A History of Agriculture in India v2.c50.22

v2.c50.22

Of the Islamic travellers who came to India during the Sultanate, the most perceptive was Ibn Battuta. On 14 June 1325, he started on his travels from his home town of Tangier in Morocco. He travelled in Africa, Arabia, Iran, Turkey, Central Asia, India and China. It is estimated that he covered 120,700 kilometres (75,000 miles) on foot, by horse and by camel. In India he enjoyed for some years the patronage of the Sultan Muhammed Tughlak, who appointed him *Qadi* of Delhi. Later on, he incurred the displeasure of the Sultan for associating with a dissident Sufi, and he thought it prudent to leave Delhi. The Sultan, out of politeness, appointed him his envoy to the Emperor of China, and he reached China by sea. On his return to Tangier, Ibn Battuta dictated his memoirs, which contain information on the people of the countries he visited, their climate, physical features, mineral products, fauna and flora. Incidentally, the only account of the crops of north India in the Sultanate period is in Ibn Battuta’s travelogue.