The First Crusaders’ Perception of Arabs–Muslims in the Example of the Author of “Gesta Francorum”

Abstract

The article examines the concept of the author of the chronicle “Gesta Francorum”, which describes the events of the first crusade, about the Arabs. The author of the article defined how Anonymous perceived Islam and how Christianity influenced his attitude towards Muslims. The study exposed the limited knowledge of the author of "Gesta Francorum" about the basics of Islam. The analysis revealed the low level of awareness of Anonymous about the difference between different peoples who professed Islam. Also, it was investigated towards which of them the author of "Gesta Francorum" had the most negative attitude. The author of the article determined Anonymous’s opinion on the military potential of the Arabs and the differences between the military tactics of the Muslim armies and the Crusaders. The Crusader's knowledge of the state and political system of the Middle East was clarified. Anonymous had some knowledge of political processes in the Middle East, but to describe the reality of the political life of Muslim states, he used Western terms, which in their content did not correspond to reality. The analysis revealed Anonymous's attitude to the rich, by the standards of medieval Western Europe, the standard of living in the Middle East. Moral characteristics that the author of "Gesta Francorum" gives to the Arabs were determined. Based on this information, the author of the article concluded that Anonymous perceived the Arabs through the prism of common in the Middle Ages ideas about Muslims, but he was able to notice other features that were not part of the established stereotype.

Keywords

• crusades
• islam
• christianity
• middle ages