#1 Since tha article mentions the Almohads and how they forced Jews to choose between conversion or exile (notice that unlike the order of expulsion by the Catholic Kings in 1492 this got no publicity by our intelligentsia) let me recall the events preceding the battle of Navas de Tolosa between Spanish Christains and Muslim forces (both Almohades and Muslims of Spain).
This was a battle the Chritins could not afford to lose after the disaster of Alarcos, thse was a battle where the Christians expected to be heavily outnumbered and this was a battle where due to the losses at Alarcos they had a crirtical shortage of trained men and had been forced to swell their ranks with communal militias of dubious value. And still they dismissed a large contingent (it is believed they could have been 30,000) of Northern Europpean crusaders (mostly French), because of their nasty behaviour agsint Jews. More importanly these were not militia quality but trained men, an are where the Christains were critically short. While the motivation of the Christian kings was probably more related to feudal honor and duties (ie protecting vassals and subjects) that by love of the Jews it is in contrast with treatment of Jews by the almohads, almoravids (preceding wave of jihadis) and the supposedly tolerant and enlightened first invaders (eg the pogrom at Granada in 1055)
Aftermath: Christians were outnumbered 70,000 to 125,000 ie five to nine. Notice that the the presence of the Crusaders would have brought the Christians to near parity. Like at Alarcos, Muslims set a screen of light infantry who dispersed in front of initial Chrisian attak only to close at the their backs, once these had engaged the main body maa but this time Christains had a reserve. The first reserve was repulsed but then the second reserve with the Kings and the best troops pierced through the light infantry and joined with the main body just in time as the communal militias were starting to disintegrate. At this point the battle turned into a slaughter of Muslim troops (90,000 dead ie 75% losses). So even if the outcome was a decisive victory for the Christians (the Muslims would never be able to mount another credible threat of invasion against the Christian kingdoms) it was won by a hairbreadth and this highlights still more the courage and sense of honor of the Castillan King deciding to protect his Jewish subjects against the troublesome Crusaders. |