Truce between Christians and Saracens.
Matthew Paris, Chronica Maiora, Parker MS 16II, f.139v.
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- Review of God's War by Jonathan Phillips in The Telegraph, September 2006.
- Review of God's War by J.L. Nelson in the London Review of Books, 2007.
- Interview with Christopher Tyerman about his book God's War.
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Urban II preaching at Clermont |
In this interview, Tyerman talks about how it is misleading and ahistorical to draw direct connections between modern wars in the Middle East and the medieval crusading movement. I agree with him on this point, and it brings me to a general matter I forgot to mention in class, which is: while modern parallels and experiences can be useful tools for helping us think about the past, we should never confuse them with historical argument itself, which always has to be based in the evidence and context of the period. I'm sure you knew this - but especially following our discussions about ANZAC cove and Canterbury it seemed a good time to remind ourselves of this point...
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Urban II preaching the crusade |
But back to the Crusades! The Institute for Historical Research in London runs a monthly seminar about the Crusades, so clearly there's no shortage of opinion and debate on the topic.
Post your thoughts and responses to these readings below by Monday evening. Then we'll be moving on to St Francis and Co.!
5 comments:
Um, I didn't know where else I should ask by does anyone know where we submit our essays once they're done? I was just wondering b/c there is no assignment drop box on blackboard???
Hi Stephanie,
There should be a drop box live now. To to the subject Blackboard site, then:
> Submission of assessments
> Research Essay
> and then select the relevant week.
Thank-you Kathleen. During the crusades I think that there was a decline in technology and knowledge. Patially because of the destruction of areas in Arabia where some of the most advanced medicine and scientific techniques existed but also becuase the crusades and their supposed purpose greatly limited the innovation in Europe as the Church's power grew. The crusades seem to be testiments to two aspects of medieval life: the first is how much devotion and love people had for the message of God and how much they would be willing to sacrifice to spread it messsage. Secondly, it was testiment to a new mobile and curious population that saw goods and merchants from the East and began to believe that the paths of travelled had opened enough for adventure and discovery. All the while wanting to re-enact the the battles and glories of the antiquities.
Stephanie - you may be right about knowledge being destroyed in the East as a result of crusading activities, but on the other hand, it provided another way for ideas to reach the West, and there, it may have had the opposite effect. Interestingly, Frederick II of the Holy Roman Empire (an extremely fascinating historical figure) not only brought back certain Eastern ideas about government, but also initiated multi-lingual public announcements when on crusade so that both Arabs and 'Latins' could understand. You can follow up this little juicy tidbit of history here if you're interested:
http:http://www.medievalists.net/2011/11/15/crusader-inscription-by-frederick-ii-discovered-in-israel/
To me, the crusades are exemplified with the idea of the holy warrior. The holy orders of knights known as the Templars, the Hospitallers, and the Teutonic Knights. The religious nature of the crusades, combined with the violence and warfare of the time is most clearly evident in these amalgamations of Christianity and Warfare. Knights and warriors of god.
Pope Urban II says in his speech.(the first example from the readings.)"battle against the pagans, shall have immediate remissions of sins." This religious promise to incite those under god into acts of violent warfare is to me bending the nature of Christianity to suit ones agenda. I wouldn't go as far as to say it was hypocritical but the commandment, "Thou shalt not kill." is hard to reconcile with the directive to engage in "warfare that is righteous."
Apologies for the late comment
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