Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A selective list of sixty-two documents, referring to the period from 1274-1580, which steer away from the repetitive descriptions of battles and focus on other aspects of the crusades, such as a letter from Christopher Columbus to Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain advocating a crusade to Jerusalem, an extract from Ramon LLull's treatise on learning oriental languages as a means of facilitating crusades, and an excerpt from Thomas Walsingham's account of the bishop of Norwich's crusade.
Synopsis
This will be the first collection of translated documents to appear in any language on the crusading movement in the late middle ages. The texts have been carefully selected to illuminate as wide a range of crusading activity as possible, covering the entire period from the last years of Frankish Syria in the thirteenth century to the age of the Counter-Reformation. The principal themes explored will include planning and initiation of crusades, their preaching, recruitment, finance and leadership, and the broad spectrum of popular response, from enthusiasm to condemnation.