 In the 1260s , a change occurred in the European perception of the Mongols , and they became regarded less as enemies , and more as potential allies in the fight against the Muslims . As recently as 1259 , Pope Alexander IV had been encouraging a new crusade against the Mongols , and had been extremely disappointed in hearing that the monarchs of Antioch and Cilician Armenia had submitted to Mongol overlordship . Alexander had put the monarchs ' cases on the agenda of his upcoming council , but died in 1261 just months before the Council could be convened , and before the new crusade could be launched . For a new pope , the choice fell to Pantaléon , the same Patriarch of Jerusalem who had earlier been warning of the Mongol threat . He took the name Pope Urban IV , and tried to raise money for a new crusade . 
