinople]] or other local patriarchs, the Maronites proclaimed allegiance to the Pope in Rome. As such the Franks saw them as Roman Catholic brethren. These initial contacts led to centuries of support for the Maronites from France and Italy, even after the later fall of the Crusader states in the region.