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Dan Snow's History Hit

The Crusades: A Complete Guide

·50 min·4 clips
Historian Steve Tibble joins Dan Snow to unravel the 200-year saga of the Crusades, from Clermont to Acre.
Dan Snow introduces the episode as the start of a miniseries on the Crusades, joined by historian Steve Tibble. Steve explains that the Crusades were driven by climate change and migration from the steppes, not primarily religion. The First Crusade saw Europeans march east, capturing Jerusalem in 1099 after surprising successes. This created false expectations and led to the establishment of Crusader states. The Second Crusade responded to the fall of Edessa but achieved little, highlighting fractures between local and European Christians. Saladin's victory at Hattin in 1187 and capture of Jerusalem prompted the Third Crusade, led by Richard the Lionheart and Philip of France. Richard's tactical victory at Arsuf and decision not to recapture Jerusalem are discussed. The Fourth Crusade diverted to Constantinople, attacking a Christian power. The Fifth Crusade targeted Egypt but ended in disaster. The Sixth Crusade, led by excommunicated Frederick II, regained Jerusalem through diplomacy. The Seventh and Eighth Crusades, led by Louis IX of France, focused on Egypt and North Africa, with Louis dying on campaign. The Ninth Crusade involved Edward I, who fought an assassin in his bedchamber. The episode concludes with the gradual loss of Crusader holdings, reduced to coastal towns like Acre by 1291. Steve Tibble emphasizes the role of military orders like the Templars and the logistical challenges faced by Crusaders.

As heard by us

A sharp, fast-moving look at holy war where faith, power, and fragile kingdoms press hard against each other.

The Crusades come through here as holy war with very earthly pressures behind it. Faith matters, but it is never treated as separate from land, wealth, fear, ambition, and survival.

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Why you'd press play

Want Edessa's fall turned into the shock that helped launch the Second Crusade?

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