(May 1, 2016 at 6:58 pm)Minimalist Wrote: Early islamic conquests...and Spencer and others doubt exactly how "islamic" they were...generally did not result in widespread persecution. So throughout Egypt, Syria, Persia and into Anatolia ( all heavily urbanized areas ) there was precious little of the "convert or die" routine which is popular with the press.
Well known fact. Muslims were generally less exclusive than christians. Holds true for the muslim realms of Iberic peninsula as well as other regions. Even the Ottoman empire saw christians and jews in positions of power. In fact, they were the driving force behind preserving and gaining knowledge. We wouldn't even know about the importance of hygine, if it wasn't for the cursades and christians mingling with muslims. Let's face it, they were in the tradition of the classical age whereas the West was entirely barbarian. Rome managed to decline to a ruined city of 20.000 during the Middle Ages, since the idiots weren't even able to preserve the aqueducts.