<DIV><p class="MsoNormal">You're no idiot, of course. You know the Crusades were a war between Christians and Muslims for control of the Holy Land. However, these bloody conflicts raged over centuries, under changing circumstances, making the whole story difficult to follow.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">You don't have to don armor and cross deserts to relive the Crusades! The Complete Idiot's Guide® to the Crusades shows you why these wars began, why they continued for so long, and how their impact on the world still resonates. This Complete Idiot's Guide® gives you:</p> <p class="MsoNormal">            --An introduction to the Dark Ages and the Renaissance, and why Pope Urban II would grant absolution to anyone who reclaimed the Holy Land for Christianity.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">            --The origins of such Holy Orders as the Knights Templar, the Hospitallers, and the Teutonic Knights—and the roles they played during the Crusades.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">            --The creation of such items as chastity belts, razors, stained glass, perfume, the crossbow, the compass, and public latrines.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">            --The nobles—Richard the Lion Heart, Louis IX, and Frederick II—and the Muslim leaders—Saladin, Zengi, and Nur ed-Din—who held the lives of thousands in their hands.</p> <p> </p> </div>