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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 355
EAN num: 9781841761794
ISBN number: 1841761796
Label: Osprey Publishing
Manufacturer: Osprey Publishing
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 96
Printing Date: January 19, 2001
Publishing house: Osprey Publishing
Release Date: January 19, 2001
Sale Popularity Level: 567786
Studio: Osprey Publishing
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Product Description:
Born amid immense suffering and bloodshed, the Kingdom of Jerusalem remained a battlefield for almost 200 years. The Crusades gave rise to the Military Orders of the Templars and Hospitallers, and were a backdrop to the careers of some of history's most famous leaders including Richard 'The Lionheart' and Saladin. On occasion the savagery of the Crusaders left their opponents reeling, creating frictions that survived for more than 700 years. At the same time, as this book lavishly illustrates, art, architecture and learning all benefited from new knowledge the Crusaders brought back from the East.
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Rated by buyers 
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This is the very first volume in the enormous Essential Histories series from Osprey Publishing. If you're considering reading these books, I wouldn't recommend starting with this one. If you do, please realize that this one isn't a very good representative of the series. Most of the volumes are excellent, with a good blend of detailed accounts of individual battles, interesting descriptions of historical figures, and informative information about the general setting and attitudes of the time. This volume utterly fails in all of those categories.
I'm not placing all of the blame on the author however. Osprey Publishing was simply a bit overzealous in thinking that it could cover a series of events that took place over hundreds of years in a single 96-page volume. Whereas the Civil War and Napoleonic Wars are covered in four volumes each, and World War II in six, the entire series of individual crusades is covered in a single volume. What you end up with is a very brief skimming of the overall picture and outcome of the Crusades. Hardly any time at all is spent on individual crusades, much less individual battles (which you get so much of in other Essential Histories).
Also, throughout this book the author downplays the importance of the Crusades to the people of the Mediterranean and Middle East. What he fails to adequately portray is the long-standing and powerful beliefs and feelings that these events have cast on history ever since.
The only really good part of this book is the multitude of excellent pictures, showing everything from architecture to weaponry of the time. Still, of the Essential Histories I've read, this was my least favorite and definitely the least informative. I recommend starting with others.
Rated by buyers -
The "Essential Histories" series from Osprey could easily be compared to the Cliff Notes series. They'll give you a nice introduction to a topic you are not familiar with, but no real depth. Most volumns are under 100 pages; therefore, don't expect many "man in the trenches" stories.
A nice introduction, but once again, a bit too much time period to make it one of the better books in this series. But for a 88 page book on the subject, it's well done.
Rated by buyers 
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The Crusades is a quick to read book and an essential introduction in the Crusades world. It is a small book with great historical pictures and illustration. My only criticism is that it mentions more names, dates, and events than telling about why the Crusades started and their impact on human history. In general, I like and recomend the book because the author is extremely knowledgable on the subject and effectively presents the facts as objectively and concisley as possible.
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