"Covering the classic crusades to the Holy Lands and the taking and defending of Jerusalem, Nicholson also gives equal treatment to the Requonquista of the Iberian peninsula, the subjugation and conversion of pagans in Northwestern Europe, the Crusades against the Ottoman Turks in the Balkans, and the internal Crusades against the heretical Albigensians and Hussites." "Following a narrative history, thematic chapters provide an overview of the Crusades - why scholars believe they were fought, why they appealed to a very broad cross-section of Europe's population, and what motivated crusaders to dedicate years of their lives to the martial cause of Christendom."--BOOK JACKET.