Over the semester in this course, the sole focus was the Crusades. The Crusades is not a proud history for Christians. The brutality used and the amount of death that resulted in the acts of the Crusades has left its imprint on history forever, but there is much more to the Crusades than this. From this course, the most important concept learned from this course is the fact that the Crusades is something that is not easily understood or explained. There are so many components and concepts that work together and against each other through the course of the Crusades. Religion plays a large part in the Crusades, but so does the mind-set of the Western culture at the time, and the concept of chivalry. The actions of these Crusaders were done in
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Terry Jones introduced one of the sole purposes of the knight, which was to fight for Christendom. In one case, Jones sai that crusaders “became the instruments of the last judgement.” The mind-set and beliefs of these men participating in the crusades was that it was essentially a religious act that honored God. This television series indicated and highlighted the influence religion had on the crusaders, and how it was essentially at the core of their actions. Within the series, it also presented the aggressive behaviors and cruelty of the crusaders. For example, when the Christian fighters mounted the heads of their enemies on spears and marched on with them. The fighting techniques and military technology they used was highlighted during the series. Yes, it was presented, but it was generally followed by a sense of humor or reenactment by Terry Jones himself that managed to diffuse the harsh reality of what was experienced. An example of this is Terry’s reenactment of King Richard’s beach …show more content…
Both discussed the role of the knight, but the television series did not divulge into the complexity of the knight itself and its place in society like the material in the class did. The televisions series define knights in a simple and universal fashion, which isn’t the case. Components and characteristics of knights were discussed in both the television series and the class, but the components that the television series emphasized the most was the prowess of a knight, and a knight’s connection with religion. Lastly, the hardships of crusaders were presented in both situations, and both presentations were interpretations of primary source documents that revealed similar aspects. The use of this television series as a popular history is a way to introduce a topic and various important components, but it is not enough to claim complete knowledge of a
Terry Jones introduced one of the sole purposes of the knight, which was to fight for Christendom. In one case, Jones sai that crusaders “became the instruments of the last judgement.” The mind-set and beliefs of these men participating in the crusades was that it was essentially a religious act that honored God. This television series indicated and highlighted the influence religion had on the crusaders, and how it was essentially at the core of their actions. Within the series, it also presented the aggressive behaviors and cruelty of the crusaders. For example, when the Christian fighters mounted the heads of their enemies on spears and marched on with them. The fighting techniques and military technology they used was highlighted during the series. Yes, it was presented, but it was generally followed by a sense of humor or reenactment by Terry Jones himself that managed to diffuse the harsh reality of what was experienced. An example of this is Terry’s reenactment of King Richard’s beach …show more content…
Both discussed the role of the knight, but the television series did not divulge into the complexity of the knight itself and its place in society like the material in the class did. The televisions series define knights in a simple and universal fashion, which isn’t the case. Components and characteristics of knights were discussed in both the television series and the class, but the components that the television series emphasized the most was the prowess of a knight, and a knight’s connection with religion. Lastly, the hardships of crusaders were presented in both situations, and both presentations were interpretations of primary source documents that revealed similar aspects. The use of this television series as a popular history is a way to introduce a topic and various important components, but it is not enough to claim complete knowledge of a