Robert the Monk

All you want to know about Robert the Monk

Robert was a chronicler of the First Crusade. He did not participate in the expedition, but rewrote the Gesta Francorum at the request of his abbot, who was appalled at the 'rustic' style of the Gesta.

His chronicle contains an extremely important account of Pope Urban II's speech at the Council of Clermont. Robert writes as though he was present at Clermont, but it must be noted that he wrote his account in 1116, twenty-one years after the Council. Hindsight is therefore highly influential in Robert's account.