The Department of Holy War

What Pete Hegseth’s fascination with the Crusades can tell us about the war in Iran.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has a longstanding fascination with the Crusades. That’s right, the Crusades: the series of late 11th to 13th century medieval wars in which Europeans fought to control the Holy Land. He has tattoos that reference the Crusades, which actually came up during his confirmation hearing in 2025. And his 2020 book is titled American Crusade. The final chapter is titled “Make the Crusade Great Again.”

Hegseth paints the Crusades as a “defensive war” in which Christianity had to react or face being overrun by Islam. According to professor of medieval history........

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