The Egyptian Crusade: : Holy War on the Nile
Thomas Smith

The Egyptian Crusade: Holy War on the Nile tells the fascinating story of the Fifth Crusade for the first time to a wide audience.

Narrating the history of the first crusade to invade Egypt, it invites readers to accompany the crusaders on a globe-trotting journey, from the cool climate of northern Europe, across the perilous Mediterranean Sea, to the arid deserts of the Holy Land and Egypt. Written in a vivid and engaging style, and drawing upon the gamut of primary sources from both Christian and Muslim sides, readers will experience for themselves visions in the heavens in Europe, rough sea crossings to Palestine, crusader raids in the Holy Land, a beach landing in Egypt (in the style of a medieval Saving Private Ryan), one of the longest sieges in the history of the crusades, bloody battles and savage counter-siege warfare on the banks of the Nile.

Along the way, the crusaders suffer from flood, famine and plague. They experience betrayal, political machinations, personality clashes and backstabbing. They also discover ancient Egyptian temples when they conquer the city of Tanis (made famous as the setting for the lost city housing the Ark of the Covenant in Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark). Readers will share in the crusaders’ triumphs, failures and sense of wonder, and gain an appreciation of how their religious faith drove them on when facing adversity. Threaded through the narrative is an account of the complicated dance of Christianity and Islam around dialogue and intolerance, including the Christian saint, Francis of Assisi, attempting to convert the sultan of Egypt and the forced conversion of captured Muslim children.

The story of the Egyptian crusade has the power to surprise and shock in equal measure. Along with a vivid sense of place of crusaders in the land of the pyramids, readers will gain a new understanding of the crusades, the nature of holy war in the Middle Ages, and the lives of the people who were at its centre.