Introduction

The nature of Islamic history

From classical times onwards, history has been used not only to entertain but also to teach important moral, religious and political truths. Thucydides, for example, was constantly drawn away from events to some lesson that lurks behind them, to an unchanging and eternal truth. Islamic historical writing is unashamedly didactic. It teaches lessons through recurring patterns of events. It is a God-centred model of history and His will is done through chosen élite individuals. Medieval Muslims wrote exemplary history with the twin aims of edification and entertainment.

In previous generations, scholars were concerned to examine how ‘reliable’ medieval Muslim sources might be, in order to establish ‘verifiable facts’. This is, of course, a valid point of view. More recently, however, the importance of the rhetorical nature of Islamic historiography has received greater prominence. Hayden White spoke of a poetics of historical writing, and Waldmann and Meisami blazed a trail in this respect in the field of medieval Persian historical writing. But there is much more to be said on this matter, especially in connection with Arabic historiography, and the medieval Arabic and Persian narratives about Manzikert present an ideal opportunity to shed at least some light on their considerable literary value.