Byzantium and the Crusader States 1096-1204

This is the first full scholarly study of the relations between Byzantium and the Crusader States of Syria and Palestine. Ralph-Johannes Lilie sets out to explore the policies and principles which shaped contacts between the Eastern Empire, the Crusader States, and the nations of Western Europe whence the Crusaders came. He traces the actions of the Byzantine Emperors in the twelfth century as they sought to keep control of the crusading armies within their territories and to maintain their positions with respect to the west, and shows how mutual suspicion and attempts at co-operation ended in downright enmity. Originally published to much acclaim in German, Byzantium and the Crusader States has been revised for the English edition by Professor Lilie, and a lucid and scholarly translation provided by J. C. Morris and Jean E. Ridings. `Lilie's book is an important one, not only because the course of relations between Greeks and Latins in the eastern Mediterranean region is discussed in a refreshingly original way, but also because all historians of the Latin East will want to consult it on points of detail.' Jonathan Riley-Smith, English Historical Review

Table of Contents:
Expectations and dissensions - the First Crusade and Byzantium (1096-1098); the antagonisms sharpen - Alexius I Comnenus and the Crusader states (1098-1119); the height of confrontation - John Comnenus (1118-1143); the "policy of detente" - Manuel I Comnenus (1143-1180); Byzantine weakness and the relapse into the policy of confrontation - from Alexius II Comnenus to Alexius V Murtzuphlus (1180-1204); Byzantium and the Crusader states from 1096 to 1204 - summary. Appendices: Laodicea, Antioch and Byzantium between 1098 and 1105; objectivity and bias in John Cinnamus, Nicetas Choniates and William of Tyre; the Treaty of 1137 between Byzantium and the Princedom of Antioch according to Ordericus Vitalis and William of Tyre; the alliance of the Franks with Byzantium for the conquest of Egypt (1165-1177).

Review :
`Lilie's book is an important one, not only because the course of relations between Greeks and Latins in the eastern Mediterranean region is discussed in a refreshingly original way, but also because all historians of the Latin East will want to consult it on points of detail.' Jonathan Riley-Smith, English Historical Review `this is a scholarly work filling a sinificant gap in our knowledge.' Review of Books `this is the first detailed book to focus on the relations between those states and the empire...he has based his work solidly on historical facts and, in places, has devoted considerable energy to the clarification of some factual problems...it is clear that any further discussion of the relations between Byzantium and the Crusader states must begin with this book.' The Catholic Historical Review `fully documented...This is the best sort of old-fashioned diplomatic history, investigating high politics by meticulous close readings of the sources and imaginative speculation about the character and motives.' History Today `Specialists will find this an important study that offers a significant thesis. It may cause medieval historians to reconsider some common notions.' E. Randolph Daniel, University of Kentucky, The Historian `This important book does much to advance our understanding of these events and this readable translation will open the subject to a far wider audience. It is a detailed and largely convincing work that does much to help us understand the Byzantine attitude towards the Crusader States and for this reason it deserves a positive reception.' Jonathan P. Phillips, Royal Holloway College, Journal of Ecclesiastical History, vol.47, no. 1 Jan 1996