Conclusion: Situating the Crusades in Syrian History

Summary

The Crusades in the east and the protracted conflict they provoked continue to be popular subjects in public, political and academic discourse, seemingly retaining a deep significance in the western and Islamic worlds. Obvious parallels have been drawn between the notion of a religiously motivated conflict between Christianity and Islam in bilad al-sham during the Middle Ages and developments in the region over the past eighty years. Despite the resonance associated with these struggles, there remains a divide between Crusade historians and specialists of Middle Eastern history regarding the actual significance of Frankish entanglements in the eastern Mediterranean.

This book set out to provide a more nuanced understanding of the political world of bilad al-sham before and after the advent of the Crusades. In doing so, it hoped to reposition the First Crusade and the formation of the Latin east within the wider context of Syrian history. In terms of the pre- Crusading period, a new chronology has been outlined for the development the system of autonomous lordships in Syria, with 452–4/1060–2 identified as the point at which Fatimid and Byzantine influence in bilad al-sham underwent significant decline. Similarly, a new model for understanding the political dynasties of this period has been proposed, one which cuts across wider Byzantine, Fatimid and Seljuq polities.

There has also been a reassessment of current historical thinking surrounding the extent of Seljuq power in Syria during the late fifth/eleventh and early sixth/twelfth centuries. Two related features of Seljuq governance in Syria, namely, persistent issues surrounding military campaigns into bilad al-sham and the autonomy wielded by the amirs, hindered Seljuq attempts to retain and expand their influence in the region throughout 463–522/1071–1128. The notion that Seljuq potentates or nomadic Türkmen groups had a uniquely disruptive impact upon the political world of bilad al-sham has also been alled into question.

Perhaps the most important findings relate to the nature and significance of the rusading conflicts in the east. This may seem like a bold claim, as this book overs only some twenty-eight years of the near two hundred-year history of the rusades in the Levant. However, conclusions pertaining to the early sixth/twelfth entury underpin much of the research on the later Crusading periods, in addition o colouring wider definitions and judgements relating to Frankish activity in bilad al-sham.