Barnaby Rogerson

A fresh look at the past, present and future of a conflict that lies at the heart of the Middle East

This collection On Travel is clever, funny, provoking and confrontational by turn. In a pyrotechnic display of cracking one- liners, cynical word play and comic observation, it mines three thousand years of wit and wisdom: from Martha Gellhorn to Confucius and from Pliny to Paul Theroux.

The English tend either to look towards the Lord in his moated castle or the poor peasant at his gate, to polarise between nob and mob, capitalist and communist. This book takes us into another English landscape. It is the tale of an ordinary family, quietly proud of their parish, pub and position, who treat their children as equals. The only extraordinary thing about them is that they have kept hold of their stories, which now reach back over fifteen generations. This chronicle told backwards from yesterday s gossip to the times of the Tudors reveals a contented England, lived in and loved by a family of vicars and farmers, colonels and brewers, naval commanders and horse-lovers. It is also an honest narrative, recording scandals and suicides beside occasional successes, be they on the battlefield, in the boardroom or the bedroom.

For 40 years, Barnaby Rogerson has travelled across North Africa, making sense of the region's complex and fascinating history as both a writer and a guide. Throughout that time, there have always been a handful of stories he could not pin into neat, tidy narratives; stories that were not distinctly good or bad, tragic or pathetic, selfish or heroic, malicious or noble. This book, neither a work of history nor travel writing, is a journey into the ruins of a landscape to make sense of these stories through the lives of five men and one woman. A sacrificial refugee (Queen Dido), a prisoner-of-war who became a compliant tool of the Roman Empire (King Juba), an unpromising provincial who, as Emperor, brought the Empire to its dazzling apogee (Septimius Severus), an intellectual careerist who became a bishop and a saint (St Augustine), the greatest General the world has ever known (Hannibal), and the Berber Cavalry General who eventually defeated him (Masinissa). Though all six lives have been clouded with as much myth as fact, the destinies of these North African figures remain highly relevant today. Their descendants are faced with the same choices: Do you stay pure to your own culture and fight against the power of the West, or do you study and assimilate this other culture, and utilise its skills? Will it greet you as an ally only to own you as a slave? The chosen heroes of this book represent classical North Africa, and not the familiar drum roll of Julius Caesar, Augustus, Trajan, Hadrian, Constantine and Justinian. In between these life stories, we explore ruins which tell their own tales and see the multiple interconnections that bind the culture of this region with the wider world, particularly the spiritual traditions of the ancient Near East. With photographs by Don McCullin.

After witnessing first-hand the death throes of this rich and captivating tradition, Richard Hamilton has tracked down the last few remaining storytellers of Morocco, recording stories that are replete with the mysteries and beauty of the Maghreb.Marrakech is the heart and lifeblood of Morocco's ancient storytelling tradition. For nearly a thousand years, storytellers have gathered in the Jemaa el Fna, the legendary square of the city, to recount ancient folktales and fables to rapt audiences.But this unique chain of oral tradition that has passed seamlessly from generation to generation is teetering on the brink of extinction. The competing distractions of television, movies and the internet have drawn the crowds away from the storytellers and few have the desire to learn the stories and continue their legacy.Moroccan tales have a huge educational, religious and moral impact on their audience, offering timeless values and guidance to all who listen. With their passing we risk losing something of Morocco's national psyche and also part of the world's tangible heritage.Those who have listened to the storytellers at Marrakech first-hand have witnessed something that is no longer part of this world, a treasure as precious as the planet's most endangered species and of immeasurable importance to humanity.

Ignorance about Islam runs deep in the West - ignorance of its rites, its beliefs, and above all its prophet. Who was Muhammad, the founder of Islam, and the man Muslims believe was God's last prophet on earth? In this concise and colourful account, the acclaimed writer and broadcaster Barnaby Rogerson tells the story of the illiterate orphan who was raised in the desert and trained as a merchant on the camel trade routes that criss-crossed Arabia, before defying his tribe to found a new religion, establish a world language, and create an almost unstoppable force that only 100 years after his death has conquered an empire stretching from the Pyrenees to the Hindu Kush. It was when he was 40 that Muhammad experienced his first revelation on a mountainside outside Mecca, hearing the divine order: "Recite!" From then until his flight from Mecca his tale is one of rejection and persecution, but it is also one of puzzling contradictions: why did he order the murder of a Jewish tribe? And why did he marry 10 times himself while restricting Muslims to four wives? Barnaby Rogerson examines his puzzling life, and how it has laid the foundation for a "clash of civilisations" between the Muslim and Christian worlds.

A history of the prophet's life and times offers a vivid portrayal of sixth-century Arabia, charting Muhammad's early years, the night he received his religious vision, his work to establish Islam and the classical Arabic of the Qur'an, and his role as the founder of a world empire and civilization.

The Last Crusaders is about the titanic contest between Hadsburg-led Christendom and the Ottoman Empire in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, the last great conflict between East and West - the battles that were fought and the men who led the armies that fought them. It was, in its way, the first world war.

Bursting with personal knowledge and practical information from a renowned expert on Morocco, this guidebook will let you in on the secrets of these three unique imperial cities and will give you complete insights into their history, religion, culture, and architecture. It offers practical, reliable advice on everything from negotiating the labyrinthine medinas to exploring the winding alleys and interlocking courtyards, as well as how to barter, and where to get the best bargains.

This title feature a dynamic two-color layout for easy navigation. The color section gives a photographic overview of the region, together with special features of the region, tailored itineraries and lists of the best things to do. It features full-color touring maps of the whole region. It has extensive listings of hotels and restaurants - all personally recommended for a really local flavor. It contains 'Top Don't Miss' sights for each regional chapter, plus 'Author Choices' of personal favorite places to stay and eat. It explores the winding alleys and interlocking courtyards of each of the three imperial cities. It helps you discover the snake charmers and magicians of Marrakesh, the hidden shrines and spice markets of medieval Fez, and the elegant monuments of modern-minded Rabat. It includes detailed coverage of nearby day-trip destinations from each of the three cities, including the Ourika Valley, Essaouira, Meknes, and Casablanca.

A pocket-sized collection of all the favourite verses that have inspired desert travellers. This collection of poems delights in constructing a sensual Orient of the imagination, from the seven golden odes of Pre-Islamic Arabia to the fevered visions of Coleridge. It is a place where sand dunes bear the impress of a lover, a land ruled by honour and hospitality, where poets and warriors are esteemed, where the sons of noble sheikhs labour in dignity as shepherds, but Kings are imprisoned within the cruelties of their palaces.

A wonderfully vivid history of Islam after Muhammad's death - and the sequel to Rogerson's acclaimed THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD

The Prophet Muhammad was the founder of a world empire and a new civilisation - this is his story.