Denmark of the twelfth to thirteenth centuries was a place of transitions, and this volume analyzes that period through the lens of the Gesta Danorum of Saxo Grammaticus and other sources. The Gesta defends not only hierocratic conceptions but the Danish hegemonic project in the Baltic - which was grounded in the crusade movements, presented in the Gesta though complex language and imagery about a glorious past brought to bear on the thirteenth century. Also channeled are internal tensions, strengthening the monarchic and ecclesiastical institutions.