The Third Crusade was launched in 1189 in response to Saladin's recapture of Jerusalem, bringing together three of Europe's most powerful monarchs: Richard I of England, Philip II of France, and Frederick I Barbarossa of the Holy Roman Empire. Though the crusade failed to recapture Jerusalem, it resulted in the Treaty of Jaffa in 1192, which allowed Christian pilgrims access to the holy city while maintaining Muslim control.

Richard the Lionheart himself composed Occitan poetry while imprisoned in Germany after the crusade, demonstrating how crusading experience intersected with troubadour culture. The Third Crusade generated extensive chronicles and epic poems in multiple languages, including the Estoire de la guerre sainte and various chansons de geste that portrayed Richard and Saladin as chivalrous adversaries. These literary works shaped European perceptions of Islam and contributed to the romanticization of crusading as the ultimate expression of knightly virtue.