Disorienting Encounters: Travels of a Moroccan Scholar in France in 1845-1846. The Voyage of Muhammad As-Saffar

In December of 1845, Muhammad as—Saffar was sent by the reigning Moroccan sultan on a special diplomatic mission to Paris. During the journey, as—Saffar took careful notes and upon his return he hurriedly wrote this travel account.

Why was the sultan, descendent of the Prophet Muhammad, and head of a dynasty that had ruled Morocco for more than two hundred years, so eager to read this account? Perhaps he thought it would illuminate some troubling matters: how the French acquired their power ...