Victory in the East
A Military History of the First Crusade

A paperback of John France's new analysis of the strategies and battles of the First Crusade.

John France (Author)

9780521589871, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 12 December 1996

444 pages
22.8 x 15.1 x 3 cm, 0.72 kg

'This is a compelling study which … manages to be both scholarly and highly readable; it is even exciting in places. It is an outstanding book that deserves to be a classic text not only on the Crusades, but also on medieval warfare as a whole.' European Review of History

The success of the First Crusade, and its capture of Jerusalem in 1099, has been conventionally explained in terms of its ideological and political motivation. This book looks at the First Crusade primarily as a military campaign and asks why it was so successful. Modern writing about the crusade has tended to emphasise the moral dimension and the development of the idea of the crusade, but its fate was ultimately decided on the field of battle. Victory in the East looks at the nature of war at the end of the eleventh century and the military experience of all the contending parties in order to explain its extraordinary success. It is the first such examination, taking into account all other factors but emphasising the military.

1. The roots of victory
2. War in the West
3. Campaigns, generals and leadership
4. Preparations and prelude
5. The size of the crusader army
6. The first enemy: the Turks of Asia Minor
7. The second enemy: the siege of Antioch
8. The siege of Antioch: crisis and delivery
9. The siege of Antioch: victory
10. Divisions
11. Jerusalem: triumphant ending
12. Perspectives
select bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Early history: c 500 to c 1450/1500 [HBLC], European history [HBJD]