Podcast Summary: Thomas Smith, "Rewriting the First Crusade: Epistolary Culture in the Middle Ages"

New Books Network | Host: Dr. Miranda Melcher | Guest: Dr. Thomas Smith | Date: October 16, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, host Dr. Miranda Melcher interviews Dr. Thomas Smith about his new book, "Rewriting the First Crusade: Epistolary Culture in the Middle Ages" (Boydell & Brewer, 2024). Dr. Smith discusses how letters written during and about the First Crusade have traditionally shaped modern understanding of the event, and reveals how many of these documents were not what they seemed. His research shows many “eyewitness” crusader letters are in fact later inventions or significant modifications, reflecting shifting agendas and communities of later centuries. The conversation explores the impact of this revelation on interpretations of the First Crusade’s origins, leadership, and legacy.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Origins of the Book and Discovery of the Letters

• Dr. Smith recounts his archival “eureka moment”: Finding a manuscript in the Bavarian State Library with a suspicious date, leading to the discovery of a variant letter text (02:59).
• Recollection of how the project began as an article but grew with the discovery of more variant or previously unknown letters.
• Historical reliance on these First Crusade letters, despite a lack of recent scholarly re-examination.

Notable Quote
"I realized that this letter from the First Crusade actually had a different text to that which had been published. So it turned out to be a new version of the letter, a later version that had been modified by audiences later on."
— Dr. Smith (03:24)

2. The Letters: Reassessing Authenticity and Their Role

• Scholars have long accepted many crusader letters as authentic, written “in the heat of the moment.”
• Dr. Smith demonstrates many were invented or heavily modified, sometimes by monks decades later, serving changing agendas.
• The letters should not be dismissed as forgeries, but appreciated for what they reveal about the communities that produced and manipulated them (06:35).

Notable Quote
"They weren't written, all of them, in the heat of the moment in the crusader camp. Some of them were invented by monks in monasteries in the decades after."
— Dr. Smith (05:38)

3. Rethinking the First Crusade’s Origins—Who Called for Help?

• Traditional view: Emperor of Byzantium sent authentic letters to the Pope, spurring the Crusade.
• Smith’s research shows only one of the three supposed Byzantine letters is even plausibly authentic; others are now believed to be inventions.
• This suggests the root of the Crusade was more a Western initiative, with the Byzantine call for help less central than previously thought (07:57).

Notable Quote
"If we take that away, actually it removes some of that texture from the context of Byzantium calling for aid. ...I still think that we have to look for the origins of the First Crusade in the conception of the idea, really in the west."
— Dr. Smith (09:35)

4. The Papacy’s Role: Less Masterminded, More Fluid?

• Traditional historiography casts the Pope as central, orchestrating the Crusade with a grand plan and clear targets (e.g., Jerusalem).
• Smith's examination of the extant letters argues for a more modest, piecemeal papal role—fewer authentic letters, evidence of modification, and ambiguity on targets and strategy.
• Papal recruitment relied more on decentralized, individual responses than overarching directives (10:52).

Notable Quote
"When we look at the papal letters... they're not actually letters that the Pope is sending out where he's trying to promote a really grand, overarching view of exactly what the Crusade is... we need to revise that downwards again."
— Dr. Smith (12:30)

5. Why Did Crusaders Write Letters? Audiences and Intentions

• Letters served to inform, but predominantly to shape reputation, consolidate authority, and mobilize support from communities at home.
• Example: Stephen of Blois wrote home to project authority and shape the narrative, not out of romance or even simple reporting.
• Letters were often group efforts, representing collective, mediated voices, sometimes dictated and then altered by scribes.
• Strong emphasis on seeking prayers and spiritual backing—showing a sense that the Crusade "home front" was vital (14:59).

Notable Quote
"The authors of these letters see the epistolary form, the letter, as a projection of soft power, basically, that the control of narrative."
— Dr. Smith (15:10)

6. Detecting Later Inventions and Modifications

• How can we tell when a letter is not contemporary?
  • Tone and detail (or lack thereof) can be clues.
  • Medieval epistolary practice included open, broadcast letters, often intended for public reading—paralleling group WhatsApp messages rather than private emails (21:31).
  • Textual comparison across manuscripts reveals layers of additions (especially postscripts), with later copies often bloated by interpolations.
  • Some interpolations still preserve valuable contemporary oral accounts—so not all additions are mere fiction (22:19).

Notable/Lighthearted Quote
[On modified or invented letters:]
"I would totally call it fanfic as well. I endorse this message. I'm fine with that."
— Dr. Smith (27:03)

7. Rewriting the Narrative: What Must Change in First Crusade History

• Big picture remains—but core details about leadership, papal intent, and East-West relations shift.
• Some events and key relationships (like the papal legate supposedly traveling to Cyprus to write letters with the Greek patriarch) now seen as fabrications.
  • The earliest so-called use of "crusader" (cruce signatus) is in an invented letter, not a genuine one.
• These findings force scholars to discard long-held assumptions about diplomacy and unity in the Crusading movement, especially regarding cooperation between Latin and Greek church leaders (27:43).

8. Why So Many More Letters After the Crusade?

• Sparse letters during the Crusade (difficult, dangerous, limited expectation of success).
• The capture of Jerusalem triggers a surge in scribal energy—communities eager to memorialize and “possess” this miraculous history.
• Patterns mirror other medieval trends: gaps in records lead monks to “fill in” significant moments with invented or augmented documents.
• Cultural craving for these letters is reflected in how often and widely they were copied, preserved in books, flyleaves, and even ephemeral pamphlets (33:56, 37:54).

Memorable Moment

• Smith describes finding a First Crusade letter preserved as a medieval pamphlet, complete with a related hymn, offering vivid insight into the materiality and transmission of these documents (40:38).

9. Broader Implications and the Future of First Crusade Studies

• Encourages a shift from using letters solely as unmediated sources, to viewing them as mirrors of monastic and lay culture, memory, and entertainment.
• Opens avenues for further research—such as the role of letters in spiritual mobilization, community memory, and textual reception in the medieval world.
• Dr. Smith mentions upcoming projects:
  • Academic edition/translation of the "Gesta Francorum"
  • A forthcoming trade book on the Fifth Crusade for general audiences (43:15).

Memorable Quotes & Moments (With Timestamps)

• "I wanted to go and show them some Crusades documents. ...There was one that stood out because it had a weird date. And I thought, well, this is strange."
  — Dr. Smith (03:09)

• "Some of the inventions I think are, are not very detailed at all. And one gets the sense that this has been written by someone who doesn't have a first hand knowledge of what's actually going on, on the Crusade."
  — Dr. Smith (22:39)

• "I think we're so fortunate that that one survives because it just opens up this whole new world of transmission and reception that we wouldn't get if we just had those book copies."
  — Dr. Smith (42:06)

• "I was really hoping that it was going to be ...the actual parchment that's sent back from the east to the west by the Crusaders, but actually, it turns out it was removed from a book and was just in this archive in France..."
  — Dr. Smith (40:05)

• [Humor]
  "It would be too, far too unfair to call it fanfic, but maybe it's like ...updates added to a news article..."
  — Dr. Melcher (26:50)
  "I would totally call it fanfic as well. I endorse this message. I'm fine with that."
  — Dr. Smith (27:03)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 02:59: Dr. Smith introduces himself and recounts how the project began
• 07:57: Byzantine empire’s call for aid and authenticity of imperial letters
• 10:52: The papacy’s role and recruitment, interpretation of papal letters
• 14:59: Why crusaders wrote letters—power, news, and prayer
• 21:31: How these letters are more like open group messages than private emails
• 22:19: Clues to authenticity and identifying modifications
• 27:43: How this research changes key episodes and assumptions in First Crusade history
• 33:56: Why more letters exist after the Crusade than during
• 37:54: Popularity and transmission: manuscript culture, preservation, and pamphlets
• 43:15: Dr. Smith’s upcoming projects
• 45:01: Conclusion and thanks

Tone & Closing

The conversation is dynamic, filled with archival anecdotes, scholarly humor, and an eagerness for both discovery and revision. Dr. Smith underscores the vibrancy of medieval manuscript culture and the importance of skepticism and nuance in handling historical sources.

For more insights, listen to the full episode or read "Rewriting the First Crusade" by Dr. Thomas Smith.