General Context and Reference Works:

The following are a list of books relating to the general history and culture of Morocco, in the 15th and 16th centuries. For optimal browsing, these are arranged by theme.

General History of Morocco:
Were you to read a study on Moroccan historiography, perhaps even general Muslim historiography, you would most probably be told that History is not a very popular science in the Arab world (aside from the mountains of chronicles and lists of great men which were produced in every court).
There seems to be a general belief that 'theoretical history' (i.e. a type of science that uses hypotheses and theses to explain the evolution of societies) was not really 'allowed' or simply 'desired' in Muslim societies.
True, we know only few Arabic historians in the 7th through 19th centuries, but this may be due to many factors. Is it the religious conception of history, as some have claimed? Is it the relatively late arrival of the printing press, which only appeared in Fes in the late 19th century, and the consequent difficulty of reproduction, and loss of many precious works? Or is it simply our 'western' conception of history, which is unable to find counterpart in the more religiously tainted narratives of the Maghreb?
Overall, it is safe to say that 16th century Italy and Morocco had two very different historical traditions; and the particularities of both are to be found in Leo's Cosmographia.

Title Islamic Historiography, the histories of Mas'udi
Author Tarif Khalidi
Language English
Publication information Albany, 1975
Comments Using the 11th century Persian historian (Al Mas'udi) as basis for his analysis, Mr. Khalidi details the "Muslim" conception of history.

Title Ibn Khaldun, notre contemporain
Author Mohamed Aziz Lahbabi
Language French
Publication information Editions l'Harmattan, 1987 (5th edition)
Comments A good biography of the great 14th century Moroccan historian, and his views on what really constitutes 'historical narrative'

Title L'Histoire du Maghreb
Author Abdallah Laraoui
Language French
Publication information Casablanca, 1995
Comments A general, comprehensive work on the social, cultural and political history of Morocco, since the arrival of the Arabs, in the 8th century. Its main advantage comes from the Arab perspective of his author ( making for a much less colonialist type of discourse)

Title L'Histoire du Maroc
Author Bernard Lugan
Language French
Publication information Perrin, 2000
Comments This latest edition of Lugan's masterpiece on Morocco contains very useful appendix essays on several controversial issues : the Western Sahara question, the Protectorate , the Independence Movement. An enjoyable read for a general approach to Moroccan history.

Title Les Historiens des Chorfa
Author E. Levi Provencal
Language French
Publication information Paris, 1922
Comments A good analysis of the conception of history in Morocco.


History (Other):

Title Medieval Iberia, Readings from Christian, Muslim and Jewish sources
Author Edited by Olivia Remie Constable
Language English
Publication information University of Pennsilvania Press, Philadelphia, 1997
Comments  

Title The Crusades Through Arab Eyes
Author Amin Maalouf
Language English (Translated by Jon Rothschild)
Publication information Shocken Books, New York, 1985
Comments A easily read presentation of the crusades, and the 'moods' they left behind

Title Turks, Moors and Englishmen in the Age of Discovery
Author Nabil Matar
Language English
Publication information Columbia University Press, 1999
Comments  


About travelers, geographers and historians:
Title Voyager a la Renaissance, Actes du Colloque de Tours, 30 Juin-13 Juillet 1983
Author  
Language French, Italian
Publication information Editions Maisonneuve et Larose, 1987
Comments A compilation of essays on the general topic of travel in the 15th to 18th c. See in particular: "Le voyage dans le theatre de Shakespeare", "Le livre de Jehan de Mandeville", "Quelques relations de Voyage vers l'Italie et vers l'Orient au XVIeme siecle".

Title Voyageurs Arabes:Ibn Fadlan, Ibn Jubayr, Ibn Battuta et un auteur anonyme. Textes presentes par Paule Charles Dominique
Author  
Language French
Publication information La Pleiade, 1995
Comments A wonderful preface lays out the different styles that influenced travel narratives.

Title Voyages
Author Ibn Battuta
Language French
Publication information La Decouverte, 1982
Comments A well prefaced version of Ibn Battuta's travel narrative.

Title Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah and Meccah
Author Sir Richard F. Burton
Language English
Publication information Dover Publications , New York, 1964
Comments Burton describes the tricks and dangers of getting into the holiest of all Muslim shrines- his exploits are a good precursor to the general Orientalist mood which would take over all western study of the Arab world.

Title Arabian Travelers: the European discovery of Arabia
Author Richard Trench
Language English
Publication information  
Comments An account of the last great Arabian travelers and of contemporary western explorers. The first sentence of this book: "It is no accident that the last of the great moslem geographers, Hassan Ibn Mohammed, ended up in the court of the Medici Pope, Leo X, with a new name Leo Africanus. A generation earlier, the 800 year old Moslem tide had reached its highest point. It was now on the ebb, not to reassert itself, except in local turmoils, for 400 years."


Title L'Empire du Grand Turc, vu par un Sujet de Louis XIV
Author Jean Thevenot
Language French
Publication information Editions Temps et Continents, Calmann-Levy, 1965
Comments This edited version of Thevenot's early 17th century account of travel to the Ottoman Empire gives a good introduction to the challenges, cliches and motivations linked to the notion of travel in France. Also , the narrator's perspective on Turkey can be compared to Leo's writing style, which is less detached from the subject of description ( for example the hammam)


About Renaissance Italy and the Pope:
Title The Pope's Elephant: An Elephant's journey from deep in India to the heart of Rome
Author Silvio A. Bedini
Language English
Publication information Penguin Books, 1997
Comments A wonderful narrative of Pope Leo Xth's interest in all things Oriental and his attachment to an Indian elephant, a gift from the King of Portugal.


About the Caravan Routes and Commerce:

Title The Golden Trade of the Moors
Author E.W Bovill
Language English
Publication information Oxford University Press, 1978
Comments A more romanced account of the Gold trade and attempts by the West to control this trade.

Title Commerce et Routes du trafic en Afrique Occidentale
Author Jean Devisse
Language French
Publication information In Histoire Generale de l'Afrique, Editions Unesco, 1984-1990
Comments Detailed account of the early development of cross-Saharan routes, the goods traded, the way of life etc..

Title Afrique: Les Civilizations noires
Author Jacques Maquet
Language French
Publication information Editions de France, 1962
Comments Good maps on the Caravan routes.



About the Moroccan Coast and Life at Sea:
Title Nous les Freres Barberousse, Corsaires et Rois d'Alger
Author Jean Louis Belachimi
Language French
Publication information Fayard, 1984
Comments A good introduction to the role of piracy in the religious war each camp waged against the other.

Title Islam et Chretienete, 13 siecles de cohabitation
Author Alain Brissaud
Language French
Publication information  
Comments A good introduction to the role of piracy in the religious war each camp waged against the other.

Title Trois Princes Marocains, convertis au Christianisme
Author Henry de Castries
Language French
Publication information In Nouvelles Etudes Nord Africaines et Orientales, t 1, publie par l'Institut des Hautes Etudes Marocaines, 1928
Comments A good introduction to the role of piracy in the religious war each camp waged against the other.

Title Les Corsaires de Sale
Author Roger Coindreau
Language French
Publication information La Croisee des Chemins, 1998- originally edited by L'Institut des Hautes Etudes Marocaines, 1948
Comments Description of the corsair city of Sale ( present day Rabat)

Title The Barbary Coast
Author Albert Edwards
Language English
Publication information Mc Millan Company, N.Y, 1913
Comments An early 20th century narration of a British journalists travels through a land still referred to as "barbary"...

Title Guerre Commerce et Piraterie en Afrique du Nord de 1415 a 1830
Author Sir Godfrey Fisher
Language French ( originally English)
Publication information 1991
Comments  

Title Legende Barbaresque
Author Sir Godfrey Fisher
Language French ( originally English)
Publication information Office des Presses Universitaires, Paris, 1991
Comments  

Title Pour une Methodologie de l'Histoire Maritime
Author Jean Louis Miege
Language French
Publication information In Le Maroc et l'Atlantique
Comments  

Title Captifs Marocains en Italie XVII-XVIII e Siecles
Author Jean Louis Miege
Language French
Publication information
Comments  


Title Les Oudaias- Bastion des Corsaires de Sale
Author Yves Montalhuc
Language French
Publication information Casablanca, 1980
Comments A picturebook with wonderful shots of the Kasbah des Oudaias, once the home of the mightiest Moroccan pirates.

Title La cote Atlantique du Maroc au debut du XVIeme siecle, d'apres des Instructions nautiques Portugaises
Author Robert Ricard
Language French
Publication information In Hesperis, t 7, 2eme trimestre, 1927
Comments  

Title Legende Barbaresque
Author Stanley Lane Poole
Language English
Publication information Darf Publishers Limited, 1984
Comments  

Title Le Maroc a travers les Chroniques maritimes, t1
Author Abdelkader Timoule
Language French
Publication information Editions SONIR, Casablanca, 1988
Comments A moroccan perspective on the cliche that Moroccans were not a naval people.

Title Esclaves barbaresques sur les galeres pontificales
Author Carla Lodolini Tuppoti
Language French (originally Italian)
Publication information
Comments Precise decription of the life of Muslim slaves on Christian boats, specifically those belonging to the Papal fleet (which operated out of Civitavechia, a port just North of Rome)

Title Piraterie et Guerre en Mediterranee au 16 eme siecle
Author Francois Vernet
Language French
Publication information In L'Algerianiste: Bulletin D'Idees et D'Informations, 1998
Comments  

Title Historic Sail- The Glory of the Sailing Ship from the 13th to the 19th century
Author Plates by Joseph Wheatley and Text by Stephen Howarth
Language English
Publication information

Greenhill Books, London
Stackpole Books, Pennsylvania

Comments A wonderful book depicting 90 ships, with detailed text on the vessels functions and uses. For the 14th and 15th centuries, the book shows several models of merchant, war and exploration ship, giving a visual dimension to many of the above books.


About the Knights of Malta:
Title The Knights of Malta
Author H.J.A Sire
Language English
Publication information

Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 1994

Comments A book recommended by the people running the Knights of Malta Association and Museum.

Title Les Chevaliers de Malte en Mediterranee
Author Eliane Engel
Language French
Publication information

 

Comments A book recommended by the people running the Knights of Malta Association and Museum.

Title Histoire de l'Ordre de Malte
Author Eliane Engel
Language French
Publication information

Editions Nagel, Geneve, 1968

Comments A book recommended by the people running the Knights of Malta Association and Museum.

About the Sa'adian Dynasty:

Title L'Armee et la Flotte de Guerre Marocaine a l'epoque des Sultans de la Dynastie Saadienne
Author Dziubinski,Andrzej
Language French
Publication information

Hesperis, 1972

Comments See p 61 on

Title L'Idee de Nation au Maroc aux 16eme et 17eme siecle
Author Hajji, Mohammed
Language French
Publication information

Hesperis, 1968

Comments See p 109 on

Title Morocco in the 16th Century:problems and patterns in African Foreign Policy
Author Yahya,Dahiru
Language English
Publication information

Longman, 1981

Comments  

Title Histoire de la Dynastie Saadienne au Maroc (1511-1670)
Author Mohammed es Seghir ben ElHadi ben Abdellah el Oufrane, traduit par O. Houdas
Language French
Publication information

Paris, Ernest Leroux, 1889

Comments  

Title Archives Marocaines: Kitab El Istiqua, Vol 5 Les Saadiens (1509-1609)
Author Ahmed En Naciri
Language French
Publication information

Paris, Champion Editeurs, 1936

Comments Ahmed En Naciri covers extensively the history of Morocco, using as primary source the works of the famous historian El Ifrani (mostly his work Nozhet et Hadi). For Vol. 5 he also uses the works of a Portuguese historian: Manuel.



Miscellaneous:
Title The Greek Myths
Author Robert Graves
Language English
Publication information

Penguin Books, 1955

Comments A classic survey of all Greek mythology. Helps make sense of the many muddled myths that are referred to in different travel guides , mostly when referring to he region of Tangier.