Doré's Illustrations of the Crusades

Gustave Doré

• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Year: 2013
• ISBN:
  9780486138114
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: History of Renaissance Art

Long regarded as the standard history of the subject, François Michaud's History of the Crusades, published in 1877, recorded over four centuries of passionate, bloody wars that brought the countries — and cultures — of Asia and Europe into conflict with one another. To illustrate Michaud's classic study, Gustave Doré executed 100 striking plates, capturing all the savagery, nobility, and vast sweep of the centuries-long conflict.
This splendid collection includes all 100 of the Doré illustrations, including scenes of Peter the Hermit Preaching the Crusade, The War Cry of the Crusaders, The Massacre of Antioch, The Road to Jerusalem, The Crusade of Children, The Discovery of the True Cross, The Baptism of Infidels, Two Hundred Knights Attack Twenty Thousand Saracens, Richard Coeur de Lion Delivering Jaffa, The Battle of Lepanto, Entry of the Crusaders into Constantinople, and many more. Masterly in their combination of power, vivid detail, and striking visual effects, the plates are perhaps the finest pictorial recreation of the immense clash of cultures and religions underlying the great historical drama of the Crusades.
Sure to delight any lover of fine art or magnificent book illustrations, Doré's Illustrations of the Crusades, with descriptive captions and a concise chronology of the principal events, will also serve as an invaluable source of striking royalty-free illustrations.

Publisher’s Note

The Crusades were a long series of wars undertaken by Christians between the 11th and 14th centuries to recapture the Holy Land from the Muslims. Warriors came from all echelons of society; noblemen, commoners and peasants all banded together to prove their loyalty to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Although sanctioned by the Pope, the lure of land, money and adventure was often nearly as strong a motive for participation as religion.

During these long wars thousands of determined soldiers struggled not only against the Muslims but also against such natural foes as hunger, drought and disease. The strain of war was a test of the Crusaders’ devotion to the sacred cause and, in times of hardship, only fervent speeches by charismatic religious leaders promising penance for their sins eased their discomfort. Miraculous tales of heavenly sightings were retold countless times to restore hope among the Christians.

In the years before the Crusades, the Seljuk Turks began to interfere with Christian pilgrimages to the Holy Land. The tenacious hold the Muslims had over Jerusalem caused the Byzantine emperor Alexius Comnenus to appeal to the Pope to free the Holy Land. The Christians, energized by a renewed religious fervor, met at the Council of Clermont where in November, 1096, Pope Urban II promoted the recapture of the Holy Land from the Muslims. Spiritual and monetary rewards were promised to anyone willing to participate. “Deus volt” (God wills it!) became the resounding war cry of the Crusaders. This was the advent of the First Crusade, which was the most successful for the Christians.

Often referred to as the “Peasant’s Crusade” because of the sheer number of common men, this First Crusade (1096-99) was the beginning of many fierce and bloody battles. Charismatic preachers such as Peter the Hermit (pl. 4) and Walter the Penniless (pl. 6) inspired thousands of Christians to take the cross against the Muslim infidels. They led their armies through Europe, often stealing provisions from various towns. Winning a decisive victory in the battle of Nicaea (pl. 13 and 14), the Crusaders’ strength and courage fortified them in the lengthy war against the Turks at Antioch (pl. 17, 19 and 20). The discovery of the holy lance said to have wounded Jesus reaffirmed the Crusaders in their mission to reclaim Jerusalem (pl. 22-27). They finally achieved this after six weeks of combat.

The Second Crusade (1147-49), encouraged by the preachings of Bernard of Clairvaux (pl. 34), began after the Turks captured Edessa. Unsuccessful in defending Jerusalem, the Crusaders were unable to stand up against the Muslims for control over the Latin Stat...

Table of contents

• DOVER BOOKS ON FINE ART
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• Publisher’s Note