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Writing in 1991, the late French theologian and philosopher Jacques Ellul observed, "In a major encyclopedia, one reads phrases such as: 'Islam expanded in the eighth or ninth centuries'; 'This or that country passed into Muslim hands'. But care is taken not to say how Islam expanded. Regarding this expansion, little is said about jihad. And yet it all happened through war!"

The Legacy of Jihad provides a comprehensive, meticulously documented corrective to the genre of ahistorical assessments decried by Ellul. This unique, extensive compilation includes Muslim theological and juridical texts, eyewitness historical accounts by both Muslim and non-Muslim chroniclers, and essays by preeminent scholars analyzing jihad war and the ruling conditions imposed upon the non-Muslim peoples conquered by jihad campaigns. The Legacy of Jihad reveals how, for well over a millennium, across three continents?Asia, Africa, and Europe?non-Muslims who were vanquished by jihad wars, became forced tributaries (called dhimmi in Arabic), in lieu of being slain. Under the dhimmi religious caste system, non-Muslims were subjected to legal and financial oppression, as well as social isolation. Extensive primary and secondary source materials, many translated here for the first time into English, are presented, making clear that jihad conquests were brutal, imperialist advances, which spurred waves of Muslims to expropriate a vast expanse of lands and subdue millions of indigenous peoples. Finally, the book examines how jihad war, as a permanent and uniquely Islamic institution, ultimately regulates the relations of Muslims with non-Muslims to this day. Scholars, educators, and interested lay readers will find this collection an invaluable resource.

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