The Last Moors: Maghariba in Early Eighteenth-Century Britain

The article focuses on the presence of Maghariba in Britain in the early part of the 18th century. It uses two groups of sources. The first group consists of petitions which Maghariba addressed to the monarchs and to the court describing their plight in London and asking for compensation for losses incurred as a result of piratical attacks in the Mediterranean. The second group consists of letters written by an Armenian who was sent as the Moroccan ambassador to Britain between 1711-1715. As a result of a Moroccan capture of a British vessel, the ambassador was held under house arrest on Dartmouth Street until the crisis was resolved. The article demonstrates the extent to which Maghariba became familiar with Britain in the period under study, and the willingness of the Moroccan ruler, Mulay Ismail, to employ Christians in his service.