<P> The Middle French croisade is recorded from at least the 15th century . The French spelling croisade is recorded in English still in the 16th century; the modern spelling crusade dates to c. 1760 . </P> <P> The term crusade used in modern historiography at first referred to the wars in the Holy Land beginning in 1095, but the range of events to which the term has been applied has been greatly extended, so that its use can create a misleading impression of coherence, particularly regarding the early Crusades . </P> <P> The Crusades in the Holy Land are traditionally counted as nine distinct campaigns, numbered from the First Crusade of 1095--99 to the Ninth Crusade of 1271--72 . This convention is used by Charles Mills in his History of the Crusades for the Recovery and Possession of the Holy Land (1820) and is often retained for convenience even though it is somewhat arbitrary . The Fifth and Sixth Crusades led by Frederick II may be considered a single campaign, as can the Eighth Crusade and Ninth Crusade led by Louis IX . The term "Albigensian crusade" originates in French, as croisade contre les Albigeois, adopted into English still in the 18th century, as Croisade of the Albigeois . The term "northern crusade" for the wars of the Teutonic Order in the Baltic is in use in the 19th century . </P> <P> In modern historiography, the term "Crusade" may differ in usage depending on the author . Giles Constable describes four different perspectives among scholars: </P>

The crusades were a series of wars between