It was very enlightening to review the time frame of the Crusades from the perspective of the Arab scribes and biographers!

Good history book telling the other side of the story of the Crusades. Recommended

As the Arab/Saracen/Turk Muslim conglomerate that faced the various and sundry Crusaders out of Europe really never viewed them as a procession of related events, but more as individual wars, putting together a cohesive and cogent history of the non-Euro side of the Crusades is difficult, but Gabrieli does a fair job, giving a new flavor to how we see that era. His stories about the Arab thoughts on European will not fail to entertain- I remember one running something alone the lines of Frankish women should not wear anklets because they get caught in their earrings. Good times.

Great book!
It tells the events through the Arabs eyes as the defender of the holly land and the whole eastern regoin. Where the western educational system portray them as the invaders!!
I have the Arabic resource Ibn-Athir. I kept going back and forth between both books. The events are translated word for word! Very impressive and amazing detailes. Francesco did a great work collecting reliable Arabic resources of the 11th-14th centuries.

His cronicles helped me understand the sequence of events and the importance of the middle eastern region to all. That at some point they lived together, married from each other, yet still see each other as the enemy. The Franks (westerners) are still eyeing this part of the world till now and invaders are still occupying Palestinian land.

There is a four- part series on the crusaders produced by Al-jazeera in 2016 that helped me connect the reading with live actions of the medieval period.

Just what it says on the tin, brilliantly compiled and edited. A treat.

A history book, but not a good one, offers in depth opinions of Arab Historians, but is is very Anti-Christ.

Excellent alternative view of the crusades.

أعاد المستشرق الإيطالي والعضو في مجمع اللغة العربية ترتيب المتناثر في كتب التاريخ العربية بعودته إلى ١٧ مؤلِف ومؤَلف وحرص على النقل عن المعاصرين للأحداث (الحملات الصليبية) في فترة الحكم الأيوبي والمماليك لمنطقتي الشام ومصر؛ فجمع المتناثر وأعاد الترتيب بما يتوافق مع المنهج الحديث في ترتيب الفصول مع المقدمة الموجزة ومعقبًا باختصار موضوعي شديد، مدققا التواريخ والأحداث بين الروايات وذاكرًا لأرقام الصفحات في المصادر المنقول عنها.

Eccezionale! Un testo davvero importante per lo studio delle crociate.

Good, Good, Good source for primaries!!! Helped me with my Acre 1291 class!!

First, I understand that the writings of Arab historians differ wildly from most Western historians. They have a flourish to their language and writings, far more than the usual "facts only" western approach. There is also a significant amount of praising of Mohammed and Islam, with a consistent denigration of, in this case, the Franks and Christianity. There is also an abundance of exaggeration, particularly when it comes to declaring the battle casualties on the enemy's side. While bias is a factor on many (perhaps most?) historical writings, it tends to be blatant during this time period.

So, this makes reading these historical accounts a bit more difficult for the Western eyes. How much of it is really history, and how much of it is embellishment? One has to persistently filter through these exaggerations, embellishments and biases to find -- if possible -- the true historical facts. It makes the reading and understanding of this tome, well, tough.

Further, in an effort to provide multiple views -- albeit all from the Arabic perspective -- the author often provides multiple accounts of the same event. The writing styles of the original historians tend to vary wildly, and often the figures and information provided is at odds.

So, while I did gain some information and insight from a different perspective than usual, I really cannot recommend this book to anyone other than serious scholars of the Crusades.

Very good selection of texts taken from the works or Arab historians. As opposed to Amin Maalouf, Gabrieli knows how to judge the material, and consequently gives a much more reliable view.