Defenders of the West: The Christian Heroes Who Stood Against Islam
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- Update Date：2025-09-13
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- Author：Raymond Ibrahim
- ISBN：B0CV7WBDG9
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Reviews
John McNamara
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If you want to get a different view of the Crusades and why they were launched in the first place then this is a good read。 It goes against all conventional wisdom。 The bravery and valor these flawed individuals is so very under appreciated by Western Civilization。 I have a whole different view of that time period。
Hannah
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An excellent piece of history。 I grew up hearing the standard narrative of the crusades: that they were motivated by Europeans driven by greed， power， and bloodlust。 Ibrahim presents an alternative narrative， defends it with firsthand accounts from both sides， and ultimately makes a powerful case that they were instead motivated by four hundred years of Muslim warmongering in Christian lands。 If you like challenging the mainstream， are interested in hearing another side of the story， or want to An excellent piece of history。 I grew up hearing the standard narrative of the crusades: that they were motivated by Europeans driven by greed， power， and bloodlust。 Ibrahim presents an alternative narrative， defends it with firsthand accounts from both sides， and ultimately makes a powerful case that they were instead motivated by four hundred years of Muslim warmongering in Christian lands。 If you like challenging the mainstream， are interested in hearing another side of the story， or want to look at the evidence for a critique of what is commonly assumed to be true， give this one a look。 。。。more
Dwayne Hicks
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It has been a while since I read a work of history simply for the pleasure of it。 This hit the spot。 Ibrahim is not a Catholic， so his perspective on Crusaders and other Western Christian heroes is more trustworthy than a lot of the books on the same topic you see on the shelves。 He's also doggedly opposed to judging the past by modern liberal virtues。 Between these two factors， the book seems to provide a relatively clear picture of these men and their contexts。 It has been a while since I read a work of history simply for the pleasure of it。 This hit the spot。 Ibrahim is not a Catholic， so his perspective on Crusaders and other Western Christian heroes is more trustworthy than a lot of the books on the same topic you see on the shelves。 He's also doggedly opposed to judging the past by modern liberal virtues。 Between these two factors， the book seems to provide a relatively clear picture of these men and their contexts。 。。。more
Randy Hernandez
，
Ibrahim very much went against my upbringing and left me with a great deal to ponder and a desire to learn more。 A book with very heavy topics， and a reminder that it is easy to dismiss moral frameworks as barbaric and antiquated from an ivory tower of peace and safety bought by a desire for this very peace using the methods we know deem as uncivilized。
Kevin
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This book is a must read for any red blooded young western man。 Not only does it do an excellent job of painting just how much of a violent and war like religion Islam is （and why it is always the worst thing to happen to a civilization） but it co twins inspiring stories of people willing to fight and die to stop its spread。These men were heroes and they will try to convince us they were not。
Socky Monkie
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Wonderful essay on some medieval heroes。 My favorite chapters were the ones on El Cid and Richard the Lionheart。 My only problem with the book is that it didn't feature a Eastern Roman Emperor as a chapter but other than that it's fantastic！ Wonderful essay on some medieval heroes。 My favorite chapters were the ones on El Cid and Richard the Lionheart。 My only problem with the book is that it didn't feature a Eastern Roman Emperor as a chapter but other than that it's fantastic！ 。。。more
Tyler
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Defenders of the West is already a contender for best book on my list for 2024。 It’s hard for us to imagine， but there was a time in which the Middle East was largely Christian。 And if it wasn’t for the brave， Christian men described in this book the West would have saw itself as Muslim rather than Christian。 The Crusades get a bad wrap。 It’s usually described as this unnecessary holy war between two brutal parties。 But reality paints a different picture。 Christian Crusaders like Duke Godfrey an Defenders of the West is already a contender for best book on my list for 2024。 It’s hard for us to imagine， but there was a time in which the Middle East was largely Christian。 And if it wasn’t for the brave， Christian men described in this book the West would have saw itself as Muslim rather than Christian。 The Crusades get a bad wrap。 It’s usually described as this unnecessary holy war between two brutal parties。 But reality paints a different picture。 Christian Crusaders like Duke Godfrey and John Hunyadi defended the West from the brutality of Islamic hordes that sought to massacre anyone in their way。 The men depicted in this book embody the virtues of courage， bravery， and love for God and his people。 Without them the West would have looked vastly different fairly early on in the Medieval period。 To quote the author， “The eight men profiled in this book were for centuries helped by their respective posterities as iconic exemplars of heroism and sacrifice。” Oddly enough， modern critics would label these men as toxic， xenophobic， and exemplars of only the patriarchy。 But what modern Christians fail to realize is that the West would likely widely different today if it weren’t for these men。 To quote the author again， “Christianity was a muscular religion from its inception。”This is a book I’ll absolutely read with my sons when they’re old enough。 Highly recommend for all men。 。。。more
Damien
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Fantastic book giving a view point that you rarely see/has been largely suppressed these days
Pedro Amorim
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I cannot put into words how I feel after this read。 It is at the same time impactful， profound， but， above all， disturbing。 Disturbing not because of the brave actions of the heroic men portrayed in this masterpiece， but rather of the inaction and cowardice of the ones that followed and continue to rule our nations to this day。 These are disturbing times indeed。 May God grant us courage and protect his flock！
Christian Roy
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Goes hard。Great tales of great men who surmounted incredible odds to safeguard civilization。
Nathan
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I enjoyed this book despite not knowing a ton about the Crusades ahead of reading it。 This book is not an exhaustive history of the crusades， or even if the entire lives of the men themselves whose story are told in the book， but it gives you a solid account of the brutality and the context of what the West was up against and stories of courageous men who sacrificed for the land， people and Christendom
Pinky 2。0
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History of Gigachads。
Aliaksei Mukhachou
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The West is the Best。 Lest you forget。 Great stories about the unapologetic heroics during the times where cultural and civilizational survival of Europe was imperiled by ravaging hordes of brutes。 Sacrifices that should not be forgotten - given how you read this review on the smartphone in your hands。
Thaddeus
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Amazing read and a great push back on a lot of the distorted opinions and revisionist leftist histories surrounding the Crusades。 Well written and inspiring。 Highly recommended！
Ruben Van Der Wolf
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This book is well researched， with great sourcing。 It's written well and so gives a good overview of the lives of these people。However the point of writing this book as expressed in the conclusion is to shift western thinking of these people from them being 'bad people' to heroes。I can't say that everything these people did is bad， but making them out to be heroes when so much of their lives is in full contrast with Jesus' teaching of love doesn't seem right。 I do find it interesting to read how This book is well researched， with great sourcing。 It's written well and so gives a good overview of the lives of these people。However the point of writing this book as expressed in the conclusion is to shift western thinking of these people from them being 'bad people' to heroes。I can't say that everything these people did is bad， but making them out to be heroes when so much of their lives is in full contrast with Jesus' teaching of love doesn't seem right。 I do find it interesting to read how these people kept Islam at bay mainly in Europe， which must have had its purpose， but this book hardly tells about the devastation the Pope's （and others） in the same time periods brought to Europe。 Not to speak of the devastation to the Islamic peoples。 Simply excusing that for the reason of 'they first did it to us' only shows me an 'eye for an eye' response。 So interesting book， but a wrong conclusion。 。。。more
Tom
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A well-written series of historically detailed， well-sourced stories of Christian Crusaders and other heroes of the West's centuries long battle against Islam's unending invasions， including Godfrey de Boullion， the defender of the Holy Sepulcher and leader of the First Crusade; El Cid， who fought to free Spain from the invading Muslims， and Saint Ferdinand， whose conquests began to turn the tide to Reconquista。 Some are warriors I had not known of， like John Hunyadi of Wallachia， or Skanderbeg A well-written series of historically detailed， well-sourced stories of Christian Crusaders and other heroes of the West's centuries long battle against Islam's unending invasions， including Godfrey de Boullion， the defender of the Holy Sepulcher and leader of the First Crusade; El Cid， who fought to free Spain from the invading Muslims， and Saint Ferdinand， whose conquests began to turn the tide to Reconquista。 Some are warriors I had not known of， like John Hunyadi of Wallachia， or Skanderbeg of Albania， who as a child was handed over to the Muslims， was sexually assaulted in their custody， and groomed as a warrior jannisary who the Muslims expected to fight against his countrymen and fellow Christians。 Skanderbeg， though， secretly remained Christian， and when able turned on his former masters and became a terror for them。 The book concludes with a return to the present and the current war on the West， and call for the men of Christendom to embrace their history。Many years ago， I wrote a short historical fiction novella about Godfrey de Bouillon， written for roughly high school level young men -- I was teaching confirmation to that age group at the time -- and I was glad to see that my historical research was on point， although this book is far deeper into the sources。 。。。more
Michael Wiggins
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I believe that if enough Western men read this book， and more importantly the Bible， the decline of Western civilization might be reversed。 That is a big if， and I'm not really expecting that to happen。 I do wish， however， that enough Westerners would read this book and see our millennium+ long clash with Islam as a worthy and just endeavor rather than a source of shame。 Our ancestors in most cases were fighting for God and for their homes， their right to exist as anything other than a slave or I believe that if enough Western men read this book， and more importantly the Bible， the decline of Western civilization might be reversed。 That is a big if， and I'm not really expecting that to happen。 I do wish， however， that enough Westerners would read this book and see our millennium+ long clash with Islam as a worthy and just endeavor rather than a source of shame。 Our ancestors in most cases were fighting for God and for their homes， their right to exist as anything other than a slave or a convert to Islam。 The Christian heroes covered by Raymond Ibrahim are not perfect men， but they were all devoted to Christendom， and were to a man engaged in responding to outrages committed to Christians and Christian lands by various Muslim rulers and warriors。 Even those who committed themselves to the first Crusades were trying to recover Holy lands that were forcibly taken from Christians in the first place。 As the author states， "Whether one wishes to see them as saints or sinners， heroes or villians， in the end they were just men-- and that means fallible。 Even so， without them and so many more Defenders like them over the centuries， there would not have been a West to speak of today。"If anyone doubts or is floored by this assertion， please read this book by Ibrahim。 He makes the case far better than I ever could。 I started reading books such as this one and others regarding the West's cultural clashes with Islam because I wanted to move beyond a surface level understanding of the problems between us。 I have learned much， but that hasn't made me happier。 One area in which I found eerie parallels between the present and the past is how the rank and file citizens， the peasants， were very much on the side of these great defenders。 The establishment men of their day were treacherous， backstabbing schemers and traitors。 So frequently great powers who could have done so much to support these defenders of the faith hedged there bets or outright sold out their countrymen for the promises of riches and safety。 They were rarely safe for long。 And neither will we be secure， so long as we import those dedicated to our destruction。 。。。more
peter lang
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InterestingRaymond Ibrahim has presented a thoughtful well researched book。 He brought up a number of solid observations that are hard to resist。
Mattaniah Gibson
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Fantastic read， very inspiring stories。
James Krause
，
Amazing look into the lives of the Crusaders。 Most of western society has no idea what these men were actually fighting for or against。
William Carlson
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stop rewriting history Mt Ibrahim has nailed the professional liars of academia who hate the truth。This book is a must read for those who sense something is wrong with the woke mob attacking western civilization。 Self defense and reclaiming What was stolen is not only not a crime It is a glorious cause。 Hate what is evil and love what is good are two side of one coin。 Facts are stubborn things。 These heroes need to admired for theySacrifice and admired for their courage。Read， study， highlight ， stop rewriting history Mt Ibrahim has nailed the professional liars of academia who hate the truth。This book is a must read for those who sense something is wrong with the woke mob attacking western civilization。 Self defense and reclaiming What was stolen is not only not a crime It is a glorious cause。 Hate what is evil and love what is good are two side of one coin。 Facts are stubborn things。 These heroes need to admired for theySacrifice and admired for their courage。Read， study， highlight ， and meditate on these profiles of faith and courage。 。。。more
James Varney
，
Fascinating， engaging history。 One sided， yet a welcome corrective to the left-wing dogma that has kidnapped history。 A companion to "Sword & Scimitar，" "Defenders of the West" focuses on individuals rather than battles。 Ibrahim gives us Christian paladins that fought with Islam during the many centuries when that war ebbed and flowed not just in parts of the Middle East and the northern African coast， but Europe itself。 While all of these warriors could be called crusaders， their stands were no Fascinating， engaging history。 One sided， yet a welcome corrective to the left-wing dogma that has kidnapped history。 A companion to "Sword & Scimitar，" "Defenders of the West" focuses on individuals rather than battles。 Ibrahim gives us Christian paladins that fought with Islam during the many centuries when that war ebbed and flowed not just in parts of the Middle East and the northern African coast， but Europe itself。 While all of these warriors could be called crusaders， their stands were not all taken in what we have come to consider "The Crusades。"But the heroes featured are remarkable。 Richard the Lion-Hearted comes alive here， as does El Cid。 Here is a King Louis IX I've never known or encountered in any other history books。 The field is far more likely to portray Louis as a foolish Crusader who lost everything in reckless forays to Africa， but his story is at times heartbreaking and - another thing I never knew - he was canonized for a reason。 The tale of his time in captivity in Egypt is alone worth the price of admission here。At least I'd heard of King Louis IX。 I can't say the same for John Hunyadi or Skanderbeg， astounding warriors who fought against overwhelming odds in Hungary and the Croatia/Yugoslavia area。 Though they were heralded heroes of their age， modern scholarship has ignored them。 "Defenders of the West" tells their little-known stories very well。Lastly， here is a Vlad Dracula so far removed from the popular imagination that he might as well be a fictional figure， too。 Yet his tempestuous time on earth was as remarkable as any other hero here。 Higly recommended。 。。。more
Jerry
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Delightful profiles of courage。
Dan Walker
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Muscular and unapologetic review of eight heroes of Christendom against the onslaught of violent Islamic Jihad。 But the book isn't aimed at Muslims。 It's aimed at Western Leftists who have conducted their own Jihad to beat down these heroes and remove them from history。 For example， I know that Leftists have attacked the very name of the city of St。 Louis。 I had no idea that the city was named for Louis IX， who led two crusades。The book covers famous crusaders like King Louis， El Cid， and Richar Muscular and unapologetic review of eight heroes of Christendom against the onslaught of violent Islamic Jihad。 But the book isn't aimed at Muslims。 It's aimed at Western Leftists who have conducted their own Jihad to beat down these heroes and remove them from history。 For example， I know that Leftists have attacked the very name of the city of St。 Louis。 I had no idea that the city was named for Louis IX， who led two crusades。The book covers famous crusaders like King Louis， El Cid， and Richard the Lionheart， but it also resurrects heroes of Eastern Europe's long struggle against Islam， such as Skanderbeg and Vlad the Impaler。 Yes， it turns out that THAT Vlad， of Count Dracula （son of the dragon） fame， was a staunch defender of Europe against Ottoman invasions which Europeans further west couldn't be bothered to help out with。 So the book is a good reminder that Christianity has been in a millienium+ struggle with Islam， and if it had not been beaten back on both Europe's western （Spain） AND eastern borders， there would have been no Reformation， Renaissance， or Enlightenment。I think the book also exposes the deliberately deceptive attacks on those Western heroes of centuries past。 Those heroes must be destroyed - not because they were wrong in the violence they perpetrated or because Islam is somehow good， but because Leftists wish to rebuild Western Civ for their own benefit。 They could care less about Islam and are， of course， just useful idiots for those Muslims who genuinely do advocate an Islamic conquest of Western Civ。 If such a thing did happen， Leftists would be the first to go under the scimitar。So read the book。 It's not terrible detailed， the chapters are just sketches of the lives of these heroes， very suitable for a general audience。 Having just been published， it's very relevant。 。。。more
Carla May
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If you are looking for a book to challenge you， a book to inspire you， a book that won't let you put it down no matter how much you may want to do so， then I highly recommend this book。 If you are looking for a book to challenge you， a book to inspire you， a book that won't let you put it down no matter how much you may want to do so， then I highly recommend this book。 。。。more
Michael Troutman
，
This was probably one of the best history books I’ve read in the last five years。 It’s in the same vein as “Last Stands” by Michael Walsh， but hits a different note in the task of giving examples of great heroes to emulate。 The examples of piety， unbridled courage， endurance， and sacrificial masculinity make this and Walsh’s work must read books for men of the modern era， who tend to sorely lack good examples of these traits so they can develop them in their own lives。 As an able historian in th This was probably one of the best history books I’ve read in the last five years。 It’s in the same vein as “Last Stands” by Michael Walsh， but hits a different note in the task of giving examples of great heroes to emulate。 The examples of piety， unbridled courage， endurance， and sacrificial masculinity make this and Walsh’s work must read books for men of the modern era， who tend to sorely lack good examples of these traits so they can develop them in their own lives。 As an able historian in the field of Islamic/Christian struggles this author ably gives the pertinent and full accounts to show these men accurately， with both their strengths and weaknesses。 So this isn’t simple hero worship。 It’s a call to be great men again。 To truly love those we serve。 And to go to any lengths for the things we love。 。。。more
Gregory
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This book is inspiring and informative。Raymond Ibrahim makes around 1，000 sourcable quotes in the text， mostly from first-hand accounts。 This exhaustive amount was meant to show the authenticity of the production。One of the anecdotes is that during a rebellion in the Holy Roman Empire， Duke Godfrey was fighting for his Emperor Henry IV against “the sudo-king” Rudolf。 During the key battle， Godfrey broke through the enemies’ lines， and impaled the “sudo king” through the chest with the imperial s This book is inspiring and informative。Raymond Ibrahim makes around 1，000 sourcable quotes in the text， mostly from first-hand accounts。 This exhaustive amount was meant to show the authenticity of the production。One of the anecdotes is that during a rebellion in the Holy Roman Empire， Duke Godfrey was fighting for his Emperor Henry IV against “the sudo-king” Rudolf。 During the key battle， Godfrey broke through the enemies’ lines， and impaled the “sudo king” through the chest with the imperial standard。 After killing Rudolf in this fashion， he again raised the standard for to see， dripping with the blood of the slain rebel。Some of the inspirational quotes would be。"He that hath not a sword， let him sell his garmet and buy one。 Luke 22:36Like a trampled spring or a polluted well is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked。 Proverbs 25:26Praise be the Lord Rock。 He trains my hands for war， my fingers for battles。 Psalms 144:1 ""Once Richard， drenched in Muslim blood， became visible to Saladin’s entourage， “a horrible howl went up，” even as another hail of Turkic arrows rained towards his direction。 Undeterred， the berserker king continued to “cut to piece all he met without distinction。” In his mad dash to Saladin， promoting the latter to flee， “like a frightened hare”。” As confirmed by Muslim chronicles。""Ambushed in his tent， Richard cried everything is bearable for those of manly character。 With ten other knights， tool on the muslims。 Man were cloven in two from their helmet to their teeth: others lost their heads， arms and other limbs， lopped off at a single blow。 He mowed down men as reapers mow down corn with their sickles。" 。。。more
Stafford Thompson
，
I have mixed feelings about this book。 Like many Christians I am uncomfortable with the concept of “holy war” and I believe the following quote by Martin Luther sums up my position nicely: “But what motivated me most of all was this: They undertook to fight against the Turk in the name of Christ， and taught and incited men to do this， as though our people were an army of Christians against the Turks， who were enemies of Christ。 This is absolutely contrary to Christ’s doctrine and name…。This is t I have mixed feelings about this book。 Like many Christians I am uncomfortable with the concept of “holy war” and I believe the following quote by Martin Luther sums up my position nicely: “But what motivated me most of all was this: They undertook to fight against the Turk in the name of Christ， and taught and incited men to do this， as though our people were an army of Christians against the Turks， who were enemies of Christ。 This is absolutely contrary to Christ’s doctrine and name…。This is the greatest of all sins and is one that no Turk commits， for Christ’s name is used for sin and shame and thus dishonored。 This would be especially so if the pope and the bishops were involved in the war， for they would bring the greatest shame and dishonor to Christ’s name because they are called to fight against the devil with the word of God and with prayer， and they would be deserting their calling and office to fight with the sword against flesh and blood。 They are not commanded to do this; it is forbidden。”…if I were a soldier and saw a priest’s banner in the field， or a banner of the cross， even though it was a crucifix， I should run as though the devil were chasing me; even if they won a victory， by God’s decree， I should not take any part in the booty or rejoicing。” That said， am I against Christians participating in a just war？ No。 But those who wage war must be the civil authorities and not the Church itself。 “Holy war” is not one of the things that can help a Christian gain salvation， only Christ’s death and resurrection saves the Christian from eternal death。 From that perspective lay Christians can and should be present in the armed forces to help their neighbors by defending them and also to help guide the practices of their fellow soldiers to a more ethical end goal。 Pros include the author’s familiarity and use of original texts is very encouraging。 He actually wants to wrestle with those texts and that is to be commended。 His ability to make the chapters more segmented so that they are easily divided into bite sized chunks is also helpful。 Another pro is that Dr。 Ibrahim makes it clear that he is not advocating for the view that these men are the most perfect Christians that ever lived， although I did walk away from this book with a greater appreciation for King （St。） Louis the IX of France。 There is nuance here if one remembers the opening remarks。 Cons， well， that depends on how you look at it。 Does Dr。 Ibrahim have a bias？ Yes。 After all， a Coptic Christian is rarely， if ever， going to have warm fuzzy feeling for Islam and its followers after the centuries upon centuries of persecution and pressure they have faced and continue to face in Egypt。 With this in mind does he write from a place of hurt？ Absolutely。 Does this mean that he is biased in such a way that his work is overly tainted by his emotions， or pride for his heritage？ The answer I believe is that he is no more biased than Islamic or secular apologists who in their own works have it out for the Christians of the world， especially Western Christians。 If they can write their own stories and analysis， then why not Dr。 Ibrahim？ That also being said I would argue thar Dr。 Ibrahim forgets （as we all do） that the real enemy is Satan and not our fellow men， although they can serve Satan without realizing it。 Cons aside， this was a refreshing read， and a good reminder that， whether they truly were Christians or not， the West does owe much to these men， their families， their armies and to their subjects for holding back the tide of Islam from overtaking Europe。 Truly， the Lord can use militarily talented lay Christians or even pagans to defend His people， His Church and thus help fulfill the promise that the gates of hell would not prevail over His Church。 。。。more
N Car
，
Really great overview of some of the West's greatest， yet often overlooked， military talents and committed individuals who we owe so much to。 The book delves into the history and context of the world these men were put into as well as how they overcame incredible odds to hold off the horde of an ever present Islamic threat。 Many in the past hoped to ignore this threat or even took advantage of those who risked all to fight it， but through it all these men persevered。 Inspiring stories for any bo Really great overview of some of the West's greatest， yet often overlooked， military talents and committed individuals who we owe so much to。 The book delves into the history and context of the world these men were put into as well as how they overcame incredible odds to hold off the horde of an ever present Islamic threat。 Many in the past hoped to ignore this threat or even took advantage of those who risked all to fight it， but through it all these men persevered。 Inspiring stories for any boy to read and model themselves like or for any other reader who wants to know the true history of the world you don't learn in school and how through the actions of the few generational leaders we have endured this long。These men truly embody that famous quote:“We sleep soundly in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm。” 。。。more
Vince Cvijanovic
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