Böcker av Norman Housley

These studies span the period from the origins of the crusading movement in the 11th century until its final active phase during the Renaissance. The book looks at the development of crusades, the conflict with Church, and other forms of religious warfare in Europe in the Middle Ages.

In a series of massive military undertakings that stretched from 1095 to 1291, Christendom's armies won, defended, and lost the sacred sites of the Holy Land. This book recreates the experience of crusading, from the elation of taking up the cross to the difficult adjustments at home when the war was over.

This will be the first collection of translated documents to appear in any language on the crusading movement in the late middle ages. 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.

A detailed account of the crusades launched by the popes against their political opponents in the west. Housley takes an objective stance and places these crusades within their wider context.

The crusading movement of the fourteenth century, and the support given to it by the Popes at Avignon, is the central theme of this study. By focusing on the crusading policy of the papal Curia it also illuminates other fields of Avignonese activity.