The Crusades

The Authoritative History of the War for the Holy Land

De: Thomas Asbridge

Narrado por: Derek Perkins

Duración: 25 h y 32 m

Resumen del Editor

The Crusades is an authoritative, accessible single-volume history of the brutal struggle for the Holy Land in the Middle Ages. Thomas Asbridge - a renowned historian who writes with "maximum vividness" (Joan Acocella, The New Yorker) - covers the years 1095 to 1291 in this big, ambitious, listenable account of one of the most fascinating periods in history. From Richard the Lionheart to the mighty Saladin, from the emperors of Byzantium to the Knights Templar, Asbridge's book is a magnificent epic of holy war between the Christian and Islamic worlds, full of adventure, intrigue, and sweeping grandeur.

©2010 Thomas Asbridged (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Derek Perkins is, as always, a matchless narrator. One could relish this production entirely for the music of his pronunciation." ( AudioFile)

Comprehensive

There are a few topics that get short shrift in Asbridge's account, like the Albigensien Crusade and the People's Crusade. But if you want a comprehensive history of the wars fought in the Middle East, he's your guy. Asbridge writes with great narrative pace without sacrificing detail; he clarifies both the complex political history of Outremer and the moment-by-moment action of the great battles and sieges. The story is filled with great personalities - Saladin, Richard Lionheart, the sad Louis King of France, the brutal Baybars. A final chapter reflects on how the crusades have been used as reference points in later history. Derek Perkins' reading is brisk and interesting.

Solid and objective history with minor innacuracie

Really good, with well researched and objective content. However, there are a few small problems. The author gets the characteristics of European arms and armor completely wrong. He says that mail was very poor armor, when in fact it is very effective, taking tremendously powerful hits and keeping the wearer safe. His view of European swords is also wrong, viewing them as crowbars rather than the agile weapons they truly are. This shows a disturbing lack of personal research of the primary sources. All one has to do is read contemporary accounts and handle accurate reproductions to know how wrong this segment was.
Also, the author consistently mentions different units of currency throughout the book but with no comparison of the currency or what a unit of the currency was worth. This information might be in the physical book.

Very Encouraging for any Christian

I’ve been in church all my life and have heard many sermons. Hearing the first hand account from surviving Crusaders of the hell they went through in defense of Christianity is inspiring to say the least. To hear of how Richard the Lionheart would have “sold London if I could” in order to better fund the Crusade, is inspiring. How these men, sold possessions and family heirlooms in order to fund the Crusade because of their religious piety is an inspiration. Derek Perkins does an outstanding job narrating and the amount of recording you get for your audible credit is well worth it. I constantly recommend this book to my Christian friends in person and on the Internet.

Best Book on the Crusades Yet

Thomas Asbridge avoids bias and corrects misconceptions. Amazing book, and great performance by Derek Perkins!

Crusaded

Very good and detailed narrative of the entire medieval crusade. While the battle descriptions are fine, the really interesting part was the European and Middle Easter Christian and Muslim political machinations.

My take on the crusades

good only fell asleep twice!!

brings to me a understanding of the history, and the political points of the crusades.

Great summary of the Crusades

A great summary of the various feuds, wars, and incursions that made up the midevial Crusades. Narration was well done and subject material was interesting and well organized.

Very pleasing.

Just returned from touring the Crusader castles/ruins. Adds so much more context. Thank you.

Great Stuff

a wonderful read account of a fascinating time in world history.... A valuable lesson.......

forgotten by some remembered by others

My knowledge of the crusades was rudimentary at best until this book. It is well balanced, well researched, and well presented. There does not seem to be a bias for one side or the other which is refreshing from a historical standpoint. He refers to the badly stated objective by Bush 43 when he said we were embarking on a "great crusade" and I assumed the author would slam the President for this folly, but the author states that the west does not refer to the Crusades when using that term but the Muslim world still refers to it in the 12th century meaning. So again no agenda.