The Crusades Through Arab Eyes

The Byzantine Empire was the former eastern half of the Roman Empire that survived after the Western half collapsed in 476. Byzantine territories once included parts of eastern Europe, Asia Minor, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt, but some of these lands had been lost to Muslim conquest starting in the 600s. By 1071 the Seljuk Turks presented a serious threat to Byzantine stability when they crushed the Byzantine forces at the Battle of Manzikert, leading the Byzantine emperor to appeal to the West for support. That support, however, did not arrive for over 20 years, with the Crusaders often betraying their promises to restore lands to Byzantine hands.

The Byzantine Empire’s character was more Greek than the west (which was more heavily under Latin influence) and various Christian denominations outside of the Roman Catholic orthodoxy flourished. Arab historians understood this history and that the Byzantines viewed themselves as the successors to Rome, thus referencing them as the “Rūm.”

Caliphs were originally the political and spiritual successors to Islam’s Prophet Muhammad. Early caliphs exercised power across a unified Islamic caliphate, but as that empire fragmented—which it had by the time of the First Crusade—the caliphs lacked real authority and their titles were primarily symbolic and customary.

An emir is the Turkish title for a military commander. However, as The Crusades Through Arab Eyes indicates, they also possessed some governing authority, particularly over regional territories, acting as ruling aristocrats and even monarchs.

Jihad is an Arabic term that roughly translates to “struggle” or “striving.” Jihad can refer to private, spiritual striving by Islamic believers to perfect themselves in their faith and deeds, or it can refer to a military struggle against enemies of Islam. In The Crusades Through Arab Eyes, Maalouf recounts many incidents of Muslim leaders declaring jihad against the Franks in an attempt to unite Muslims in a concerted effort to repel the invaders.