The Crusade of Richard I

1189. Christians had coveted the Holy Land for generations.

King Richard I of England was determined to reclaim it.

The Third Crusade (1189-1192) saw a huge alliance between European leaders to take the Holy Land from Saladin, Emperor of Egypt and Syria.

Crusader mettle was soon tested at Acre, a long and bloody siege started by Guy of Lusignan and lasting two years.

Royal blood was no protection from the conflict. Joan of England, sister to Richard the Lionheart, was held captive by King Tancred of Sicily. The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa drowned in a river.

First published in 1889, The Crusades of Richard I brings together fascinating documents from this dramatic part of European history.

Filled with passionate speeches and dark betrayals the contemporary accounts originate from both sides of the war. It is a brilliant reflection on the lives of the men behind the myths, including Richard the Lionheart himself.

Praise for The Crusade of Richard I

‘The book is almost entirely free from the dryness of technical and historical detail, and bears more the nature of an entertaining narrative.’ –The Harvard Crimson

Thomas Andrew Archer (1853-1905) also wrote articles for the Dictionary of National Biography.