islamic-jihad-legacy-of-forced-conversion-imperialism-slavery

Islamic Slaveryenslaved, but quite the opposite. It was not a generous act of liberation and elevation of slaves by Muslimrulers; it was a compulsion for their own good fortune. Most of all, joining the Muslim army was not a freechoice for slaves, but a compulsion. And every slave drafted into the army paved the way for the destructionand brutalization of the lives of scores of innocent non-Muslims, normally their coreligionists of theyesteryear.After suffering reverses in the battle of Tours (France) in 732, Islamic conquests became somewhatsubdued. The Jihadi spirit of the Muslim army was probably dwindling. With vast territories conquered andhuge wealth accumulated, the Arab and Persian soldiers had probably lost their zest for engaging in furtherbloodletting wars, which risked their lives. This time, the North African black and Berber slaves formed thebulk of the Muslim army that continued Jihadi expeditions in Europe. On the eastern borders of the Islamdom,Muslim rulers found another people, the Turks, with an unceasing zeal for wars and bloodbath. The Abbasidcaliphs, especially Caliph al-Mutasim (833–42), started drafting the Turks in the army in large numbers,replacing the lackadaisical Arabs and Persians. Most of these Turks were enslaved in wars. They were alsoimported at young age as Dewshirme-style tributes and trained for serving in the army. This trend continuedunder subsequent caliphs, making Turks the major force in the army; the supremacy of the Arabs and Persiansin the military was dismantled.Some of these powerful Turk commanders later revolted against the caliphs and declared theirindependence. The first independent Turk dynasty was established in Egypt in 868. On the eastern front ofIslamdom, there arose a Turk slave ruler, named Alptigin—a purchased slave of Persian (Samanid dynasty)King Ahmad bin Ismail (d. 907) of Transoxiana, Khurasan and Bukhara. For his military excellence, Alptiginwas appointed in the charge of 500 villages and about 2000 slaves by the Samanid governor Abdul Malik(954–61). Alptigin later became an independent chief in Ghazni. He purchased another Turkish slave, namedSubuktigin, who, after Alptigin’s death, prevailed in acquiring power. Subuktigin ‘made frequent raids intoHind in the prosecution of holy wars,’ wrote al-Utbi. However, it was the son of Subuktigin, Sultan MahmudGhazni, who launched devastating holy wars against the infidels of India. About one-and-half centuries later,another band of slave sultans, the Afghan Ghaurivids, launched the final blow to India’s sovereignty,establishing the Muslim sultanate in Delhi. Qutbuddin Aibak, Sultan Ghauri’s Turkish slave turned militarycommander, became the first sultan of Delhi. The Delhi sultans used to maintain an army, consisting mainlyof slaves of foreign origin during the early period. Slaves from various foreign nationalities—Turks, Persians,Seljuqs, Oghus (Iraqi Turkmen), Afghans and Khiljis—were purchased in large number and drafted into theGhaznivid and Ghaurid army. Black slaves, purchased from Abyssinia, became the dominant force in thearmy of Sultana Raziyah (r. 1236–40), the daughter of Sultan Iltutmish.When the Khilji dynasty (1290–1320), the first non-slave rulers in India, came to power—theIndians, enslaved and forcibly converted to Islam, started appearing in the army, much to the annoyance oforthodox Muslims, who detested the inclusion of the lowly Indians into the armed forces. But the Mongolshad been attacking India’s northwest frontier at this time. The Sultan needed a powerful army, whichnecessitated the inclusion of slave Muslims of Indian origin. Moreover, the Khiljis had captured power byousting the Turks, who had been raising constant revolts. Hence, the Khiljis could not employ the Turksheavily in the army because of the loyalty issue. Later on, Sultan Firoz Tughlaq (r. 1351–88), sensing animpending invasion by the Islamized Mongols (which, indeed, came in 1398 with Timur’s barbaric assaults),needed to assemble a large army. As a result, the Hindus were allowed to be drafted into the Muslim army forthe first time in India. Similar Muslim opposition against the employment of the conquered infidels turnedMuslims into the army also existed elsewhere. In Egypt, the native Coptic Christians, who converted to Islam,were not included into the army for a long time.Role of Indian soldiers: In the army, the Indian soldiers (mostly converted slaves), known as paiks,were normally engaged in lower ranks. They belonged to the infantry. They were drawn from slaves capturedin expeditions or obtained as tributes; some Hindus also joined the army at later stages to secure a livelihood.232