Outremer

Outremer
The Near East in 1135, with the Crusader states of Outremer marked with red crosses.
Further information: Names of the Levant

Outremer, French (outre-mer) for "overseas", was a general name given to the Crusader states established after the First Crusade: the County of Edessa, the Principality of Antioch, the County of Tripoli and especially the Kingdom of Jerusalem. The name was often equated to the Levant of Renaissance.

The term was, in general, used to refer to any land "overseas"; for example, Louis IV of France was called "Louis d'Outremer" as he was raised in England.

Contents

Present-day use

The modern term outre-mer, spelled with a hyphen and equally meaning "overseas", is notably used for the overseas departments and territories of France (In French: Départements d'outre-mer – Territoires d'outre-mer or DOM – TOM, collectively Pays et territoires d'outre-mer (PTOM)).

Cultural impact

Illustration from the Old French translation of Guillaume de Tyr's Histoire d'Outremer

The author Chaz Brenchley set his series The Books of Outremer in an alternate universe version of this region.

A kingdom of French refugees bears the name of France-Outre-Mer in S. M. Stirling's book The Peshawar Lancers.

Judith Tarr's Alamut series of books are set in Outremer, mostly in the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the city of Acre.

Literature

See also

  • The Holy Places
  • History of the name Palestine

References

  • Helen Nicholson (2004). Knight Templar (1120-1312). Osprey Publishing ltd.. ISBN 1 84176 670 4. 
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