Jonathan Phillips Summary

Jonathan Phillips has written an outstanding book that encompasses 200 hundred years of holy wars between medieval Christendom and Islam. Included within Phillips 434 paged book are black and white illustrations, notes, primary and secondary bibliographies, and an index. The reader will find an eloquently written book. The author begins his story with Pope Urban II speech at the council at Clermont in 1095. Author states, Urban II called for the recovery of Jerusalem from Islam and the need to aid King Alexious I of Byzantine in order to halt the rise of Islam in the Near East. Phillips takes the reader on the crusaders journey that is fraught with successful and dithering Popes, nobles, and commoners who are rarely able to produce a successful military campaign. As with most historians, Phillips provides plenty of details about the interplay between King Richard I and Saladin. However, it was a refreshing change when the author introduced the reader lesser-known medieval characters such as the formidable Melisende and her conniving sister Alice of Antioch, to which much time, effort, and supplies went into trying to control Alice. Phillips elaborates on Muslim characters as well, he writes of the preacher of jihad Ali ibn Tahir al-Sulami, and the Muslim poet Usama ibn Munqidn. Phillips acknowledged that at times even through the …show more content…
The author produced a well-written book that I read from cover to cover. The book provided additional details of the crusading years that I had not been exposed to; therefore, it is a viable and useful source. The content is based on historically correct sources, many accounts of the escapades Phillips wrote are about were by eyewitness. The author was objective, as he never attempted to lead the reader into a specific outcome. The book helped solidify my concept of the crusading years. I was able to shape my review of the book based upon the facts described within the