![]() Eljigidei (q.v.), a Mongol chief in Armenia and Persia, initiated diplomatic overtures in 1248 which were wrongly interpreted as an offer of alliance by Louis IX (Saint Louis). The majority of the letters exchanged between the Mongols and the Papacy, and with Western Christian sovereigns, contained demands for submission. France also hoped to create an alliance with the Mongols to the rear and flank of the Turkish and Mamluk Muslim powers. The decline of Solṭānīya was followed by the rise of Naḵjavān, which remained an archbishopric until 1745. Missions and ecclesiastical sees were established at Solṭānīya, Marāḡa, Tabrīz, and Tiflis. Dominican and Franciscan missionaries were sent to Il-khanid Persia. Europe’s foremost motivation was to Christianize the Mongols, as it had earlier barbarian invaders. The Mongol invasions, despite their calamitous effects, permitted the renewal of contacts between East and West, with France playing a leading part. During the Crusades (q.v.), which were sanctioned by the papacy and launched by the Franks, all Muslim countries, including Persia, were considered enemies of Christianity. ![]() In the early Middle Ages, Persia was perceived by the French mostly through biblical, Greek, and Latin sources.
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