Crusader Trilogy

by James H. Jackson 2 books in this series

The Crusader Trilogy spans the final century of western European campaigning in the Holy Land. Penance, the earliest-set volume, begins with the murder of Thomas Becket and follows a physician serving Richard the Lionheart during the Third Crusade. Pilgrim moves to 1212, combining the Children’s Crusade with a search for the True Cross and the surviving communities of the Crusader States.

Perdition brings the sequence to Acre in 1291, where Templars, Hospitallers, merchants and civilians face the Mamluk assault that ends the principal mainland Crusader stronghold. The books use fictional witnesses and agents to examine religious conviction, exploitation, military orders and the political divisions that repeatedly weakened the Christian territories.

Reading order

Books in this series (2 books)

#2 – Pilgrim

James H. Jackson

In 1212, young pilgrims from the Rhineland join the movement later remembered as the Children’s Crusade, believing they can reach Jerusalem and recover the True Cross lost after the Battle of Hattin. Among those travelling east are Otto, a young noble searching for his missing Hospitaller…

Amazon World of Books

#3 – Perdition

James H. Jackson

Acre, 1291. The last major Christian stronghold in the Holy Land prepares for attack by the Mamluk army. William of Beaujeu, Grand Master of the Knights Templar, attempts to preserve both the city and his military order while merchants, mercenaries, clergy and rival contingents struggle to…

Amazon World of Books