Arab-Norman Culture - Aftermath

Aftermath

Arabic art and science continued to be heavily influential in Sicily during the two centuries following the Christian conquest. Norman rule formally ended in 1198 with the reign of Constance of Sicily, and was replaced by that of the Swabian Hohenstaufen Dynasty. Constance's son Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Sicily in the early 13th century, who was Norman by his mother and Swabian by his father Emperor Henry VI, spoke Arabic and had several Muslim ministers.

In 1224 however, Frederick II, responding to religious uprisings in Sicily, expelled all Muslims from the island, transferring many to Lucera over the next two decades. In this controlled environment, they couldn't challenge royal authority and they benefited the crown in taxes and military service. Their numbers eventually reached between 15,000 and 20,000, leading Lucera to be called Lucaera Saracenorum because it represented the last stronghold of Islamic presence in Italy. The colony thrived for 75 years until it was sacked in 1300 by Christian forces under the command of Charles II of Naples. The city's Muslim inhabitants were exiled or sold into slavery, with many finding asylum in Albania across the Adriatic Sea. Their abandoned mosques were destroyed or converted, and churches arose upon the ruins, including the cathedral S. Maria della Vittoria.

Even under Manfred (died in 1266) Islamic influence in Sicily persisted though, but it had almost disappeared by the beginning of the 14th century. Latin progressively replaced Arabic, however: the last Sicilian document in the Arabic language is dated to 1245.