George Strachan of the Mearns

A fascinating study of one of early modern Scotland's most remarkable peregrinators

This book examines the life of George Strachan (1572-1635), early 17th-century Scottish Humanist scholar, Orientalist and traveller. Drawing on a wealth of newly discovered archival material to offer new insights into Strachan's life and work, it also utilises recent scholarship on the relationship between the cultures and religions of East and West.

Tom McInally explains the voyages that the Catholic exile took to many of the Catholic courts of Europe as a scholar and spy before turning eastwards to embark upon a 22-year journey around the Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal empires. By becoming fully literate in Arabic and Farsi, Strachan was able to gain a unique knowledge of Eastern societies. His collection of Arabic and Farsi texts on Islam, philosophy and humanities - which he translated and sent to Europe for the advancement of European knowledge of Islam and Islamic societies - became Strachan's real intellectual legacy.

Tom McInally is an Honorary Research Fellow at the Research Institute for Irish and Scottish Studies, University of Aberdeen.