Issue 40 : The Crusades
Originally published in 1993

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Table of Contents
An experienced crusade preacher defends holy war
Humbert of Romans
They innocently headed for the Holy Land, not knowing they would never return.
Sir Steven Runciman
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Little Known Facts about the Crusades.
Caroline T. Marshall
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As the crusaders assaulted Jerusalem, the holy and savage joined hands.
Mark Galli
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Why followers of the Prince of Peace waged war.
Bruce L. Shelley
Bernard of Clairvaux, who wrote the beautiful essay On Loving God, also urged Christians to fight for Christ. Here are some excerpts from a letter written in 1147.
The great preachers, planners, and fighters of the Holy Land crusades.
Stephen Miller
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Christians thought they had liberated Jerusalem from infidels. But what did Muslims think?
Hadia Dajani-Shakeel
Usama ibn Munqidh was emir of Shizar in the twelfth century, when Christians occupied much of the Holy Land. Here are three accounts of his experience with the clash of cultures.
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The devout, combative, and scandalous women who shared in the Crusades.
Ronald C. Finucane
Whether by land or sea, a crusade to the East was difficult and dangerous.
In the new religious orders, Christians blended poverty, chastity, and military fervor.
Michael Gervers
A historian looks at the causes and lingering effects of Christian warfare.
Jonathan Riley-Smith
The last few decades have seen a resurgence of crusades studies. Here are several of the many fine works available.
James M. Powell

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December 9, 1608: English poet John Milton is born in London. Though most famous for his epic Paradise Lost, he also penned an exposition of Christian doctrine, a plan for Christian education, and various political writings.
December 9, 1840: Unable to go to China, David Livingstone sets sail from London as a missionary to southern Africa (see issue 56: David Livingstone).
December 9, 1843: The first Christmas cards—actually more like postcards—are created and sold for a shilling.
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