A British soldier on evening patrol as oil wells burn in southern Iraq in 2003. David Cheskin/Press Association archive. All rights reserved. Unlike most historians, Tom Holland writes books which bring the past to life. This makes him a national treasure. But I am baffled by his recent documentary about Islamic State (IS), Isis: The Origins of Violence.
It argues that the extreme violence of self-proclaimed IS should be interpreted in significant ways as a manifestation of Islam itself.
Holland suggests, for example, that the Ottoman army which captured Constantinople in 1453 was a precursor to IS. He thus connects IS to Sunni Islam's most distinctive political institution, the Caliphate.
