God's wolf : the life of the most notorious of all crusaders, scourge of Saladin

First Title Value for Searching:

Personal Author:

Lee, Jeffrey, 1966-

Edition:

First American edition.

Physical Description:

332 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), maps, facsimiles, photographs ; 25 cm.

Summary:

Jeffrey Lee brings a blockbuster sensibility to this slice of the 12th century Levant."--Dan Jones, Sunday Times (UK). In a 2010 terrorist plot, Al-Qaeda hid a bomb in a FedEx shipment addressed to Reynald de Chatillon, a knight who had died centuries ago in the crusades. A reviled figure in Islamic history, often portrayed as the very epitome of brutality, Reynald remains as controversial--and as vividly present in the minds of many in the Middle East--as the story of the crusades themselves. An epic saga set in the midst of a violent clash of civilizations, God's Wolf tells the story of Reynald's staggering rise from lowly soldier to prince of Antioch, one of the crusader kingdoms in the Near East. Jeffrey Lee argues that, despite his brutality, Reynald was a strong military leader and an effective statesman who defended his kingdom against attacks from Byzantines, Armenians, and Muslims. A tale of faith, fanaticism, and brutality, God's Wolf is the fascinating story of an exceptional crusader and a provocative reinterpretation of the crusader era--

Contents:

Introduction : a monstrous unbeliever -- Dead man walking -- The wild east -- Knight-errant -- Arriviste -- Diabolic daring -- A violent sinner -- Guardian of the land -- Imperial vassal -- In the power of nur al-din -- Years of darkness -- Phoenix -- Hero -- Lord of La Grand Berrie -- Desert raider -- Sea wolf -- The lion and the wolf -- The "Manchurian" regent -- King-maker -- Truce-breaker -- Apocalypse -- The ultimate crusader.

Subject Term:

Crusades -- Second, 1147-1149

Knights and knighthood -- France -- Biography.

Publication Info:

New York : W. W. Norton & Company, 2017.

Subject:

Crusades -- Second, 1147-1149

Knights and knighthood -- France -- Biography.

France -- Biography.

Renaud, de Châtillon, prince of Antioch, -1187

Châtillon, Renaud de, prince of Antioch, -1187

De Châtillon, Renaud, prince of Antioch, -1187

Raginaldus, prince of Antioch, -1187

Rainald, von Châtillon, prince of Antioch, -1187

Reginald, of Châtillon, prince of Antioch, -1187

Renaud, de Châtillon, prince of Antioch, d. 1187

Reno, mi-Shaṭiyon, -1187

Rino, mi-Shaṭiyon, -1187

Second Crusade, 1147-1149

Knighthood

Bro-C'hall

Fa-kuo

Fa-lan-hsi

Faguo

Falanxi

Falanxi Gongheguo

Faransā

Farānsah

França

Francia (Republic)

Francija

Francja

Francland

Francuska

Franis

Franḳraykh

Frankreich

Frankrig

Frankrijk

Frankrike

Frankryk

Fransa

Fransa Respublikası

Franse

Franse Republiek

Frant͡s

Frant͡s Uls

Frant͡sii͡a

Frantsuzskai͡a Rėspublika

Frantsyi͡a

Franza

French Republic

Frencisc Cynewīse

Frenska republika

Furansu

Furansu Kyōwakoku

Gallia

Gallia (Republic)

Gallikē Dēmokratia

Hyãsia

Parancis

Peurancih

Phransiya

Pransiya

Pransya

Prantsusmaa

Pʻŭrangsŭ

Ranska

República Francesa

Republica Franzesa

Republika Francuska

Republiḳah ha-Tsarfatit

Republikang Pranses

République française

Tsarfat

Tsorfat

Γαλλική Δημοκρατία

Γαλλία

Франц

Франц Улс

Французская Рэспубліка

Францыя

Франция

Френска република

פראנקרייך

צרפת

רפובליקה הצרפתית

فرانسه

فرنسا

フランス

フランス共和国

法国

法蘭西

法蘭西共和國

프랑스

SAILS ISBN:

9780393609691

Available:

Library	Shelf Number	Shelf Location	Status
Searching... Fairhaven-Millicent	940.18 LEE 2016	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Mansfield Public Library	909.07 DE CHATILLION	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... New Bedford Wilks Branch	B RENAUD LEE 2017	BIOGRAPHY	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

In a 2010 terrorist plot, Al-Qaeda hid a bomb in a FedEx shipment addressed to a man who had been dead for 800 years.

Born in twelfth-century France and bred for violence, Reynald de Chatillon was a young knight who joined the Second Crusade and rose through the ranks to become the preeminent figure in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, chief foe of the Muslim leader Saladin, and one of the most reviled characters in Islamic history. In the West, Reynald has long been considered a minor player in the crusading saga, and is often dismissed as a bloodthirsty maniac who brought disaster on his fellow crusaders. However, by using contemporary documents and original research, Jeffrey Lee overturns this popular perception and questions other prejudices about the crusades that underlie modern misunderstandings of the Middle East.

God's Wolf shows how the crusader kingdom was brought down by a treacherous internal faction, rather than by Reynald's belligerence. In fact, despite Reynald's brutality, Lee argues that he was a strong military leader and an effective statesman, whose actions in the Middle East had a far-reaching impact that endures to this day.

An epic saga set in the midst of a violent clash of civilizations, God's Wolf is the fascinating story of an exceptional crusader and a provocative reinterpretation of the crusading era.

Reviews (3)

Kirkus Review

Elegant biography of a little-known Frankish crusader who is still a thorn in the sides of Islamists.South Africa-born, London-based journalist Lee uses the life of Reynald de Chatillon as a way to tell the story of the Second Crusade (1145-1149), a mostly disastrous affair for the Christians that paved the way for Saladin's subsequent sack of Jerusalem in 1187. Lee portrays Reynaldwho was from Burgundy and responded as a young knight-errant to Abbot Bernard de Clairvaux's call to reclaim the city of Edessaas the chivalric ideal. A younger son, Reynald had little recourse to economic betterment other than joining the military and hoping to secure riches and fame from the militant, expansionist Christian army spurred by the pope to reclaim the Levant from the Muslims. With his courtly manners and keen sense of potential glory, Reynald was nonetheless trained as a merciless killer, and he was enlisted to aid the defense of the crusader state of Antioch, where he caught the eye and sympathy of the widowed princess Constance, whom he married. Now as a prince of Antioch, Reynald had to continually defend the principality from Muslim raids, but he also invaded and sacked the Christian island of Cyprus "in a piratical fashion," gaining him the opprobrium of the Byzantium emperor and Muslims alike. Throughout, Lee graphically portrays the gory violence that dominated the era. Captured by the Turks after the battle of Marash in 1161, Reynald spent the next 15 years imprisoned in Aleppo, under the jurisdiction of Turkish leader Nur al-Din. During the last 10 years of his life, Reynald would chastise his nemesis Saladin from the Arabian Peninsula to the Kingdom of Jerusalem. In 1187, he was captured in the Battle of Hattin and executed after refusing to renounce his faith. A vivid narrative that effectively delineates the era's courtly spirit and "nightmarish barbarity." Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Booklist Review

*Starred Review* The crusader knight Raynald of Châtillon (1125-87) has suffered bad press from foe and friend alike. Muslim chroniclers of the great sultan Saladin, Raynald's most effective adversary, naturally don't approve of him. Furthermore, the most esteemed Christian eyewitness to his deeds, Walter of Tyre, belonged to the other party vying for predominance in the Crusader states and isn't trustworthy on him. Lee presents a balanced account, emphatically not denying Raynald's violence and cruelty but pointing up his superior diplomacy, especially as a politically astute marriage broker, his utter loyalty unlike that of Raymond III of Tripoli, who ran out on the Battle of Hattin, ensuring Raynald's defeat and death (at Saladin's own hands, as the sultan had sworn) and, eventually, the fall of crusader-conquered Jerusalem and his fearless leadership from the forefront of battle. One particularly signal achievement of Raynald's was the raid by sea of both shores of the Red Sea, including the only sallies toward Medina and Mecca ever made by infidels. Lee's clear narration and reasonable approach vault Raynald back to the heights he deserves to occupy as a knight and a Crusader. An outstanding addition to popular literature on an enduringly influential historical epoch.--Olson, Ray Copyright 2017 Booklist

Library Journal Review

Lee (Dog Days and Butterfly Man) explores the life of Reynald de Chatillon (1120-87), a notorious fighter during the Second Crusade. Chatillon has a reputation for brutality and violence, which Lee believes is exaggerated and misplaced. After a brief background on French society and the First Crusade, Lee argues that Chatillon's ferocity was typical of a warrior at that time and that his notoriety is the result of a smear campaign by his enemies. Lee investigates his subject's most notorious exploits, such as his stint as Prince of Antioch, lengthy imprisonment in Aleppo, raids against the Hajj pilgrim routes, and eventual execution. Chatillon is portrayed as a daring and bold warrior who was respected by his king and entrusted with diplomatic and regency roles. The author also emphasizes his subject's administration and matchmaking accomplishments to prove he was more than a terrifying warlord. Lee's arguments concerning the diversity of Chatillon's roles are more effective than the contextualization of his cruelty, as he never fully demonstrates how other warriors during that time compared. VERDICT A highly readable yet general overview of Chatillon's life and the Second Crusade. Readers desiring an in-depth analysis should look elsewhere. [See Prepub Alert, 3/20/17.]-Rebekah Kati, Durham, NC © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

List of Maps	p. 9
Prologue	p. 11
Introduction: A Monstrous Unbeliever	p. 15
1 Dead Man Walking	p. 25
2 The Wild East	p. 46
3 Knight-Errant	p. 59
4 Arriviste	p. 77
5 Diabolic Daring	p. 90
6 A Violent Sinner	p. 103
7 Guardian of the Land	p. 113
8 Imperial Vassal	p. 123
9 In the Power of Nur Al-Din	p. 142
10 Years of Darkness	p. 149
11 Phoenix	p. 163
12 Hero	p. 191
13 Lord of La Grand Berrie	p. 195
14 Desert Raider	p. 210
15 Sea Wolf	p. 218
16 The Lion and the Wolf	p. 229
17 The "Manchurian" Regent	p. 240
18 King-Maker	p. 249
19 Truce-Breaker	p. 257
20 Apocalypse	p. 268
21 The Ultimate Crusader	p. 283
Acknowledgments	p. 299
Notes	p. 301
Select Bibliography	p. 311
Index	p. 315
About the Author	p. 333

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Summary

Summary

Reviews (3)

Kirkus Review

Booklist Review

Library Journal Review

Table of Contents