Customer Reviews

Anatomy of a Crusade, 1213-1221 (The Middle Ages Series)

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This book takes a new point of view on the middle age crusade years, while describing each scenario in astounding detail. It is very well written and the ideas presented are in chronological order while being very precise. Perfect as research for projects on the crusade or as an interest subject.

James Powell's "Anatomy of a Crusade 1213-1221" is a scholarly book about the Fifth Crusade which ended in a defeat for the Christian armies near Damietta, Egypt. The book's two principal sections describe the preparation for the Crusade - how the call for the crusade was developed and promulgated by Pope Innocent III, how the potential participants made their personal preparations, and how the organizers facilitated the movement of men and material from the point of embarkation to the destination. The second part of the book describes the Fifth Crusade itself - the major actions and the activities of the principal characters. Pros - the book is scholarly and makes liberal use of references and includes some original research, mainly on the extent of participation of different groups of crusaders - nobility, clergy, etc; and the sources of revenues and expenditures of the campaign. Powell also does not shy away from disagreeing with the opinions of earlier historians on this subject, which is refreshing. Cons - if you don't read Latin (as I don't) then you will miss out on a great deal of information. Many footnotes contain extracts from documents in Latin without any translation provided; Appendix I contains the text of an entire letter in Latin from Pope Honorius III (successor to Innocent III) to an Italian bishop again without any translation. So, this is not a book for armchair historians and is probably better suited for post-graduate history students. The other Appendices are largely unnecessary - being lists of names of known and presumed participants in the crusade and unlikely to be challenged or followed up by the casual reader. Powell also is not a believer in separating the Fifth and Sixth Crusades. The Sixth Crusade - Emperor Frederick II's successful attempt at recovering Jerusalem by negotiation rather than by force is covered in the last half dozen pages of the book. Overall, this is an excellent book that confines itself to the specifics of the Fifth Crusade.