In the Shadow of the Sword: The Birth of Islam and the Rise of the Global Arab EmpireThe acclaimed author of Rubicon and other superb works of popular history now produces a thrillingly panoramic (and incredibly timely) account of the rise of Islam. No less significant than the collapse of the Roman Republic or the Persian invasion of Greece, the evolution of the Arab empire is one of the supreme narratives of ancient history, a story dazzlingly rich in drama, character, and achievement. Just like the Romans, the Arabs came from nowhere to carve out a stupefyingly vast dominion—except that they achieved their conquests not over the course of centuries as the Romans did but in a matter of decades. Just like the Greeks during the Persian wars, they overcame seemingly insuperable odds to emerge triumphant against the greatest empire of the day—not by standing on the defensive, however, but by hurling themselves against all who lay in their path. |
Contents
JAHILIYYA | |
NEW ROME | |
THE CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM | |
COUNTDOWN TO APOCALYPSE | |
HIJRA | |
7 | |
Timeline | |
Dramatis Personae | |
Glossary | |
Notes | |
Bibliography | |
Index | |
Other editions - View all
In the Shadow of the Sword: The Birth of Islam and the Rise of the Global ... Tom Holland No preview available - 2013 |
In the Shadow of the Sword: The Battle for Global Empire and the End of the ... Tom Holland No preview available - 2012 |
In the Shadow of the Sword: The Birth of Islam and the Rise of the Global ... Tom Holland No preview available - 2013 |
Common terms and phrases
Abd al-Malik Abraham Alexandria amid ancient Antioch appeared Arab Arabia army authentic barbarians believed bishop Caesar Caliphate capital century certainly Christ Christian Church city’s claim conquest Constantine Constantinople course Ctesiphon death decades defeat demons desert divine Early Islamic East Edessa emperor entire faith foederati frontier Ghassanids God’s Greek hadiths heaven Hephthalites Heraclius Himyar historians History Holy Land House of Sasan Hoyland Ibid Ibn al-Zubayr Ibn Hisham imperial increasingly Iranshahr Iraq Islam Jerusalem Jesus Jewish Jews Justinian Ka’ba Kavad Kharijites Khusrow king Kufa Lakhmids late antiquity Mazdak Mecca Medina Mesopotamia Monophysite Moses mowbeds Mu’awiya Muhajirun Muhammad Mushrikun Muslim scholars Ohrmazd origins pagan Palestine Parthian perhaps Peroz Persian plague precisely Procopius Prophet quoted Qur’an Quraysh rabbis reign religion revelations rival Roman Empire Rome Rome’s Samaritans Saracens Sasanian seemed served Shahanshah stood stylite Syria Temple Mount Torah tradition trans tribes truth Umar Umayyads victory warriors Zoroastrian