The Crusades Through Arab Eyes
Encyclopedia
The Crusades Through Arab Eyes is a French-language historical essay by Lebanese author Amin Maalouf
.
As the name suggests, the book is a narrative retelling of primary sources drawn from various Arab chronicles that seeks to provide an Arab perspective on the Crusades
, and especially about the Crusaders – the Franks (Franj), as they called them – what are considered cruel, savage, ignorant and culturally backward.
From the first invasion, in eleventh century, until the general collapse of the Crusades, in the thirteenth century, the book constructs a narrative that is the reverse of that current in the western world, describing the main facts bellicose, and displaying situations of a quaint historic setting where Christians are viewed as "barbarians", unaware of the most elementary rules of honor, dignity and social ethics.
Amin Maalouf
Amin Maalouf , born 25 February 1949 in Beirut, is a Lebanese-born French author. Although his native language is Arabic, he writes in French, and his works have been translated into many languages. He received the Prix Goncourt in 1993 for his novel The Rock of Tanios...
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As the name suggests, the book is a narrative retelling of primary sources drawn from various Arab chronicles that seeks to provide an Arab perspective on the Crusades
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
, and especially about the Crusaders – the Franks (Franj), as they called them – what are considered cruel, savage, ignorant and culturally backward.
From the first invasion, in eleventh century, until the general collapse of the Crusades, in the thirteenth century, the book constructs a narrative that is the reverse of that current in the western world, describing the main facts bellicose, and displaying situations of a quaint historic setting where Christians are viewed as "barbarians", unaware of the most elementary rules of honor, dignity and social ethics.