The First Crusade
Relations Worsen
As the other Crusader armies began arriving—Bohemond, Raymond, and the others—the issue of the oath became more and more pressing. Some, especially the Normans, would not compromise at all. On the other hand, Raymond of Toulouse was willing at least to negotiate the matter. Alexius had therefore to deal with each prince in turn, each with his own peculiarities and demands.
On their side, at least some of the western leaders realized that they had to have the support of the Byzantines or they would have very little chance of making it across Anatolia, much less all the way to Jerusalem. But they didn't want to give up potential conquests in advance, so they met the Greeks demand for demand.
All the while, though, the Crusader armies were camped outside the walls of Constantinople, making the locals more than a little nervous. Not all had money to pay for their goods, and a great many felt that the Greeks were charging unfair prices. Riots broke out more than once. The Emperor decreed that the westerners could only enter the city in limited numbers and only under escort.
As the weeks dragged on, Alexius began to look for ways to get these Crusaders out of his hair before they proved to be a positive danger to his city. In the end, he wound up compromising rather more than he'd intended, just to relieve the pressure on the city.
For things were beginning to get grim. In one famous incident, Tancred actually took a swing at the Emperor's son, in the heat of an argument. With tempers so short, the safest thing was to get the Crusaders across the Bosporus.