BLACK CROSS: A HISTORY OF THE BALTIC CRUSADES (HB)

Between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries, crusading armies unleashed a relentless holy war against the last pagan societies in northern Europe, particularly in the Baltic Sea region. Led by Catholic rulers, churchmen, and, most importantly of all, the warrior monks of the Teutonic Order, they sought to expand Christendom through conquest and conversion. Aleksander Pluskowski traces the broader story of the Baltic Crusades, exploring how the construction of castles and towns, and the introduction of new languages, technology, monetary economies, and religion transformed the conquered societies.