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From a renowned historian who writes with "maximum vividness"
("The New Yorker") comes the most authoritative, readable
single-volume history of the brutal struggle for the holy land
Nine hundred years ago, a vast Christian army, summoned to holy
war by the Pope, rampaged through the Muslim world of the eastern
Mediterranean, seizing possession of Jerusalem, a city revered by
both faiths. Over the two hundred years that followed, Islam and
Christianity fought for dominion of the Holy Land, clashing in a
succession of chillingly brutal wars: the Crusades. Here for the
first time is the story of that epic struggle told from the
perspective of both Christians and Muslims. A vivid and fast-paced
narrative history, it exposes the full horror, passion, and
barbaric grandeur of the Crusading era, revealing how these holy
wars reshaped the medieval world and why they continue to influence
events today.
'Asbridge can't help but tell a ripping yarn, often breezily
dramatic, whipping the narrative along' The Times A superb and
definitive one-volume account of the Crusades, the impact of which
still resonates to this day. In the eleventh century, a vast
Christian army, summoned to holy war by the Pope, rampaged through
the Muslim world of the eastern Mediterranean, seizing possession
of Jerusalem, a city revered by both faiths. Over the two hundred
years that followed this First Crusade, Islam and the West fought
for dominion of the Holy Land, clashing in a succession of
chillingly brutal wars, both firm in the belief that they were at
God's work. The Crusades tells the story of this epic struggle from
the perspective of both Christians and Muslims, reconstructing the
experiences and attitudes of those on either side of the conflict.
Mixing pulsing narrative and piercing insight, it exposes the full
horror, passion and barbaric grandeur of the crusading era. 'A
dramatic and powerful look at both sides of the story' Sunday Times
'A compelling narrative... A masterful conclusion' Observer
'A nuanced and sophisticated analysis... Exhilarating' Sunday
Telegraph Nine hundred years ago, one of the most controversial
episodes in Christian history was initiated. The Pope stated that,
in spite of the apparently pacifist message of the New Testament,
God actually wanted European knights to wage a fierce and bloody
war against Islam and recapture Jerusalem. Thus was the First
Crusade born. Focusing on the characters that drove this
extraordinary campaign, this fascinating period of history is
recreated through awe-inspiring and often barbaric tales of bold
adventure while at the same time providing significant insights
into early medieval society, morality and mentality. The First
Crusade marked a watershed in relations between Islam and the West,
a conflict that set these two world religions on a course towards
deep-seated animosity and enduring enmity. The chilling
reverberations of this earth-shattering clash still echo in the
world today. '[Asbridge] balances persuasive analysis with a flair
for conveying with dramatic power the crusaders' plight' Financial
Times
'Here is the English sovereign as a crusader, battling on the
fringes of the known world; the warrior-king ... imbued with the
heart of a lion' Even within his own lifetime Richard I, dubbed the
'Lionheart', attained a kind of semi-mythical status as a paragon
of chivalry, yet his reign is both controversial and full of
contradictions. Seeking to reconcile the conflicting evidence,
Thomas Asbridge's incisive reappraisal of Richard I's career
questions how the memory of his life came to be interwoven with
myth.
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