false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170623334m/64535.jpg 64535 4 <p> <i>God's War</i> offers a sweeping new vision of one of history's most astounding events: the Crusades. </p><p> From 1096 to 1500, European Christians fought to recreate the Middle East, Muslim Spain, and the pagan Baltic in the image of their God. The Crusades are perhaps both the most familiar and most misunderstood phenomena of the medieval world, and here Christopher Tyerman seeks to recreate, from the ground up, the centuries of violence committed as an act of religious devotion. </p><p> The result is a stunning reinterpretation of the Crusades, revealed as both bloody political acts and a manifestation of a growing Christian communal identity. Tyerman uncovers a system of belief bound by aggression, paranoia, and wishful thinking, and a culture founded on war as an expression of worship, social discipline, and Christian charity. </p><p> This astonishing historical narrative is imbued with figures that have become legends--Saladin, Richard the Lionheart, Philip Augustus. But Tyerman also delves beyond these leaders to examine the thousands and thousands of Christian men--from Knights Templars to mercenaries to peasants--who, in the name of their Savior, abandoned their homes to conquer distant and alien lands, as well as the countless people who defended their soil and eventually turned these invaders back. With bold analysis, Tyerman explicates the contradictory mix of genuine piety, military ferocity, and plain greed that motivated generations of Crusaders. He also offers unique insight into the maturation of a militant Christianity that defined Europe's identity and that has forever influenced the cyclical antagonisms between the Christian and Muslim worlds. </p><p> Drawing on all of the most recent scholarship, and told with great verve and authority, <i>God's War</i> is the definitive account of a fascinating and horrifying story that continues to haunt our contemporary world. </p> 62645 2006 God's War: A New History of the Crusades total:40|5:6|4:19|3:10|2:4|1:1| 40 145 119 10 2 0 false false Sun Jun 08 08:04:16 -0700 2008 Sat Feb 07 07:36:57 -0800 2009 Very dense, very informative. Needs careful reading to avoid mixing up all the Normans (during the 1st Crusade they are mainly called Roger, Robert, or Raymond...other works have done this better).
It tends to stutter with the chronology, nipping back and forth...more...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Oct 15 16:04:04 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 15 16:05:10 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sun Dec 07 14:03:27 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 07 14:10:12 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Thu May 29 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu May 29 06:57:53 -0700 2008 Thu May 29 07:05:23 -0700 2008 more...]]> 0 0 false false Fri Sep 11 10:36:02 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 30 10:42:19 -0700 2009 Fri Sep 11 10:36:02 -0700 2009 1 0 false false Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Aug 06 14:22:37 -0700 2007 Mon Aug 20 06:57:35 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Jun 28 06:09:52 -0700 2008 Sat Jun 28 06:10:40 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Wed Jul 29 15:02:47 -0700 2009 Wed May 21 09:49:53 -0700 2008 Wed Jul 29 15:02:47 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Thu Oct 25 22:47:41 -0700 2007 Thu Oct 25 22:48:05 -0700 2007 5 0 false false Thu Aug 20 18:57:36 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 23 06:31:07 -0700 2008 Thu Aug 20 18:57:36 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sun Nov 22 20:02:18 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 22 20:02:23 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Thu Nov 19 16:35:45 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 19 16:35:45 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Tue Nov 17 17:35:44 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 17 17:35:44 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Thu Nov 12 17:14:31 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 12 17:14:31 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Wed Nov 04 16:06:05 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 04 16:06:05 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Wed Oct 21 17:33:43 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 21 17:33:43 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Oct 14 19:15:08 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 14 19:15:08 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Oct 01 00:46:20 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 01 00:46:28 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Sep 25 17:18:55 -0700 2009 Fri Sep 25 17:19:08 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Wed Sep 16 21:50:09 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 16 21:50:06 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 16 21:50:09 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=64535