The military religious orders emerged during the Crusades as Christendom's stormtroopers in the savage conflict with Islam. Some of them still exist today; devoted to charitable works. The Monks of War is the first general history of these orders to have appeared since the eighteenth century.The Templars; the Hospitallers (later Knights of Malta); the Teutonic Knights and the Knights of the Spanish and Portuguese orders were "noblemen vowed to poverty; chastity and obedience; living a monastic life in convents which were at the same time barracks; waging war on the enemies of the Cross." The first properly disciplined Western troops since Roman times; they played a major role in defending the crusader kingdom of Jerusalem; in the "Baltic Crusades" which created Prussia; in the long reconquest of Spain from the Moors; and in fighting the "Infidel" right up to Napoleonic times. This celebrated book tells the whole enthralling story; recreating such epics as the sieges of Rhodes and Malta and the destruction of the Templars by the Inquisition. Acclaimed on publication; it has now been revised and updated; with a concluding chapter to take events into the 1990s.
#548833 in Books 1995-09-01 1995-09-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.10 x .90 x 5.40l; .57 #File Name: 0140175962336 pages
Review
48 of 51 people found the following review helpful. A wonderful view of ancient Egypt in the female perspective!By A Customer"Daughters of Isis;" is a must from those who want to know the ins and outs of Egyptian civilization; which includes the often over-looked role of women. This book covers the life of women from birth to death and contains a wonderful chapter on female kings; including Maatkare Hatchepsut and Neferuaten Nefertiti along with other; lesser known great women. Changes in styles and beliefs through the history of Ancient Egypt are noted with wonderful detail. The plates are superb and portray a variety of household implements and portrayals the Egyptians; themselves; made of their women. Forming a wonderful compliment to other literature that examines the lives of those below Pharaoh as well as other works by Joyce; "Daughters of Isis" does those same daughters and their goddess quite the justice.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Daily lives and legal rights of women in ancient EgyptBy Kathryn RHistorical texts rarely address how one half any population lived and died; unless they did something scandalous or unprecedented; women were faceless ciphers. This book offers a rare; insightful; and thought-provoking portrayal of everyday life for women at all levels of society in ancient Egypt. It is known Egyptian women enjoyed legal rights that set them apart from their sisters in patriarchal Greece; Rome; and the neighboring Near East. They could own property; make legal contacts (and sue); and live without a male guardian.Beyond legal matters; women's lives went unrecorded. Most records mention women only as adjuncts of the male head of household. Wives were usually buried in the tombs of their husbands. Tomb art shows the lives and activities of MEN with miniature images of women and children serving them; thus continuing women's subservient status into the afterlife. To find the women; Tyldesley took a close look at the information available and expanded the fragments through the magnifying glass of the lives of contemporary Egyptian women. The result is a credible extrapolation of how the women of ancient Egypt used their time; intelligence; talents; and freedoms in the shadows of Pharaoh/Father/Husband.I found her analysis of political and religious titles to be the most unusual tool in her kit - the multiple; elaborately-worded titles of even men are overlooked by most researchers. Titles bestowed in ancient Egypt provide insight into daily duties to temple and community. By comparing titles across the dynastic periods; Tyldesley was able to determine which duties - and which gods; pharaohs; and ceremonies - remained important and which ones fell from use or favor. Titles also indicated the expanding popularity of a local deity; one that might become woven into the convoluted national pantheon; or the rising importance of a local leader; especially in times of political instability.A particularly revealing segment looks at life in the lower levels of ancient society; at the wives and daughters that inhabited the mud brick farm villages strewn among the massive temples and palaces along the Nile like seed beads on a strand of large pearls. The farmers of ancient Egypt provided the real wealth that brought the kingdom's greatness: grain. It fed the pharaohs; armies; and builders and furnished a vital trading commodity. But those farmers wielded little power; their wives had even less. Despite four thousand years of global progress; very little has changed in the daily lives of the farmer's women; and many are deprived of rights their ancestors took for granted.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Four StarsBy melody robbinsAwesome read!! Enlightenment at it's best
