St. Peter's in the Vatican

The subjects in this volume focus on the history of the Latin East and its place in the context of Mediterranean trade and near eastern political developments.

The study of the crusades is one of the most thriving areas of medieval history. This collection of seventeen further essays by leading researchers in the field reflects the best of contemporary scholarship. The subjects handled are remarkably wide-ranging, focusing on the history of the Latin East and its place in the context of Mediterranean trade and Near Eastern political developments. Chronologically, the essays range from the initial settlements at the time of the First Crusade to the way in which historians in more recent centuries have chosen to reconstruct the medieval epoch. Together with its companion volume, The Experience of Crusading: Volume 1, The Experience of Crusading - edited by Marcus Bull and Norman Housley - this collection has been published to celebrate the 65th birthday of Jonathan Riley-Smith, the leading British historian of the crusades. The volume includes an appreciation of his contribution to the study of the Latin East.

Jonathan Riley-Smith, the crusades and the Latin east: an appreciation Jonathan Phillips with Peter Edbury; Part I. People and Politics: 1. The 'muddy road' of Odo Arpin from Bourges to La Charité-sur-Loire Jonathan Shepard; 2. Alice of Antioch: a case study of female power in the twelfth century Tom Asbridge; 3. Gaufridus abbas Templi Domini: an underestimated figure in the early history of the kingdom of Jerusalem Rudolf Hiestand; 4. The career of Philip of Nablus in the kingdom of Jerusalem Malcolm Barber; Part II. Re-reading the Sources: 5. A second incarnation in Frankish Jerusalem Benjamin Z. Kedar; 6. The Old French translation of William of Tyre as an historical source Bernard Hamilton; 7. The Freiburg leaf: crusader art and loca sancta around the year 1200 Jaroslav Folda; 8. Reading John of Jaffa Peter Edbury; Part III. History and Historiography: 9. Churches and settlement in crusader Palestine Denys Pringle; 10. King Fulk of Jerusalem as city lord Hans Eberhard Mayer; 11. The adventure of John Gale, knight of Tyre Jean Richard; 12. Hülegü Khan and the christians: the making of a myth Peter Jackson; 13. Orientalism and the early development of crusader studies Robert Irwin; Part IV. Commerce in Context: 14. Notes on the economic consequences of the crusades Michel Balard; 15. New Venetian evidence on crusader Acre David Jacoby; 16. The role of the Templars and the Hospitallers in the movement of commodities involving Cyprus, 1291–1312 Nicholas Coureas; 17. From Tunis to Piombino: piracy and trade in the Tyrrhenian Sea, 1397–1472 David Abulafia.

This collection of seventeen further essays is published with its companion volume Western Approaches, edited by Marcus Bull and Norman Housley, to celebrate the 65th birthday of Jonathan Riley-Smith. This volume Defining the Crusader Kingdom focuses on the history of the Latin East and its place in the context of the Mediterranean trade and near eastern political developments.

Peter Edbury is Professor of History, Cardiff University.
Jonathan Phillips is Senior Lecturer in History, Royal Holloway, University of London.