“The conflict between Christians and Muslims led to the loss of cultural and intellectual diversity.” Discuss.

The question requires that candidates offer a considered and balanced review of the statement that the conflict between Christians and Muslims led to the loss of cultural and intellectual diversity. Candidates may refer to the abandonment of national languages, the religious conversions, the raids against monasteries and temples and the relocation of population as examples of the loss of cultural and intellectual diversity due to conflicts. Candidates may also discuss the competition within Christian kingdoms and the conflicts with the Byzantine Empire as causes of the loss of cultural and intellectual diversity. Candidates may contest the statement by considering the enduring diplomatic relations between Christian kingdoms and Muslim rulers, the uninterrupted trade between Venetian and Muslim merchants, and the circulation of Muslim and Christian intellectuals in different royal courts. Candidates’ opinions or conclusions will be presented clearly and supported by appropriate evidence.

The question required that candidates offer a considered and balanced review of the statement that the conflict between Christians and Muslims led to the loss of cultural and intellectual diversity. Few responses were seen to this question. Candidates tended to resort to generalizations about Christian/Muslim relations.