- Crusade (Robyn Young novel)
Infobox Book |
name = Crusade
image_caption = "Crusade" first edition cover.
author =Robyn Young
illustrator =
cover_artist =Richard Hasselberger
country =United Kingdom
language = English
series = "Brethren Trilogy"
genre =Historical novel
publisher =E. P. Dutton
pub_date = August 2, 2007
media_type = Print (Hardcover &Paperback )
pages = 489 pp "(first edition)"
isbn = ISBN 9780525950165
oclc =
preceded_by = Brethren
followed_by = Requiem"Crusade" is a novel by
Robyn Young set during the end of the ninth and finalcrusade . It was first published byE.P. Dutton in 2007.Plot summary
"Crusade", like "Brethren" before it, follows Will Campbell, a Templar involved in a secret order known as the Anima Templi, as he tries to secure peace in the Holy Land with the help of Kalawun, a high-ranking officer in the
Mamluk court ruled by Sultan Baybars. Both of these men face plots from within their own organizations to throw the Holy Land into war: in Acre, Will must stop acabal of merchants seeking to start a war by stealing theMuslim relic known as theBlack Stone ; while in Egypt, Baybars' son Baraka Khan and soothsayerKhadir al-Mihrani are plotting to overthrow Baybars and redouble the attack on the last remainingFranks in the Holy Land. Meanwhile, Will's childhood friend, Garin de Lyons, is now in the employ of King Edward I and has returned to Acre to extort money from the Anima Templi and to pursue his own, more selfish ends; and Will faces a threat from Baybars as the sultan gets nearer and nearer to discovering that it was Will who, many years before, ordered an assassination attempt which had failed but had taken the life of Baybars' closest friend.Historical Figures
The following characters in the book were real historical figures: [cite book
last = Young
first = Robyn
title = Crusade
page = 485-7
authorlink = Robyn Young
publisher = Dutton
year = 2007]*
Al-Ashraf Khalil : Son of Kalawun,sultan ofEgypt andSyria from 1290 CE to 1293 CE. Leader of the siege of Acre, which ended theNinth Crusade .
*Balian of Ibelin, Lord Arsuf:Bailli of Acre underHugh III of Cyprus , ousted by Charles d'Anjou in 1277 CE
*Baraka Khan: Son of Baybars andsultan ofEgypt andSyria , briefly, from 1277 CE to 1279 CE. In the book, he is the one responsible for his father's death, and was involved in a conspiracy with Khadir al-Mihrani and a Mamluk general to overthrow his father.
*Baybars Bundukdari:Mamluk commander,sultan ofEgypt andSyria from 1260 CE to 1277 CE. Dies under suspicious circumstances.
*Edward I of England : Prince, and then King, ofEngland from 1272 CE to 1307 CE.
*Hugues de Pairaud:Visitor of the Knights Templar inFrance .
*Kalawun Al-Alfi:Mamluk emir , high-ranking officer in Baybars' staff,sultan ofEgypt andSyria from 1280 CE to 1290 CE. In the book, he is secretly in contact with the Anima Templi, working behind Baybars' back to secure peace between the Mamluks and theFranks .
*Khadir al-Mihrani: Baybars' soothsayer. In the book, he is former member of the Hashshashin Order of the Assassins; in actuality, he was anIraq isheikh who fled to avoid being punished for sleeping with a nobleman's daughter. [cite web
url = http://xenohistorian.faithweb.com/neareast/ne12.html
title = A General History of the Middle East
publisher = [http://xenohistorian.faithweb.com/main.html The Xenophile historian]
last = Kimball
first = Charles Scott
year =2000
chapter = 12
accessdate = 2008-28-08] In "Crusade" he also is involved in a plot to overthrow Baybars, and is killed before he can accomplish his goals.
*Guillaume de Beaujeu : Grand Master of the Knights Templar from1273 to1291 , mortally wounded during the siege of Acre. In the book, he was briefly involved with acabal of merchants in Acre to start a war with theMamluk s, but becomes an honest commander again after the plan is thwarted fails.
*Jean de Villiers: Grand Master of the Order of St. John from1284 to1293 .
*Roger de San Severino:Bailli of Acre under Charles d'Anjou.
*Theobald Gaudin: Grand Commander of the Knights Templar underGuillaume de Beaujeu .The following historical figures are mentioned in the book or involved with the plot, but do not appear as characters themselves:
*Abaga: Mongol il-khan, ruler of Persia, from 1265 CE to 1282 CE.
*Charles d'Anjou: King ofSicily andNaples , later also king ofJerusalem after oustingHugh III of Cyprus .
*Lucia of Tripoli : Lastcount ess of Tripoli, until its fall at the hands of Kalawun in 1289 CE
*Louis IX of France : King ofFrance from 1226 CE to 1270 CE
*Philip IV of France : King ofFrance from1285 to1314 .
*Pope Gregory X :Pope from1271 to1276 .
*Pope Nicholas IV :Pope from1288 to1292 .Publication history
"Crusade" was first released in United States and the United Kingdom in August 2007. Below is the release details for the first edition hardback and paperback copies in these publication regions.
*2007, US, Dutton Adult ISBN 9780525950165, Pub date August 2 2007, Hardback
*2007, UK, Hodder & Stoughton ISBN 9780340839720, Pub date August 23 2007, Hardback*2007, UK, Hodder & Stoughton ISBN 9780340839737, Pub date September 1 2007, Trade paperback
*2008, UK, Hodder Paperback ISBN 9780340839744, Pub date February 7 2008, Paperback
*2008, US, Plume ISBN 9780452289604, Pub date July 29 2008, PaperbackReferences
External links
* [http://www.robynyoung.com/brethren.html#c3 "Crusade"] on Robyn Young's official website
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