The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States
The acclaimed medieval historian chronicles the rise of Templar powers in the Levant—and the saga of their destruction.

Founded on Christmas Day 1119 in Jerusalem, the Knights Templar was a religious order dedicated to defending the Holy Land and its Christian pilgrims in the decades after the First Crusade. Legendary for their bravery and dedication, the Templars became one of the wealthiest and most powerful bodies of the medieval world—and the chief defenders of Christian society against growing Muslim forces.

In The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States, Haag masterfully details the conflicts and betrayals that sent this faction of powerful knights spiraling from domination to condemnation.
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The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States
The acclaimed medieval historian chronicles the rise of Templar powers in the Levant—and the saga of their destruction.

Founded on Christmas Day 1119 in Jerusalem, the Knights Templar was a religious order dedicated to defending the Holy Land and its Christian pilgrims in the decades after the First Crusade. Legendary for their bravery and dedication, the Templars became one of the wealthiest and most powerful bodies of the medieval world—and the chief defenders of Christian society against growing Muslim forces.

In The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States, Haag masterfully details the conflicts and betrayals that sent this faction of powerful knights spiraling from domination to condemnation.
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The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States

The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States

The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States

The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States

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Overview

The acclaimed medieval historian chronicles the rise of Templar powers in the Levant—and the saga of their destruction.

Founded on Christmas Day 1119 in Jerusalem, the Knights Templar was a religious order dedicated to defending the Holy Land and its Christian pilgrims in the decades after the First Crusade. Legendary for their bravery and dedication, the Templars became one of the wealthiest and most powerful bodies of the medieval world—and the chief defenders of Christian society against growing Muslim forces.

In The Tragedy of the Templars: The Rise and Fall of the Crusader States, Haag masterfully details the conflicts and betrayals that sent this faction of powerful knights spiraling from domination to condemnation.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9798228616202
Publisher: Tantor
Publication date: 09/09/2025
Product dimensions: 5.20(w) x 5.70(h) x (d)
Age Range: 18 Years

About the Author

Historian and writer Michael Haag has written widely on the Egyptian, Classical,and Medieval worlds. He is the author of The Templars: The History & the Mythand Alexandria: City of Memory, a definitive study of Cavafy, Forster, and LawrenceDurrell in the city, as well as travel guides to Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt. He livesin London.

Table of Contents

Maps

The Mediterranean on the Eve of the Crusades x-xi

Outremer: Crusader territory in the Holy Land xii

Crusader Jerusalem xiii

Prologue 1

Part I The Middle East before the Crusades 7

1 The Christian World 9

2 The Arab Conquests 19

3 Palestine under the Umayyads and the Arab Tribes 28

4 The Abbasids and the Arab Eclipse 45

5 Byzantine Crusades 58

6 Muslim Wars and the Destruction of Palestine 63

Part II The Turkish Invasion and the First Crusade 71

7 The Turkish Invasion 73

8 The Call 89

9 The First Crusade 102

Part III The Founding of the Templars and the Crusader States 119

10 The Origins of the Templars 121

11 Outremer 145

12 Zengi's Jihad 158

13 The Second Crusade 172

Part IV The Templars and the Defence of Outremer 191

14 The View from the Temple Mount 193

15 The Defence of Outremer 206

16 Templar Wealth 224

Part V Saladin and the Templars 233

17 Tolerance and Intolerance 235

18 Saladin's Jihad 253

19 The Fall of Jerusalem to Saladin 275

Part VI The Kingdom of Acre 287

20 Recovery 289

21 The Mamelukes 309

22 The Fall of Acre 323

Part VII Aftermath 331

23 Lost Souls 333

24 The Trial 344

25 The Destruction of the Templars 362

Notes 369

Bibliography 393

Index 402

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