Crusading and the Holy Land in English Biographical Writing (c.1100-c.1230)
Biographical writing in twelfth and early thirteenth-century England is a rich but underused source for the history of crusading and the Holy Land. This paper examines the biographies of such figures as Godric of Finchale, Hugh of Lincoln, and Abbot Samson of Bury St Edmunds for what they say about the reality and the idea of the Latin East and the crusading movement. Many of these biographical subjects were prominent and politically-engaged figures, and so we find discussions of reactions to news from the East, and details of plans for crusade and their impact on individuals and institutions in England. There are also extended discussions of visits to the Holy Land, and contacts with inhabitants of the Latin East. Equally valuable are the off-hand remarks, visions, and miracles that allude to crusading. Such details provide us with insights into English engagement with affairs in the Holy Land that are perhaps all the more valuable for their incidental nature.
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This page was last updated on 10 December 2024
