The Third Crusade in Historiographical Perspective

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

2 Citations (Scopus)
767 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The Third Crusade (1187–1192) is renowned as a conflict between King Richard I of England and the Muslim Sultan Saladin—a reductionist perspective that reflects an enduring fascination with these protagonists both inside and outside academia. In fact, the expedition was significantly more diverse, with the German emperor, Frederick Barbarossa, and the king of France, Philip Augustus, leading major contingents to the East, while a number of smaller-scale expeditions also constituted part of the overall Third Crusade. This article surveys key developments in the enterprise's historiography—focusing primarily on the crusading careers of Richard, Frederick and Philip—and introduces the main sources. It suggests that hindsight has played a surprisingly prominent role in directing scholarly interpretations and that historiography has gradually diversified during the 20th and 21st centuries, moving away from the traditional Richard versus Saladin narrative to explore understudied individuals, events and themes.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere12662
JournalHistory Compass
Volume19
Issue number7
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jul 2021

Keywords

  • Third Crusade
  • Richard the Lionheart
  • Frederick Barbarossa
  • Philip Augustus
  • Historiography
  • Biography

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The Third Crusade in Historiographical Perspective'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this