Description

Book Synopsis
Slavery in the Islamic world has a long, rich and controversial history. Unlike the notorious and shorter-lived Atlantic slave trade, its story is much less known. In the earliest days of Islam, Arab Muslims enslaved men, women and children as the spoils of war. Later, and for many centuries, young boys were imported to imperial Islamic courts in enormous numbers. Some were castrated to serve as eunuch guardians of sacred spaces, from the imperial harem of Istanbul to the Prophet's Mosque in Medina. Others were harvested' by the Ottomans to serve as Janissaries, the sultan's elite infantry unit. Some even rose to the highest levels of political and military command, making a mockery of their slave status. The leading concubines became powerful figures in their own right. In the ninth-century Golden Age of Baghdad, the most beautiful and accomplished courtesans were among the richest, most celebrated figures of their day. In the twentieth century, more than a thousand years later, the

Captives and Companions

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    A Hardback by Justin Marozzi

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      Book details

      Publisher Penguin Random House Group
      Imprint Penguin Books Ltd
      Published 7 March 2025
      ISBN-13 9780241522158
      978-0241522158
      ISBN-10 0241522153
      Also in:
      Non Fiction Politics, Philosophy & Society Migration, immigration and emigration

      Description

      Book Synopsis
      Slavery in the Islamic world has a long, rich and controversial history. Unlike the notorious and shorter-lived Atlantic slave trade, its story is much less known. In the earliest days of Islam, Arab Muslims enslaved men, women and children as the spoils of war. Later, and for many centuries, young boys were imported to imperial Islamic courts in enormous numbers. Some were castrated to serve as eunuch guardians of sacred spaces, from the imperial harem of Istanbul to the Prophet's Mosque in Medina. Others were harvested' by the Ottomans to serve as Janissaries, the sultan's elite infantry unit. Some even rose to the highest levels of political and military command, making a mockery of their slave status. The leading concubines became powerful figures in their own right. In the ninth-century Golden Age of Baghdad, the most beautiful and accomplished courtesans were among the richest, most celebrated figures of their day. In the twentieth century, more than a thousand years later, the

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