Using original sources in Arabic, Greek, Latin, and Turkish, preeminent historian Raymond Ibrahim describes each battle in vivid detail and explains the effect the outcome had on larger historical currents of the age and how the military lessons of the battle reflect the cultural faultlines between Islam and the West.The majority of these landmark battles are now forgotten or considered inconsequential. Yet today, as the West faces a resurgence of this enduring Islamic jihad, Sword and Scimitar provides the needed historical context to understand the current relationship between the West and the Islamic world, and why the Islamic State is merely the latest chapter of an old history.

    Thomas Aquinas's five arguments for the existence of God, this book is for you. Written as dialogue between Lucy and AJ in a coffee shop, these arguments are presented by Fradd and Delfino in every day language, with helpful examples and analogies, and by raising and answering objections along the way. Additional resources at the end of the book will deepen your understanding of the material, help you to grow in wisdom, and strengthen your faith.

    On the Iberian Peninsula the wars of the Reconquista rage across Aragon and Castile. Once again, the Moors are gaining the upper hand. Christendom is divided.Amidst the chaos comes a young knight: Arnau of Valbona. After his Lord is killed in an act of treachery, Arnau pledges to look after his daughter, whose life is now at risk. But in protecting her Arnau will face terrible challenges, and enter a world of Templars, steely knights and visceral combat he could never have imagined.She in turn will find a new destiny with the Knights as a daughter of war… Can she survive? And can Arnau find his destiny?An explosive novel of greed and lust, God and blood, Daughter of War marks the beginning of an epic new series from bestseller S.J.A. Turney. Perfect for fans of Bernard Cornwell, Conn Iggulden and Matt Harffy.

    this is the book for you! The first book in a horrifying new fantasy sequence from Joseph Delaney, the internationally multi-million-selling author of The Spook's Apprentice.They heard shouting, and cries of fear. Crafty looked down the slope and realised what had happened to cause so much panic. Without warning, the dark wall of the Shole had advanced. Crafty can't remember a time before the Shole - the terrifying mist that has engulfed most of Britain, leaving those trapped in it to either die or be transformed into terrifying monsters: the aberrations.He's been stuck in his family's cellar for nearly a year, his only companions his restless, whispering dead brothers, and an unusually friendly aberration he names the Bog Queen.But then Crafty's life abruptly changes.He is ordered to report to the Castle, where he will train as a gate grub - operators of magical portals that allow the mysterious guild of Gatemancers to explore within the Shole. It is a dangerous job, with a very short life expectancy...To survive, Crafty will have to use every inch of his cunning - whatever the cost.

    Yet it is the people around him we remember: his wife Eleanor, whom he seduced from the French king; his son Richard the Lionheart; Thomas Becket, murdered in his cathedral. Who was this great, yet tragic king? For fans of Dan Jones, George RR Martin and Bernard Cornwell.The only thing that could have stopped Henry was himself.Henry II had all the gifts of the gods. He was charismatic, clever, learned, empathetic, a brilliant tactician, with great physical strength and an astonishing self-belief. Henry was the creator of the Plantagenet dynasty of kings, who ruled through eight generations in command of vast lands in Britain and Europe. Virtually unbeaten in battle, and engaged in a ceaseless round of conquest and diplomacy, Henry forged an empire that matched Charlemagne’s.It was not just on the battlefield that Henry excelled; he presided over a blossoming of culture and learning termed ‘the twelfth century Renaissance’, pursued the tenets of reason over religious faith, and did more to advance the cause of justice and enforce the rule of law than any other English monarch before or since. Contemporaries lauded his greatness and described him as their ‘Alexander of the West’.And yet it is the people around him who are remembered: his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, whom he seduced away from the French king; his sons Richard the Lionheart and John; Thomas Becket, murdered in his cathedral. Henry – so famed during his lifetime – has slipped into the shadows of history. King of the North Wind offers a fresh evaluation of this great yet tragic ruler.Written as historical tragedy, it tells how this most talented of kings came into conflict with those closest to him, to become the most haunted.

    Each featured novelist, playwright, or poet is introduced by a stunning portrait, followed by photography and illustrations of locations and artifacts important in their lives - along with pages from original manuscripts, first editions, and their correspondence.Trace the friendships, loves, and rivalries that inspired each individual and affected their writing, revealing insights into the larger-than-life characters, plots, and evocative settings that they created. You will also uncover details each writer's most famous pieces and understand the times and cultures they lived in - see how the world influenced them and how their works influenced the world.Writers introduces key ideas, themes, and literary techniques of each figure, revealing the imaginations and personalities behind some of the world's greatest novels, short stories, poems, and plays. A diverse variety of authors are covered, from the Middle Ages to present day, providing a compelling glimpse into the lives of the people behind the page.

    Already key figures in Henry VIII's court, with the ascent of Anne to the throne in 1533 these two men became the most important players on the Tudor stage, with direct access to royalty, and with it, influence. Both were highly skilled ambassadors and courtiers who negotiated their way through the complex and ruthless game of politics with ease. But when the Queen fell from grace just three years later, it was to have a devastating effect on her family - ultimately costing her brother his life. In this ground-breaking new book, Lauren Mackay reveals this untold story of Tudor England, bringing into the light two pivotal characters whose part in the rise and swift fall of Anne Boleyn has so far remained cloaked in shadow.

    In the modern era, Eckhart's writings have struck a chord with thinkers as diverse as Heidegger, Merton, Sartre, John Paul II, and the current Dalai Lama. He is the inspiration for the bestselling New Age author Eckhart Tolle's pen name, and his fourteenth-century quotes have become an online sensation. Today a variety of Christians, as well as many Zen Buddhists, Sufi Muslims, Jewish Cabbalists, and various spiritual seekers, all claim Eckhart as their own. Meister Eckhart preached a personal, internal path to God at a time when the Church could not have been more hierarchical and ritualistic. Then and now, Eckhart's revolutionary method of direct access to ultimate reality offers a profoundly subjective approach that is at once intuitive and pragmatic, philosophical yet non-rational, and, above all, universally accessible. This "dangerous mystic's" teachings challenge the very nature of religion, yet the man himself never directly challenged the Church.Eckhart was one of the most learned theologians of his day, but he was also a man of the world who had worked as an administrator for his religious order and taught for years at the University of Paris. His personal path from conventional friar to professor to lay preacher culminated in a spiritual philosophy that combined the teachings of an array of pagan and Christian writers, as well as Muslim and Jewish philosophers. His revolutionary decision to take his approach to the common people garnered him many enthusiastic followers as well as powerful enemies. After Eckhart's death and papal censure, many religious women and clerical supporters, known as the Friends of God, kept his legacy alive through the centuries, albeit underground until the master's dramatic rediscovery by modern Protestants and Catholics.Dangerous Mystic grounds Meister Eckhart in a world that is simultaneously familiar and alien. In the midst of this medieval society, a few decades before the Black Death, Eckhart boldly preached to captivated crowds a timeless method, a "wayless way," of directly experiencing the divine.

    The first portion of the work is a sprawling, in-depth analysis of the "Fayerie Faith," the folkloric presence of the old animism and spirit-worship of ancient and pre-modern Europe, Eurasia, Britain, and Ireland. The remaining portions form a detailed modern Grimoire of practical sorcery based solely upon pre-modern principles and traditional spirit-metaphysics as they are found in the ballads and folktales of the Old World and the traditional tales and lore of witchcraft. Also included is Robin Artisson's translation of a 14th century work, "The Romance of Thomas of Erceldoune," appearing here for the first time in modern English, along with detailed notes revealing the full esoteric significance of the strange story it tells: a story of how humans relate to the Fayerie World, and what that might mean for our destiny in this world. Countless other old tales are told and analyzed for the truths and guidance they contain. An Carow Gwyn shows the Old Way of seeing and living in this world for what it truly was, where it ultimately came from, and how it still lives quietly among us. A complete philosophical treatise regarding Spiritual Ecology, and how it relates to the Old Ways, is interlaced throughout the book. Criticism of modern cultural philosophies and ideologies in light of what the Old Ways reveal, forgotten histories underlying many of our cultural stories and myths, and the hidden laws and techniques behind basic and advanced historical works of sorcery (all of which are explained in exacting detail) are carefully brought together in this substantial and paradigm-shifting work. An Carow Gwyn contains over 60 illustrations and diagrams, and gives historical (and accessible) spells and workings from the Classical to the Elizabethan eras for seeking oracles through dreams, swaying the spirits of forests and graveyards, protection and uncrossing, opening doorways into spiritual regions, and even the supreme act of disassociating from bodily experience and traveling in the Unseen world.

    Do just that with these 48 lectures that consider the European Renaissance from all sides, that disturb traditional understandings, that tip sacred cows, and that enlarges our understanding of how the Renaissance revolutionized the Western world. Guiding you through centuries of exhilarating change in Europe with the knowledge, insights, and discernment of a master scholar, Professor McNabb offers new perspectives on familiar figures and events while focusing on often-unexplored or overlooked areas, such as the role of women in the Renaissance, the daily lives of the rural poor and urban elite, the classical roots of Renaissance thinking, and the powerful connections between the Renaissance and the Reformation. By observing the Renaissance less casually and more critically, you'll uncover insights and connections you can't find in typical narratives that celebrate these remarkable, tumultuous centuries. These lectures are an authoritative, uncompromising, and multidisciplinary way to experience not just one of Europe's Renaissance movements - but all of them.

    Both the Black Death and the mortecarni continue their devastating path of destruction across England. Brother Maurice has reason to believe he’s found a cure for the mortecarni until a new discovery suggests otherwise, sending the physician monk and his friends through Europe to Poland in a desperate race to end the undead menace once and for all. Meeting an intriguing young healer leads to further revelations that offer hope for their quest. But time is short and, when tragedy strikes, Maurice faces a moral dilemma. Can he ignore the challenge to his calling caused by his new companion’s presence? And can he find the cure for the mortecarni before all is lost? Warning: Strong Horror Scenes

    In the Mediterranean, the great Abrahamic faiths of Judaism, Christianity and Islam meet, often in cooperation and peace but, at times, in bloody conflict. It is an era of migration, globalism and multiculturalism leading to a robust interchange of technology, ideas and the basic tools of international trade. But, the interests of the Christian west are on a collision course with those of the Muslim world. War is coming. The Church is rallying the nobles of Europe to embark on an ‘armed pilgrimage’ to reclaim the Holy Land. Now, Thomas and his Muslim and Jewish partners’ lucrative sugar trade is in jeopardy. Thomas’s own secret and dangerous mission, directed from Rome, will become filled with even greater peril.When Thomas’s family is annihilated in a raid, his life changes forever. Wandering for days, starving and hopeless, he is rescued by a monk and is taken to live at the abbey of Eynsham. There he receives a curious education, training to be a scholar, a merchant and a spy. His mission: to develop commerce in Muslim lands and dispatch vital information to the Holy See.His perilous adventures during the 11th century’s commercial revolution will take him far from his cloistered life to the great trading cities of Almeria, Amalfi, Alexandria and Cairo.But the world in which he lives is chaotic. Struggling with love and loss, faith and fortune, can Thomas carry out his secret mission before conflict overtakes him? Spanning the tumultuous medieval worlds of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, The Sugar Merchant is a tale of clashing cultures, massive economic change and one man’s determination to fulfill his destiny.

    But who were the skilled craftsmen who made these exquisite books? What precisely is parchment? How were medieval manuscripts designed and executed? What were the inks and pigments, and how were they applied? Examining the work of scribes, illuminators, and bookbinders, this lavishly illustrated account tells the story of manuscript production from the early Middle Ages through to the high Renaissance. Each stage of production is described in detail, from the preparation of the parchment, pens, paints, and inks to the writing of the scripts and the final decoration of the manuscript. Christopher de Hamel’s engaging text is accompanied by a glossary of key technical terms relating to manuscripts and illumination, providing an invaluable introduction for anyone interested in studying medieval manuscripts today.

    Catlos rewrites the history of Islamic Spain from the ground up, evoking the cultural splendor of al-Andalus, while offering an authoritative new interpretation of the forces that shaped it.Prior accounts have portrayed Islamic Spain as a paradise of enlightened tolerance or the site where civilizations clashed. Catlos taps a wide array of primary sources to paint a more complex portrait, showing how Muslims, Christians, and Jews together built a sophisticated civilization that transformed the Western world, even as they waged relentless war against each other and their coreligionists. Religion was often the language of conflict, but seldom its cause--a lesson we would do well to learn in our own time.

    The medieval Catholic church is struggling to overcome pagan beliefs still prevalent in Britannia, so when Abigail, the youngest of the three, is wrongly accused of incest, the priests make an example of her. This tragic event changes all their lives as Goda and Abigail run off together and Waso begins a quest to find them. Along with Waso, Goda, and Abigail, the novel follows the life of a young, Persian woman, Stateira, who has led a hard life since she was sold by her father. The story also tells of Jolenta, whose life experiences have motivated her to help victims of church abuse, a former monk, Elfgar, who works with Jolenta when he's sober, and Duette, Jolenta's daughter, who has reached the age where she must make decisions about the direction of her life. Under a Warped Cross paints a picture of life in the middle ages within a plot filled with fury, sin, and violence, but also love, determination, and strength.

    Now in a revised format, this radiant book brings you face-to-face with 167 of the most exquisite and important manuscripts of the medieval age.Presented in brilliant large-format reproductions, these paradigms of miniature painting and illumination from the 4th century to 1600 were once the property of some of the greatest power players in history. Now art-historical treasures, they are worth many millions and typically tucked away in private collections or closely guarded archives―until now.Although the focus of this collection is on European manuscripts, examples from Mexican, Persian, and Indian tradition illustrate the refinement and intricacy of manuscript illumination in non-European cultures. An informative synopsis for each manuscript orients the reader at a glance, while a 36-page appendix contains biographies of the artists, as well as an extensive bibliography, an index, and a glossary for technical terms.

    He has variously been considered a great warrior but a poor king, a man driven by the quest for fame and glory but also lacking in self-discipline and prone to throwing away the short-term advantages that his military successes brought him. In this reassessment W B Bartlett looks at his deeds and achievements in a new light. The result is a re-evaluation of `The Lionheart' which finds that the King is every bit as remarkable as his medieval contemporaries found him to be. This includes his Muslim enemies who spoke of him as their most dangerous and gallant opponent. It also shows him to be a man badly let down by some of those around him, especially his brother John and the duplicitous French king Philip. His character foibles are also exposed to the full including his complicated relationships with the key women in his life especially the huge contemporary figure of his mother Eleanor of Aquitaine and his wife Berengaria with whom he failed to produce an heir leading to later suggestions of homosexuality. This is a new Richard, one for the 21st Century, and a recapitulation of the life story of one of the greatest personalities of medieval Europe.

    Captured in the materiality of manuscripts are the data enabling us to make sense of the preferences and habits of the individuals who made up medieval society. With short chapters grouped under thematic headings, Books Before Print shows how we may tap into the evidence and explores how manuscripts can act as a vibrant and versatile tool to understand the deep historical roots of human interaction with written information. It highlights extraordinary continuities between medieval book culture and modern-world communication, as witnessed in medieval pop-up books, posters, speech bubbles, book advertisements, and even sticky notes.

    The Paris of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance isn't lost.It exists in a neighbourhood that escaped the city's transformation in the 19th century.This book, based mainly on a large number of photos, accompanied by concise historical and architectural explanations, endeavours to reveal Le Marais's treasures, especially the less known ones, to the visitor who desires to discover them.Among other things, it presents interesting but not sufficiently known museums, luxurious mansions, with sumptuous courtyard façades and lovely gardens hidden behind high walls, medieval houses with a wooden framework and Gothic basements and even the castle of 'the Primate of France'.

    It was men who fought wars, made laws and dictated religious doctrine. It was men who were taught to read, trained to rule and who were expected to fight to defend their people and country. Today, it is easy to think that all women from this era were down-beaten, retiring and obedient housewives, whose sole purpose was to give birth to children (preferably boys) and serve their husbands. Heroines of the Medieval World looks at the lives of the women - some well known and some almost forgotten to history - who broke the mould; those who defied social norms and made their own future, consequently changing lives, society and even the course of history. Some of the women featured you will have heard of, such as Eleanor of Aquitaine, who was not only a duchess in her own right but also Queen Consort of France through her first marriage and Queen Consort of England through her second, in addition to being a crusader, a rebel and regent of England. Then there are those who have been all but forgotten, including Nicholaa de la Haye, the remarkable woman who defended Lincoln Castle in the name of King John, and Maud de Braose, who spoke out against the same king's excesses and whose death (or murder) was the inspiration for a clause in the Magna Carta. Women had to walk a fine line in the Middle Ages, but many learned to survive - even flourish - in this male-dominated world. Some led armies, while others made their influence felt in more subtle ways, but all made a contribution to the medieval era and should be remembered for daring to defy and lead in a world that demanded they obey and follow.

    He knows he could be―if only he didn’t have to hide his gaming from his mom, who’s convinced it will make him violent. After an epic match leads to an invitation to play in a top tournament, Jaden and his friends Devesh and Hugh hatch a plan to get him there. But Jaden’s strict parents and annoying siblings, not to mention a couple of bullies and his confusing feelings for his next-door neighbor Cali, keep getting in the way!Tournament Trouble marks the first book in a planned series by Sylv Chiang, a captivating new voice in middle reader fiction. With sharp dialogue and relatable characters, it chronicles the ups and downs of middle school with a relevant, contemporary twist. Accompanied by Connie Choi’s lively illustrations, Tournament Trouble invites readers into Jaden’s world, and will leave them eagerly awaiting his next adventure.

    Rather than presenting too many details, this book, written by an art and architecture historian, endeavours to present through a large number of representative photos and concise historical and architectural explanations the essence of this magical city.

    In this ambitious new work, Steve Tibble draws on a wide range of Muslim texts and archaeological evidence as well as more commonly cited Western sources to analyze the respective armies’ strategy, adaptation, evolution, and cultural diversity and show just how sophisticated the Crusader armies were even by today’s standards. In the first comprehensive account of the subject in sixty years, Tibble takes a fresh approach to Templars, Hospitallers, and other key Orders and makes the controversial proposition that the Crusades were driven as much by sedentary versus nomadic tribal concerns as by religious conflict. This fluently written, broad-ranging narrative provides a crucial missing piece in the study of the West’s attempts to colonize the Middle East during the Middle Ages.

    In it he demonstrated the health of late medieval religion in England and that the thesis hitherto accepted that the Reformation came to wipe away a corrupt and rotten Church was essentially false. In this book follow-up to The Stripping of the Altars, Duffy makes further soundings in late medieval religion, but drills down to the particular and avoids any wide historical sweep. Among the topics he covers are "Purgatory," "The Black Death," "Adoration of the Mother of God," and "Heresy." By his meticulous research, Duffy has discovered many original documents and records during his academic career, proving that his thesis about the Reformation is basically irrefutable.This book is illustrated by a small collection of full color plates which further demonstrate the richness of late medieval religion.

    Hela has powers too strong for a child – both to feel the pain of those around her and to heal them. But when she is given a mysterious cup by a slave woman, its powers overtake her life, forcing her into a vow she cannot hope to keep. Trapped by her vow, Hela loses one chance after another to love and be loved. Meanwhile in her household a child is growing into a woman who will become famous throughout the Muslim world. So begins a quartet of historical novels set in Morocco as the Almoravid Dynasty sweeps across Northern Africa and Spain, creating a Muslim Empire that endured for generations.

    But perhaps the impact of the conflict has been overstated, and its effect on the common people across the country is hard to judge. That is why Chris Peerss fresh study of this fascinating and controversial era is of such value. He describes each phase of this civil war, in particular the castles and sieges that dominated strategic thinking, and he sets the fighting in the context of the changing tactics and military systems of the twelfth century. His fresh account of this pivotal episode in the medieval history of England will be absorbing reading anyone who is keen to gain an insight into this period of English history and has a special interest in the practice of medieval warfare.

    

    In addition to being perceived as a remarkably unique culture among its European counterparts, what’s known and not known about the Vikings’ accomplishments has added an intriguing aura to the historical narrative. Were they fierce and fearsome warriors? Were they the first Europeans to visit North America? It seems some of the legends are true, and some are just that, legend. Like many civilizations of past millennia, the Vikings are remembered in popular culture more for the fantastical accounts of their history than for reality. The written records of the history of the Viking period, consisting mostly of Norse sagas, metaphoric poems called skalds and monastic chronicles, were written down well after the events they described and tended to be lurid accounts rife with hyperbole. Furthermore, the most scathing tales of Viking raids are contained in the histories of monastic communities which were targets of Norse rapacity. These chronicles speak of the heathen Viking depredations of monastic treasuries and the ferocious torture and killing of Christian monks. The colorful bloody tales were certainly based on more than grains of truth, but they were also purposefully augmented to inject drama into history. Similarly Norse sagas written down in the post-Viking Age fixed what had hitherto been flexible oral tradition. They were often slanted to legitimize a clan or leader's authority by emphasizing an ancestor's bravery and skill in pillaging opponent's communities. As a result, the almost ubiquitous depiction of the Vikings as horn-helmeted, brutish, hairy giants who mercilessly marauded among the settlements of Northern Europe is based on an abundance of prejudicial historical writing by those who were on the receiving end of Viking depredations, and much of the popular picture of the Vikings is a result of the romantic imagination of novelists and artists. For example, there is neither historical nor archaeological evidence that the typically red haired, freckled Norsemen entered battle wearing a metal helmet decorated with horns. This headgear was an invention of the Swedish painter and illustrator Johan August Malmström (1829-1901), and his work was so widely disseminated in popular books that the image stuck. Today the imaginary Viking helmet is an almost mandatory costume accessory in productions of Wagner's opera Der Ring des Nibelungen, which is not about the Vikings at all. It seems the horned helmet evolved from an imaginary reinterpretation of genuine Viking images of a winged helmet that may have been worn by priests in Viking religious ceremonies. However, the Vikings’ reputation for ferocious seaborne attacks along the coasts of Northern Europe is no exaggeration. It is true that the Norsemen, who traded extensively throughout Europe, often increased the profits obtained from their nautical ventures through plunder, acquiring precious metals and slaves. Of course, the Vikings were not the only ones participating in this kind of income generation - between the 8th and the 11th centuries, European tribes, clans, kingdoms and monastic communities were quite adept at fighting with each other for the purpose of obtaining booty. The Vikings were simply more consistently successful than their contemporaries and thus became suitable symbols for the iniquity of the times. The Expansion of the Vikings looks at the history of the Vikings’ trading and raiding, and how they became some of the most famous conquerors of the Middle Ages.