Overview

Fresh perspectives on one of the largest and most complex crusades ever launched, covering all aspects of the expeditions - from preparation and commencement to results and consequences. Saladin's victory at the Battle of Hattin in 1187 produced three profound results: a shattered Jerusalem army, a pope falling dead from the news, and the launching of the Third Crusade in response. Under the banners of renowned rulers like Richard the Lionheart, Philip Augustus, and Frederick Barbarossa, men and women from across Latin Christendom took the Cross and joined in the largest western military expedition since Urban II's call to arms in 1095 for the First Crusade. Long dormant in the renewal of crusade studies in the twenty-first century, the Third Crusade has in recent years begun to attract increased scholarly attention. Adopting a cross-cultural focus that examines both western and eastern societies, this book offers a substantial and timely reappraisal. Chapters shed light on the crusade's causes, context, organization, participants, preparations, commencement, military progress, and short and long-term consequences, and scrutinise well-known sources through new lenses. They also engage with communication theory, the history of emotions, textual criticism and textuality, historiography, archaeology, and topography. Together, they provide both a fresh view of this complex and multifaceted war and a useful survey of its major contours.

Full Product Details

Author:   John D Hosler (Contributor) ,  Stephen Bennett (Royalty Account) ,  Ane L Bysted ,  Dr Daniel Daniel Franke (Assistant Professor of History)
Publisher:   Boydell & Brewer Ltd
Imprint:   Boydell & Brewer
ISBN:  

9781837653324

ISBN 10:   1837653321
Pages:   288
Publication Date:   16 December 2025
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Table of Contents List of Illustrations Contributors Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations The Third Crusade: Major Events Introduction Part I: Writing the Third Crusade Katrine Funding Højgaard, 'Past in the Present: Temporal Discontinuity and the Loss of Jerusalem in Western Historical Writing' Helen J. Nicholson, 'An Embarrassment of Riches? The Sources for the Third Crusade' Thomas W. Smith and Stephen J. Spencer, 'The Imprint of the Third Crusade in the Manuscript Traditions of Western Europe' Part II: Preparing for the Third Crusade Ane Bysted, 'A Call to Defend the Inheritance of Christ: Developments in Crusade Rhetoric and Preaching at the Third Crusade' Jonathan P. Phillips, 'Saladin's Preparations for the Third Crusade' James Naus, 'Philip Augustus and the Decision to Join the Third Crusade' Part III: Fighting the Third Crusade Daniel P. Franke, 'The Last March to Jerusalem: Manuscripts and Eyewitness Testimony in the Crusade of Frederick Barbarossa' Stephen Bennett, 'On the Ramparts: a Commoners' View of the Siege of Acre, 1189-91' John D. Hosler, 'Saladin's Loss of Initiative at Montgisard, Acre, and Arsuf: an Applied History Approach' Part IV: The Third Crusade in Context Jonathan Rubin, 'Outremer in the Time of Richard and Philip's Landing in Acre: a Socio-Cultural Survey' Jessalyn Bird, 'Aftermath in the East (and West) of the Third Crusade' John France, 'The Place of the Third Crusade in the History of the Crusades' Bibliography Index

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Author Information

JOHN D. HOSLER is a Professor of Military History at the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the author of Jerusalem Falls: Seven Centuries of War and Peace. STEPHEN BENNETT is a historian of medieval warfare with a special interest in the history of the crusades and the crusader states, the military orders, and military practice in North West Europe. JOHN D. HOSLER is a Professor of Military History at the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the author of Jerusalem Falls: Seven Centuries of War and Peace. STEPHEN BENNETT is a historian of medieval warfare with a special interest in the history of the crusades and the crusader states, the military orders, and military practice in North West Europe. STEPHEN J. SPENCER is Assistant Professor in Medieval History at Northeastern University London and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. Thomas W. Smith gained his PhD from Royal Holloway, University of London; he is presently Keeper of the Scholars and Head of Oxbridge (Arts and Humanities) at Rugby School.

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