Ali Bey al-Abbasi

Domingo Badía y Leblich ( Lablich ), Ali Bey al - Abbasi ( born April 1, 1767 in Barcelona, † August 30 1818 in Damascus, Syria) was a Spanish explorer, politician and Islam -convert.

Life

Early on, he dealt with mathematics, geography, astronomy, physics, natural history, music, and especially to the study of Arabic. In the civil service employee, he gave in 1797 on this career to propose to the government in Madrid Godoy political trading journeys to the Orient. In 1801 he received the assistance requested and entered 1802 with secret orders of the Spanish government a scientific journey into the interior of northwestern Africa, which he entered in 1803 for the first time.

Ali Bey

Because he wanted to make this trip as a Muslim, he had taken with his own hand the circumcision itself. In Tangier under the name of Ali ibn Osman Bey and Ali Bey al - Abbasi and as a relative of the Prophet ( he himself had his genealogical records created and provided with all necessary seals and signatures ) landed, he went to Morocco, was of the all included residents with unusual respect and treated by the Sultan Moulay Sulaiman yourself as a friend and brother. But this recording was the reason that the designed plan to overthrow the Sultan of Fez, was never carried out. Spain's King Charles IV afraid to betray the trust, and ordered two years after the withdrawal of his now largely orientalised ambassador from Morocco.

This now undertook a pilgrimage to Mecca and traveled through the Barbary. A revolt in Algiers forced him to travel further by ship to Alexandria and Cairo, where he in 1806 joined the caravan of pilgrims to Mecca. He was the first European or Christian who hides in 1807 visited the holy sites and their conquest witnessed by the Wahhabis.

From there he traveled over Jerusalem, Damascus, Aleppo to Constantinople Opel and Greece continue, received everywhere with enthusiastic acclamation; he visited the sacred places and took part in all the festivities.

Afrancesado

Accused as a Christian, he left the Ottoman Empire, returned through Vienna and Munich back to Spain and imputed to King Charles command 1808 in Bayonne Emperor Napoleon I.. , Who gave him in the service of King Joseph Bonaparte, and later became the director of Badía Segovia or appointed in 1812 as prefect of Cordova. Most recently, he was Prefect of the province of Valencia, whither Joseph had retired after the flight from Madrid.

After the fall of Napoleon and Joseph (1814 ), he emigrated to France, where he published his travelogue as Voyage d' Ali Bei en Afrique et en Asie (Paris 1814).

Death

Determined to a trip to India, he received in 1818 the degree of Maréchal de camp and traveled under the name of Ali ( ibn ) Osman from Paris to Damascus. Meanwhile actually converted, he joined a caravan of pilgrims in Syria, but died soon afterwards at Meserib dysentery. There were also rumors Badía y Leblich had been poisoned because you thought he was a French spy. Supposedly a Muslim burial because of a cross tattoo on his chest to have been denied him.

Works

• Doménec Badia / Alí Bei: Viatges d' Alí Bei. Llibres de l' Índex, Barcelona 2004, ISBN 84-95317-79-6.