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The Friar and the Sultan: Francis of Assisi’s Mission to Egypt

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2008

John Tolan
John Tolan*
Affiliation:
Université de Nantes, B.P. 81227, 44300 Nantes, France
*
Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

In September, 1219, Francis of Assisi went to Egypt to preach to Sultan al-Malik al-Kâmil. Although we in fact know very little about this event, writers from the 13th century to the 20th have portrayed 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. This study of the varying depictions of this lapidary encounter throws into relief the changing fears and hopes that Muslim–Christian encounters have inspired in European writers over eight centuries.

Type
Focus: al-Andalus – the Three Cultures
Information
European Review , Volume 16 , Issue 1 , February 2008 , pp. 115 - 126
Copyright
Copyright © Academia Europaea 2008

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References

1. J. Tolan (2007) Le Saint chez le Sultan: la rencontre de François d’Assise et de l’islam. Huit siècles d’interprétations (Paris: Seuil); J. Tolan (2008) St. Francis and the Sultan: An Encounter Seen Through Eight Centuries of Texts and Images (Oxford: Oxford University Press); Italian translation forthcoming (Rome: Laterza, 2008).Google Scholar
2.Quotations from Thomas of Celano, The Life of Saint Francis, in Armstrong, R., Hellmann, J. and Short, W. (eds) (1999) Francis of Assisi: Early Documents, 1: The Saint (New York & London: New City Press), pp. 229–231.Google Scholar
3. Translations from in R. Armstrong, J. Hellmann and W. Short (eds) (2000) Francis of Assisi: Early Documents, 2: The Founder (New York & London: New City Press), pp. 602–604.Google Scholar
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5.Ratzinger, Cardinal J. (2002) ‘Lo splendore della pace di Francesco’. 30 Giorni, 20(1).Google Scholar
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