Blood and Faith: The Purging of Muslim Spain (55 page)
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Authors: Matthew Carr
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In these circumstances, the defense of tolerance and national identity can easily become a justification for self-righteous
in
tolerance and an authoritarian “tyranny of the majority” that stigmatizes minorities who are depicted as unwilling or unable to be tolerant. Already a number of European governments are moving beyond the incarceration and deportation of unwanted “economic migrants” and “bogus” asylum seekers and using integration tests as a justification for expelling supposedly incompatible immigrants. In France, as interior minister, Nicolas Sarkozy proposed to expel entire families where “a wife is kept hostage at home without learning French.” In Holland, migrants who fail the new integration tests or do not present themselves to have their progress monitored after six months can be fined. In Switzerland, the Swiss People’s Party (Schweizerische Volkspartie, or SVP) has called for the penal code to be changed so that all foreigners who commit crimes can be deported once they have finished their jail sentences. In March 2006, interior ministers of the six largest countries in the European Union considered a proposal that would require immigrants to learn the language of their adopted country and adapt to its social norms or risk expulsion.
in
tolerance and an authoritarian “tyranny of the majority” that stigmatizes minorities who are depicted as unwilling or unable to be tolerant. Already a number of European governments are moving beyond the incarceration and deportation of unwanted “economic migrants” and “bogus” asylum seekers and using integration tests as a justification for expelling supposedly incompatible immigrants. In France, as interior minister, Nicolas Sarkozy proposed to expel entire families where “a wife is kept hostage at home without learning French.” In Holland, migrants who fail the new integration tests or do not present themselves to have their progress monitored after six months can be fined. In Switzerland, the Swiss People’s Party (Schweizerische Volkspartie, or SVP) has called for the penal code to be changed so that all foreigners who commit crimes can be deported once they have finished their jail sentences. In March 2006, interior ministers of the six largest countries in the European Union considered a proposal that would require immigrants to learn the language of their adopted country and adapt to its social norms or risk expulsion.
In Norway, the right-wing Progress Party has proposed that immigrants whose children do not learn Norwegian should lose their social security and child benefits in order to ensure their future adherence to “Norwegian values.” In Spain, the regional government of Valencia drafted a new law obliging all immigrants to sign a social contract pledging “to respect the laws, the principles, and the customs of Spain and Valencia.” Though not specifically aimed at Muslims, these assimilationist tendencies—and the attack on multiculturalism that often accompanies them—have been given new impetus by the perceived threat of Muslim immigration to Europe’s “core” values.
Some commentators have argued that such measures may not be enough to preserve Europe’s heritage from the Islamic hordes. Both liberal and conservative commentators have proposed a halt to Muslim immigration in order to prevent Europe’s cultural Islamization. There are also those who argue that more drastic solutions may be required. The American literary critic Bruce Bawer has written that “European officials have a clear route out of this nightmare. They have armies. They have police. They have prisons. They’re in a position to deport planeloads of people every day. They could start rescuing Europe tomorrow.”
24
24
A Christian homosexual living in Scandinavia and a contributor to the
New Yorker
and other mainstream publications, Bawer is the author of a key Eurabian text,
While Europe Slept: How Radical Islam Is Destroying the West from Within
, which was controversially nominated for the 2007 National Book Critics Circle award. Once the province of the far right, Bawer’s “clear route” is moving closer to mainstream respectability. In 2006 the novelist Martin Amis told an interviewer, “There’s a definite urge—don’t you have it?—to say, ‘The Muslim community will have to suffer until it gets its house in order.’ What sort of suffering? Not letting them travel. Deportation—further down the road. Curtailing of freedoms. Strip-searching people who look like they’re from the Middle East or from Pakistan.... Discriminatory stuff, until it hurts the whole community and they start getting tough with their children.”
25
New Yorker
and other mainstream publications, Bawer is the author of a key Eurabian text,
While Europe Slept: How Radical Islam Is Destroying the West from Within
, which was controversially nominated for the 2007 National Book Critics Circle award. Once the province of the far right, Bawer’s “clear route” is moving closer to mainstream respectability. In 2006 the novelist Martin Amis told an interviewer, “There’s a definite urge—don’t you have it?—to say, ‘The Muslim community will have to suffer until it gets its house in order.’ What sort of suffering? Not letting them travel. Deportation—further down the road. Curtailing of freedoms. Strip-searching people who look like they’re from the Middle East or from Pakistan.... Discriminatory stuff, until it hurts the whole community and they start getting tough with their children.”
25
Amis later claimed that he was engaging in a “thought experiment” rather than a practical proposal, but neither he nor many of those who so glibly recommended deportation in recent years appear to be concerned about the human consequences—nor do they seem to be aware of their historical precedents. If the solution to Spain’s “Muslim problem” is a distant and barely remembered episode in European history, the Nazi solution to Europe’s “Jewish problem” provides a more recent example of where such thinking can lead. It is often forgotten that the Nazis originally saw the forced emigration and deportation of German Jewry as the solution. As the Swedish writer Sven Lindqvist has shown, the line between physical expulsion and extermination is often easily crossed.
26
26
In the aftermath of the Holocaust, “scientific” or “biological” racism and theories of racial supremacy were largely discredited—a process that was also hastened by decolonization and the rejection of race as a rationale for imperial domination. But bigotry and hatred can always find new channels of expression, new ways of appearing legitimate. Today, both far-right politicians and liberal defenders of tolerance who warn of the Islamic threat to Europe are more likely to talk of incompatible cultures and religions and civilizational clashes rather than race or biology, but such narratives often share the same function—and they are perfectly capable of producing equally dire consequences.
The Nobel Prize–winning economist Amartya Sen has warned of the dangerous tendency to establish “belligerent identities” based on supposedly antithetical civilizations and the potential for violence and demagoguery that such categories contain.
27
Sen rejects the notion of fixed divisions between cultures and civilizations and argues that human beings are the sum of their “plural” or “diverse” identities and affiliations that spread across civilizations and between them. In these dangerous and turbulent times, we need to hold on to this idea and find ways to put it into practice, both in Europe and beyond. For the spores of hatred and prejudice are latent in every society, and humanity can go backward as well as forward. Four hundred years later, the destruction of the Moriscos is an example of what can happen when a society succumbs to its worst instincts and its worst fears in an attempt to cast out its imaginary devils.
27
Sen rejects the notion of fixed divisions between cultures and civilizations and argues that human beings are the sum of their “plural” or “diverse” identities and affiliations that spread across civilizations and between them. In these dangerous and turbulent times, we need to hold on to this idea and find ways to put it into practice, both in Europe and beyond. For the spores of hatred and prejudice are latent in every society, and humanity can go backward as well as forward. Four hundred years later, the destruction of the Moriscos is an example of what can happen when a society succumbs to its worst instincts and its worst fears in an attempt to cast out its imaginary devils.
Notes
1
Danvila y Collado,
La expulsión
, p. 320.
Danvila y Collado,
La expulsión
, p. 320.
2
Janer,
Condición social
, p. 123.
Janer,
Condición social
, p. 123.
3
Menéndez Pelayo,
Historia de los heterodoxos españoles
, p. 340.
Menéndez Pelayo,
Historia de los heterodoxos españoles
, p. 340.
4
Fuller,
Decisive Battles
, vol. 1, p. 545.
Fuller,
Decisive Battles
, vol. 1, p. 545.
5
Bertrand and Petrie,
History of Spain
, p. 228.
Bertrand and Petrie,
History of Spain
, p. 228.
6
Claudio Sanchez-Albornoz, “España y el Islam,”
Revista de Occidente
7 (1929), p. 27, cited in López-Baralt,
Huellas del Islam
, p. 32.
Claudio Sanchez-Albornoz, “España y el Islam,”
Revista de Occidente
7 (1929), p. 27, cited in López-Baralt,
Huellas del Islam
, p. 32.
7
José Maria Aznar, “Seven Theses on Today’s Terrorism” (lecture, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, September 21, 2004), cited in Aidi, “Interference of al-Andalus,” pp. 67–87.
Prologue: “The End of Spain’s Calamities”José Maria Aznar, “Seven Theses on Today’s Terrorism” (lecture, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, September 21, 2004), cited in Aidi, “Interference of al-Andalus,” pp. 67–87.
1
Chronicle of 754, cited in Tolan,
Saracens
, p. 81.
Chronicle of 754, cited in Tolan,
Saracens
, p. 81.
2
Bulliet,
Case for Islamo-Christian Civilization
, p. 31. As Bulliet also observes, this contribution has often been ignored or overlooked in Europe, though it remains a source of pride to many Muslims.
Bulliet,
Case for Islamo-Christian Civilization
, p. 31. As Bulliet also observes, this contribution has often been ignored or overlooked in Europe, though it remains a source of pride to many Muslims.
3
Fernando de Pulgar,
Crónica de los Reyes Católicos por su secretatio Fernando de Pulgar
, cited in Harvey,
Islamic Spain
, pp. 270–71.
Fernando de Pulgar,
Crónica de los Reyes Católicos por su secretatio Fernando de Pulgar
, cited in Harvey,
Islamic Spain
, pp. 270–71.
4
“Morisco Appeal to the Ottoman Sultan,” trans. from Arabic by James T. Monroe, in Constable,
Medieval Iberia
, p. 365.
“Morisco Appeal to the Ottoman Sultan,” trans. from Arabic by James T. Monroe, in Constable,
Medieval Iberia
, p. 365.
5
Bernáldez,
Memorias del Reinado
, p. 232.
Bernáldez,
Memorias del Reinado
, p. 232.
6
Cited in Hillgarth,
Spanish Kingdoms
, vol. 2, p. 393.
Chapter 1. The Iberian ExceptionCited in Hillgarth,
Spanish Kingdoms
, vol. 2, p. 393.
1
Cited in Fletcher,
Moorish Spain
, p. 135.
Cited in Fletcher,
Moorish Spain
, p. 135.
2
Cirot was referring primarily to the romanticized Muslim heroes in Spanish “Moorish” literature of the late sixteenth century, but such romanticism was already in evidence long before this period, and it has continued to survive, not only in Spain. For discussions of Maurophilia and Cirot’s ideas, see Harvey,
Muslims in Spain
, pp. 198–201. Márquez Villanueva also considers Cirot’s work in
El problema morisco
.
Cirot was referring primarily to the romanticized Muslim heroes in Spanish “Moorish” literature of the late sixteenth century, but such romanticism was already in evidence long before this period, and it has continued to survive, not only in Spain. For discussions of Maurophilia and Cirot’s ideas, see Harvey,
Muslims in Spain
, pp. 198–201. Márquez Villanueva also considers Cirot’s work in
El problema morisco
.
3
These festivals are still a regular part of the summer neighborhood festivals in many Spanish villages, though their content has often been toned down in recent years, so that effigies of Muhammad are not generally burned or dunked in wells.
These festivals are still a regular part of the summer neighborhood festivals in many Spanish villages, though their content has often been toned down in recent years, so that effigies of Muhammad are not generally burned or dunked in wells.
4
Cited in Aziz al-Azmeh, “Mortal Enemies, Invisible Neighbours: Northerners in Andalusi Eyes,” in Khadra Jayyusi and Marín,
Legacy of Muslim Spain
, p. 268.
Cited in Aziz al-Azmeh, “Mortal Enemies, Invisible Neighbours: Northerners in Andalusi Eyes,” in Khadra Jayyusi and Marín,
Legacy of Muslim Spain
, p. 268.
5
See Richard Fletcher, “The Early Middle Ages,” in Carr,
Spain
, pp. 63–90.
See Richard Fletcher, “The Early Middle Ages,” in Carr,
Spain
, pp. 63–90.
6
Primera Crónica General de España
, ed. Ramón Menéndez Pidal (Madrid, 1955), p. 313, cited in Tolan,
Saracens
, p. 188.
Primera Crónica General de España
, ed. Ramón Menéndez Pidal (Madrid, 1955), p. 313, cited in Tolan,
Saracens
, p. 188.
7
The Treaty of Tudmir (713), trans. from Arabic by Constable,
Medieval Iberia
, p.37.
The Treaty of Tudmir (713), trans. from Arabic by Constable,
Medieval Iberia
, p.37.
8
Paulus Alvarus,
Indiculus luminosus
,
Corpus scriptorum muzarabicorum
35: 314–15, trans. Richard Southern,
Western Views of Islam in the Middle Ages
(Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1962), cited in Tolan,
Saracens
, p. 86.
Paulus Alvarus,
Indiculus luminosus
,
Corpus scriptorum muzarabicorum
35: 314–15, trans. Richard Southern,
Western Views of Islam in the Middle Ages
(Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1962), cited in Tolan,
Saracens
, p. 86.
9
Eulogius,
Memoriale sanctorum
,
Corpus scriptorum muzarabicorum
2.1.1: 397–98, trans. Edward Colbert,
The Martyrs of Córdoba, 850–859: A Study of the Sources
(Washington, DC: Catholic University of America, 1962), cited in Tolan,
Saracens
, p. 86.
Eulogius,
Memoriale sanctorum
,
Corpus scriptorum muzarabicorum
2.1.1: 397–98, trans. Edward Colbert,
The Martyrs of Córdoba, 850–859: A Study of the Sources
(Washington, DC: Catholic University of America, 1962), cited in Tolan,
Saracens
, p. 86.
10
Cited in Harvey,
Islamic Spain
, p. 66.
Cited in Harvey,
Islamic Spain
, p. 66.
11
Ibid., p. 125.
Ibid., p. 125.
12
Muslims, Christians, and Jews appear to have been exceptionally well-integrated in Teruel, and such coexistence was still evident in the sixteenth century. See Halavais,
Like Wheat to the Miller
.
Muslims, Christians, and Jews appear to have been exceptionally well-integrated in Teruel, and such coexistence was still evident in the sixteenth century. See Halavais,
Like Wheat to the Miller
.
13
Cited in Meyerson,
Muslims of Valencia
, p. 45.
Cited in Meyerson,
Muslims of Valencia
, p. 45.
14
From James T. Monroe,
Hispano-Arabic Poetry
(Berkeley: University of California Press, 1974), p. 320.
From James T. Monroe,
Hispano-Arabic Poetry
(Berkeley: University of California Press, 1974), p. 320.
15
“Viaje de León Rosmithal,” in García Mercadal,
Viajes de extranjeros
, vol. 1, p. 298.
Chapter 2. The Victors“Viaje de León Rosmithal,” in García Mercadal,
Viajes de extranjeros
, vol. 1, p. 298.
1
Moore,
Formation of a Persecuting Society
, p. 5.
Moore,
Formation of a Persecuting Society
, p. 5.
2
Cited in Nirenberg, “Mass Conversion and Genealogical Mentalities,” p. 10.
Cited in Nirenberg, “Mass Conversion and Genealogical Mentalities,” p. 10.
3
Ibid., p. 12.
Ibid., p. 12.
4
Ibid., p. 13.
Ibid., p. 13.
5
For an examination of the evolution of the idea of blood purity in the colonial era, see Martínez, “Black Blood of New Spain,” pp. 479–520. In late twentieth-century Guatemala, the anthropologist Diane Nelson still found descendants of Spanish colonists who defined themselves as “white and with no mixing of Indian blood.” See Diane M. Nelson, “Biopolitical Peace in Guatemala,” in Moore, Kosek, and Pandian,
Race, Nature
, pp. 122–46.
For an examination of the evolution of the idea of blood purity in the colonial era, see Martínez, “Black Blood of New Spain,” pp. 479–520. In late twentieth-century Guatemala, the anthropologist Diane Nelson still found descendants of Spanish colonists who defined themselves as “white and with no mixing of Indian blood.” See Diane M. Nelson, “Biopolitical Peace in Guatemala,” in Moore, Kosek, and Pandian,
Race, Nature
, pp. 122–46.
6
Pérez,
Spanish Inquisition
, p. 25.
Pérez,
Spanish Inquisition
, p. 25.
7
Roth,
Spanish Inquisition
, pp. 81–82.
Roth,
Spanish Inquisition
, pp. 81–82.
8
Charter of Expulsion of the Jews, trans. from Castilian by Edward Peters, in Constable,
Medieval Iberia
, pp. 353–54.
Charter of Expulsion of the Jews, trans. from Castilian by Edward Peters, in Constable,
Medieval Iberia
, pp. 353–54.
9
Bernáldez,
Memorias del Reinado
, p. 262. I have used the translation in Liss,
Isabel the Queen
, p. 273.
Bernáldez,
Memorias del Reinado
, p. 262. I have used the translation in Liss,
Isabel the Queen
, p. 273.
10
Letter from Ferdinand to Count of Aranda, March 31, 1492, cited in Kamen,
Spanish Inquisition
, p. 21.
Letter from Ferdinand to Count of Aranda, March 31, 1492, cited in Kamen,
Spanish Inquisition
, p. 21.
11
Letter from Christopher Columbus to the Catholic Monarchs (1493), trans. from Castilian by William Phillips, in Constable,
Medieval Iberia
, p. 373.
Chapter 3. The VanquishedLetter from Christopher Columbus to the Catholic Monarchs (1493), trans. from Castilian by William Phillips, in Constable,
Medieval Iberia
, p. 373.
1
al-Maqqari,
History of the Mohammedan Dynasties
, p. 392.
al-Maqqari,
History of the Mohammedan Dynasties
, p. 392.
2
Not surprisingly, given the distance of time and the scarcity of reliable demographic data regarding the number of immigrants from the Muslim world and the rate of conversion to Islam among Iberian Christians, these statistics are not universally accepted by scholars. For example, Glick’s estimate of an indigenous Iberian Muslim population of 5.6 million in 1100, in
Islamic and Christian Spain
, has been questioned by Harvey as too high, in
Islamic Spain
, pp. 7–9. Nevertheless, all historians agree on the dramatic fall in the Muslim population from 1100 onward.
Not surprisingly, given the distance of time and the scarcity of reliable demographic data regarding the number of immigrants from the Muslim world and the rate of conversion to Islam among Iberian Christians, these statistics are not universally accepted by scholars. For example, Glick’s estimate of an indigenous Iberian Muslim population of 5.6 million in 1100, in
Islamic and Christian Spain
, has been questioned by Harvey as too high, in
Islamic Spain
, pp. 7–9. Nevertheless, all historians agree on the dramatic fall in the Muslim population from 1100 onward.
3
In Boswell,
Royal Treasure
, p. 60.
In Boswell,
Royal Treasure
, p. 60.
4
From Abul Abbas Ahmad al-Wansharishi,
Kitab al-mi’yar al-mugrib
(Rabat: 1981), p. 141, trans. from the Arabic in Harvey,
Islamic Spain
, pp. 58–59.
From Abul Abbas Ahmad al-Wansharishi,
Kitab al-mi’yar al-mugrib
(Rabat: 1981), p. 141, trans. from the Arabic in Harvey,
Islamic Spain
, pp. 58–59.
5
Cited in Halavais,
Like Wheat to the Miller
, p. 17.
Cited in Halavais,
Like Wheat to the Miller
, p. 17.
6
Cervantes,
Don Quixote
, pp. 365–66.
Cervantes,
Don Quixote
, pp. 365–66.
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