The Continental Monthly, Vol. 1, No. 3, March, 1862Various
History
The Continental Monthly, Vol. 1, No. 3, March, 1862
Various
Literature, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; United States -- Politics and government -- 19th century -- Periodicals
'We lodged in the mosque of the Mussulmans. After we had been resting
there about an hour, we suddenly heard the sound of bells resounding on
all sides. I had then never heard such a sound; I was extremely
terrified, and ordered my companions to ascend the minaret, read the
Koran, praise God, and recite the call to prayer,--which they did. We
now perceived a man who had approached us: he was armed, and wore a
cuirass. He saluted us, and we begged him to inform us who he was. He
gave us to understand that he was the Kadi of the Mussulmans of the
place, and added: "When I heard the reading of the Koran and the call to
prayers, I trembled for your safety, and therefore came to seek you."
Then he departed; but, nevertheless, we received nothing but good
treatment.'
From Caffa, Ibn Eatuta traveled in a chariot to Azof, near which place
he found the camp of the Sultan Mohammed Uzbek Khan, of whose court he
gives a very circumstantial description. He also devotes considerable
space to an account of their manner of keeping the fast of Ramadan. The
favorite wife of the sultan was a daughter of the Greek emperor, who at
the time of the traveler's visit was preparing to set out for
Constantinople, in order that her expected child might be born in the
palace of her fathers. 'I prayed the sultan,' says Ibn Batuta, 'to
permit me to journey in company with the princess, in order that I might
behold Constantinople the Great. He at first refused, out of fear for my
safety, but I solicited him, saying, "I will not enter Constantinople
except under thy protection and thy patronage, and therefore I will fear
no one." He then gave me permission to depart, making me a present of
fifteen hundred ducats, a robe of honor, and a great number of horses.'
The journey to Constantinople was made entirely by land, and consumed
more than two months. It is rather difficult to locate the precise route
traversed by the caravan, except that it must have skirted the shore of
the Black Sea; for I find mention of three great canals, which must
refer to the three arms of the Danube. At the frontier of the Greek
empire, they were received by the brothers of the princess, with a
mounted guard. Ibn Batuta's chronology is a little confused, and we can
only guess that the reigning emperor at that time was Andronicus H.
Palæologus. The description of the entry into Constantinople, and the
interview with the emperor, are among the most curious and interesting
passages in the work.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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