The spread of Islam in theBalkans – II

Military and political relations
The first part of this article highlights the ways in which Islam was
introduced in the Balkans, with the trade relations being the primary
focus. In this part, other factors are highlighted, namely: military
and political relations with Muslim countries.
By 634, the Muslims, in their attempt to spread Islam to every
possible area, had started to attack the borders of the Byzantine
Empire, and made the first attempt to conquer Constantinople (now
Istanbul). Some years later, in 717-718, the Muslim army under the
commandof Maslamah surrounded Constantinople, however, they could not
conquer it. In this expedition, the Muslim army penetrated as far as
Adrianople (now Edirne) and Salonika, and this was known as the first
contact by the Muslim armies with the Balkan nations. They also built
a mosque near Gallata, known as the Arab Mosque. This ledsome Arabs
(Muslims) to settlein Constantinople and Salonika.
In the 9 th century, the Muslims were more direct in their intentions
towards the Balkan Peninsula. This was simple to understand because
they conquered Crete in 823, Sicily in 827, and some parts of the
Southern Italy as well, and the Balkan Peninsula was next in line.
During 840-841, the Muslims conquered Taranto, Italy, and undertook
incursions into the Balkan Peninsula, conquering Budva, Kotor, Rosi,
and Rijeka. They even surrounded Dubrovnik for fifteen years, but
without any success. This was the time when the Illyro-Albanians had
their firstcontacts with the Muslim armies. They kept trying to take
over the Balkan Peninsula until 1023 whenthey lost control of the
Southern Italy.
The traces of this new civilization are to be found everywhere. Nearby
the cathedral of Trogir, there is a statue of an Arab man wearing
turban, which is a sign of well established relationships. There also
are the tombs of two Arabs, which is evidence that they must have been
living there for some time.
On the other hand, the conquest of Spain by the Muslims opened a new
chapter in their relations with the Balkan nations. Some of the Slav
tribes, especially the Slovenians and Croats, had good relations with
the Muslim Spain. In the royal court of Haakimi I (791-822) there were
2000 guardsof Croatian origin. Such a large number of guards indicated
the extensive relations between them.
This variety of military relations was extended to the politics,
too.The Muslim countries had cordial relationship with their Balkan
counterparts. In 856, the Serb king, Mikhail III, sent his envoy to
the Caliph Al-Mutawakkil Ibn Ar-Rasheed of the Abbasid dynasty to
arrange a form of debate on religious matters.
In 922, moved by the Islamic teachings, the Bulgarian king sent an
envoy to Caliph Al-Muqtadir of the Abbasid dynasty to convey his
family's decision to embrace Islam.
In this point, well known are the contacts that Caliph Haroon
Ar-Rasheed had established with the European rulers. He had sent his
envoy to the Serb king, Carl the Great, in order to establish cordial
and reciprocal relations.
The Croat ruler, Prince Tomislav, had good relations with caliph
Abdur-Rahmaan III and even usedto exchange gifts. Abdur-Rahmaan III
had sent envoys to all the Slav kingdoms to discuss and charter their
future relations.
The Europeans, the Balkan nations included, kept continuous contacts
with the Muslims—the Fatimids (969-1171), the Ayyubids (1171-1250) and
the Mamluks (1250-1517)—because of various interests, trade being one
of them.
The Slavs were allies to the Muslims against the Roman and Byzantine
Empires. However, their relations with the Illyro-Albanians will
define the future military and political actors of theBalkan
Peninsula. At the beginning, those relations were cordial, but changed
rapidly.
Yet, there were various contacts between the Muslims and the
Illyro-Albanians. The fact that the Illyro-Albanians were ruled by
theforeigners—the Roman and Byzantine Empires, the Serbs, etc.—means
that they were almost never identified as an independent political
entity.
Missionaries and migrations
Maybe the most important factor that influenced the rapid spread of
Islam among the Illyro-Albanians was the work of missionaries and
migrations of different groups of people. There are indications that
travelers and theologian visited almost every part of the peninsula
centuries before the Ottomans appeared and played an important role in
preaching Islam. This was in some way assisted by the fact that the
Muslims controlled manyterritories around the Balkan Peninsula
(Southern Italy, some Greek islands, the Asia Minor, etc.), and by the
incursions of theMuslim armies as well.
Maybe the most important among the migrations was a group of Turkish
Muslims who settled in Southern Hungary (nearthe border with the
Byzantine Empire) and somewhere near theOhrid Lake (Macedonia) as well
(almost in the center of the peninsula). This was the time when the
first concentrated Muslim dwellings were seen in the peninsula.
The Russian Czar Theofil, while fighting in the Asia Minor, forced
many Muslims to migrate. They settled in the Balkan Peninsula in the
valley of the Vardar River. They came to be known the"Turks of
Vardar."
Yet, the presence of the Muslims in the Balkan Peninsula was so great
that the Christian kingdomscould no longer tolerate them. Thus, in the
13 th century, many crusades directed to the Middle East passed
through the peninsula and exterminated the Muslims living there. -
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