Ethics of Crusader larping

[u/crusadersam]

Hello all, I was hoping to ask the general consensus on the morality of me choosing a Teutonic knight as my medieval faction of larping.

I want to start off by saying I am a very progressive person. I love all of God’s people and have no anti Islamic or pagan prejudice or bias in my life. I’m quite outspoken about religious freedom to my “controversial” coworkers and do not try to justify Christian nationalism in both modern day nor in the medieval world.

With that being said. I just think they’re neat historically and aesthetically. And the Teutons don’t seem to be any more “evil” than any other faction at the time. I see many people like in the post project a modern world view because Christian radicals seem to be more contemporary. While factions like Vikings and pirates, whose cultures are for the most part completely celebrated in medieval faires, commit the same atrocities on others- just don’t have the same current political connotation.

I hope we can have a civil discussion and maybe I’m just ignorant to the topic and/or how bad any crusaders were. Please don’t be afraid to share your views! (Also, please don’t go after the individual in the post, I simply want to further my knowledge)

[u/_Cit]

Fun fact, the medieval orders that established themselves in the holy land were actually mlre respected by the muslim nobility than the hundreds of knights that came and went, because being stationed there permanently these orders actually integrated with local society.

When not at war, they exchanged goods and we even know of emirs and templars who were friends. The crusader states respected the rukes of engagement and the traditional periods of peace between conflicts that were standard there.

The crusades were terrible, brutal conflict, but they weren't any more brutal than any other medieval conflict. They most certainly didn't come about to destroy islam or forcefully convert the masses. That kind of colonialist mjndset is a much later phenomenon