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Welcome to the FAQ page. I set up this page in 1999 in response
to an obvious public need. As a professional historian working
full time at one of the leading research universities in the
U.K., I receive many general questions on the crusades from school
children and adults with an interest in the crusades and no immediate
access to an academic library. However, as I do not actually
have the spare time to answer these questions individually with
the care and attention that they deserve, I hoped that this page
would go some way towards meeting this genuine need while keeping
my employer happy.
The answers are aimed at people with no in-depth knowledge
of the crusades. Colleagues who wish to differ are free to set
up their own FAQ pages.
These answers are intended to reflect modern scholarship on
the crusades. They are not intended to promote any political,
national or religious viewpoint. The intention is to be as objective
as possible and not to cause offence to anyone - although in
a subject as controversial as the crusades it is impossible to
avoid upsetting someone sometimes. As I have received complaints
from both Muslims and Christians, I assume that I have got the
balance about right. Readers should note that these answers reflect
my views as a historian, not my personal views. They are intended
to be OBJECTIVE. Therefore it is quite likely that you will not
like some of the answers. However, as they reflect history and
not my own views, there is no point in writing to tell me that
you don't like my answers. I am not responsible for history.
If you are offended when I state, for instance, that some medieval
European Christians believed that the Muslims were great warriors
and very sexy (see, e.g., Palamedes in Tristan), please
DON'T write and tell me about it. Set
up your own webpage, and if I think it's appropriate I'll put
in a link to it from this one.
For links to other webpages, please see the answer to: 'Please direct me to some websites about
the Crusades', below.
Responses to this page sadly indicate that there is little
indication that religious peace will break out on this planet
in the near future. Some readers have complained about spelling
errors on these pages. These pages are written in U.K. English,
not U.S. English.
For my Knights Templar FAQ page, please
click here.
Please note: All answers are copyright © Dr Helen Nicholson,
and any items from this web site that are copied or quoted in
any form should be acknowledged. |