A Man of Three Worlds: Samuel Pallache, a Moroccan Jew in Catholic and Protestant Europe

by Mercedes García-Arenal, Gerard Wiegers

In the late fifteenth century, many of the Jews expelled from Spain made their way to Morocco and established a dynamic community in Fez. A number of Jewish families became prominent in commerce and public life there. Among the Jews of Fez of Hispanic origin was Samuel Pallache, who served the Moroccan sultan as a commercial and diplomatic agent in Holland until Pallache's death in 1616. Before that, he had tried to return with his family to Spain, and to this end he tried to convert to Catholicism and worked as an informer, intermediary, and spy in Moroccan affairs for the Spanish court. Later he became a privateer against Spanish ships and was tried in London for that reason. His religious identity proved to be as mutable as his political when in Amsterdam, he was devoutly Jewish; when in Spain, a loyal converso (a baptized Jew). In A Man of Three Worlds , Mercedes García-Arenal and Gerard Wiegers view Samuel Pallache's world as a microcosm of early modern society, one far more interconnected, cosmopolitan, and fluid than is often portrayed. Pallache's missions and misadventures took him from Islamic Fez and Catholic Spain to Protestant England and Holland. Through these travels, the authors explore the workings of the Moroccan sultanate and the Spanish court, the Jewish communities of Fez and Amsterdam, and details of the Atlantic-Mediterranean trade. At once a sweeping view of two continents, three faiths, and five nation-states and an intimate story of one man's remarkable life, A Man of Three Worlds is history at its most compelling.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, Jewish, 16th Century

200 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Mercedes García-Arenal is a research professor at the Higher Council of Scientific Research in Madrid.

Reviews

[Chad Mitchell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite good. Bit about prominent Moroccan Jewish families claiming descent from Muhammad was most interesting!

[Sophie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Storia interesante ed intricata con particolare sfondo storico.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part of Muhlenberg history course 'Mediterranean Encounters' and a real eye opener.

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book shares the same problems I held against _The Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean_ -- if you take the records of the Inquisition at face value, you've lost me.

Beyond that, this book finished well, but still doesn't compare well to the mini-bio in TJPOTC. This is probably more accurate history than the version of Pallache's life in TJPOTC, but it's not nearly as well written or interesting.


So I guess I'm preferring the well-written myth to the well-documented, disappearing blah. If have you read that instead and enjoy yourself.

Coolest thing about this book? It's not substantive, but I love the cover, which uses a portrait Rembrandt painted of a Dutch Jewish man in Moroccan dress. I love it because it's beautiful, I love it because it's Rembrandt capturing the humanity of a medieval Jew, and I love it because my kids, while at the National Museum of Art, saw it on a wall, without introduction, and ran over to see the real version of "daddy's book." So I'm even helping my kids get all cultured by reading about the Pirate Rabbi. And, come on, that and the nickname make anything sharing this subject and cover pretty cool.

[Nazila · Rating 4 out of 5]

when I came to Canada, I tried to read the books and watch the movies and documentaries about some issues that were taboo in Iran, like Jews, Behais, Israel.
this book is about the life of a Jewish businessman who traded the goods between Spain, Morocco, and Netherlands. Because of his job and the pressure in these three countries on Jew people, he changed from Judaism to Christianity and Islam. It's about 150 pages book, but through this biography, there are many things I understood better.
For instance, when I watched the movies about Second World War, I wondered why the Jews had never resisted against the stars on their custom. It seems the Jews are always used to dress differently. some pages of this book is about how the Jews dressed up differently during 15th century and it seems it's a must.

[little loving library · Rating 5 out of 5]

History and Novel mixed in a wonderful book to read in one shot.
It Is not a light book but I dreamed through it and I Better understood what happened in that time from the historical and political point of view

[Kimberly Huddleston]

Very nice if you love history like I do.