Fortunately, he consented and wrote a book that has been translated into numerous languages, allowing people everywhere to read about his unparalleled journeys. As he watched, the third ship, with all his belongings and slaves一one carrying his child-was carried out to sea and never heard from again.Īfter a lifetime of incredible adventures, Ibn Battuta was finally ordered by the Sultan of Morocco to return home to share his wisdom with the world. A sudden storm grounded and broke up two ships, scattering treasure and drowning many people and horses. Ibn Battuta set off in three ships, but misfortune struck while he was still on the shore. When the sultan offered to finance a trip toChina, he agreed. But the sultan had an unpredictable character, and Ibn Battuta looked for an opportunity to leave. ” InDelhi, the sultan gave him the position of judge, based on his prior study atMecca. We carried the heads of the slain to thecastleofAbu Bak, har. killing one of their horsemen and about twelve of the foot soldiers ….I was hit by an arrow and my horse by another, but God in his grace preserved me. 3 On the way, he described his group being attacked in the open country by 80 men on foot, and two horsemen:“we fought. In one adventure, he traveled toIndiaseeking profitable employment with the Sultan of Delhi. Ibn Battuta stayed inMeccaas a student for several years, but the urge to travel soon took over. In his hometown of Tangier, a square, a hotel, a cafe, a ferry boat, and even a hamburger are named after him. Little celebrated in the West 2, his name is well known among Arabs. Driven by curiosity, he journeyed to remote comers of the Islamic world, traveling through 44 modem countries, three times as far as Marco Polo. ” So begins an old manuscript in a library in Paris-the travel journal of Ibn Battuta.Īlmost two centuries beforeColumbus, this young Moroccan set off forMecca, returning home three decades later as one of history"s great travelers. to leave all my friends both female and male, to abandon my home as birds abandon their nests. “I left Tangier, my birthplace, the 13th of June 1325 with the intention of making the pilgrimage 1.