Islamic Ottoman Empire proclaiming war: In November 1914, when the Ottoman Empire had officially entered the war against the Allies, the Sultan had issued a declaration stating that it was a "Cihad-ı Ekber" (the greatest of all wars). This was not enough. It had to be declared as a "Cihad-ı Mukaddes" (holy war), because the Ottoman Sultan was at the same time the Caliph of all the Muslims in the world. This meant that the Muslims of the world should join the Turkish efforts to fight against the "infidels." More Ottoman Empire documents here
We have to study historical documents to determine if Islamic rulers were imperialistic and aggressive. Does some of that aggression and drive for Islamic hegemony come from the Quran itself where there are chapters on war and verses that state Islam is to rein supreme over all other religions? It does.
Were the Crusades a response to the Islamist expansion of power? It was.
First, study the history of the Islamic caliphates. A very basic starting point comes from a list of caliphs from Wikipedia. Wikipedia is not generally an absolute and final source, in and of itself, but it does provides us a list of the caliphs and resources to study further. Each source cited has to be evaluated individually.
Below are some of the Caliphates (The full list of them from the year 632 to 1924 is here):
Abu Bakr- First Rashidun (Four Righteously Guided Caliphs) of the Sunnis. Subdued rebel tribes in the Ridda wars.
Umar (Umar ibn al-Khattab) - Second Rashidun. During his reign, the Islamic empire expanded to include Egypt, Jerusalem, and Persia.
Uthman Ibn Affan - Third Rashidun. The Qur'an was compiled under his direction. Killed by rebels. Ali (Ali ibn Abu Talib) - Fourth and last Rashidun, and considered the first imam by Shi'a Muslims. His reign was fraught with internal conflict.
Hasan ibn Ali - Fifth Caliph (considered as "rightly guided" by many Sunnis as well as Shias). He ruled for six months only and handed the powers to Muawiyah I in order to unite the Muslims again.
Muawiyah I- First caliph of the Umayyad dynasty. Muawiyah instituted dynastic rule by appointing his son Yazid I as his successor, a trend that would continue through subsequent caliphates.
Umar ibn AbdulAziz - Umayyad caliph considered by some (mainly Sunnis) to be a sixth true and legitimate caliph under Islamic Laws of electing Caliph.
Harun al-Rashid - An Abbasid caliph during whose reign Baghdad became the world's prominent centre of trade, learning, and culture. Harun is the subject of many stories in the famous work One Thousand and One Nights.
Suleiman the Magnificent - Early Ottoman Sultan during whose reign the Ottoman Empire reached its zenith.
Abdul Hamid II - The last Ottoman Sultan to rule with absolute power.
Abdülmecid II - The last Caliph of the Ottoman Dynasty, the 101st Caliph in line from Caliph Abu Bakr and nominally the 37th Head of the Ottoman Imperial House.
Here are a few more links you can review about the Caliphates:
The Ottomon Empire's last war (WWI) Time line,
The Middle East during World War One
History of Islam: A Brief History of Islam. The Rightly guided Caliphs; The Caliphate; Umayyad; Abbasids; North Africa And Spain; After the Mangol Invasion; Ottoman Empire ...
Caliphate (Islamic history) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia ... Caliphate (Islamic history), the political-religious state comprising the Muslim community and the lands and ..
Islam, A World CivilizationA History of the Crusades University of Wisconsin Press
Published over a twenty year period beginning in 1969, was intended to serve as a collaborative and comprehensive treatment of the topic, ranging in time from the first 100 years of the Crusades to their ultimate impact on the histories of the Near East and Europe. The work is comprised of six volumes, each of which is included here in its entirety.
Note: Each section listed below is searchable at the above link. Enter the search word: Islam
The first hundred years (1969)
The later Crusades, 1189-1311 (1969)
The fourteenth and fifteenth centuries (1975)
The art and architecture of the crusader states (1977)
The impact of the Crusades on the Near East (1985)
The impact of the Crusades on Europe (1989)
The Crusades: Fordham University
The Real History of the Crusades by Dr. Thomas Madden who is chair of the department of history at Saint Louis University
"...So what is the truth about the Crusades? Scholars are still working some of that out. But much can already be said with certainty. For starters, the Crusades to the East were in every way defensive wars. They were a direct response to Muslim aggression—an attempt to turn back or defend against Muslim conquests of Christian lands...
Thomas F. Madden is associate professor and chair of the Department of History at Saint Louis University. He is the author of numerous works, including The New Concise History of the Crusades, and co-author, with Donald Queller, of The Fourth Crusade: The Conquest of Constantinople. This special version for the ARMA was reprinted by permission of Crisis Magazine,<www.crisismagazine.com.
The Frist Crusades - capture Jerusalem back from the Islamic ruler.
The First Crusade The Metropolitan Museum of Art
In November 1095, Pope Urban II preached a sermon at Clermont-Ferrand in France to launch the First Crusade. The aim was to aid the Christians of the East and return to Christian control the Holy Sepulcher, the church in Jerusalem said to contain the tomb of Christ. Absolution from sin and eternal glory were promised to the Crusaders..."
Primary Sources of the First Crusade
Second and Third Crusade
In 1147–49, the Second Crusade, championed by the abbot Bernard of Clairvaux, attempted to take Damascus in Syria. The campaign was a dismal failure because the Muslims had regrouped...
According to Islamicity, the Crusades were a minor irritant.
Jordan - History - The Islamic Periods and the Crusades King Hussein.gov
Society for the Study of the Crusades and the Latin East 2009 Conference May 7-9, 2009
1924 NYT: WHY THE TURKS GOT RID OF CALIPHATE; Had Become Centre of Domestic Plots and …
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