The Crusades Classic Histories Series PDF Download

Excerpt from The History and Literature of the Crusades The first part of the work now submitted to the public, is a translation of the lectures delivered at Munich; the second part is taken from the preface to his History of the First Crusade, published in 1841 and consists of an elaborate criticism on the various original authorities in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and on the later historians of the Crusades, down to the present time. There exists, we believe, no such critical examination of the ori ginal authorities in any other language. The refer ences to them in Mills's History of the Crusades are somewhat meagre; while\ Michaud, although in his Bibliotheque des Croisades he has given ample extracts, has nowhere subjected the originals to the rigorous and minute analysis they undergo at the hands of the German Professor. The first impulse to a critical examination of the original authorities of the First Crusade was given by Professor Ranke in his Historical Exercises He began with the first books of William of Tyre, which he proved to be merely a repetition of earlier accounts by Albert of Aix, Ray mond of Agiles, and from the 'gesta Francorum.' He then examined Albert of Aix, whose work he considered to be derived chiefly from oral tradition. Professor Ranke's other avocations prevented his pursuing this subject any further; but sufficient was done to clear the way for other historical stu dents; and v. Sybel has carried out the method of his eminent teacher. The narrative of the First Crusade, as given by Mills and other modern historians, v. Sybel re gards as a mingled mass of truth and falsehood, of history and legend, founded chiefly on the account of William of Tyre. William of Tyre wrote in 1170, and with much that was valuable, he mixed tales borrowed from Albert of Aix The general character of the work is thought by the German Professor to be poetical and legendary. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.