Warfare in the Age of Crusades

Warfare in the Age of Crusades: The Latin East explores in fascinating detail the key campaigns, battles and sieges that shaped the crusading period of the Middle Ages, giving special attention to military technologies, tactics and strategies. Key personalities and political factors are addressed, including the role of papal monarchy in initiating the crusading expeditions, the relationship between Catholic Europe and the Byzantine empire, the role of the religious military orders, and Islamic and Mongol military capabilities.

Chapters are devoted to each of the major crusades to the Levant - First, Second, Third and Fourth crusades - and an analysis of the Islamic response. The rise of the Mamluks in Egypt, with their innovative military organization, is covered, as are the failed Egyptian and Tunisian campaigns. The concluding chapters describe the Mongol campaigns in the Levant, the Mamluk response, and the final siege of Acre in 1291.

This original and perceptive study of a key stage in medieval military history features regional, strategic and multi-phase tactical maps that illuminate the narrative and provide a valuable resource for students, historians and wargamers alike.

About the Authors

Brian Todd Carey is an Assistant Professor of History and Military History at the American Public University System, where he has taught ancient, medieval, and early modern military history for over twenty years. His first two books, Warfare in the Ancient World and Warfare in the Medieval World, cover the history of warfare in western civilization from the Bronze Age through the Thirty Years' War. His other publications include Hannibal's Last Battle and Road to Manzikert: Byzantine and Islamic Warfare, 527-1071. Joshua B. Allfree is an IT project manager supporting the US Army Human Resources Command at Fort Knox, Kentucky. He retired from the US Army as a Sergeant Major in 2014 after a 34-year career in the fields of both combat arms and information technology. He is a member of the Society for Military History. He has collaborated on four previous books with author Brian Todd Carey, Warfare in the Ancient World, Warfare in the Medieval World, Hannibal's Last Battle, and Road to Manzikert.