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IMC 2018: Sessions

Session 1802: A Database of Crusaders to the Holy Land, 1095-1291: A Workshop

Thursday 5 July 2018, 16.15-17.45

Organisers:Alan V. Murray, Institute for Medieval Studies, University of Leeds
Guy Perry, Institute for Medieval Studies / School of History, University of Leeds
Abstract

The Crusaders to Holy Land, 1095-1291 database will bring together information on men and women who took part in the crusades to the Holy Land in the period between the Council of Clermont (1095) and the end of the 12th century. Its purpose is to enhance understanding of the motives and dynamics of the crusading movement by collating data on issues such as the identity and social status of crusaders and their relationships, family traditions and regional patterns of crusading, finance, mortality rates, and gender issues. It can thus be used to gain information on the lives of individual crusaders, as well as on the composition of individual crusades and their contingents and the contribution made to crusading by different families, countries, and regions of Europe.

Currently a pilot study for the creation of a searchable database of crusaders to the Holy Land from 1095 to 1291 is available online. It includes data on individuals who were involved in crusading in the period from the First (1096-1099) to the Second (1145-1149) Crusades. The original material was put together in 2007-2008 from basic databases compiled by Jonathan Riley-Smith (mainly for the First Crusade) and Jonathan Phillips (mainly for the Second Crusade). This data was entered into an Access database constructed by Nicholas Morton. Subsequently, Alan Murray and Guy Perry (both of the University of Leeds), who had both independently worked on crusade participation in the 12th century, offered their assistance to the project, and during 2014-2015 they checked and harmonised the complete database and added further biographical and geographical information and additional references. In 2015-2016 a more user-friendly interface was developed by the Digital Humanities Institute at the University of Sheffield. The database now comprises some 1100 records.

For further information, please see: www.dhi.ac.uk/crusaders/