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The Northern Crusades: Second Edition Paperback – June 1, 1998

4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 185 ratings

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The 'Northern Crusades', inspired by the Pope's call for a Holy War, are less celebrated than those in the Middle East, but they were also more successful: vast new territories became and remain Christian, such as Finland, Estonia and Prussia. Newly revised in the light of the recent developments in Baltic and Northern medieval research, this authoritative overview provides a balanced and compelling account of a tumultuous era.
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"The verve and vigour of Eric Christiansen's study illuminates developments vital in the early history of Eastern Europe and brings to life a story that had epic dimensions"
—Maurice Keen

"For a one-volume history of the Northern Crusades, the reader has but one choice; this is it"
—William Urban in the
American Historical Review

"A fine study of the Baltic conquest"
—Hans Eberhard Meyer in the
English Historical Reivew

"Independent, erudite, lucid and witty … a narrative that never flags"
—Christpher Tyerman

"A fascinating and elegant book"
—Geoffrey Wheatcroft in the
London Review of Books

About the Author

ERIC CHRISTIANSEN, a fellow of New College, Oxford, works mainly on Northern history in the Middle Ages. He has lectured in London, Copenhagen and Florida, and is the author of The Origins of Military Power in Spain. He lives in Oxford.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin Books; Subsequent edition (June 1, 1998)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0140266534
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0140266535
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 18 years and up
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 12 and up
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.78 x 5.08 x 0.77 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 185 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
185 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book well-referenced and providing an excellent overview of the history of the Crusades. They describe it as a solid, well-researched work that covers 500 years of European history. However, some readers found parts of the writing difficult to follow and unpronounceable.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

25 customers mention "Readability"21 positive4 negative

Customers find the book well-referenced and easy to read. They find it a good starting point for students of medieval history, and an enjoyable read for anyone interested in Baltic history. The author does a fine job explaining how these peoples came to live there.

"...A very interesting aspect of the book was as noted the discussion of the nature and organization of the Teutonic Order...." Read more

"...He clearly knows his subject matter and presents it in a readable format that does not delve too deeply into the complicated moral debates but yet..." Read more

"...The author's vast knowledge of medieval Baltic history make this a fascinating book into a little known event that change the face of the European..." Read more

"...Dated in writing style, but still a GREAT BOOK! I'd buy it again & recommend it to others. (and it showed up on time too!)" Read more

20 customers mention "History"15 positive5 negative

Customers find the book an important historical work that chronicles the history of the Crusades. It covers 500 years of European history and serves as a good starting point for students of medieval history. The author does a great job filling in the blank spaces of medieval history and providing keen insight into Christian and Germanic expansion into the Baltic region. The book provides a new light on early medieval Europe and chronicles the lower Baltic and northeastern European crusades.

"...north-east Europe was like before the Crusades, chronicle the history of the Crusades themselves, detail a little about the personalities involved,..." Read more

"...books available on this subject, but this can serve as a fine introduction to the era and provide keen insight into the complexity of history." Read more

"...of the crusade that conquest the north of Europe,covers 500 years of European history, for me this is the first step into the history of the Baltic,..." Read more

"...It's really some AMAZING history, politics, religious genocide, etc. Sheds ALOT of light on what has driven European history up to the modern day...." Read more

3 customers mention "Sturdiness"3 positive0 negative

Customers like the book's sturdiness. They say it's well-researched and a good overview of little-known parts of European history. The book arrived in good condition and quickly.

"...No complaints about the expertise of the author, this is a solid, extremely well researched, history text book. I repeat... a textbook...." Read more

"All was Great! It arrived in good condition and speedily. I will very much enjoy this work as I prepare to write my novel." Read more

"Good Survery of little know part of European History..." Read more

4 customers mention "Difficulty to follow"0 positive4 negative

Customers find the book difficult to follow. They mention parts are dry and unpronounceable, and it's confusing to connect the maps.

"...interesting and fairly well written though a bit dry and sometimes difficult going in parts...." Read more

"...line and four maps in the front of the book it is confusing and laborious to connect then link these maps with national maps of today to understand..." Read more

"This book is filled with a myriad of the strangest named places (often unpronouncable and given two, or three, different regional alternatives)..." Read more

"Hard to follow..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2006
    _The Northern Crusades_ by Eric Christiansen is an attempt to shed light on a relatively poorly known aspect of European medieval and early modern history, that of the Northern Crusades. Less well known than the Spanish Crusade and certainly less known to the average non-specialist reader than the Crusades in the Middle East, the Northern Crusades of the Baltic Sea region can essentially be summed up as the struggles of Scandinavian rulers - chiefly those of Denmark and Sweden - and German military monks (the Teutonic Knights) to conquer and settle non-Christian Finland, Estonia, and Prussia before coming into conflict with the considerably more powerful and organized eastern empires of Orthodox Novgorod and pagan Lithuania (and later Catholic Poland). The period lasted roughly from 1147 (the launch of the First Northern Crusade, against the Baltic Slavs) to at least as far as the book is concerned 1562 (the partition and secularization of Livonia, ending the rule of the Teutonic Knights there, their last outpost).

    Though less celebrated than the other crusades, the Northern Crusades were far more successful. Initially many areas were only thinly Christian after their conquest, as for centuries in many regions for instance Teutonic outposts existed like "knots in a net," a net that was full of holes and encompassed areas where "alien subjects lived unredeemed lives within sight of the steeple" and castle, thin scraps of Christian settlement squeezed between the coast and primeval forest, though in the end vast areas became and remain Christian to this day. In stark contrast to the efforts of the Crusaders in the Middle East, the Order and the Scandinavians were able to establish lasting settlements in formerly very hostile areas in the wilderness, lands with difficult terrain, fearsome winter weather, impassable roads (if they existed), and unwelcoming natives. The Order for example established over ninety towns and a thousand villages in Prussia and Livonia. Sweden was able in the course of two centuries to transform Finland from a mainly non-Christian, illiterate, and ungoverned world into a society recognizable as European and Catholic. Even though these outside powers lost the lands that they colonized, they still held them much longer than the Crusaders held the lands of the Middle East (Denmark held on in Estonia for more than a century, the Teutonic Order kept Prussia and Livonia for nearly 300 years, and Sweden remained in Finland for nearly 600 years).

    In this book Christiansen sought to show what the world of north-east Europe was like before the Crusades, chronicle the history of the Crusades themselves, detail a little about the personalities involved, detail in particular the history, role, goals, and organization of the Teutonic Knights, the reasons for the Crusades, and the theological debates and political struggles associated with the Northern Crusades as well as the concept of crusade in and of itself. I found the book interesting and fairly well written though a bit dry and sometimes difficult going in parts. I was hindered a little by the many very unfamiliar place names and had to reference many times one or more of the six maps at the beginning of the book, though by the end of the book several places I had once never heard of were quite familiar.

    Particularly striking to me in the book was though that particularly in the early centuries the religious aspect of the Northern Crusade was important, in the end the wars were basically examples of imperialism and fought for temporal reasons, for resources and for geopolitical considerations. Though Christiansen cautioned in his concluding chapter that one should not view the wars as fought for "matters of interest disguised as matters of conscience," and indeed until close to the end the religious pull of the Northern Crusade drew in outside forces, whole retinues of warriors or individual knights, absolutely vital to the survival of in particular the Teutonic Knights, it is obvious that religious considerations were but one of many for those who fought. Often political control could only be established by changing the religious affiliation of the inhabitants, owing to the general lack of any other shared cultural identity between ruler and ruled; what type of Christianity prevailed in a region (Latin or Greek) was a way of staking political claims (important in the continuing struggle in later centuries between the Latin Crusade lands and Orthodox Novgorod). In Sweden new lands gained in Finland meant more people paying the tithe (good for the Swedish church and for the Pope in Rome to fund his various goals in Italy) and more fiefs and offices for the more adventurous of the lesser nobility. The Danes went to war in the 1100s as much or more to stop Slavic piracy and slave raids than anything else. The rich fur, feather, wax, amber, fish, whale, and seal resources of the Baltic Sea region were highly sought after by many in northern Europe; the "fur-clad, pickled-herring eaters lolling on the feather-beds" of Western Europe (mainly those of the Hanseatic League) were one of the chief beneficiaries of the Northern Crusades. The Teutonic Knights towards the end of their existence in Prussia were often more concerned with ruling than with crusading and many were hardly monastic, with new ordinances forbidding them to hoard money, keep packs of hounds, to use private seals, to wear fine clothing, and otherwise act as traditional feudal lords appear to have often been ignored.

    A very interesting aspect of the book was as noted the discussion of the nature and organization of the Teutonic Order. Christiansen described its existence as both a military organization and a monastic order. From the Order's beginning to near its end there was a continual debate about whether or not one could be a monk and a warrior, if Christianity could be spread at the point of a sword, what the nature of a just war is, and if even the original papal orders establishing the Order were legally or spiritually correct.
    23 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2013
    The Northern Crusades brings to light a seldom considered aspect of the crusades of the Christian Church and the world of the infidel. Most people automatically think of crusading armies fighting in the Holy Land. While that is a true assessment, it is not complete. "Crusade" as a military-religious response also took hold in the northen part of Europe from the 12th through the 15th centuries when local rulers called on the Pope in Rome to call a crusade against the heathen peoples of the Baltic region. Author Eric Christiansen does a fine job of explaining how these peoples came to live in the regions, how they eked out a living in the frozen, meager northland, and how the crusades impacted the lives of both sides.

    Some reviewers were dismayed at this book because of its complexity. History is rarely simple. In most situations there are as many complexities as there are people who are creating the history. Danish then later Swedish kings looked to the east to find new markets and new avenues to promote their civilization. What are now known as Estonia, Latvia, Finland, Lithuania, Poland, and Russia were all populated by various pagan peoples and the Danish and Swedish kings saw their opportunity to extend their culture to the gain of their pocketbooks. The Viking age had largely turned west (not always, but mostly) and had left the eastern lands unscathed by conquest. Now in the 12th century, merchants and rulers had a different outlook. The Baltic Sea was largely uncivilized by western standards and pirates often could prey on merchant vessels. Religious leaders also saw a chance to spread the Christian message. So together they embarked on a series of wars which were seldom more that raids (not unlike the old Viking raids).

    Over the course of three centuries the Danes and Swedes left thier mark on the local landscape then faded into the backdrop of history as the Teutonic Order established itself in what became Prussia. The Teutonic Order consisted primarily of men from Germany (Holy Roman Empire) who made a career out of fighting wars in the name of God (which by our modern standards of 2013 seems a bit of a paradox). But these knights left their mark on the land as much as the Swedes and Danes had earlier. Unfortunately for the Teutonic Order, they didn't seem to know when to stop, unlike the Swedes and Danes, and thus came to know defeat in battle (Tannenberg, 1410).

    I stated that history is complex, and the Northern Crusades offers many fine examples. It may be true that the crusades introduced Christianity to the Batlic and that in turn helped better define a structured society, but the acceptance of Christianity was not uniform. First of all there are two variants of Christianity at work in the region, Latin Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. The question was eventually asked if Latin Catholicism could legitimately crusade against another form of the Christianity (of course some replied in the positive while others claimed the negative). Others questioned the life of warfare promoted by the Teutonic Order. In the case of Poland, it would ally itself with pagans as it sought to halt the influx of the Teutonic Order. Lithuania accepted Chrsitianity around 1386, but it retained elements of paganism long after that.

    These are just some of the complexities Eric Christiansen navigates his book through. For the casual reader their is a myriad of names and places that only further study will help better define. But Christiansen is an excellent writer who can turn the difficult into the easily understood. He clearly knows his subject matter and presents it in a readable format that does not delve too deeply into the complicated moral debates but yet satisfies the reader's quest for understanding. There are other books available on this subject, but this can serve as a fine introduction to the era and provide keen insight into the complexity of history.
    12 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2003
    This book surveys the gripping history of the crusade that conquest the north of Europe,covers 500 years of European history, for me this is the first step into the history of the Baltic,Mr. Christiansen make a nice work explaning the complexities of medieval politics which help me understand more about this *JUST WAR against Poland,Lithuania Prussian pagans,time-travel back to the Middle Ages.
    This is a essential key to understanding the events of the time and a new light on early medieval Europe, the important of the engmatic Teutonic Order which the author gave a nice chapter dedicated only the describing the Ideology and efficiency of the Armed Monks or Knight-Brothers.
    Is pretty hard to conquest or convert people by the sword, even after almost 300 years of monastic rule, the old prussians were Christian only by name and also to rule a great variety of pleople from different cult or religion,the struggle to maintain power and the conquest land prove a difficult task for the knights and their Order.
    The author's vast knowledge of medieval Baltic history make this a fascinating book into a little known event that change the face of the European history. After reading this book you would be thirsty for more on the Teutonic Knights check the new book by William Urban. On the legendary battle of Tannenberg 1410 which Mr. Christiansen give a nice account on the aftermath of this battle, the new book of Stephen Turnbull-Tannenberg 1410: Disaster for the Teutonic Knights deserves a high rate and is a nice companion to understand the disastrous defeat from which the Brother-Knights never recovered.
    18 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Darrin C
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in Canada on March 9, 2016
    very pleased with my order
  • Constantinus Lucius
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very precise and thorough study
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 28, 2011
    Don't let the volume of this book mislead you. Of the many books on history I've read "The Northern Crusades" is among the top ones on useful and interesting information per square inch ratio. The narrative is very precise, direct and to the point.

    Surely it's not a study of Teutonic warfare (although logistical challenges and the general logistical outlook of the region receive considerable attention). But Eric Christiansen does extremely well in presenting societies around the Baltic on the eve of crusades and their gradual transformation influenced by new ideas and social structures brought in by the church, the monastic knighthood and the colonists from the Northern and North-Western Europe.

    Mr. Christiansen examines why the Danes and the Swedes were unable to claim the Eastern Baltic for themselves and why crusaders were needed. The narrative depicts distinct features of the three major colonized regions: Prussia, firmly subdued and Latinized; Livonia, so dependent on Novgorodian and Hanseatic trade for survival and thus having firm ground for the bishops/burghers/crusaders power struggle, and also so much more distant from grand-masters in Prussia than it might seem; and finally Finland with its extreme climate and nomadic natives. Both social (including forms of government and reasons for different sorts of power rulers had over their domains) and political (including the evolution of the crusading idea in Europe) factors are investigated as the story of the Teutonic Order is told.

    Therefore I'm sure "The Northern Crusades" would be extremely useful to anyone new to the topic and interested in the story of the quest to baptize the last pagans of Europe.
  • kaeremakure
    5.0 out of 5 stars 北方十字軍のすべて
    Reviewed in Japan on August 25, 2006
    北東ヨーロッパ辺境のキリスト教化を旗印として12世紀から行われた、いわゆる北方十字軍について総合的に扱った本です。

    ヴェンド十字軍からプロシア、リヴォニアの征服、十字軍とリトアニアやノヴゴロドとの抗争を経て、タンネンベルクの戦い〜十字軍の終焉への歴史の流れを追う叙述の中で、バルト海に生息する魚の種類からドイツ騎士団員の日常生活にいたるまで、ヴァイキング時代終焉後のバルト海周辺世界のありさまが鮮明に描き出されており、このテーマについてまとまった本としては最良のものの一つではないかと思います。

    スウェーデン人のフィンランド植民や、13世紀後半以降の対ロシア十字軍など、他ではなかなか読めないような話題についても詳細な記述があり、中世の北欧・東欧史に関心がある人なら手元において損はしないでしょう。

    ただ入門編とするなら山内進『北の十字軍』の方がいいかもしれません。
  • Joe S
    4.0 out of 5 stars The Northern Crusades
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 5, 2023
    The late author was clearly intrinsically familiar with Northern Europe and effortlessly discusses it's history, peoples/cultures, geography, etc.

    I thoroughly enjoyed the easy-going but academic style and got from the book what I expected at just 250 pages, an introduction into a subject I knew little about.

    The only issue I felt brings it down to four stars is that no single 'character' was followed up. We are introduced to a name and never hear of them again. This was something that happened throughout the book. I can't really recall the name or deeds of any individual mentioned.

    I would thoroughly recommend this though as it's a short read and gives a lot of interesting information, while providing a good overview.
  • Todd
    4.0 out of 5 stars Very Good Introductory Work
    Reviewed in Canada on March 2, 2016
    Christiansen's book provides a detailed survey of the expansion of Western influence into the regions of Prussia and the eastern Baltic. He takes great care to avoid making the kind of biased assumptions and judgements which plague our modern society specifically in relation to its views on faith and the Church in particular. Instead, he restricts his work to what happened and why it happened. His work demonstrates that those involved in this theatre were motivated for a myriad of reasons which evolved or changed with the passing of time or the change in circumstances. I would recommend this book as a solid introduction into the history of the region or the "Northern Crusades".