The Crusades have been hailed as the driving force that brought Western Europe out of the Middle Ages - and condemned as the beginning of European imperialism in the Muslim Near East. But what really were the Crusades? What were the forces that led to one of history's most protracted and legendary periods of conflict? Why did they end, and what did they accomplish? These 36 lectures look at the “big picture” of the Crusades as an ongoing period of conflict involving Western Christendom (we would now call it Western Europe), the Byzantine Empire, and the Muslim world. From this perspective, you'll study the complex but absorbing causes of the Crusades, which include the many political, cultural, and economic changes in Western Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire. In addition, Professor Harl presents the Crusades in terms of the specific military campaigns - the eight “canonical” Crusades that took place from 1095 to 1291 - proclaimed to retake Jerusalem and the Holy Land from Muslim hands and return them to Christendom. You'll consider the immediate circumstances (the leaders, purposes, key battles, and degrees of success or failure) surrounding these often-monumental expeditions. You'll also explore a wide variety of misperceptions and long-debated questions about the Crusades. Professor Harl delves into fascinating aspects of history, all related to the Crusades, that makes each lecture a new adventure.
