I think that is a bit exaggerated. There were good and bad moments for the elites in various places. It is important, also, to recall that even at its peak the Caliphate was, like that of the Ottomans later, a slave society, with some of the glitter of the Ante Bellum South. What freedom there was for the subject peoples resulted from the benevolence of a particular Caliph.
I think much of the progress attributed to Muslim culture was a mixture of confusion of classical with later achievements and efforts to discredit Christian civilization. In Spain, for instance, the irrigation works long attributed by English writers to the Moors have now been determined by archeology to antedate the Muslim conquest. I'm not prepared to accept a society with no rights at all for the majority as "most civilized and advanced in recorded history." Choppy At 08:59 PM 1/2/03 -0600, John Hebert wrote: >I think it depends on the attitude of the Caliph in power at the time; >some were pro-science, others not. Humanity has a lot to thank Muslim >culture for; modern analytical medicine, algebra, architecture, etc. Not >all Caliphs were anti-science/anti-knowledge. At certain points in time, >the Muslim world was the most civilized and advanced in recorded history. >Sad that attitude is long gone.
