"In this book, Jonathan Riley-Smith provides an approachable and expert introduction to the two most famous and most active military orders, the Knights Templar and Knights Hospitaller, and their activities in the Levant. It is a first-rate study, energetically and engagingly written by the world's most accomplished historian of the crusades." --Thomas Madden, St. Louis University

"The image of the military orders is mostly dominated by their military, political, or economic role while their spirituality and their religious character are often neglected. This book, from a great authority...