The Last Crusade: The Epic Voyages of Vasco Da Gama - Hardcover

Nigel Cliff

4.12

1,174 ratings by Goodreads

9781848870178: The Last Crusade: The Epic Voyages of Vasco Da Gama

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1848870175 ISBN 13: 9781848870178

Publisher: Atlantic Books, 2012

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In 1498 a young captain sailed from Portugal, circumnavigated Africa, crossed the Indian Ocean, and discovered the sea route to the Indies, opening up access to the fabled wealth of the East. It was the longest voyage known to history; the ships were pushed to their limits, their crews were racked by storms and devastated by disease. However, the greatest enemy was neither nature nor the fear of venturing into unknown worlds. With blood-red Crusader crosses emblazoned on their sails, the explorers arrived in the heart of the Muslim East at a time when the old hostilities between Christianity and Islam had intensified. In two voyages that spanned six years, Vasco da Gama would fight a running sea battle that would ultimately change the fate of three continents.

The Last Crusade is an epic tale of spies, intrigue, and treachery; of bravado, brinkmanship, and confused - often comical collisions - between cultures encountering one another for the first time. With the world once again tipping back East, The Last Crusade offers a key to understanding age-old religious and cultural rivalries resurgent today.

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Review:

"A stirringly epic book...a thrilling narrative...This is broad-brush history, but it is accurate, and enlivened by splendid spots of color."--Sunday Times (London)

From the Author:

Nigel Cliff is a historian, biographer and critic. He was educated at Oxford University, where he was awarded a double First in English and the Beddington Prize for English Literature. He has written widely for publications including The Times, The Economist and the New York Times. He is the author of The Shakespeare Riots (Random House, 2007). He lives in London with his wife, the ballerina Viviana Durante, and their son Orlando.

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