“Al-Wazzan’s book was used in many goals, but for the myriad of educated readers that it reached over the centuries, it testifies to the possibility of communication and curiosity in a world divided by violence.” This is how Natalie Zemon Davis describe Descriptione dell’Africa (Description of Africa), handwritten workpan of Al-Wazzan, in his work Leon the African, a journey between two worlds. In History of Moroccothe historian Daniel Rivet, also defines this work as “the last radiographic shot to which a Maghreb letters are proceeded before the XXe century, from Thomas Pellow to Charles de Foucauld ”.
Description of Africa In particular, proposes a “spectral analysis of the Maghreb”, resolutely distinguished from those of writers who preceded it, inspired rather from an external look which is not often imbued with the subtleties that the realities of this region cover. In this sense, Rivet recalls that the work was written in Rome, during a capture after which Ali Al-Wazzan was made a slave before covering his freedom by converting to Christianity.
This book is distinguished in particular for having brilliantly combined the rhetorical genre of rihla and the inspirations of the Renaissance. “Thought in Arabic, written in Italian, translates into Latin, this clinical picture of North Africa produces a shock on the scholars of the Renaissance. It will serve as a quotes box for all Europeans writing on Morocco, ”adds Daniel Rivet. Thanks to its quality of story, the work which has quickly become a reference will make it possible to put into perspective the political situation of Morocco at the dawn of the XVIe century.
A report on the political situation of Morocco
In his story, Leon the African dwells on the political context of Morocco, explaining in particular how the Portuguese have ravaged several regions of the country. He evokes the refuge of the tribes hastened in the mountains, or their forced withdrawal under the Wattassides. “We see that the Portuguese sow discord between the inhabitants. Léon, who beats the campaign as an agent Wattasside, intercedes for a free man in charge of the channels, the only wrong to have been to have tongue with the invader, “reports Daniel Rivet in his work.
Léon the African then writes: “The king of Fez has, in truth, a great kingdom, but he has only a small income, which barely arrives at 300 ducats.” This cast of finances suggests that “only a fifth of the tribe taken from the subjects reaches the royal treasury”, according to Rivet. Also, the latter indicates that the traveling magistrate makes the link between the collapse of the knowledge transmission network and the illiteracy of rural societies from the interior of the country. Leon the African also deplores the fact that the populations of the Middle Atlas do not have access to an instruction.
Furthermore, he “laments the drop in the allowance awarded by the prince to scholars and medersa”, made which lets him establish a relationship between level of civilization and instruction. In this sense, it must be said that Léon the African already shared his bitterness, in his time, concerning the situation of education in Morocco and more generally in the region. Quoted in Rivet’s work, he then wrote:
“Today there was only a small annuity with which we could keep the teachers (…) This is perhaps a reason why the intellectual value of Fez declines, and not only Fez, but all the cities of Africa.”
A traveler-born
Born in Granada of Andalusian Muslim parents, probably at the end of the Reconquista (1494), Hassan al-Wazzan will face Al-Andalus with his family in 1492. It was in Fez that he would have studied before working for the Merinid sultans. Before traveling as a diplomat, Ali Al-Wazzan worked in the notariat and learned the Koran by heart from a young age. His traveler’s journey was drawn from then on. In 1515, he left the country to go to Istanbul, before meeting in Cairo, in 1517. From there, he went up the Nile to arrive in Assouan, then made the pilgrimage to Mecca.
In his writings, Hassan al-Wazzan says he visited Central Africa, Arabia and Armenia. During his return trip in 1519, his boat was attacked by Sicilian pirates. Led from Naples to Rome, he will stay in prison for some time at the Saint-Ange castle. Then, it is offered to Pope Leon X as a slave. Catechized in prison, he will be baptized by Pope Leo X who will impose his name to him, according to historical stories, hence his name Leon the African.
His mastery of the Spanish language will allow him to quickly learn Latin and Italian, and then blend into Italian society and more closely know the European decision -makers of the time, but also some royal courses.
In 1526, Léon the African therefore completed his work, based on his notes taken during his tumultuous trips. Composed of nine volumes, Description of Africa is still cited by those interested in the continent. According to historians, “Book VII describes the terra nigra, that is to say the regions of the south of the Sahara, which were unknown then; Book VIII covers Egypt; Book IX deals with history, geography, animals and plants which concern the places mentioned in the other eight books ”.
The work evokes, among other things, the wars that have gnawed at the region, including those that crossed Morocco. He notably attributes the responsibility for the decline of the State in the mode of designation of the Sultan, at a time when he could not have a general view of the absolute European monarchies from Rome, around which cited and principalities were born, as Daniel Rivet recalls.
On the death of his protector, Leon the African would have returned to Tunis and would have found his Muslim faith. On the other hand, few historical elements make it possible to trace the last moments of your life. The fact remains that his rich work Description of Africa testifies in itself of his hectic life, as well as the political and societal evolution of a continent, left subsequently in the grip of colonial and imperialist hegemonies.
