The Second Crusade (1145-1149) was an extraordinarily bold attempt to overcome unbelievers on no less than three fronts. Crusader armies set out to defeat Muslims in the Holy Land and in Iberia as well as pagans in northeastern Europe. But, to the shock and dismay of a society raised on the triumphant legacy of the First Crusade, only in Iberia did they achieve any success. This book, the first in 140 years devoted to the Second Crusade, fills a major gap in our understanding of the Crusades and their importance in medieval European history. Historian Jonathan Phillips draws on the latest developments in Crusade studies to cast new light on the origins, planning, and execution of the Second Crusade, some of its more radical intentions, and its unprecedented ambition. With original insights into the legacy of the First Crusade and the roles of Pope Eugenius III and King Conrad III of Germany, Phillips offers the definitive work on this neglected Crusade that, despite its failed objectives, exerted a profound impact across Europe and the eastern Mediterranean.

The Second Crusade

After the fall of the crusader kingdom of Edessa, the Pope called for a new crusade in 1145. This new campaign by the Christian west against the forces of eastern Islam would culminate in the 1148 siege of Damascus, then the capital city of an Islamic state that had been friendly towards the crusaders. Despite the earlier successes for the crusaders at Antioch and Jerusalem, and the weak fortifications around Damascus, the siege proved a dismal and embarrassing failure for the western armies. The siege was abandoned soon after it had started and the crusaders retreated. This defeat shocked the Christian world and dealt a severe blow to the confidence of the crusading armies, while bolstering the morale of their enemies. Utilizing numerous illustrations and full-color artwork, medieval warfare expert David Nicolle analyzes the often-debated battles around Damascus, explaining how the domination of the surrounding countryside by the Islamic forces became the decisive factor, and how the besieging crusading forces found themselves under siege. He also looks at the crusade in the larger context of the battle between East and West and explains how the Second Crusade proved a turning point in this ongoing struggle.

The Second Crusade 1148

The Second Crusade (1145-49) was an unprecedented attempt to expand the borders of Christianity in the Holy Land, the Baltic, and the Iberian peninsula. This wide-ranging collection offers a series of original interpretations of new and partially explored evidence of the crusade. The essays examine the planning, execution, and consequences of the crusade for Western Europe, the Crusader States of the Holy Land, and the Muslim Near East.

No subject in medieval history is changing as rapidly as crusade studies. Even so, the Second Crusade has been oddly neglected. The present volume is the first ever to have been devoted to it in English and one of the few which has appeared in any language. Particular attention is paid to the key role played by St.Bernard and the Cistercians in this crusade and their relations with the Military Orders. An interdisciplinary approach is taken, incorporating history, art and music. The Volume contains unparalleled bibliography, listing over 700 primary and secondary sources.

The Second Crusade and the Cistercians

Excerpt from A Romance of the Second Crusade Finding themselves confronted by a usurper who had no great talent to recommend him, nor much political strength behind his brilliant personal cour age, their first instinct was to refuse submission to his authority, and to drive him out as an impos tor. It was not until they had been chilled and dis appointed by the scornful coldness of the Empress Queen's imperious bearing that they saw how much pleasanter it would be to rule Stephen than to serve Maud. Yet Gloucester was powerful, and with his feudal retainers and devoted followers and a hand ful of loyal independent knights, he was still able to hold Oxford, Gloucester, and the northernmost part of Berkshire for his sister. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

A Romance of the Second Crusade (Classic Reprint)

A seminal article published by Giles Constable in 1953 focused on the genesis and expansion in scope of the Second Crusade with particular attention to what has become known as the Syrian campaign. His central thesis maintained that by the spring of 1147 the Church viewed and planned the Second Crusade a general Christian offensive against the Baltic pagan Wends and the Muslims of the Iberian Peninsula and the Holy Land. His work remains extremely influential and provides the framework for the recent major works published on this extraordinary mid twelfth-century phenomenon. This volume aims to readdress scholarly predilections for concentrating on the venture in the Holy Land and for narrowly focusing on the accepted targets of the crusade. It aims instead to place established, contentious, and new events and concepts associated with the enterprise in a wider ideological, chronological, geopolitical, and geographical context.

The Second Crusade (1145-1149) was an extraordinarily bold attempt to overcome unbelievers on no less than three fronts. Crusader armies set out to defeat Muslims in the Holy Land and in Iberia as well as pagans in northeastern Europe. But, to the shock and dismay of a society raised on the triumphant legacy of the First Crusade, only in Iberia did they achieve any success. This book, devoted to the Second Crusade, fills a gap in our understanding of the Crusades and their importance in medieval European history. The author, a historian draws on the latest developments in Crusade studies to cast new light on the origins, planning, and execution of the Second Crusade, some of its more radical intentions, and its unprecedented ambition. With original insights into the legacy of the First Crusade and the roles of Pope Eugenius III and King Conrad III of Germany, he offers a work on this Crusade that, despite its failed objectives, exerted a profound impact across Europe and the eastern Mediterranean.

The Second Crusade as Seen by Contemporaries

The Origin of the Second Crusade

Conrad III and the Second Crusade in the Byzantine Empire and Anatolia, 1147

Second Crusade - Violence Paradox Explored

The second crusade is a sequel to "Young men of the cross" and is the account of the post-World War II attempt to again reach every home in Japan with the Gospel. This time, young collegians from many Christian colleges join Japanese crusaders for two and a half years in Japan, Korea and Taiwan from 1953-65.

The Second Crusade and the Rise and Fall of Frankish Syria

The Second Crusade, launched in 1147, was a pivotal event in medieval history characterized by its complex political and military dynamics. Triggered by the fall of the County of Edessa to Muslim forces, it aimed to recapture Jerusalem. Led by European monarchs such as Louis VII of France and Conrad III of Germany, the crusade faced numerous challenges, including logistical issues, discord among leaders, and military setbacks. Ultimately, it failed to achieve its primary objective, highlighting the difficulty of coordinating large-scale military campaigns across vast distances. Despite its shortcomings, the Second Crusade left a lasting impact on the relationship between the East and West, influencing future interactions between the Christian and Muslim worlds and shaping the course of history in the Holy Land.