The Crusades and the Near East
Cultural Histories
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Taylor & Francis Ltd
Published:6th Oct '10
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
This paperback is available in another edition too:
- Hardback£135.00(9780415580403)
The crusades are often seen as epitomising a period when hostility between Christian West and the Muslim Near East reached an all time high. As this edited volume reveals, however, the era was one which saw both conflict and cohabitation.
Tackling such questions as whether medicinal and architectural innovations came to Europe as a direct result of the Crusades, and why and how peace treaties and intermarriages were formed between the different cultures, this distinguished group of contributors reveal how the Holy Wars led on the one hand to a reinforcement of the beliefs and identities of each side, but on the other to a growing level of cultural exchange and interaction. This volume breaks new ground in not only exploring the conflict between the Christian and the Muslim worlds, but also the impact of this conflict on the cultural evolution of European and Near Eastern thought and practices. Utilising the latest scholarship and original studies of the sources, this survey sheds new light on the cultural realities of East-West relations and marks a new departure for studies of the crusades.
Contributors include John France, Yehoshua Frenkel, Chris Wright, Natasha Hodgson, A.V. Murray, Sini Kangas, Léan Ní Chléirigh, Susan Edgington, Jürgen Krüger, Yvonne Friedman and Bernard Hamilton.
'The articles published here aim to explore a relatively neglected area: the cultural history of the Crusades and how they shaped European identities. All ten are lively and accessible but they are also exhaustively footnoted. They both synthesise previous work and bring new insights of their own ... So while this book will be of interest to researchers in the field, it will also be useful for teaching the crusades especially to those teachers who wish to go beyond the stereotyped ‘clash of cultures’ and explore complexity and diversity in the ways that human societies interact.' –Jonathan Harris, Reviews in History
'Conor Kostick should be congratulated for gathering such a stimulating, varied yet unified collection.'- Christopher Tyerman, Hertford College, University of Oxford, UK
'Kostick has produced a useful collection that shows how much and how little the Crusades impacted on all the peoples involved. The articles should be useful to anyone who needs to know that the Crusades were never an all-or-nothing proposition." - Laurence W. Marvin, Canadian Journal of History
'A volume that spans subjects as diverse as warfare, propaganda, diplomacy, medicine, architecture, literature, and "national identity." Refreshingly, the volume embraces a range of perspectives - not only the Latin/Frankish one but also Byzantine, Islamic, and even Armenian... The essays themselves will certainly be useful to graduate students and scholars who are focusing on the Crusades.' - Brian A. Catlos, Religious Studies Review
ISBN: 9780415580410
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 530g
288 pages