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"A very useful resource, especially, but by no means exclusively, in school and college libraries...these books offer very useful standardised accounts and are presented in very attractive and approachable volumes."
-"Reference Reviews
--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
-"Reference Reviews
--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Born amid immense suffering and bloodshed, the Kingdom of Jerusalem remained a battlefield for almost 200 years. The Crusades gave rise to the Military Orders of the Templars and Hospitallers, and were a backdrop to the careers of some of history's most famous leaders including Richard 'The Lionheart' and Saladin. On occasion the savagery of the Crusaders left their opponents reeling, creating frictions that survived for more than 700 years. At the same time, as this book lavishly illustrates, art, architecture and learning all benefited from new knowledge the Crusaders brought back from the East.
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The Crusades were an unusual series of conflicts because they involved three or more distinct groups of people: the Western European Christians, generally known as 'Latins' or 'Franks'; the Muslims of the Middle East and North Africa; the Byzantine and other Orthodox Christians of what are now Turkey and the Balkans, generally known as 'Greeks' to Western Europeans and as 'Rumi' or 'Romans' to their Muslim neighbours. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
The Crusades were an unusual series of conflicts because they involved three or more distinct groups of people: the Western European Christians, generally known as 'Latins' or 'Franks'; the Muslims of the Middle East and North Africa; the Byzantine and other Orthodox Christians of what are now Turkey and the Balkans, generally known as 'Greeks' to Western Europeans and as 'Rumi' or 'Romans' to their Muslim neighbours. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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6 reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Way too big of a task for a single Essential Histories volume.
21 Feb 2008
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is the first volume in the enormous Essential Histories series from Osprey Publishing. If you're considering reading these books, I wouldn't recommend starting with this one. If you do, please realize that this one isn't a very good representative of the series. Most of the volumes are excellent, with a good blend of detailed accounts of individual battles, interesting descriptions of historical figures, and informative information about the general setting and attitudes of the time. This volume utterly fails in all of those categories.
I'm not placing all of the blame on the author however. Osprey Publishing was simply a bit overzealous in thinking that it could cover a series of events that took place over hundreds of years in a single 96-page volume. Whereas the Civil War and Napoleonic Wars are covered in four volumes each, and World War II in six, the entire series of individual crusades is covered in a single volume. What you end up with is a very brief skimming of the overall picture and outcome of the Crusades. Hardly any time at all is spent on individual crusades, much less individual battles (which you get so much of in other Essential Histories).
Also, throughout this book the author downplays the importance of the Crusades to the people of the Mediterranean and Middle East. What he fails to adequately portray is the long-standing and powerful beliefs and feelings that these events have cast on history ever since.
The only really good part of this book is the multitude of excellent pictures, showing everything from architecture to weaponry of the time. Still, of the Essential Histories I've read, this was my least favorite and definitely the least informative. I recommend starting with others.
I'm not placing all of the blame on the author however. Osprey Publishing was simply a bit overzealous in thinking that it could cover a series of events that took place over hundreds of years in a single 96-page volume. Whereas the Civil War and Napoleonic Wars are covered in four volumes each, and World War II in six, the entire series of individual crusades is covered in a single volume. What you end up with is a very brief skimming of the overall picture and outcome of the Crusades. Hardly any time at all is spent on individual crusades, much less individual battles (which you get so much of in other Essential Histories).
Also, throughout this book the author downplays the importance of the Crusades to the people of the Mediterranean and Middle East. What he fails to adequately portray is the long-standing and powerful beliefs and feelings that these events have cast on history ever since.
The only really good part of this book is the multitude of excellent pictures, showing everything from architecture to weaponry of the time. Still, of the Essential Histories I've read, this was my least favorite and definitely the least informative. I recommend starting with others.
7 of 9 people found the following review helpful
The Cliff Notes of military history
2 April 2006
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The "Essential Histories" series from Osprey could easily be compared to the Cliff Notes series. They'll give you a nice introduction to a topic you are not familiar with, but no real depth. Most volumns are under 100 pages; therefore, don't expect many "man in the trenches" stories.
A nice introduction, but once again, a bit too much time period to make it one of the better books in this series. But for a 88 page book on the subject, it's well done.
A nice introduction, but once again, a bit too much time period to make it one of the better books in this series. But for a 88 page book on the subject, it's well done.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Mediocre intro to the Crusades
15 July 2009
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
The text of this Osprey title merely rehashs topics that are addressed, in greater detail (and perhaps, greater accuracy) in thousands of other books. Richard Hook's color plates add a lively splash of color, and are accurate if selective in the events and warriors they portray. As others have stated - this is far to grand a topic for a book of 60 pages to attempt to discuss in any detail - this book is a mediocre introduction to the Crusades that is rescued by some exciting artwork.
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