How were the Crusades between the Christians and Muslims different from the current conflict between the Jews and Arabs?

Answer 1

Answer 1

The crusades were theft of land for religious reasons. The Zionist Organization began its campaign after being promised a sovereign nation by the Arab Club then not receiving their payment.

Answer 2

There are a number of major differences between the Crusades and the Establishment of the State of Israel. There are three major distinctions and numerous minor ones.

Religion vs. Ethnicity:

The Crusades was a religious movement, organized by leading religious figures in Europe as a multinational Christian endeavor. Franks, Germans, Italians, and Slavs all fought in the Crusades at the urging of the Popes and the Orthodox Patriarchs. Their goal, similarly, was also religious: to evict to Muslims from the Holy Land. The establishment of Christian Kingdoms was merely a by-product of the success (from a European perspective) of the First Crusade and these states were integrally linked to Europe and European dictates.

The Zionist and Arab Nationalist movements were nation-building exercises. They were both lead primarily by secular individuals who saw religion as an identifier and dissociated themselves from religious ritual and belief. Term "Jewish State" was (and is still) viewed by Jews in the same way that Germans see the term "German State" as in the idea that it is a state with predominantly German citizens and German folk history. The Arab Nationalist movement similarly counted being Muslim as part of being an Arab, but the Arab Nationalist movement never endorsed the public application of Islamic Law. Both groups were interested in building independent, viable nations and to varying degrees, they have succeeded.

Rallying Cry vs. Primary Objective:

The Crusade to Jerusalem was not the primary objective of the War. If it had been, the Crusades would have begun centuries earlier when Caliph Omar conquered Jerusalem and removed it from Christendom. The reason that the Crusades began was that the Byzantine Empire was being threatened and Constantinople (its capital) was being threatened by Turkish (Muslim) armies. As the Patriarchs and Leadership in Constantinople needed additional soldiers to defend their eastern borders, they requested assistance from the Pope. The Pope, in order to sell such an operation to Franks, Germans, Italians, and others who could care less about Byzantine problems was to stir up religious fervor and declare a Holy War. The primary objective was the stability of the Byzantine Empire, but the rallying cry was to free Jerusalem.

The Zionist and Arab Nationalist movements actually want, as a primary condition, to control certain pieces of land. They have no secondary objectives other than to use that land for their own people to build a country and a society. The creation of Jewish and Arab States is the primary intent of the Zionists and Arab Nationalists.

Conquer vs. Return:

In the Crusades, Christians with no ancestral or historical connection to the Holy Land arrived to conquer and subdue it. As mentioned above, this was a Holy War and an intent to "defend the faith". As a result, Christians slaughtered Muslims and Jews when they took over cities and refused to give quarter to any who opposed them. This is similar to the way that the Mongols conquered the Middle East a few centuries later. Similar to other acts of conquest, the conquerors still remember where they come from and intend, one day to return home, an act that was eventually performed by many or their children or grandchildren.

The Jews do have an ancestral connection to the Land of Israel and the Arabs do have an ancestral connection to the Levant region. As a result, both groups want to live in this region. For the Jews, this required (for the most part), a physical migration. For the Arabs (for the most part) were already living in the area. Jews did not intend to remove or subjugate the native Arab population. Many Zionists wrote that they intended to work the land with the Felahin (the Palestinian farmers) and did not wish to exile them, kill them, or otherwise displace them. The Arabs as a political unit, however, did not wish to cede any land to a Jewish political project and therefore any attempt for the Jews to do such a thing was met with violence and antagonism. Palestinians who fled the creation of Israel, similarly wish to return to their native land and not necessarily to conquer it or to exile the Jewish population. (It is important to note that there are certainly views on both sides at this point to marginalize or exterminate the other group, but that is not the main thrust of either side's vision.)