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The Richard Burton Library

The Richard Burton Library

By: Sir Richard Francis Burton
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Enter The Richard Burton Library, wherein the curious listener may accompany that restless company of pilgrims, wanderers, merchants, poets, princes, and philosophers who people the books of Sir Richard Francis Burton. Here are his works read in full: voyages into Arabia, Africa, India, and the chambers of ancient story; observations of men and manners; translations from tongues remote and richly storied; and those strange byways of learning which Burton pursued with equal parts courage, appetite, and disdain for convention. For the lover of travel, letters, and the wider world, the road begins here.Public domain Social Sciences Travel Writing & Commentary
Episodes
  • Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah & Meccah Chapter VIII - From Cairo to Suez

    Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah & Meccah Chapter VIII - From Cairo to Suez
    Jun 20 2026
    In which the tumult aboard the cramped vessel gives way to uneasy truces amid the company of pilgrims and sojourners, while the voyage along the classic yet perilous coasts unfolds with vivid scenes of natural splendour, local superstition, and the patient endurance of heat and hardship. We find our party navigating both physical dangers of reefs and the prickly tempers of their fellow wayfarers, punctuated by moments of respite at ancient wells and bustling coffee-houses, all set against a backdrop of desert legends and the patient rhythm of the Red Sea.
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    50 mins
  • Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah & Meccah Chapter VII - Preparations to Quit Cairo

    Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah & Meccah Chapter VII - Preparations to Quit Cairo
    Jun 20 2026
    In which the author recounts his arrival at Suez, the recovery of lost effects through a turbid encounter with the local governor, and the gathering of a motley company of pilgrims whose varied natures and scanty funds provide both companionship and occasional discord. Thereafter, the narrative wends its way to the crowded, disorderly pilgrim ship, where the coarse manners of the Maghrabi passengers and the clamorous struggle for space promise trials aplenty upon the voyage ahead.
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    48 mins
  • Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah & Meccah Chapter VI - The Mosque

    Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah & Meccah Chapter VI - The Mosque
    Jun 19 2026
    In which the author prepares carefully for his desert pilgrimage, navigating the intricate social and bureaucratic customs of Cairo with a judicious mix of patience and cunning, and makes acquaintance with an Albanian officer whose tempestuous character leads to a memorable but reputation-testing episode. Thereafter, mounted upon dromedaries and attended by Bedouin guides, he embarks upon the arduous journey to Suez, where the austere and stirring desert landscape awakens reflections on the tribes, the rawness of nature, and the noble resilience of the wandering Arab.
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    59 mins
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