If modern magazines would have existed back in the 14th century, Ibn Battuta might have made
it on the cover of a special edition as “Most Interesting Man in the World.” He started his
travels from Morocco only with his donkey and in the next 30 years or so covered more than 75
thousand miles, and visited more than 40 modern countries. His travels took him to
many different parts of the world, from the gorgeous architecture of Damascus,
the holy lands of Mecca, the steppes of Asia, and the banks of River Yamuna in Delhi,
to eventually arriving in China. In a time when the concept of traveling was exclusively
related to pilgrimage and trade, Ibn Battuta dared to desire distant lands to explore. His
adventures were not only memorable but also perilous as he came close so many times to his
own demise. But they were also romantic as he met and bedded many women. Welcome to Nutty History,
today we are going to learn about A Day in the Life of the famous Moroccan Explorer, Ibn Battuta.
Born in Tangier, Morocco, Shams al-Din Abu Abdallah Muhammad ibn Abdallah Ibn Muhammad
ibn Ibrahim Ibn Battutah al-Lawati al-Tanji or Ibn Battuta for short belonged to a family of fairly
well-off Muslim legal scholars. Ibn Battuta himself received an education in Islamic law
and was meant to go for Hajj at the age of 21. The holy pilgrimage to Mecca. Starting alone on
a donkey, Battuta would connect with a caravan of other pilgrims working its way across North
Africa toward the Holy Land. From Tripoli, the caravan proceeded without trouble across Libya
to the eastern edge of the Maghrib. Ibn Battuta completed the 2,000-mile trip across the Maghrib
in around eight or nine months. If someone was making such a journey today, they would have
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their services without a sweat. The link is in the description below.Battuta was welcomed warmly in
Tughlaq’s court thanks to the gifts he borrowed from an Iraqi Merchant, a horde of 30 horses,
camels, arrows, and servants. In return, Tughlaq rewarded his manners, qualification, and knowledge
with the position of chief qadi or chief judge with a signing-on bonus of 12000 dinars and a
matching figure for his annual salary. Battuta was rich! At that time, an average north Indian
family lived on about 5 to 10 dinars a month! Tughlaq , despite being a bright administrator,
was also quite an eccentric, erratic, and cruel ruler. Even by Middle Ages standards,
Tughlaq had no chill. Criminals were flayed or thrown into elephant pens who had tusk-mounted
swords. Hundreds were brought in chains daily to the audience hall to be put to death, punished,
or worse. At one point, Ibn Battuta himself was suspected of disloyalty and was forced to abandon
his possessions, wear beggar’s rags and live with a hermit in a cave for five months until things
calmed down. Battuta returned to Tughlaq’s court when summoned but he was now fearful for his life.
Before being exiled he had witnessed how brutally Tughlaq had dealt with rebels and Battuta knew if
he stayed longer his number would be up. So, he tried to take a leave with the excuse of making
another hajj trip. To his surprise, the Sultan had very different plans for him. Given that
Battuta had been around a lot, Sultan Tughlaq offered him to be Delhi’s ambassador to China.
Battuta was more than happy to agree despite the dangerous nature of the journey and agreed to
carry shiploads of gifts to the Mongol emperor along with 15 messengers making their way back
home. Gifts from Muhammad Tughluq to the Mongol Emperor included 200 Hindu servants, singers,
and dancers, 100 horses, and great amounts of cloth, dishes, and swords. There were about
1,000 soldiers under his command to protect the treasure and supplies until they could board ships
to China. To Battuta’s misfortune, the journey didn’t have the best of beginnings. 4000 Hindu
rebels were waiting for him just outside Delhi. Despite being outnumbered, Battuta claimed that
they survived the first wave but the next ambush separated him from his companions. He was robbed
of everything but his clothes and cloak and he barely made it through alive after being
imprisoned for a night. Somehow by a stroke of luck, Battuta found the convoy again and
they sailed south. At Calicut, Battuta met some Chinese Ships which were able to carry more than
a thousand crew and passengers. Battuta and his convoy boarded these ships in hopes of an easy
journey but fate had a storm waiting for them. The ships broke down at the shore and Battuta
helplessly witnessed most of the treasures, horses, and servants drown. Making matters worse,
the only surviving ship with Battuta’s luggage and servants, the one carrying Battuta’s child,
left him behind. Afraid to return to Tughlaq, Battuta chose to take a detour through the
Maldives and Sri Lanka to reach China. The Sultan of Maldives offered him the post of
High Judge and Battuta couldn’t refuse. The man took four more wives and rode the city roads on
horseback like a king which earned him envious enemies. When things got heated, he divorced all
of his new wives and left for Sri Lanka. But his bad luck continued. Leaving Sri Lanka for China,
the traveler was robbed again by pirates. It took him another attempt and 40 days of journey
to finally arrive at the seaport of Quanzhou on the coast of Fujian Province. Surprised to see
even beggars and monks wearing silk, he was astonished by their pottery and more shocked
by their customs. The rest of his journey in China is described vaguely but he spent nine
months there before he got homesick. On his way back to Tangier, Battuta learned the fates of
his many wives but three years later he retired to Tangiers telling grand tales of his travels.
He decided to extend his itinerary further to include Persia and Iraq in his travels before
returning to Mecca once more. The intrigue to learn more about Sufism led him to Basra,
Isfahan, and Baghdad. I am sure you are probably wondering how the heck he was financing such
lavish travels. In those days, charity had a very high value in Islam. Islamic rulers and
aristocrats were often judged and remembered by their charity just as much as by their power or
policy. Ibn Battuta visited these people and told them of the courts in other kingdoms, offered his
council, and entertained them with his stories and learning. Nearly everyone he met in this capacity,
no matter how humble, offered him gifts in return. But Baghdad’s Il-Khan, Abu Sa’id,
and Battuta formed a special friendship. Battuta and Il-Khan were nearly the same age and Battuta
described him as God’s most beautiful creature and he was impressed by the regent’s musical prowess
and wisdom. In a year he traveled more than 4,000 miles and crossed mountains and deserts
alike. After his first naval expedition to East Africa, Battuta returned to Mecca for his third
Hajj and visiting India was a priority on his mind. Not only did he want to meet the Sufi
saints but he was ambitious to work for the Sultan of ‘Muslim controlled India’. In November 1331,
Ibn Battuta sailed on the black sea but the guide intentionally misled him to extort money. However,
things got better for Battuta after catching up to the caravan of Ozbeg Khan, another descendant
of Genghis Khan. Ozbeg was the then ruler of the Golden Hoarde and his caravan was no less than
a city on wheels. Battuta wore three fur coats, two pairs of trousers, two pairs of heavy socks,
and heavy boots lined with bearskin. Whenever he washed with hot water, the water would run down
his beard and freeze. For five months he traveled through the lands that had suffered the worst of
a Mongol offense and it was nearly impossible to find any signs of remaining civilization.
Do you think you would have survived traveling the world in the 14th century? Tell us in
the comments below and as always, thanks for watching Nutty History.