C. The Norman Con quesi1 of Sicily 
 
 Although the Norman conquest of Sicily was probably the greatest triumph
of Christians over Moslems in the eleventh century, it is hardly exact to
describe it as a duel between Cross and Crescent. Count Roger invaded the
island for the same reasons which had spurred the Hauteville brothers to
many wars against Christians, including the pope and both the eastern and
the western emperor. "He was always eager to acquire," as his official historian
and apologist, friar Geoffrey Malaterra, candidly states.' He began the war
as the ally of one of the rival emirs of Sicily, employed Moslem as well
as Christian Calabrese auxiliaries as early as the 
 
 M. Amari, Storia dei Musulmani di Sicilia (znd ed. revised by the author
and edited by C. A. Nallino, 3 vols., Catania, 1933—1939), and F. Chalandon,
Histoire de la domination normande en Italie et en Sidle (a you., Paris,
1907) are still fundamental, although the latter is almost half a century
old, and the former originally appeared almost a hundred years ago. This
is largely owing to the admirable quality of both works — Amari was
a great master, Chalandon was far less inspired but industrious and careful
— but it also shows that the problem has not been adequately reconsidered
in recent times. G. Fasoli, "Problemi di storia medievale siciliana," Siculorum
Gymnasium, n. ser., IV (1951), intelligently presents a list of open questions;
the symposium Ii Regno Normanno (Messina and Milan, 1932) includes some good
articles but does not aim at originality; the summary of G. Libertini and
G. Paladino, Storia della Sicilia (Catania, 1933), chaps. XIII and xiv, is
mediocre and often inaccurate; the sketch of P. K. Hitti, History of the
Arabs (5th ed., London, 1951), chap. XLII, is an uncritical panegyric; charity
forbids mention of some other brief surveys. On the other hand, there are
some valuable monographs on certain special problems. On legal history see
E. Besta, Ii diritto pubblico nell'Italia meridionale (Padua, 1939), and
its bibliography. On intellectual history, besides the short but brilliant
essay of F. Gabrieli, "Arabi di Sicilia e Arabi di Spagna," Al-Andalus, XV
(1950), 27—45, see A. De Stefano, La cultura in Sicilia nel periodo
normanno (Palermo, 1938), and its bibliography. On monastic history, see
L. T. White, Latin Monasticism in Norman Sicily (Cambridge, Mass., 1938),
and the remarks of G. A. Garufi, "Per Ia storia dei monasteri di Sicilia
del tempo normanno," Archivio storico per la Sicilia, VI (1940). On naval
history see C. Manfroni, Storia della marina italiana dalle invasioni barbariche
al trattato di Ninfeo (Livorno, 1899), and W. Cohn, Die Geschichte der normannischsicilischen
Flotte unter der Regierung Rogers I und Rogers II (Breslau, 1910). On population
problems, G. Pardi, "Storm demografica della città di Palermo," Nuova
Rivista Storica, III (1919), i8o—zo8, 601—631, is fair, but not
fully reliable; see also the remarks of J. Beloch, Bevolkerungsgeschichte
Italiens, I (Berlin and Leipzig, 1937). Some aspects of Sicilian economic
and social life have been recently discussed in F. Gabrieli, Storia e civilui
musulmana (Naples, 1947). Further bibliography is found in R. Morghen, "L'unità
monarchica nell'Italia meridionale," Questioni di storia medioevale (E. Rota
editor, Como and Milan, 1946), and in the invaluable Archivio storico Siciliano.

 
 1 G. Malaterra, De rebus gestis ./~ogerii Calabriae et Siciliae comitis
et Roberti Guiscardi ducis, II, I; the best edition is that of E. Pontieri
in Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, V (1927). See also the well-balanced judgment
of ~. H. Haskins, The Normans in European History (Boston, 1915), chap. vIl.

 
54