Watch The Western Story Lecture #5: The Rise of Islam and its Wars with Europe

The current tensions between Muslims and the West comprise simply the latest chapter in a long story. Islam spread with extraordinary speed during the first century of its existence, at Christianity's expense. Later, Islam reached its apogee when the Ottoman sultans pushed their armies to the gates of Vienna. But the tide turned when Christianity came to terms with rationalism, while Islam turned back to fundamentalism when challenged by progress and change.