Recueil des Historiens des Croisades
Encyclopedia
The Recueil des Historiens des Croisades (trans: Collection of the Historians of the Crusades) is a major collection of several thousand medieval documents written during the Crusades
. The documents were collected and published in Paris in the late 19th century, and include documents in Latin
, Greek
, Arabic, Old French
, and Armenian
. The documents cover the entire period of the Crusades, and are frequently cited in scholarly works, as a way of locating a specific document. When being quoted in citations, the collection is often abbreviated as RHC or R.H.C..
Images of the documents can be viewed in some major libraries. The 1967 reprint of the entire collection by Gregg Press can also be found in major libraries, and there are also full-text PDF files available online, which have been made available by the Bibliothèque Nationale de France
Gallica project. Documents can be downloaded in their entirety, or stepped through page by page, with both the original text, and a French translation.
and Cyprus
historians
n historians (often abbreviated RHC Darm or RHC Doc. Arm.)
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
. The documents were collected and published in Paris in the late 19th century, and include documents in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
, Arabic, Old French
Old French
Old French was the Romance dialect continuum spoken in territories that span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from the 9th century to the 14th century...
, and Armenian
Armenian language
The Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...
. The documents cover the entire period of the Crusades, and are frequently cited in scholarly works, as a way of locating a specific document. When being quoted in citations, the collection is often abbreviated as RHC or R.H.C..
Images of the documents can be viewed in some major libraries. The 1967 reprint of the entire collection by Gregg Press can also be found in major libraries, and there are also full-text PDF files available online, which have been made available by the Bibliothèque Nationale de France
Bibliothèque nationale de France
The is the National Library of France, located in Paris. It is intended to be the repository of all that is published in France. The current president of the library is Bruno Racine.-History:...
Gallica project. Documents can be downloaded in their entirety, or stepped through page by page, with both the original text, and a French translation.
Historiens Occidentaux
Five volumes from Occidental or "Western" historians (often abbreviated RHC Oc or RHC Occ)- William of TyreWilliam of TyreWilliam of Tyre was a medieval prelate and chronicler. As archbishop of Tyre, he is sometimes known as William II to distinguish him from a predecessor, William of Malines...
, Historia rerum in partibus transmarinis gestarum - William of Tyre continued; Latin and Old French continuators of William of TyreErnoulErnoul is the name generally given to the author of a chronicle of the late 12th century dealing with the fall of the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.-Biography:Ernoul himself is mentioned only once in history, and only in his own chronicle...
- Peter TudebodePeter TudebodePeter Tudebode was a Poitevin priest who was part of the First Crusade. He wrote an account of the crusade, Historia de Hierosolymitano itinere, including an eye-witness account of the Siege of Antioch, edited in volume 155 of the Patrologia Latina....
, Gesta FrancorumGesta FrancorumThe so-called Gesta Francorum or in full De Gesta Francorum et aliorum Hierosolimitanorum is a Latin chronicle of the First Crusade written in circa 1100-1101 by an anonymous author connected with Bohemund I of Antioch.It narrates the events of the First Crusade from the inception in November...
, Historia Peregrinorum, Raymond of AguilersRaymond of AguilersRaymond of Aguilers was a chronicler of the First Crusade . He followed the Provençal army of crusaders, guided by count Raymond IV of Toulouse, to Jerusalem....
, Fulcher of ChartresFulcher of ChartresFulcher of Chartres was a chronicler of the First Crusade. He wrote in Latin.- Life :His appointment as chaplain of Baldwin of Boulogne in 1097 suggests that he had been trained as a priest, most likely at the school in Chartres...
, Gesta Francorum expugnantium iherusalem, Secunda pars historiae iherosolymitanae, Gesta TancrediGesta TancrediGesta Tancredi in expeditione Hierosolymitana , usually called simply Gesta Tancredi, is a prosimetric history written in laconic Latin prose and episodes of verse by a certain Ralph of Caen...
, Robert the MonkRobert the MonkRobert the Monk or Robert of Rheims was a chronicler of the First Crusade. He did not participate in the expedition, but rewrote the Gesta Francorum at the request of his abbot, who was appalled at the 'rustic' style of the Gesta....
, letters of Stephen II, Count of BloisStephen II, Count of BloisStephen II Henry , Count of Blois and Count of Chartres, was the son of Theobald III, count of Blois, and Garsinde du Maine. He married Adela of Normandy, a daughter of William the Conqueror around 1080 in Chartres...
and Anselm of Ribemont - Baldric of DolBaldric of DolBaldric of Dol was abbot of Bourgueil from 1079 to 1106, then bishop of Dol-en-Bretagne from 1107 until his death....
, Guibert of NogentGuibert of NogentGuibert of Nogent was a Benedictine historian, theologian and author of autobiographical memoirs. Guibert was relatively unknown in his own time, going virtually unmentioned by his contemporaries...
, Albert of AixAlbert of AixAlbert of Aix-la-Chapelle or Albert of Aachen , historian of the First Crusade, was born during the later part of the 11th century, and afterwards became canon and custos of the church of Aachen.... - Ekkehard of AuraEkkehard of AuraEkkehard of Aura was the Abbot of Aura from 1108...
, Caffaro di Rustico da CaschifelloneCaffaro di Rustico da CaschifelloneCaffaro di Rustico da Caschifellone was an Italian crusader and chronicler. He is an important source of information on the careers of the early Embriachi....
, Walter the ChancellorWalter the ChancellorWalter the Chancellor was a French or Norman crusader and author of the twelfth century....
, Historia Nicaena vel Antiochena, Theodori Palidensis Narratio profectionis Godefridi ducis ad Jerusalem, Passiones beati Thiemonis, Documenta Lipsanographica ad I. bellum sacrum spectantia, Primi belli sacri Narrationes minores, Exordium HospitalariorumKnights HospitallerThe Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
, Historia Gotfridi, Benedict Accolti, Li Estoire de Jerusalem et d'Antioche, Itineratio di la gran militia a la pavese, Fulco, Gilo of Paris
Lois
Two volumes of the Assizes of JerusalemAssizes of Jerusalem
The Assizes of Jerusalem are a collection of numerous medieval legal treatises containing the law of the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and Kingdom of Cyprus...
and Cyprus
- John of IbelinJohn of Ibelin (jurist)John of Ibelin , count of Jaffa and Ascalon, was a noted jurist and the author of the longest legal treatise from the Kingdom of Jerusalem. He was the son of Philip of Ibelin, bailli of the Kingdom of Cyprus, and Alice of Montbéliard, and was the nephew of John of Ibelin, the "Old Lord of Beirut"...
, Geoffrey le Tort, James of Ibelin, Philip of NovaraPhilip of NovaraPhilip of Novara was a medieval warrior, musician, diplomat, poet, and lawyer born at Novara, Italy, into a noble house, who spent his entire adult life in the Middle East. He primarily served the Ibelin family, and featured in a number of prominent battles and negotiations involving Jerusalem and...
, La Clef des Assises de la Haute CourHaute Cour of JerusalemThe Haute Cour was the feudal council of the kingdom of Jerusalem. It was sometimes also called the curia generalis, the curia regis, or, rarely, the parlement.-Composition of the court:...
du Royaume de Jerusalem et de Chypre, Le Livre au Roi - Livre des Assises de la Cour des Bourgeois, Abrégé du Livre des Assises de la Cour des Bourgeois, Bans et Ordonnances des Rois de Chypre, 1286-1367, Formules, Appendix: Documents relatifs à la successibilité au trone et à la régence, Document relatif au service militaire, Les Lignages d'Outremer, various charters
Historiens Orientaux
Four volumes from Eastern historians (often abbreviated RHC Or)- Tarikh of Abu al-Fida, al-Kamil at-Tarikh of Ibn al-Athir
- Ibn al-Athir continued, Badr al-Din al-AyniBadr al-Din al-AyniBadr al-Din al-'Ayni born 762 AH , died 855 AH was a Sunni Islamic scholar of the Hanafi madh'hab. Al-'Ayni is an abbreviation for al-'Ayntābi, referring to his native city.-Biography:...
- Baha ad-Din ibn ShaddadBaha ad-Din ibn ShaddadBahā' ad-Dīn Yusuf ibn Rafi ibn Shaddād was a 12th-century Muslim jurist and scholar, an Arabian historian of great note, notable for writing a biography of Saladin whom he knew well.Ibn Shaddād was born in Mosul on 10 Ramadan 539 AH , where he studied the...
, Ibn KhallikanIbn KhallikanShams al-Dīn Abū Al-ʿAbbās Aḥmad Ibn Muḥammad Ibn Khallikān was a 13th Century Shafi'i Islamic scholar of Kurdish origin.-Biography:...
, Abd al-Latif, Ibn JubayrIbn JubayrIbn Jubayr was a geographer, traveler and poet from al-Andalus.-Early life:Born in Valencia in Spain, then the seat of an independent emirate. Ibn Jubayr was descendant of a tribe of Andalusian origins, Jubayr was the son of a civil servant...
, Kitab an-Nujum az-Zahirah, Kitab mirat az-Zaman, Kamal ad-DinIbn al-AdimKamal al-Din ʻUmar ibn Aḥmad Ibn al-Adim was a biographer and historian from Aleppo. He is best known for his work Bughyat al-ṭalab fī tārīkh Ḥalab , a multi-volume collection of biographies of famous men from Aleppo, introduced with a volume on the...
selections of Bughyat al-talab fi Tarikh Halab, Ibn al-Athir's at-Tarikh al-Atabakiya - The Book of Two Gardens by Abu Shama (d. 1267)
Historiens Grecs
Two volumes from GreekGreeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
historians
- Michael Attaliata, Michael PsellosMichael PsellosMichael Psellos or Psellus was a Byzantine monk, writer, philosopher, politician and historian...
, Anna Comnena, John Cinnamus, Nicetas, Joannes ZonarasJoannes ZonarasIoannes Zonaras was a Byzantine chronicler and theologian, who lived at Constantinople.Under Emperor Alexios I Komnenos he held the offices of head justice and private secretary to the emperor, but after Alexios' death, he retired to the monastery of St Glykeria, where he spent the rest of his...
, Michael GlycasMichael GlycasMichael Glycas or Glykas was a Byzantine historian, theologian, mathematician, astronomer and poet. He was probably from Corfu and lived in Constantinople ....
, Nicephorus GregorasNicephorus GregorasNikephoros Gregoras, latinized as Nicephorus Gregoras , Byzantine astronomer, historian, man of learning and religious controversialist, was born at Heraclea Pontica....
, Ephraemius, Ioannes Phocas, Neophytus Presbyter, George Acropolites, Liber de Syria Expugnata, Liber de Jerusalem Expugnata - Notes to Part 1, Nicetas ChoniatesNicetas ChoniatesNicetas or Niketas Choniates , sometimes called Acominatos, was a Greek historian – like his brother Michael Acominatus, whom he accompanied from their birthplace Chonae to Constantinople...
, Theodorus Prodromius
Historiens Armeniens
Two volumes from ArmeniaArmenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n historians (often abbreviated RHC Darm or RHC Doc. Arm.)
- Matthew of EdessaMatthew of EdessaMatthew of Edessa was an Armenian historian in the 12th century from the city of Edessa . Matthew was the superior abbot of Karmir Vank' , near the town of Kessoun, east of Marash , the former seat of Baldwin of Boulogne...
, Gregory the Priest, Basil the Doctor, Nerses Shnorhali, Gregory Dgh'a, Michael the SyrianMichael the SyrianMichael the Syrian , also known as Michael the Great or Michael Syrus or Michael the Elder, to distinguish him from his nephew, was a patriarch of the Syriac Orthodox Church from 1166 to 1199. He is best known today as the author of the largest medieval Chronicle, which he composed in Syriac...
, Guiragos of KantzagKirakos GandzaketsiKirakos of Gandzak was an Armenian historian of the 13th century and author of the History of Armenia, a summary of events from the 4th to the 12th century and a detailed description of the events of his own days. The work concentrates primarily on the history of Medieval Armenia and events...
, Vartan the Great, Samuel of Ani, Hayton of CorycusHayton of CorycusHayton of Corycus was a medieval Armenian monk and historian . He is the author of a History of the Tartars , written in France, for which he is also known as "Hayton the Historian"...
, Bahram of Edessa, Hetoum II of Armenia, Constable SempadSempad the ConstableSempad the Constable was a noble in Cilician Armenia, an older brother of King Hetoum I. He was an important figure in Cilicia, acting as a diplomat, judge, and military officer, holding the title of Constable or Sparapet, supreme commander of the Armenian armed forces...
's Chronicle of the Kingdom (also spelled Smpad) - Nerses of LambronNerses of LambronSaint Nerses of Lambron was the Archbishop of Tarsus in the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia who is remembered as one of the most significant figures in Armenian literature and ecclesiastical history.-Life:...
, Smbad the ConstableSempad the ConstableSempad the Constable was a noble in Cilician Armenia, an older brother of King Hetoum I. He was an important figure in Cilicia, acting as a diplomat, judge, and military officer, holding the title of Constable or Sparapet, supreme commander of the Armenian armed forces...
, Mekhithar of Dashir, various charters