HIST 150 The Crusades
This course will present an overview of the crusading movement from its origins in the eleventh century to the fall of Constantinople to the Turks in 1453. We will examine the development of the ideology of holy war in both Europe and the Middle East, the conquest of Jerusalem and the establishment of the crusader states, the expansion of the crusades to encompass campaigns against heretics, northern European pagans, and even political opponents within Europe, and the ultimate decline of the crusading ideal in the later Middle Ages. We will also study the lasting impact of the crusades: their contributions to European art, architecture, and music, and their continued resonance in contemporary political debates concerning relations between the Islamic world and the West.