MJ Horswell Phd Thesis 2016
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THE RISE AND FALL OF BRITISH CRUSADER MEDIEVALISM, c.1825-1945 Michael John Horswell Royal Holloway, University of London Submitted for a PhD in History, 2016. Word Count: 99,996 words DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP I Michael John Horswell hereby declare that this thesis and the work presented in it is entirely my own. Where I have consulted the work of others, this is always clearly stated. Signed: Michael John Horswell Date: 14 December 2016 DECLARATION OF PUBLICATION Sections similar to those appearing in Chapter One on modernity and the First World War as a cultural caesura and in Chapter Five on the Most Noble Order of Crusaders have been published in: Mike Horswell, ‘Crusader Medievalism and Modernity in Britain: The Most Noble Order of Crusaders and the Rupture of the First World War, 1921-49’, Studies in Medievalism XXV (2016), pp. 19-27. 2 ABSTRACT Using the lenses of collective memory and medievalism, this study examines the rise and fall of crusader medievalism in Britain over one hundred and twenty years from the publication of Sir Walter Scott’s famous novel set in the Third Crusade, The Talisman (1825), to the end of the Second World War. Emphasising the use of the past to a given present it asks why, how and by whom the crusades and ideas of crusading were employed in the nineteenth and the first half of the twentieth centuries. Tyerman has traced the development of crusade historiography into the twentieth century while the foundational work of Siberry, Knobler and Phillips has established the popularity and utility of the crusades in Britain and Europe. The political developments of the nineteenth century, and the increased exposure of the British to the Holy Land, led to an explosion of interest in the crusades. With its depiction in a plethora of forms, from literature and art to plays and opera, crusader medievalism became common currency. The crusades were potent because they could encompass the prevalent cultural strands of late Victorian Britain (Romantic medievalism; imperial militarism; ‘muscular’ Christianity; and chivalry) singly or in combination. Crusader medievalism, therefore, enjoyed a symbiotic relationship with this late Victorian culture which provided it with a fertile ground to grow in; it, in turn, strengthened and propagated it. It has been suggested that this cultural system was destroyed by exposure to the realities of modern, mechanical warfare experienced during the First World War. However, the examples of crusader medievalism considered here – from the 1914- 18 conflict, the interwar years and the Second World War – illustrate both the continuing versatility of a prewar symbol, and its demise by 1945. Ultimately, crusader medievalism could not bridge the cultural shifts of 1914-45 and remain coherently resonant for the British. 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Four years’ work has incurred significant debts of gratitude and my experience of academia has been of a generous culture. My supervisor, Professor Jonathan Phillips, has exemplified this; his vision helped bring this project into being and I have only been able to complete it through his encouragement and enthusiasm – many thanks! Colleagues at Royal Holloway have provided invaluable advice and direction for my studies – in particular Akil Awan, Helen Graham, David Gwynn, Edward Madigan, Dan Stone and Alex Windscheffel. Similarly, the Society for the Study of the Crusades and the Latin East has proved a convivial and stimulating wider community of scholars who have reflected the warmth and encouragement of their President of the last few years, Bernard Hamilton. The interest and enthusiasm of Elizabeth Siberry and Adam Knobler has been gratifying and sharpened the study, as was the chance to enjoy the hospitality and catalysing intellect of the late Jonathan Riley-Smith. Other scholars, such as Stuart Bell, Felix Hinz, Donald MacRaild, Martin Maw and Lesley Robinson, have been generous with their time and work and have my gratitude also. Three scholarship awards have facilitated the work represented herein: primarily Royal Holloway’s Crossland Research Scholarship which funded my tuituion fees and a maintenance grant for three years. A Sarum St. Michael Educational Charity grant paid my final year’s tuition fees and a Santander Travel Award enabled me to attend the SSCLE’s conference in Odense, to the benefit of this project. Finally, my friends and family have provided every element needed for this project to succeed; from encouragement, sympathy, interest, proofreading and enthusiasm to patience, tolerance, good humour and good food. There are too many of you to name but this work is in some way a product of your support. To Lauren, my wife and sometimes editor but always biggest encourager, thanks for enabling this to happen in innumerable ways. And, of course, thanks to Him sine qua non. 4 CONTENTS Declaration of Authorship.................................................................................. 2 Declaration of Publication ................................................................................. 2 Abstract ............................................................................................................ 3 Acknowledgements ........................................................................................... 4 List of Figures and Tables ................................................................................... 9 Abbreviations .................................................................................................. 10 The Lasting Crusade: Introduction and Overview ............................................. 11 Collective Memories ............................................................................................ 13 Memory: Embodied, Fragmented, Received .................................................... 14 Formative Social Remembering ........................................................................ 16 Memory and Crusading .................................................................................... 18 Medievalism: The Presence of the Middle Ages .................................................. 21 Defining Medievalism ....................................................................................... 21 The Artificial Middle Ages ................................................................................. 22 A Very Present Middle Ages ............................................................................. 24 Medievalism in Action ...................................................................................... 27 Crusader Medievalism ......................................................................................... 30 Traditional Inconsistencies ............................................................................... 32 Definitional Difficulties ..................................................................................... 34 The Tyranny of the Theoretical ......................................................................... 37 Receiving the Crusades ..................................................................................... 40 Crusader Medievalism: A Methodology ........................................................... 41 Historiography ...................................................................................................... 44 1) The Victorian Foundations of British Crusader Medievalism ......................... 52 Historical Context: Britain 1815-1914 .............................................................. 53 National Crusading: European Crusader Medievalism ..................................... 55 i) Romantic Medievalism ...................................................................................... 60 ii) Popular Militarism and Imperialism ................................................................. 66 Imperial Militarism ........................................................................................... 69 iii) ‘Muscular’ Christian Britain ............................................................................. 71 5 ‘Muscular’ Christian Manliness ........................................................................ 73 The Church Militant .......................................................................................... 74 Imperial Destiny ................................................................................................ 78 iv) Knights of the Empire: Imperial Chivalry......................................................... 79 A Medieval Retrieval? ....................................................................................... 80 Imperial Chivalry ............................................................................................... 82 Chivalrous Christianity ...................................................................................... 83 Back to the Crusades: Chivalrous and Imperial Knight-Crusaders ....................... 85 The Death of Chivalry? The Nineteenth-Century Cultural Consensus Unbound . 90 Disillusionment with the Peace ........................................................................ 94 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 97 2) ‘We Hope Every Crusader will Grow Up an Accomplished Christian Gentleman’: Young Crusaders ............................................................................................ 100 Crusading Fictions .............................................................................................