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Interestingly, most of the major victories over the Muslim horde have been led by Eastern European nationalist leaders, as opposed to Western European efforts (Spain did OK).

Civilization may yet depend on the Slavic Orthodox peoples.

Actually, Spain didn't do OK. Foreign knights from Brittany and Cornwall made all the difference. It was a business for many centuries for noble families in both countries to finance a knight, with horses and armor and send him to Spain to join a noble lord to fight in the Reconquista. If he did well he'd get land and his pick of women. If he did badly, he'd be dead and the families would simply send more knights.

For the most part most of the nobles in Spain today have Breton sentences for surnames!

For a variety of reasons most historians give the credit to '"French knights" ~ which simply wasn't the case.

Note, for a very long time the various kingdoms and principalities fronting the Bay of Biscay were what amounted to a regional super power. The differences from their life and that of the people further inland were stark. The modern nation states we know so well were for the most part pastoral or agricultural, peopled mostly by slaves or near slaves ruled over by a dissolute gang of drunken, brawling nobles of unsavory sexual hygiene and behavior.