We begin our series by going back more than a thousand years to what is currently Spain. Al-Andalus, as it was known then, was the heart of Islamic culture in Europe. Muslim forces had conquered the Iberian Peninsula in the early 8th Century. The BBC’s Owen Bennett Jones reports from Cordoba on history’s impact on modern-day politics.

Perhaps no other period epitomises ancient conflict between the followers of Islam and Christianity than the Crusades. Pope Claremont launched the first Crusade in the late 11th century. At that point, about two-thirds of the ancient Christian world had been conquered by Islam. The Second Crusade, in the mid 12th century, was considered a failure for the Crusaders and a victory for the Muslims. The Third Crusade, later that century, was about Jerusalem, a holy city for both Muslims and Christians. And the Christians -- wanted it back. The BBC's Owen Bennett Jones reports from Israel on the lasting significance of the Crusade that pitted legendary Muslim leader Saladin against King Richard the Lionheart..


Listen to The Crescent and The Cross, Part Two