Raymond Ibrahim’s new book, Defenders of the West: The Christian Heroes Who Stood Against Islam, chronicles the lives of eight great Crusaders who defended Christians against Islamic extermination, savagery, occupation, and slavery. These heroes demonstrated great courage on the battlefield and a fierce devotion to their Christian faith.
Ibrahim is a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center and the author of several books about Islam. Born and raised in the U.S. by Coptic Egyptian parents, he is an expert in Islamic history and doctrine. His most recent book spotlights Duke Godfrey of Bouillon of France; El Cid (Roderick Diaz) of Spain; King Richard the Lionheart of England; St. Ferdinand of Spain; St. Louis of France; John Hunyadi of Wallachia; Skanderbeg, the Albanian Braveheart; and Vlad III Dracula, the Lord Impaler of Romania. The valor of these Christian iron men who met toe-to-toe with Islamic warmongers defies belief.
Written in an engaging style using accessible language, these remarkable, factual incidents leave readers on the proverbial edge of their seats. Raymond Ibrahim conducted an impressive amount of research from first-hand sources, not only to furnish comprehensive biographies but also to present what was going on historically, politically, culturally, and socially, to give the reader a fuller understanding of what was at stake.
Ibrahim devotes particular attention to each protagonist’s upbringing to provide further insight into what shaped that man’s character. Defenders of the West brings to life the daring and dynamic exploits of kings and knights who have either been misrepresented in modern history books—through ignoring and even contradicting what primary sources (Muslim and Christian) have said about the times—or by eliminating these exploits from official narratives altogether.
Audiences may recognize the names El Cid, Richard the Lionheart, St. Louis, and Vlad the Impaler (who was not a vampire like the fictional Count Dracula created by Bram Stoker). However, in the last century, these individuals have been subjected to discrediting campaigns in films, books, and even protests (think St. Louis, Missouri). The rest have mostly slipped into oblivion due to a blind-eye treatment, thus making the case for why these eight giants richly deserve to be exhumed and reanimated from the dustbin of history.
What further sets the book apart is that it sets the record straight about the Crusades—widely maligned by certain interest groups and lobbies as being inspired by greed, xenophobia, racism, colonialism, and a penchant for violence, humiliation, and conquest. That false assertion actually describes the mission of the Jihadists. Using copious eyewitness testimonies, Ibrahim backs the thesis that the Crusades—which sought to restore lands that were Christian before Jihadists invaded and forcibly Islamized them—were a defensive response and a form of resistance against Islamic attacks against Christendom.
Defenders of the West also shows how Jihadist behavior has existed on a historic continuum beginning in ancient times. This is sure to open the eyes of those who view and even excuse the atrocities of the 1915 Turkish Genocide of indigenous Armenians, Assyrians, and Greeks as a singular event mired in the circumstances of the times. By allowing the primary sources to speak for themselves, the author gives readers the opportunity to compare Jihadists’ moral values to the Crusaders’ values so that they can draw their own conclusions.
Once read, these stirring, heartbreaking, and fantastic tales are not easily forgotten. Rather than elaborate on the incredible and often terrifying exploits, suffice it to say that these monarchs and military leaders learned from history and bitter experience that only by fighting fire with fire could they hope to establish peace and protect fellow Christians. That makes this book perfect for anyone who is fascinated by the power of knighthood and wishes to witness how far some Christians were willing to go to secure their rights to live and worship in freedom and dignity.
Ibrahim concludes by evaluating what is taking place now, including the mainstream media suppression of the global persecution of Christians. If we ignore his cautionary words, we do so at our own peril.
Today, powerful nations erroneously employ moral equivalence about Crusaders and Jihadists in the hope of placating Muslims, even as today’s targets of jihad are physically and spiritually devoured as peace offerings to their oppressors. A decline in morality, virtue, and discipline in the 21st century means that it is difficult to imagine the courage of these eight great heroes appearing again in our modern times.
Defenders of the West makes a great Christmas gift. You can find it here and here, and find the author at https://www.raymondibrahim.com.
Lucine Kasbarian is a journalist and editorial cartoonist.
I’ve heard it said that ‘the one thing we learn from history is that we don’t learn from history.”
Charles Martel should be at the top of the list.
Great book, I finished it yesterday..
One of the most effective ways to fight Islam is to sink their ships, like at Lepanto. The West generally has better ships than the Muslims.
As we know King Richard the Lionhearted fought the crusades to keep Islam from overrunning the UK and spreading Islam to the Europeans and the World
Using physical violence against the aggressive and hostile violent military forced of Islam was fitting in that time period of history described in the book Christian heroes who stood against Islam .
Furthermore in this twenty first century it’s very appropriate for the US Air Force to use the of bombing against the Taliban after September 11, 2001. I was also appropriate for France to air strikes against ISIS centers and cells in Syria after those ISIS jihadists in Paris. This is sending the violent and deadly jihadist enemy a message in the only language that they are able to understand, which by the use of a strong use of military might.
As Thomas Jefferson had , wisely , declared “With every barbarous people…force is law.”
Really, Christians are resposible for the deaths of millions more Jews, more so in modern history, ie the holocaust, than Islam. And really, Christianity, especially my Catholic Church, should be fighting the Apartheid Zionist Fire with Christian Fire. Jews are guilty of occupying,displacing, and ethnically cleansing Palestinian Catholic and other Palestinian Christian communities in Occupied Palestine, aka Zionist Israel, to this day. Jews are more of a concern and threat to the Christian presence in Occupied Palestine than Palestinian Muslims. Jews really are in a hard spot, not wanting to be seen criticizing Christian America or the Christian West as the existence of Apartheid Israel depends on their support. Just sayin’.
Nigerian Christians and others in the area are being kidnapped, sold into sex slavery and forced marriages, murdered, homes destroyed and burnt, and so on. Is there some outfit (other than the US military) that can arm them and teach them to form militias and defend themselves? They must not take new territory, but may offensively invade, destroy, and punish those destroying them by excursions into their territory. But overall, it must be defensive to protect their God-given human rights.
As we speak the Azerbaijani Turks are starving the Armenian population out of existence in Artsakh. A landlocked siege is in its 26th day.