More Africans and non-whites in Medieval Europe

Anyway guys what if the Crusaders managed to create local chapters or even local militant orders based on Levantine and Moorish Christians and converts.

One wonder what Crusaders would have done with Copts. I fear like the crusaders in Constantinoples ('HERETICS!').... or if, ASB way, they end up in Ethiopian lands....
 
I agree that modern racism arises entirely from the era of colonialism and imperialism, specifically with Blumenbach's racial classifications being used to justify the two ideologies, but the medieval Muslims weren't quite so race-blind either. As I recall, the Arab geographer ibn Khaldun specifically refuted ideas about the Curse of Ham being responsible for the dark skin of Sub-Saharan Africans and attributed the difference to environment instead (actually he had ideas about climate and Africans being over-cooked in the womb or something - hey, he was working with what he had).
 

Kaptin Kurk

Banned
I agree that modern racism arises entirely from the era of colonialism and imperialism, specifically with Blumenbach's racial classifications being used to justify the two ideologies, but the medieval Muslims weren't quite so race-blind either. As I recall, the Arab geographer ibn Khaldun specifically refuted ideas about the Curse of Ham being responsible for the dark skin of Sub-Saharan Africans and attributed the difference to environment instead (actually he had ideas about climate and Africans being over-cooked in the womb or something - hey, he was working with what he had).

As far as I know, Arabs have a problem with racism as far back as the 7th century at least, which is why the Sunnahs address it specifically.
 

iddt3

Donor
Erm, what? Muslim slaves went on to create the first modern armies, like the Mamluks and the Janissaries, and in Muslim dynastic states slaves could have the highest political offices in those states. Slavery is always brutal but the form that brutality takes is not the same in all cultures. The use of Africans as slaves by Muslims had no effect whatsoever on the decision of the Catholic Church and Spanish encomenderos who needed labor because they were working their indigenous laborers to death.
I'd like to point out in both cases those were white slaves, IIRC the primary use for blacks in the OE at least was as Harem eunuchs. Moreover since for a long time Muslims were a primary link in the European slave trade, saying they had nothing to do with it's evolution is probably incorrect.
 
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