The Crusades.. a book recomendation?

[C0ckney]

in addition to some of the recommendations already made. i'd try the histories of the military orders which give an insight into their role in crusades and the internal politics of the crusader states.

there are some interesting books, which give a history of the crusades from a greek perspective, an accessible (and very good) one being 'byzantium and the crusades' by jonathan harris.

[Cyclotron]

Stephen Runciman is always a classic, though my favorite is The Crusades through Arab Eyes, by Amin Maalouf. It's a good read that goes beyond the traditional scholarship and looks at the conflict from, as you might have guessed, a more Arab point of view, using Arab historians and writers far more liberally than most such works. It's also small (compared to Runciman's works) and very readable.

[molly bloom]

Having had a browse through my shelves, I'd also recommend 'The Monks of War' by Desmond Seward and the first two volumes of 'Byzantium' by John Julius Norwich.

'The Great Siege' by Ernle Bradford whilst not directly to do with the Holy Land, is a fascinating account of the attack upon Malta by the Ottoman Turks and the heroic defence by the crusading order of the Knights of St John.


Osprey Books do some nifty short volumes, well-illustrated, on the various armies of the Crusades.

http://www.ospreypublishing.com/search_results.php?PHPSESSID=691999b801bb4bde6cf703e8c0b83c55

[BeBMan]

Those Osprey books, are they good? I never read any of them, but I see them mentioned here and there.... as a child I loved well illustrated stuff, but I often found out later that some of the books that were great visually had rather bad info, many mistakes etc....

[molly bloom]

Originally posted by BeBro
Those Osprey books, are they good? I never read any of them, but I see them mentioned here and there.... as a child I loved well illustrated stuff, but I often found out later that some of the books that were great visually had rather bad info, many mistakes etc....

I heartily recommend them. They have specialist knowledge on aspects of the elite units of armies, general overviews, and detaile ddescriptions of armaments, tactics, armour, and so on.

Well worth getting, especially if you're as lucky as I was to get them for only 50 pence each.

The money I saved I spent on covering myself with Limburger cheese and caraway seeds.

[BeBMan]

50 pence :eek Sounds really great

[molly bloom]

Originally posted by BeBro
50 pence :eek Sounds really great

I don't if they have something similar in the N.U.D. , but over here we have chains of charity shops which do an excellent job in recycling what some people would view as unconsidered trifles, but what I view as truffles, rare and precious.

It makes consumer madness seem respectable knowing that the money you spend on books is going to a good cause...