Course Syllabus

Course Information:

  • Instructor: David M. Perry
  • Class Times: Tuesday: 11:45 - 1:10 and Thursday: 12:45 - 2:05
  • Location: Old Main 02
  • Office: 601B Holland Hall
  • Office Phone: (507) 646-3534
  • Office Hours: Tues and Thurs 4-5 P.M.
  • Email: perry@stolaf.edu

Course Description:

The Crusades represent one of the most fascinating, odd, troubling, and astounding episodes in the history of the Middle Ages. In this class, our primary aim will be to study the crusading phenomenon by engaging with the documentary remains of the period. Through studying these documents and the context in which they were produced, we will try to develop answers to the following types of questions. Why did people go on Crusade? The Holy Land was a distant destination, about which medieval men and women knew very little, and yet they set out to conquer it. How did the Papacy come to view attacks on the Muslims as not merely justifiable violence, but deserving of great spiritual reward? How did Muslim and Jewish communities respond to the violence? How did contact between all three religious groups change relations among Christians, Muslims, and Jews?

The Crusades also raise larger questions about the relationship between violence and religion, a subject much on our minds in these times. We must consider the legacy of the crusades and the use of the 'crusade image' in media, film, and modern scholarship. Were they a precursor to later European expansion? Did they set the stage for modern violence in the Middle East? To address these questions we will develop an understanding of what the crusades actually were, how they were carried out, the motives of the actors on all sides of the conflicts, and the interpretations offered by different historians.

Finally, this course will help students learn the skills they need to understand the past outside of the classroom. The assignments in this class will focus on the analysis and interpretation of primary material in both formal and informal writing.

Required Texts

The following texts should be purchased immediately at the St. Olaf Bookstore.

  1. Thomas F. Madden, A Concise History of the Crusades (Hereafter: Madden)
  2. The Crusades: A Reader, ed. S.J. Allen and Emilie Amt (Hereafter: Allen and Amt)
  3. Joinville and Villehardouin, Chronicles of the Crusades (Hereafter: Joinville and Villehardouin)

Course Requirements and Assignments

  •  Informal Writing Assignments
    • There will be seven informal writing assignments due throughout the course of the semester. These are designed to hone your ability to analyze sources for the history of the crusades. The assignments are listed on the syllabus on the day they are due. Because the assignments will provide a basis for discussion, late assignments will be accepted only under exceptional circumstances. The due dates are as follows.
      1. 10 Feb: paragraph on Pope Urban's preaching of the First Crusade
      2. 24 Feb: map of First Crusade geographical features
      3. 10 Mar: comparison of old and new knighthood
      4. 5 Apr: letter home describing summer "work-study" program with Saladin
      5. 19 Apr : debate on responsibility for diversion of Fourth Crusade
      6. 5 May: map of Far East based on Joinville
      7. 12 May: crusader poem
  • Formal Writing Assignments
    • Two Textual Analysis Exercises: on primary sources, with assigned topics, 800-1000 words (3-4 pages) each. These assignments must be word-processed and you should pay careful attention to spelling, grammar, and punctuation. More information will come to you well before the assignment is due. These exercises are due in class on 3 March and 21 April respectively. Exercises turned in late will be accepted, but the grade will be lowered by one grade per day. Papers are considered late once class begins (give or take a few minutes).
  • Examinations
    • Midterm Examination:  Take home. Short-answer questions - due in my mailbox on Thursday, 17 March
    • Take-home final examination: identifications, textual analysis, essay. Due on whatever date our final exam happens to be (TBA).
  • Participation:
    • Participation is more than just showing up (that's attendance). It's about doing the reading, being prepared to talk about it, volunteering your input, being involved in your group work, preparing for the debates and other discussions, and generally being an asset to the class as a whole. We will have a variety of ways in which you can participate, but none matter more than being an active member in our small-group and full-class discussions.
    • Your participation is a large percent of your grade. Earn it by showing up prepared to talk. Take initiative. Do not expect to be called upon and ace this section of the class. It is your for the taking.
  • Attendance:
    • Show up. Attendance will be taken every day. There are 25 days of class (plus the day the midterm is due). Attendance is worth 10% of your final grade. You should endeavor not to miss any days of class, but if you miss more then two, you will then lose 1% per day up to a total of 10% for each additional class skipped.
    • Excused absences - severe illness with doctor's note, death in the family, acts of God, or legitimate St. Olaf activities (i.e. the choir tour in the first week of class) will obviously not incur penalties. That said, they will count against the two 'free' absences that everyone gets.
    • The reason for this Attendance policy is that poor attendance generally leads to poor grades. In the highly unlikely event of an excused absence, you are responsible for making sure it does not harm your grade - you must do the reading, get your responses in on time, and get class notes from another student.
    • Finally, being late consistently may be counted as absence. You may get a warning.

The Grade

  • 2 Textual Analysis Papers (15% each) - 30%
  • Informal Writing Assignments (2% each) - 14%
  • Midterm Exam - 11%
  • Final Exam - 20%
  • Participation - 15%
  • Attendance - 10%

Course Policies

  1. Follow the St. Olaf Code of Student Conduct. If you are unsure about whether something is plagiarism or cheating, ask first.
  2. No assignment, under any circumstances, will be accepted by fax or email.
  3. Students must bring readings to class on the day they are assigned. Print out online materials.
  4. Informal writing assignments will not be accepted late as they exist to stimulate your pre-class thought and to aid in discussion.
  5. Formal writing assignments and examinations are due at the beginning of class. DO NOT EVER SKIP CLASS TO TRY AND FINISH YOUR PAPER. Printing errors and lost data are a fact of the computer age. If you wait until the last minute and encounter technical difficulties, your paper may still be counted as late.
  6. For every day a paper or project is late, you lose one full grade per day (A to B, B to C, etc.). Do not test this system. Turn your work in ontime. Stapled. With your name on every page. Typed. Double-spaced. In a reasonable font.

This page will contain a fairly detailed list of what we will cover in each day of class. It also links to specific pages for each day, where outlines and images for each lecture are posted. You will need the username and password given out in the first day of class to access them.

Schedule of Classes, Readings, and Assignments

Week One (8-10 Feb)

  • T (8 Feb)  Introduction to the Course
  • TH (10 Feb) The Preaching of the First Crusade
    • READING: "Urban's Call for a Crusade," Allen and Amt, 39-47.
    • Informal Writing Exercise 1 due today - Write a paragraph summarizing the argument of one version of Pope Urban's sermon announcing the First Crusade.  Versions will be pre-assigned in class on Tuesday.

Week Two (15-17 Feb)

  • T (15 Feb) Origins of the Crusades 1 : Sacred Violence
    • READING: "Augustine of Hippo on the Just War," Allen and Amt, 7-9; and Madden, 1-14.  
  • TH (17 Feb) Origins of the Crusades 2: Pilgrimage, Peace of God, Byzantium
    • READING: "The Pilgrimage of Etheria," "Declaration of the Truce of God," and "Matthew of Edessa on the Seljuk Conquests," Allen and Amt, 3-6, 28-34. 

Week Three (22-24 Feb)

  • T (22 Feb) The First Crusade: Unauthorized Responses : Peter the Hermit and the First Wave, Anti-Jewish Violence
    • READING: "Albert of Aachen on the Peasants' Crusade," "Anna Comnena's Alexiad," and "Solomon Bar Samson on the Massacres of Jews," Allen and Amt 47-61; and Madden, 17-21.
  • TH (24 Feb) The First Crusade: From Constantinople to Antioch
    • READING: "The Deeds of the Franks," "Letter of Stephen of Blois," and "Anselm of Ribemont on Events at Antioch," Allen and Amt, 61-8; and Madden, 21-33.
    • Informal Writing Exercise 2 due today - Based on your reading of Allen and Amt and Madden, as well as maps 1 (xii) and 2 (16) in Madden, make a map with the ten geographical features (rivers, mountains, cities etc.) that you believe had the greatest impact on the course of the First Crusade. Class will begin with a discussion of these maps.
    • Textual Analysis Exercise 1 handed out today

Week Four (1-3 Mar)

  • T (1 Mar) The First Crusade: The Second Wave from Antioch to Jerusalem
    • READING: Read "Ralph of Caen on Divisions Among the Crusaders," "Raymond of Aguilers on the Fall of Jerusalem," "Letter of Pope Paschal on the Capture of Jerusalem," and "Abu L-Muzaffar Al-Abiwardi on the Fall of Jerusalem," Allen and Amt, 69-80; and Madden, 33-7.
  •  TH (3 Mar) Crusades Documentary - Part 1
    • Assignment: take careful notes on the account of the First Crusade offered in the documentary we will be watching in class today. Class will conclude with a discussion of the documentary and crusader motives.
    • First Textual Analysis Exercise due in class today!!!!!

Week Five (8-10 Mar)

Week Six (15-17 Mar)

  • T (15 Mar)  The Templars
    • READING: "Bernard of Clairvaux: In Praise of the New Knighthood," "The Rule of the Templars," "Order for the Arrest of the Templars," and "Papal Bull Suppressing the Templars," Allen and Amt, 197-204, 378-84; and Madden, 49-51.
    • Informal Writing Exercise 3 due today - Write a paragraph comparing the old knighthood with the new knighthood.
  • TH (17 Mar) - No class. Take-home midterm due in my mailbox (Fifth floor, Holland Hall) by Thursday at 1:00.

Spring Break

Week Seven (29-31 Mar)

  • T (29 Mar) The Muslim Response to the Crusades: Unity and Jihad
    • READING: Read "The Quran," "Al-Baladhuri on Early Muslim Conquests," "The Pact of Omar," Ibn Al-Qalanisi on Zengi and Nur Ad-Din," and "Ibn Al-Athir on the Fall of Edessa," Allen and Amt, 10-18, 127-34; and Madden, 51-3.
  • TH (31 Mar) The Second Crusade
    • READING: "Letter of Bernard of Clairvaux," "Odo of Deuil: The Journey of Louis VII to the East," and "Analyses of the Second Crusade," Allen and Amt, 134-43, 145-7; and Madden, 54-63.

Week Eight (5-7 Apr)

  • T (5 Apr) Saladin
    • READING: "Imad Ad-Din on the Battle of Hattin," "Roger of Wendover on the Fall of Jerusalem" and "Letters on the Fall of Jerusalem," Allen and Amt, 148-66. Handout on life of Saladin
    • Informal Writing Exercise 4 due today: You are on a summer "work-study" program with Saladin. Write a letter home describing your impressions of the famous ruler
  • TH (7 Apr) The Third Crusade
    • READING:"Taxation and Regulations for the Third Crusade" and "Accounts of the Third Crusade," Allen and Amt, 167-77; and Madden, 81-97.   

Week Nine (12-14 Apr)

  • T (12 Apr) Crusades Documentary - Part 3
    • READING: Read ahead for Fourth Crusade
  • TH (14 Apr) Fourth Crusade
    • Assignment: Read Villehardouin, 29-107 (note change) ; and Madden, 99-112. 
    • Assignment: "Documents on the Sack of Constantinople," Allen and Amt, 234-40; and Madden, 112-122.
    • Assignment: Queller article and Perry article
    • Second Textual Analysis Exercise handed out today

Week Ten (19-21 Apr)

  • T (19 Apr ) Fourth Crusade
    • READING:
    • Participate in debate on responsibility for diversion of the Fourth Crusade to Constantinople. Will include a written statement as part of informal writing exercise 5.
  • TH (21 Apr) The Logistics of Crusading and the Fifth Crusade
    • READING:"Gerald of Wales on Preaching a Crusade," "Privileges and Indulgences," "Personal Arrangements," "Liturgy for Pilgrims and Crusaders," "Decrees of the Fourth Lateran Council," Allen and Amt, 181-96, 252-6.
    • Film: Alexander Nevsky (in parts)

Week Eleven (26-28 Apr)

  • T (26 Apr) The Expansion of the Crusades: the Baltic and Spain
    • READING:"Proclamations of Northern European Crusades," "Chronicle of the Cid," "Accounts of Arab Learning," "Muslim-Christian Treaty," "Moorish Laws," "Christian Laws," Allen and Amt, 268-70, 299-304, 314-26.
    • Also read (print out): Rule of the Teutonic Knights. For discussion - Compare this to the rule of the Templars
    • Muslim Accounts of war in al-Andalus. How do they see their enemy? Is the Reconquista a crusade/jihad situation?
      If you're feeling really feisty, here's a link to a great Siete Partidas page, one of the most interesting law codes of the Middle Ages (from Christian Spain).
    • Film: Alexander Nevsky (in parts)
    • Second Textual Analysis Exercise due in class!!!
  • TH (28 Apr) The Expansion of the Crusades: the Albigensian Crusades
    • READING:"Bernard of Gui's Manual for Inquisitors," and William of Tuleda's "Song of the Cathar Wars," Allen and Amt, 241-8; Handouts on the Crusade. And Madden, 123-41.

Week Twelve (3-5 May)

Week Thirteen (10-12 May)

  • T (10 May) Art, Literature, and Legacy of the Crusades
    • Assignment: Read "Stories of Women Crusaders," and "Crusading Songs," Allen and Amt, 211-7.
    • Informal Writing Exercise 7 : Write a poem describing your departure on crusade. - This is due
  • TH (12 May)  Let's go out to the movies!
    • Take-Home Final will go online today

Take-home Final Examination will be due Thursday, May 19, at 2:30

Follow the St. Olaf Code of Student Conduct.
If you are unsure about whether something is plagiarism or cheating, ask first.


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This site last updated: 8/15/04
All Comments to: David Perry
Homepage URL: http://www.stolaf.edu/courses/2004sem2/History/299
© 2005 by David Perry and St. Olaf College. All Rights Reserved.