Morocco That Was

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Until 1912 Morocco had never suffered foreign domination, and its mountainous interior was as closed to foreigners as Tibet. Walter Harris, though, was an exception. He lived in the country for more than thirty-five years, and as The Times correspondent observed every aspect of its life. He describes the unfettered Sultanate in all its dark, melodramatic splendour. He was an intimate of at least three ruling Sultans and a man capable of befriending his kidnapper. It was said that only three Christians had ever visited the walled city of Chechaouen: one was poisoned, one came for an hour disguised as a Rabbi...the other was Walter Harris.

Reviews

"This book is brilliant - sharp, melodramatic & extremely funny" Rough Guide to Morocco

Author Bio

Walter Harris was born in London in 1866, one of seven children of a prosperous business man. After schooling at Harrow and a short time at Cambridge, he left England to travel, and managed to visit Constantinople, India, Egypt, Archangel, Yemen and South Africa before settling in Tangier at the age of 20. He worked as a journalist, eventually salaried on The Times, continued to travel, like an English Indiana Jones, to areas of the Middle East never previously visited by Europeans, and built four houses in Tangier. He married once, though he was predominantly homosexual, and died of a stroke in 1933.