Further thought on Islamic emasculation...

The first Crusades were successful for the Western powers, but were not especially significant in the scope of the Islamic world of the day. The Islamic culture had established the largest empire the world had ever seen, though it was not centrally run, as the Roman, or the Greek, or the Persian, so in that sense, it was not a unified empire. The fact of brittle and separate Muslim fiefdoms was primary in the Western Crusaders success in taking Jerusalem.

The Crusaders took a critical city, to be sure. Jerusalem was one of the key centers of Muslim culture of the day, along with Baghdad, Mecca, Cordoba, but it was merely one city, merely one fiefdom. The rest of the Muslim world was aware of the atrocity in Jerusalem, but was largely unaffected, and life went on. I suppose a parallel could be drawn with the current occupation of Baghdad: significant, to be sure, but not especially affecting on a day to day basis for the average Muslim in Jakarta.

The Muslim empire was established by conquest in some parts, but by ideological spread combined with ossified imperial dynasties on others (the Byzantines, Sasanian Iranians, etc). In general (though certainly not universally) the Muslim empire spread by the willingness of populations to be joined to the philosophy or imperical master; it was not generally foisted upon people. By and large, the average peasant of the Muslim empire was perfectly content with Islamic rule, and was not necessarily chomping at the bit for release. It was a liberal empire in the truest sense: people were free to worship as they wished (though frequently taxed for being non-Muslims); trade was not just promoted, but was held in high regard (Muhammed was a trader); science was preeminent. The Muslim empire was atypical as compared to most early empires in that it was not founded upon military prowess alone. The Muslims laid seige to Constantinople long after the empire owned Cordoba. At this point in history, they were young, and not especially tough.

Because the Muslims were fractured, and weren't the greatest military power in the world, the Crusaders bit hard, and deeply into the Muslim world, and took Jerusalem. The Crusaders came after Al-Hakim, the sheikh of Jerusalem burned the Church of the Holy Sepulcher to the ground, without cause. The Muslims had no idea there was a Western Europe that was so pissed off (even though Al-Hakim's successor rebuilt the Church), and they were unprepared for an onslaught far greater than the Byzantines could muster. So the Crusaders slaughtered men women and children in the streets of Jerusalem, and held the city for over 100 years, until Sala Huddin.

The Crusades weren't as significant in its own time as they seem in modern world culture, and that is for a good reason... The greatest violation of the Islamic empire was to be struck by the Mongols from the East. The Mongols took the entire eastern Muslim empire, including Baghdad, and took Islam to the brink of extinction. That would have been the great catastrophe spoken of today and shouted from rooftops, were it not for one unexpected development: after conquering the Muslims, the Mongols converted to Islam. After the invasion, the Ottoman Turks established themselves as regional lords, and eventually the imperical power.

The Ottomans brought true military prowess to the Muslims, and that is the great and unified Muslim empire we think of today. Until the Ottomans, the Muslims were primarily statesman and scientists, now they were warriors too.

Why the history lesson? The emasculation of the Arab Muslims of today is far more significant when one realizes the scale of the tragedy. In the 13th century, Muslims were the most advanced, sophisticated, dominant population on the planet, today, they are mostly poor, mostly ignorant, mostly backwards. The Muslims of the 13th century planted the seeds of the European Rennaisance that would eventually lift the West so far above the Arabs and Turks.

What a loss to see their own culture and populace so devoid of influance and education.

I'll continue later, when I've got some time...

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