Course and Module Catalogue

This module considers the Crusades to the Holy Land from the late eleventh to mid thirteenth centuries. These events are located within the context of contemporary political, social and religious developments both in Western Europe and in the Middle East. Different accounts of the Crusades in contemporary sources will be considered from the perspective of the crusaders themselves, as well as from the point of view of the Jewish, Islamic and Byzantine peoples who were affected by the influx of Western Europeans to the Eastern Mediterranean. It will also examine crusading activities within Europe (e.g. Spain and the Baltic).

Teaching will be delivered by lectures and seminars. Lectures will cover broadly factual and theoretical material whilst seminars will encourage analysis of primary source materials, discussion of historiography and other forms of interpretation which will develop students’ analytical skills.  Students may be asked to chair and present in some sessions to develop oral and organisational skills. Use will be made of C&IT resources, including the University’s VLE, to provide students with learning resources but also to increase their abilities to select and access materials on the internet, in text databases and in a virtual learning environment.