The crusader states and their neighbours : a military history, 1099-1187 / Nicholas Morton.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Morton, Nicholas (Nicholas Edward), author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Islamic Empire--History--750-1258.

Islamic Empire.

History.

Crusades.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xv, 289 pages : map ; 23 cm

Other Title:

Crusader states & their neighbours

Crusader states and their neighbors : a military history, 1099-1187

Crusader states & their neighbors

Place of Publication:

Oxford ; New York, NY : Oxford University Press, 2020.

Summary:

The Crusader States and their Neighbours' explores the military history of the Medieval Near East, piecing together the fault-lines of conflict which entangled this much-contested region. This was an area where ethnic, religious, dynastic, and commercial interests collided and the causes of war could be numerous. Conflicts persisted for decades and were fought out between many groups including Kurds, Turks, Armenians, Arabs, and the crusaders themselves. Nicholas Morton recreates this world, exploring how each faction sought to advance its own interests by any means possible, adapting its warcraft to better respond to the threats posed by their rivals. Strategies and tactics employed by the pastoral societies of the Central Asian Steppe were pitted against the armies of the agricultural societies of Western Christendom, Byzantium, and the Islamic World, galvanising commanders to adapt their practices in response to their foes. Today, we are generally encouraged to think of this era as a time of religious conflict, and yet this vastly over-simplifies a complex region where violence could take place for many reasons and peoples of different faiths could easily find themselves fighting side-by-side.

Contents:

1 Frankish Expansion p. 20

The First Decades: the Kingdom of Jerusalem under Godfrey and Baldwin 1, 1099-1118 p. 20

The First Decades: the County of Tripoli, 1099-1117 p. 28

The First Decades: the Principality of Antioch, 1099-1115 p. 35

The First Decades: the County of Edessa, 1099-1115 p. 43

2 Friends and Foes (1099-1129) p. 50

The Fatimids 1099-1123 p. 50

The Turks: Aleppo and Damascus p. 62

The Armenian Lords p. 78

3 Aleppo and Damascus (1117-29): the Challenge of the Big Cities p. 88

Aleppo p. 88

Damascus p. 96

4 The Evolving Balance of Power (1130s-48) p. 99

John II Comnenus and the Atabeg Zangi p. 99

Why did the Franks' Territorial Expansion Stop? p. 106

The Siege of Damascus: 1148 p. 112

5 The Rise of Nural-Din 1149-74 p. 122

Military Activity 1146-74: the North p. 122

Military Activity 1149-74: the South p. 131

Frankish Manpower and Mercenaries p. 143

The Size of Armies p. 153

6 Saladin and the Battle of Hattin p. 163

Kurdish Involvement in the Wars of the Near East 1099-1187 p. 163

Saladin and the Crusader States 1174-87 p. 168

Rethinking Hattin 1187 p. 184

Fighting Pitched Battles p. 189

Theoretical Approaches and Models Towards Warfare and Alliances in the Medieval Near East p. 203

The Strategic Role of Castles in Turkish and Prankish Campaigning p. 210

7 Innovation and Cross-cultural Exchange in the Evolution of Near Eastern Warfare p. 218

The Combatants p. 220

Feigning Flight p. 229

Learning to Defeat Frankish Heavy Cavalry p. 233

Identifying the Cross-cultural Transmission of Ideas and Tactics p. 237

Why did the Crusader States Lose the Contest for the Near East? p. 242

Decadent 'Pullani'? p. 242

Problems with Offensive Operations in Syria p. 245

Speed p. 251

Integrating Crusaders p. 255.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780198824541

0198824548

OCLC:

1125999514

Publisher Number:

99984967285