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A passage from Winston S. Churchill’s ‘the River War’, 1899.
“How dreadful are the curses which Mohammedanism lays on its votaries! Besides the fanatical frenzy, which is as dangerous in a man as hydrophobia in a dog, there is this fearful fatalistic apathy.
The effects are apparent in many countries. Improvident habits, slovenly systems of agriculture, sluggish methods of commerce, and insecurity of property exist wherever the followers of the Prophet rule or live.
A degraded sensualism deprives this life of its grace and refinement; the next of its dignity and sanctity. The fact that in Mohammedan law every woman must belong to some man as his absolute property, either as a child, a wife, or a concubine, must delay the final extinction of slavery until the faith of Islam has ceased to be a great power among men.
Individual Moslems may show splendid qualities, but the influence of the religion paralyses the social development of those who follow it.
No stronger retrograde force exists in the world. Far from being moribund, Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytizing faith. It has already spread throughout Central Africa, raising fearless warriors at every step; and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science, the science against which it had vainly struggled, the civilization of modern Europe might fall, as fell the civilization of ancient Rome.”
This was written by the man who, 45 years later, saved us from Nazism. Any thoughts?
Prophet = prophesying the future. I don’t mean like Mystic Meg or anything, just an astute understanding of a situation and where it might lead.
Indeed an astute precognition by old Winnie and a commentary which holds credence today. I note with particular interest his reference to Christianity being sheltered in the strong arms of science, as fascinatingly enough, David Starkey most recently propounded
the theory that ‘Muhammadenism’ in its infancy in comparison to Christianity by some several hundred years , exhibits today, the barbaric practices of the dark ages as were embodied by the Christian Church at that time. Fascinating stuff..‘Muhammadenism’ certainly was not in it’s infancy, indeed christians virtually wiped out the muslim faith before the inquisition, some 800 years ago.
This was also “many summers ago”. What Churchill said was very relevant to today’s reality on the ground.
Try taking your own advice Guff..and know of what you comment..As a PROFESSIONAL HISTORIAN I was QUOTING from a text recently expounded by my eminent colleague David Starkey,on the evolution of Islam and I hardly need a lecture on the Crusades et al from the likes of you. Incidentally..that which I find fascinating..I may equally disagree with :twisted:
By the way Guff….NOBODY expects the Spanish Inquisition….to the comfy chair with you :twisted:
Winston Churchill was of the colonial era, so his attitude towards different cultures was obviously backward by today’s standards. Don’t forget that Churchill was responsible for using poison gas on the iraqis, so I doubt he placed much value on the lives of people in that part of the world.
His views were probably false at the time but they are definitely false now. For example:
1 You could hardly accuse Muslims of apathy.
2 Sluggish systems of commerce? Tell that to the Saudis or muslims in s.e. asia
3 Degraded sensualism? I see no truth in that at all
4 Women are the property of men in Islamic countries? Then how is it that the world’s biggest muslim nation used to have a female as head of state (as did Pakistan)?
5 Islam prevents social development? I don’t see how
6 A more retrograde force in the world is surely the force of the extreme-right who rely on discredited science and ideas that are anachronistic to the modern world
7 Modern Europe isn’t in any danger of becoming conquered by Islam. In fact when parts of Europe were conquered by muslims centuries ago, they actually enhanced Western civilization.So Churchill’s views should be taken in the context of the time he was writing in and the fact that he was a colonialist. They have absolutely no relevance to the modern world.
I agree to some extent. Pakistan and Indonesia might have had female leaders in the recent past but such a prospect looks remote now – not just because there aren’t any up and coming female candidates either.
The extreme right is a retrograde force too, but it is very small and unorganised. The extreme left is also a retrograde force, as are extreme environmentalists who believe plastic bags are killing the planet and other half-baked scientific quackery!
I’m not suggesting Churchill thought of himself as a prophet.
When I was looking up more on Churchill I came across his feelings about the use of poison gas, which was basically that it was no worse than shredding people with shrapnel from exploding artillery shells. He advocated the development of ‘knockout’ gases that would temporarily disable an enemy with no permanent effects. In modern warfare such a weapon would be much more humane than ‘daisy cutter’ and ‘MOAB’ bombs that can flatten a whole village or a training camp. But I suppose gas is seen as cheating, not quite cricket.‘Not quite cricket’……as a means to an end..warfare is entitled to be as bloody and as dirty as victory necessitates. Humane war? A contradiction in terms. Life has always been cheap..let’s not pretend there’s a NICE way of cutting it down. At the height of the I.R.A. activity in Britain, when people were wringing their hands at the perceived ‘atrocities’..a certain Spike Milligan pointed out that the I.R.A. having declared war..were no worse in their strategies than the marionette British armed forces and their puppeteers. Where warfare endeavours to grind the enemy into submission…it will always be ‘Not quite cricket’
I speak as a pacifist.
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