Book review: The Oxford Illustrated History of the Crusades

I'm aware that there are more recent works out on the Crusades - the book's editor is responsible for at least one of these. However, none of those that I have seen has the depth or range that this impressive text offers. Although is it suggested that this book is suitable for students of an undergraduate level upwards it should captivate anyone with an interest in the Crusades and medieval military history in general.

The book boasts 13 contributing authors. In a work of fiction this would be a disaster, but in an academic work we are given a range of viewpoints, each one written with a passion for an authors favourite topic. The spread of these topics is impressive, and for once a book's blurb is accurate: "...it covers crusading in many different theatres of war. The ideas of apologists, propagandists, and poets, and the perceptions and motives of the crusaders are described, as are the reactions of the Muslims to Christian holy war. The book highlights the remarkable art and architecture associated with the Crusades, and offers fascinating insights into the history of the knightly orders, such a the Knights Templar and the Knights of St John."

There is a fascinating initial chapter on the role played in interpreting the Crusades by historians. Plus the aforementioned chapters on the state of mind of Crusaders in the East, the art and architecture in the Latin East, the view of Islam to the Crusades, as well as the popular view of Crusades from the nineteenth century and their use in jingoistic propaganda in recent conflicts involving Christians and Muslims.

For those of you interested in military orders, such as the Knights Templar and the Teutonic Knights, there are two excellent chapters which cover the eras pre- and post-suppression of the Templars. The first looks at many peripheral aspects of charitable and military activities such as the resources and recruitment of military orders as well as a discussion of the conventual life and organisation. I was intrigued by the fact that many of those stately stone effigies are for patrons who only entered the order shortly before their death - effectively paying for a posh Christian burial rather than supporting the actual crusading cause!

The book also considers the crusading movement beyond the standard relief of the holy land scenario. From the end of the thirteenth century to the end of the fifteenth there were crusades against the Moors in Iberia, the capture of Alexandria, the Teutonic Knights against the pagan Lithuanians, crusades against the Turks, and against the heretical Hussites in Bohemia. In the sixteenth century came a revival of crusading from Spain, and to a lesser extent Portugal, which resulted in a "spectacular drive into Algeria and Tunisia" and along the northern coast of Africa. The culmination of all this crusading effort was, of course, the Armada of 1588, declared by Spain against the Protestant power of England.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic