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The Other Exile: The Remarkable Story of Fernão Lopes, the Island of St Helena and the meaning of human solitude
The first known inhabitant of St Helena – long before Napoleon – was a 16th-century Portuguese renegade.
In 1506 Fernão Lopes, a member of his country’s minor nobility, travelled to Goa in search of honour and wealth. There he converted to Islam, married a Muslim, fought his former countrymen, and was eventually captured – his nose and hands publicly cut off for treachery. Eventually sailing for home, he jumped ship at St. Helena, becoming the island’s first inhabitant, with only a black cockerel for company.
News of Lopes reached the King of Portugal. Picked up by a ship sent especially for him, Lopes so impressed the King, and the Pope in Rome, that he was granted one wish. He requested his return to St Helena.
Based on brand new research by A R Azzam, author of the acclaimed Saladin (Longman, 2007), The Other Exile is at once a historical adventure story and a meditation on solitude. It is a story about redemption in one of the darkest periods in Europe and the tale of the haunting relationship between man and wild nature.
In 1506 Fernão Lopes, a member of his country’s minor nobility, travelled to Goa in search of honour and wealth. There he converted to Islam, married a Muslim, fought his former countrymen, and was eventually captured – his nose and hands publicly cut off for treachery. Eventually sailing for home, he jumped ship at St. Helena, becoming the island’s first inhabitant, with only a black cockerel for company.
News of Lopes reached the King of Portugal. Picked up by a ship sent especially for him, Lopes so impressed the King, and the Pope in Rome, that he was granted one wish. He requested his return to St Helena.
Based on brand new research by A R Azzam, author of the acclaimed Saladin (Longman, 2007), The Other Exile is at once a historical adventure story and a meditation on solitude. It is a story about redemption in one of the darkest periods in Europe and the tale of the haunting relationship between man and wild nature.
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
354 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2017
6 people are currently reading
144 people want to read
About the author
A.R. Azzam
13 books20 followersDr Abdul Rahman Azzam is a graduate of Oxford University where he completed his BA and PhD in history. He is the author of RUMI AND THE KINGDOM OF JOY (Muhammadi Trust, 2000) and in 2007 Longman published his biography of Saladin to critical acclaim. The Edinburgh Evening News called it ‘a comprehensive survey not just of the man, but of the age in which he lived’, the FT Weekend described it as ‘absorbing’ and The Irish News praised the book as ‘timely and well-written'. SALADIN was a bestseller when published in Arabic and was selected in Jordan as one of the top one hundred books on Islam. THE OTHER EXILE, about the St Helena Island hermit, Fernão Lopes, a real-life Robinson Crusoe, was published in May 2017, and he is working on THE RETURN OF SEBASTIAN.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 15, 2019
Encontro com o Silêncio
“Esta não é apenas a história de um homem, de uma aventura, nem sequer de uma ilha. É a história de todos nós e daquilo que nos torna humanos.”
A Viagem de Fernão Lopes partiu dum Sonho (procurar riqueza na Índia) e foi concluída no Puro Silêncio da Ilha de Santa Helena.
Nós os humanos o que somos senão os malogrados buscadores do perene Mistério?! E o Silêncio?! Não será a Porta onde Ele irá bater?!...
“Esta não é apenas a história de um homem, de uma aventura, nem sequer de uma ilha. É a história de todos nós e daquilo que nos torna humanos.”
A Viagem de Fernão Lopes partiu dum Sonho (procurar riqueza na Índia) e foi concluída no Puro Silêncio da Ilha de Santa Helena.
Nós os humanos o que somos senão os malogrados buscadores do perene Mistério?! E o Silêncio?! Não será a Porta onde Ele irá bater?!...
November 19, 2019
The Way of Silence
This book is much more then the adventurous life of Fernão Lopes. It’s a book about an historical period — the century of Vasco da Gama and Pedro Álvares Cabral (among others of the kind) — and the way it shaped people’s lives. Moreover, at the core, it’s a book about us humans, and our frustrating, unceasing Mystery Quest...
Does it provide answers?
Nope... it doesn’t
However, it points a possible Way to get them:
The Way of Silence 👍
This book is much more then the adventurous life of Fernão Lopes. It’s a book about an historical period — the century of Vasco da Gama and Pedro Álvares Cabral (among others of the kind) — and the way it shaped people’s lives. Moreover, at the core, it’s a book about us humans, and our frustrating, unceasing Mystery Quest...
Does it provide answers?
Nope... it doesn’t
However, it points a possible Way to get them:
The Way of Silence 👍
June 12, 2020
Sempre senti curiosidade em ler livros sobre factos históricos de Portugal escritos por não-portugueses por acreditar que, quem conta a história, por mais imparcial que queira ser, acaba sempre por transmitir algo da sua interpretação pessoal.
Este livro não é excepção. Embora o retrato dos Descobrimentos portugueses esteja mais distanciado dos nossos manuais escolares, nota-se um claro favoritismo pela história mulçumana e pela fé do Islão.
Não deixou de ser interessante para mim ter outra perspectiva, mas veio provar a minha teoria que ninguém consegue ser 100% imparcial.
Outro problema que este livro me colocou tem a ver com o género. É, supostamente, um livro de não-ficção, mas são tantas as suposições e até mesmo ficções (redigidas em itálico) que acaba por se afastar demasiado do pretendido.
Não obstante, gostei de conhecer a história deste Fernão Lopes (não confundir com o cronista homónimo) e da ilha de Santa Helena.
Este livro não é excepção. Embora o retrato dos Descobrimentos portugueses esteja mais distanciado dos nossos manuais escolares, nota-se um claro favoritismo pela história mulçumana e pela fé do Islão.
Não deixou de ser interessante para mim ter outra perspectiva, mas veio provar a minha teoria que ninguém consegue ser 100% imparcial.
Outro problema que este livro me colocou tem a ver com o género. É, supostamente, um livro de não-ficção, mas são tantas as suposições e até mesmo ficções (redigidas em itálico) que acaba por se afastar demasiado do pretendido.
Não obstante, gostei de conhecer a história deste Fernão Lopes (não confundir com o cronista homónimo) e da ilha de Santa Helena.
June 21, 2025
هذه سيرة نبيل من نبلاء البرتغال كان ممن سافر إلى الهند مع الأساطيل البرتغالية في بدايات اكتشاف طريق الهند عبر الرجاء الصالح، وفي الهند أسلم وتزوج مسلمة وقاتل مع الهنود ضد بني قومه، وقُبض عليه وعذب بطريقة وحشية وقاسية، فجدعو أنفه وقطعوا أذنيه، ويده اليمنى، وإبهام يده اليسرى.
وفي طريق عودتهم للبرتغال توقفت السفينة عند جزيرة (سانت هيلانة) للتزود بالمياه -ولم تكن مأهولة بالسكان حينها، وهي الجزيرة التي نفي إليها نابليون بونابرت فيما بعد- فلما رأى لوبيز الجزيرة وجدها مكاناً رائعاً للخلوة والابتعاد عن الناس فقرر المكث فيها، فاختبأ عن طاقم السفينة في كهف من الكهوف، وعندما أرادوا الارتحال بحثوا عنه كثيراً فلم يجدوه فارتحلوا، وتركوا له على الشاطئ طعاماً ولباساً، وكتب القبطان رسالة للسفن التي ستأتي من بعده تخبرهم أن بالجزيرة نبيل من النبلاء يستحق التقدير والاحترام، وعلقها على جذع شجرة.
عاش لوبيز في هذه الجزيرة أربعة عشر عاماً وحيداً، وكان في السنوات الأولى كلما رست سفينة اختبأ عنهم، وكانت السفن لا تمر على هذه الجزيرة إلا مرة أو مرتين في السنة، وكلما مرت سفينة تركوا لها طعاماً ولباساً بعد قراءتهم لرسالة القبطان السابق.
وبعد عدة سنوات عثر عليه بعض أفراد طاقم إحدى السفن وهو نائم في كهفه فأمسكوا به ونزلوا به إلى الشاطئ، وبالكاد في اليوم التالي تحدث مع قائد السفينة وشرح له قصته، فتركوه في منفاه الاختياري، وأخذ منهم بعض البذور ليزرعها.
بدأت قصته تنتشر وتتناقلها الأفواه حتى وصل أمره لملك البرتغال فطلب إحضاره للبرتغال، وبالفعل أُتي به للبرتغال بعد أربعة عشر عاماً من العزلة فقابل الملك وزوجته -ويقال إنه أرسل لمقابلة بابا الفاتيكان- وبعد ذلك أعادوه من البرتغال لجزيرته، وعاش بقية حياته فيها حتى وافاه الأجل.
د.عبدالرحمن عزام بذل جهداً كبيراً في كتابة سيرة هذا الرجل، فالمعلومات الواردة عنه شحيحة جداً، وفي بعضها شيء من التضارب، فرجع عند كتابة هذه السيرة لمخطوطات الأرشيف البرتغالي، وإلى المراسلات الرسمية التي كانت بين الهند والبرتغال لاستخراج أي معلومة تتعلق بلوبيز، ورجع كذلك إلى الأرشيف الفاتيكان وغيرها كثير ليستخرج بالمنقاش كل ما يتعلق بسيرة (فرناو لوبيز) العجيبة، ولكون المعلومات المتوفرة شحيحة جداً اضطر لسد ثغرات سيرته باستنتاجات من عنده أو إثارة تساؤلات وتركها من غير إجابات. ومع كون هذه القصة عجيبة جداً إلا أن جهد د.عبدالرحمن في جمعها أعجب.
ويبقى التساؤل هل ارتد لوبيز عن الإسلام أم بقي على اسلامه حتى وفاته؟
وفي طريق عودتهم للبرتغال توقفت السفينة عند جزيرة (سانت هيلانة) للتزود بالمياه -ولم تكن مأهولة بالسكان حينها، وهي الجزيرة التي نفي إليها نابليون بونابرت فيما بعد- فلما رأى لوبيز الجزيرة وجدها مكاناً رائعاً للخلوة والابتعاد عن الناس فقرر المكث فيها، فاختبأ عن طاقم السفينة في كهف من الكهوف، وعندما أرادوا الارتحال بحثوا عنه كثيراً فلم يجدوه فارتحلوا، وتركوا له على الشاطئ طعاماً ولباساً، وكتب القبطان رسالة للسفن التي ستأتي من بعده تخبرهم أن بالجزيرة نبيل من النبلاء يستحق التقدير والاحترام، وعلقها على جذع شجرة.
عاش لوبيز في هذه الجزيرة أربعة عشر عاماً وحيداً، وكان في السنوات الأولى كلما رست سفينة اختبأ عنهم، وكانت السفن لا تمر على هذه الجزيرة إلا مرة أو مرتين في السنة، وكلما مرت سفينة تركوا لها طعاماً ولباساً بعد قراءتهم لرسالة القبطان السابق.
وبعد عدة سنوات عثر عليه بعض أفراد طاقم إحدى السفن وهو نائم في كهفه فأمسكوا به ونزلوا به إلى الشاطئ، وبالكاد في اليوم التالي تحدث مع قائد السفينة وشرح له قصته، فتركوه في منفاه الاختياري، وأخذ منهم بعض البذور ليزرعها.
بدأت قصته تنتشر وتتناقلها الأفواه حتى وصل أمره لملك البرتغال فطلب إحضاره للبرتغال، وبالفعل أُتي به للبرتغال بعد أربعة عشر عاماً من العزلة فقابل الملك وزوجته -ويقال إنه أرسل لمقابلة بابا الفاتيكان- وبعد ذلك أعادوه من البرتغال لجزيرته، وعاش بقية حياته فيها حتى وافاه الأجل.
د.عبدالرحمن عزام بذل جهداً كبيراً في كتابة سيرة هذا الرجل، فالمعلومات الواردة عنه شحيحة جداً، وفي بعضها شيء من التضارب، فرجع عند كتابة هذه السيرة لمخطوطات الأرشيف البرتغالي، وإلى المراسلات الرسمية التي كانت بين الهند والبرتغال لاستخراج أي معلومة تتعلق بلوبيز، ورجع كذلك إلى الأرشيف الفاتيكان وغيرها كثير ليستخرج بالمنقاش كل ما يتعلق بسيرة (فرناو لوبيز) العجيبة، ولكون المعلومات المتوفرة شحيحة جداً اضطر لسد ثغرات سيرته باستنتاجات من عنده أو إثارة تساؤلات وتركها من غير إجابات. ومع كون هذه القصة عجيبة جداً إلا أن جهد د.عبدالرحمن في جمعها أعجب.
ويبقى التساؤل هل ارتد لوبيز عن الإسلام أم بقي على اسلامه حتى وفاته؟
July 16, 2023
سيرة ذاتية اكثر من رائعة عن فرناو لوبيز الرحالة البرتغالي بقلم العظيم الدكتور عبد الرحمن عزام صاحب كتاب سيرة صلاح الدين الايوبي التي انصح بقراتها لمحبي هذا الاسطورة الاسلامية
كتاب مبذول فيه جهد عنيف و فيه تفاصيل راائعة عن الفترة الذهبية للبرتغال في فترة اكتشاف راس الرجاء الصالح و الوصول للهند
يستحق ٥ نجوم بجدارة
كتاب مبذول فيه جهد عنيف و فيه تفاصيل راائعة عن الفترة الذهبية للبرتغال في فترة اكتشاف راس الرجاء الصالح و الوصول للهند
يستحق ٥ نجوم بجدارة
May 5, 2025
A very interesting story, but, especially given the scarcity of resources on the subject, the book is way too long.
February 5, 2020
" The stars would have shone so brightly as he stood transfixed gazing heavenwards that they seemed to be pressing down on him, so close, he could almost pluck them by hand. There were times when the stars were so numerous that they overwhelmed him with such desolation that it felt he was falling off the edge of the world. But there were also times when he felt that he was a king to whom the stars and planet, moon and the sun had all come to pay silent homage. The moon that shone over the island was bright, and when it was full Lopes could see as clearly as if it were early morning."
November 25, 2021
A fascinating tale of a 16th-century Portuguese dude who ends up living alone on an island for several decades; this book is really well researched and written. The challenge is that sources are scanty and sometimes conflicting, so the author ends up doing some (informed) speculation, as well as writing some brief dramatized snippets of scenes that may have happened. This stuff is all clearly demarcated, though, so it didn't bug me.
May 13, 2024
This is the true and indeed remarkable story of one of the most unusual figures in the history of Portugal, that is the portuguese hermit who was the first inhabitant of Saint Helena. Fernão Lopes was a former officer in the Portuguese army who defected to the Sultanate of Bijapur during the conquest of Goa in India, supposedly converted to Islam, was captured, terribly punished by his former comrades and in the end chose voluntary exhile in one of the most remoted places on Earth for the rest of his life like someone who seeks penance for his sins.
The author claims to have embarked on the research and writing of this book after having briefly read that the first inhabitant of Saint Helena was a "Portuguese Muslim". While it's good that Fernão Lopes had a biography written about him (and is the reason I'm giving it 3 stars), make no mistake, the reason this book was made is evidently because the author identified with the religious choice of Lopes, although the sources aren't clear on that aspect, while the rest of the Portuguese, who were enemies of Islam, he clearly does not respect and holds in contempt. Which I think is an honest shame.
While the author also admits that he found no evidence to support it, he bizarrely accepts as true the idea that an officer as important as Lopes must have been a New Christian or a Jewish person converted to Catholicism anyway. Presumably, whatever made Lopes less Portuguese, the better.
The author claims to have embarked on the research and writing of this book after having briefly read that the first inhabitant of Saint Helena was a "Portuguese Muslim". While it's good that Fernão Lopes had a biography written about him (and is the reason I'm giving it 3 stars), make no mistake, the reason this book was made is evidently because the author identified with the religious choice of Lopes, although the sources aren't clear on that aspect, while the rest of the Portuguese, who were enemies of Islam, he clearly does not respect and holds in contempt. Which I think is an honest shame.
While the author also admits that he found no evidence to support it, he bizarrely accepts as true the idea that an officer as important as Lopes must have been a New Christian or a Jewish person converted to Catholicism anyway. Presumably, whatever made Lopes less Portuguese, the better.
August 19, 2023
An interesting book, this. It purports to be the story of Fernao Lopes; it sort of is, but the author acknowledges that there is little clarity in the historical record, so a lot of it has to be inferred.
Instead, what we really have is a history of one part of the Portuguese empire forming at that specific time, in a really well written and very engaging way, with some additional info about certain areas such as St Helena itself. A very good read.
One negative comment: could have done with slightly more editing - there's a couple of spots where exact sentences are repeated on back to back pages, entirely unnecessarily, and in one case that is a quote ascribed to two different people, mere paragraphs apart. But hey, it doesn't ruin anything, it just jars.
Instead, what we really have is a history of one part of the Portuguese empire forming at that specific time, in a really well written and very engaging way, with some additional info about certain areas such as St Helena itself. A very good read.
One negative comment: could have done with slightly more editing - there's a couple of spots where exact sentences are repeated on back to back pages, entirely unnecessarily, and in one case that is a quote ascribed to two different people, mere paragraphs apart. But hey, it doesn't ruin anything, it just jars.
April 14, 2025
A estória de Fernão Lopes é absolutamente fascinante, mesmo antes de chegar à ilha de Santa Helena, onde foi habitante único durante longos anos e aonde quis voltar depois de levado a Lisboa, e onde acabou por morrer. O problema da estória é que os documentos históricos são poucos, as pontas soltas mais do que as certezas - até a parte se de facto viveu sozinho na ilha ou tinha um escravo consigo.
O autor do livro lança várias especulações e divagações, mas não faz um romance ficcional. Começa por contar a história da chegada dos portugueses à Índia e eventualmente chega à conversão de Fernão Lopes ao islão. O problema é que o autor não traz qualquer nova fonte, as suas fontes são exclusivamente portuguesas e lidas por si de forma traduzida. As especulações que lança sobre a conversão de Fernão Lopes roçam o proselitismo e o viés em geral é demasiado marcado (os Portugueses chegaram à Índia de forma violentíssima - verdade, mas os muçulmanos fizeram-no em paz e harmonia - obviamente falso).
Apesar dessas flagrantes fragilidades, a estória de Fernão Lopes é tão fascinante que o livro é ainda assim uma leitura interessante, embora muitas páginas devam ser descontadas como pura especulação. Talvez a melhor forma de abordar esta estória seja de facto a ficção, mas assumida como tal e escrita numa estrututa de romance. Este livro pode servir de inspiração para isso mesmo para algum outro autor.
O autor do livro lança várias especulações e divagações, mas não faz um romance ficcional. Começa por contar a história da chegada dos portugueses à Índia e eventualmente chega à conversão de Fernão Lopes ao islão. O problema é que o autor não traz qualquer nova fonte, as suas fontes são exclusivamente portuguesas e lidas por si de forma traduzida. As especulações que lança sobre a conversão de Fernão Lopes roçam o proselitismo e o viés em geral é demasiado marcado (os Portugueses chegaram à Índia de forma violentíssima - verdade, mas os muçulmanos fizeram-no em paz e harmonia - obviamente falso).
Apesar dessas flagrantes fragilidades, a estória de Fernão Lopes é tão fascinante que o livro é ainda assim uma leitura interessante, embora muitas páginas devam ser descontadas como pura especulação. Talvez a melhor forma de abordar esta estória seja de facto a ficção, mas assumida como tal e escrita numa estrututa de romance. Este livro pode servir de inspiração para isso mesmo para algum outro autor.
September 13, 2021
Who knew non-fiction could be so thrilling? I struggled to put this book down. And why hadn't we heard this remarkable story before, which is moreover set against the backdrop of critical historical periods such as the Spanish reconquista, the Portuguese Inquisition, and European colonization of India among other places? Netflix should make this into a mini-series right away, if you ask me.
October 26, 2025
This was a good book on a topic I don't really know anything about. However I do feel it's status as a non fiction book is a bit tenuous as due to a lack of sources the author made quite a lot of stuff up.
December 30, 2020
"And as Saint Helena drew nearer and nearer, a thought may we'll have settled in Lope's mind: here was a godforsaken place for a godforsaken soul"
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews