New Book on Crusaders by York historian

Danielle Park, lecturer in Medieval History at the University of York, has recently published a new book entitled Papal Protection and the Crusader, Flanders, Champagne, and the Kingdom of France, 1095-1222 (Boydell and Brewer 2018). The book is the first full length investigation detailing the papal protection for crusaders in France in the medieval period. 

The papal protection, granted to crusaders and extended over their family and possessions, was designed to alleviate concerns that their territory would be invaded in their absence or harm come to their families. Based amongst others on petitions, Park’s book reveals that while we often assume that papal protection was unworkable, that the papacy had promised more than it could deliver, and that the privilege only worked for the richest and most influential crusaders, this was not the whole story. It shows that popes such as Eugenius III took a keen interest in refining and upholding papal protection. Likewise, those benefitting from papal protection were not necessarily the best connected. Park also devotes much attention to the wives of crusaders, revealing their political experience and knowledge of crusading.

Discover more about Danielle's work. 

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