ABSTRACT
National memories of the crusades have been communicated in a variety of ways in the centuries since the campaigns themselves. A consideration of philatelic depictions of the crusades provides insight into both the different ways in which the crusades have been viewed and reinterpreted for modern usage, and the way in which a country has memorialised and communicated its involvement in the medieval crusades. To examine a national memory of the crusades as depicted in philately, a systematic analysis of a country’s issues was required, and for this purpose, France was selected. Prior to the privatisation of a country’s postal service, the philatelic issues can be said to be official government documents and thus convey a message to the national and international community about the nature of the issuing country. Thus, the military aspect of the crusades is depicted for the first time on a French stamp, but subtly.
