In Damascus in February 1840; a Capuchin monk and his servant disappear without a trace. By the end of the day; rumors point at the local Jewish community; a tiny minority in the city. Within weeks; the rumors turn to accusations of ritual murder—the infamous “blood libel.†Torture; coerced confessions; manufactured evidence; and the fury of the crowds are enough to convict the accused Jews. By the time the rest of the world learns of the events in Damascus; the entire leadership of the Jewish community is awaiting execution. Blood Libel is a story of unexpected history. If the charges of ritual murder seem familiar—similar accusations have been heard in Europe for centuries and are heard in the Middle East today—nothing in Damascus happened as we; or contemporaries; might have anticipated. The accusers of the Jews were not the Muslim majority. The French consul; the representative of the nation that had given the world the Rights of Man and had been the first to grant Jews the full right of citizenship; was the chief prosecutor. The British consul; serving under the enlightened Lord Palmerston and the new Queen; aided the prosecution. The American consul supported the charges. The Sultan; famed for the excesses of his court and his arbitrary rule of the vast Ottoman empire; and the Austrians; who tightly restricted the rights of Jews in their own empire; defended the accused Jews. The venerable London Times printed reports that defied its liberal reputation; while conservative Austrian and French newspapers took the equally unexpected opposite stand. As news of the Damascus accusations spread; diplomacy and confused loyalties made for strange bedfellows. Misperceptions; mutual fears; and isolation fueled the passions in Damascus. When the affair and the implications for the perceptions of world Jewry became a cause célèbre in Europe and the Americas; the priorities of diplomacy intervened: a rescue mission forgot the real victims in Damascus; and the fabric of a society that had once stretched to tolerate minorities finally burst in an outrage of fears turned to fury. The legacies of that torn fabric are the divisions of the Middle East today and the continuing myths that feed and sustain the fervor of anti-Semitism.
#3313319 in Books 1985-05Ingredients: Example IngredientsOriginal language:EnglishPDF # 1 .93 x 6.33 x 9.32l; 1.25 #File Name: 0299095207283 pages
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Making sense of the Central African RepublicBy Alfred J. KwakA recent book review in The Economist held that publicity-wise; the term “Heart of Darkness†should go to the Central African Republic (CAR) instead of the Congo. Yes. This reader knows of few serious studies about CAR in English other than this great book. The CAR attracted; briefly; worldwide attention in 1977 when its then president Bokassa (r. 1966-79) crowned himself emperor. Today; the CAR is news because of an ongoing; cruel and bloody conflict between its Muslims and Christians. Is this the full explanation? The full extent of the carnage may never be known. What explains the current mayhem and religious hatred?(1) Memories of a long tradition of slavery across much of the African Sahel; particularly in Sudan and Chad; have poisoned relations between Muslims and non-Muslims; and internal north-south relations to the present day: Chad has miraculously remained one nation. But Sudan split in July 2011 into two disaster-prone; separate entities. In the CAR Muslims and non-Muslims appear to have co-existed peacefully from colonial times onwards and continued doing so since independence. For generations resident Muslim Sudanese merchants and traders bought and sold products in the CAR and worked in other capacities; often as citizens.(2) What upset this peaceful co-existence is due; again; to dynamics and events north in Sudan and Chad. Heavily armed; highly mobile; foreign; mostly Arab forces called “Seleka†recently invaded the CAR; grabbed control of its capital and installed a puppet head of state and cabinet. After months of chaos and lawlessness with impunity; CAR’s first Muslim president was forced by a conference of regional leaders gathered in Ndjaména; to step down. The CAR is currently the scene of revenge killings of Muslims. The victimization sadly appears to be indiscriminate; with long-established uninvolved Muslims often suffering the fate intended for the “Seleka†invaders who; retreating will not shun violence either.Dennis Cordell has written an exemplary history of the forces that controlled the territory called CAR before France colonized it in the late 19th century. He focused on the northern Sultanate of Dar al-Kuti and analyzed how it financed itself by trading in slaves; ivory and other goods obtained from further South; with political entities further North in today’s Chad and Sudan. The book also covers matters of security; diplomacy and taxation. His tightly argued book has 162 pp. of text in small print and another 119 pp. in annexes and footnotes underpinning what he unearthed through interviews in CAR; with archival records in the CAR; Chad; France and the UK. This is a brilliant history of a small 19th century Sultanate which has deeply impacted on Muslim-Christian relations in one of the least known countries in Africa. It is indispensible for anyone interested in understanding and explaining this sad nation's.plight.Professor Cordell has shed light on this blighted country’s dark past but did not live to see the worst of the ongoing mayhem. He passed away on 16 October 2013.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Great book!!By Douglas E. SaxonExcellent study of little known area and part of history. The research is thorough and brilliant. Great reading and a fascinating study.
