Demetrius of Thessaloniki: Patron Saint of Crusaders

The article examines the emergence of St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki as a patron saint of crusaders, focusing on the narratives of his intervention in the Battle of Antioch (28 June 1098), one of the most important military encounters of the First Crusade. The main argument is that the inclusion of quintessentially Eastern saints such as Demetrius in the narratives of the miracle served to solidify the claim of Bohemond of Toranto to Antioch and to undermine those of the Byzantine emperor Alexius. The article also traces several other attempts to “appropriate” St. Demetrius, both in Western and in Eastern Europe, from the ninth through the fifteenth century, and attempts to explain them in the context of rivalry with Byzantium.