In September, 1219, as the armies of the Fifth Crusade besieged the Egyptian city of Damietta, Francis of Assisi went to Egypt to preach to Sultan al-Malik al-Kamil. Although we in fact know very little about this event, this has not prevented artists and writers from the thirteenth century to the twentieth, unencumbered by mere facts, from portraying Francis alternatively as a new apostle preaching to the infidels, a scholastic theologian proving the truth of Christianity, a champion of the crusading ideal, a naive and quixotic wanderer, a crazed religious fanatic, or a medieval Gandhi preaching peace, love, and understanding. Al-Kamil, on the other hand, is variously presented as an enlightened pagan monarch hungry for evangelical teaching, a cruel oriental despot, or a worldly libertine. Saint Francis and the Sultan takes a detailed look at these richly varied artistic responses to this brief but highly symbolic meeting. Throwing into relief the changing fears and hopes that Muslim-Christian encounters have inspired in European artists and writers in the centuries since, it gives a uniquely broad but precise vision of the evolution of Western attitudes towards Islam and the Arab world over the last eight hundred years.

About the Author
John V. Tolan was educated at Yale and Chicago. He has taught at universities in North America and Europe and is currently Professor of Medieval History at the University of Nantes. He has published widely in both French and English, including most recently Saracens: Islam in the Medieval European Imagination (2002).

Reviews
Fascinating... This is a fabulous book: literally, because it deals with so many fables, but also in the more complimentary sense of the word, because it is well-written, even-handed and, from cover to cover, enchanting a riveting account of how later generations used and abused a curious historical moment Wonderful stuff. * Jonathan Wright, The Catholic Herald *
Texts and iconography have now been thoroughly researched and painstakingly evaluated by John Tolan in this elegant book. * Ahmad Gunny, Journal of Islamic Studies *
A true and fine work of history * Patrick Bucheron, Le Monde *
Tolan's meticulously researched and beautifully written study offers a wonderfully sensitive and imaginative account... Extraordinarily rich in historical detail. * David Salter, Cahiers Elisabethains. *


Awards
Winner of Prix Diane Potier-Boes from the Academie Francaise.



Book Information
ISBN 9780199239726
Author John V. Tolan
Format Hardback
Page Count 400
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 840g
Dimensions(mm) 242mm * 162mm * 26mm