author
Hadji (Gazanfar Ali) Khan
A rare early travel writer, he offered English-language readers a firsthand account of the 1902 pilgrimage to Mecca. His best-known book blends observation, movement, and a strong sense of place, making it an unusual window into the Hajj at the turn of the 20th century.
1 Audiobook
With the pilgrims to Mecca: The great pilgrimage of A.H. 1319; A.D. 1902
by Hadji (Gazanfar Ali) Khan, Wilfrid Sparroy
About the author
Very little biographical information about this author is easy to confirm today, but contemporary editions of With the Pilgrims to Mecca identify him as Hadji Khan (Gazanfar Ali), a member of the Royal Asiatic Society and a special correspondent for the Morning Post. The book was published in 1905 and was written with Wilfrid Sparroy, with an introduction by the noted scholar Ármin Vámbéry.
The work grew out of a serial account first published under the title The Great Pilgrimage, and it remains the main reason the author is remembered. It follows the pilgrimage of A.H. 1319 / A.D. 1902 and stands out as a vivid travel narrative centered on the routes, rituals, and atmosphere surrounding the journey to Mecca.
Because reliable personal details are scarce, it is safest to see him through the book itself: as a guide, observer, and narrator of one of the world's great religious journeys. Readers interested in travel writing, Islamic history, or firsthand accounts of the Hajj will likely find his work especially rewarding.