The Crusade and its Fronts in French Historiography from the Interwar Period to 2020

This article was translated by Arby Gharibian. I am very grateful to Alain Demurger, Xavier Hélary, Camille Rouxpetel, and Benjamin Weber for their assistance and comments, and I would like to extend special thanks to Benjamin Kedar for both our productive exchanges and the idea to publish in English – which he convinced me to do – in an effort to attract more readers to the French historiography of the crusade.

Abstract

The crusade and its representations have had – and partly continue to have – a very peculiar role in French history. They gave rise to a brilliant historiography dating back to the Ancien Régime, which developed in the nineteenth century in particular. This tradition has somehow been interrupted since the interwar period, even according to leading French specialists, who have spoken of an “eclipse.” Apart from Michel Balard in 2000, no one has attempted to explain this reality and account for its causes. However, studying the crusade and its fronts in French historiography from René Grousset to the present is important. It provides an opportunity to reveal what remains a lively national academic tradition, as well as to better understand different conceptions of the crusade itself. Furthermore, it especially explores how the question should be addressed today, by avoiding the ongoing debate between “pluralists” and “traditionalists,” and instead favoring a dynamic conception that pays systematic attention to the various theatres and their relative impact, as well as the different shifts in meaning these issues have undergone throughout the longue durée.

Notes

This article was translated by Arby Gharibian. I am very grateful to Alain Demurger, Xavier Hélary, Camille Rouxpetel, and Benjamin Weber for their assistance and comments, and I would like to extend special thanks to Benjamin Kedar for both our productive exchanges and the idea to publish in English – which he convinced me to do – in an effort to attract more readers to the French historiography of the crusade.