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IMC 2021: Sessions

Session 2004: Historical Writing, the Crusades, and the Latin East, I: Writing Ideology

Friday 9 July 2021, 09.00-10.30

Organisers:Andrew David Buck, School of History, Queen Mary University of London
James Henry Kane, Medieval & Early Modern Centre, University of Sydney
Moderator/Chair:James Henry Kane, Medieval & Early Modern Centre, University of Sydney
Paper 2004-aWriting Jerusalem into Crusade Narratives: Descriptions of the City as a Mirror to Changing Perceptions of Crusade and the Course of Sacred History
(Language: English)
Anna Gutgarts-Weinberger, Interdisciplinary Research Center in Jewish Studies, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Index terms: Crusades, Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Latin
Paper 2004-bThe Crusade Vow as a Literary Device
(Language: English)
Edward Caddy, School of History Queen Mary University of London
Index terms: Crusades, Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Latin
Paper 2004-c'The Lord has brought Eastern riches right before you, indeed, he has placed them in your hands': Battlefield Spoils and Looted Treasure in Crusade Narratives
(Language: English)
Connor Wilson, Department of History, Royal Holloway, University of London
Index terms: Crusades, Historiography - Medieval, Language and Literature - Latin
Abstract

The papers in this session offer fresh scrutiny of the diverse sources for the crusades and the Latin East, and demonstrate the value of utilising different methodological frameworks, such as narrative theory, to interrogate texts in the broader context of medieval historical writing. Paper A will analyse the ways in which the First Crusaders' encounter with Jerusalem was registered in the chronicles of the venture, using this as a prism to observe a gradual coming to terms with the shift in apocalyptic expectations that was required after 1099. Paper B will explore some of the ways and reasons for which the chroniclers of the crusades used the crusade vow in their literary efforts in order to better understand contemporary attitudes to - and understanding of - how this obligation sat within the broader network of oaths and commitment in the medieval world. Paper C will discuss how gaining wealth was commonly formulated narratively across a number of crusade accounts, as well as how such evidence could direct further research into contemporary principles surrounding the acquisition and use of treasure on crusade.