Reddit reviews God's Crucible: Islam and the Making of Europe, 570-1215

Aha! but Zoroastrianism was far from the de facto religion of the Middle East. The Persian Empire was far from Persian in its demographics. That's why many modern Historians have begun to call it either the Iranian Empire or name the empire by its current Dynasty (Sassanid in Khosrow's case).

I bring this up because Zoroastrianism wasn't proselytized. Only a true-blooded Persian could be Zoroastrian. While converts were more or less accepted they were treated as an in-between class. Large groups of non-Persian Iranians practiced Christianity and Judaism. In fact, the Nestorian Church (an "Orthodox heresy") was based in Iran!

CK2 misses this when it allows the conversion of provinces to Zoroastrianism when the culture is not Persian. A big nono in my opinion!

But unlike Islam, Zoroastrians didn't tax non-Zoroastrians any more than normal (re. the Jizya tax).


If we're in the realm of alternate histories, had Khosrow II not squandered his grandfather's army like he did the Muslims would not have been able to expand like they did. Only a decade before the Muslim conquests began Khosrow II had, for the first time, truly won against the Graeco-Romans and taken not only the oft-traded Armenia, but most of Anatolia, all of Syira and the Levant, and even Egypt.

A counter-offensive by the Romans had devastated Khosrow's I masterpiece army and Khosrow II wouldn't surrender. The protracted war of attrition that followed put the Persian Empire is such a downward spiral that Khosrow II is often considered the last of the non-Muslim kings of Persia. Those that followed ruled briefly and were assassinated more often than not. Rome itself had very little defenses left in their regained holdings. (Borders went back to normal after the Perso-Roman war ended.)

Sidenote The story goes that during the peace negotiations between Emperor Heraclius (who REALLY deserves a story on his own, such a badass) and the General-King Shahrbahz (who REALLY deserves a story on his own, such a badass)...anyway, during the peace negotiations between the badasses they got a letter from some nobody self-proclaimed prophet from Mecca insisting they convert to some new faith. (Hee hee)

Had these wars gone differently, Islam would not have spread to dramatically, if at all, throughout Africa or Asias minor and major. Now THAT is some alternate history. :)

I made a thread a while back saying that paradox should make a game based on all this good stuff. At the very least they should make it a bookmark in EU: Rome 2 if i ever comes out. I would be SO happy.

Do you want to know more?

I humbly suggest "God's Crucible: Islam and the making of Europe, 570-1215" I own it and I believe it does a good job explaining Dar al-Islam.

>by David Levering Lewis
>
>God's Crucible: Islam and the Making of Europe, 570-1215
>
>https://www.amazon.com/Gods-Crucible-Making-Europe-570-1215/dp/0393333566

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