Camels, one of creation's most remarkable animals, are celebrated through this fascinating historical study of their place in the modern imperial era. Goudie’s wide-ranging research into the exploration and use of camels reveals dramatic stories and personalities, with an impressive geographical coverage. Includes descriptions of their biology, value, and benefits, then travelers’ stories link them to their historical context. Accompanied by splendid paintings, drawings, photos, and maps - and with an extensive bibliography - this volume entertains at the same time as providing a very comprehensive historical account of these amazing beasts.

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright page
• Contents
• Preface
• Chapter 1. Background
  • Biology and Evolution
    • Domestication
    • Distribution
  • History and Archaeology
    • Historical Importance of the Camel
    • Camels and Travel in Extreme Environments
    • Camels and Trade
    • Camels and Pilgrimage
    • Camels and Nomadic Societies
    • Camels and War
  • Camels in the Modern World
    • Australian Camels
    • USA Camels
    • Numbers
  • History of Research
    • Introduction
    • Count Buffon
    • George Perkins Marsh
  • Scope of the book and its main themes
• Chapter 2. Camels and the Exploration History of North Africa
  • Introduction: The North and East African Deserts
  • Charles-Jacques Poncet and James Bruce
  • William George Browne
  • Friedrich Hornemann
  • Hugh Clapperton
  • George Francis Lyon
  • René Caillié
  • Heinrich Bar th
  • Sir Samuel and Lady Baker
  • Gustav Nachtigal
  • Friedrich Gerhard Rohlfs
  • Robert Murdoch Smith and Edwin Porcher
  • Alexinde Tinne
  • Henri Duveyrier
  • Oskar Lenz and Camille Douls
  • Fernand Foureau
  • James Harrison
  • René Chudeau and Conrad Kilian
  • Andre Von Dumreicher
  • W.J. Harding King
  • Charles Furlong
  • Jean Tilho
  • Hanns Vischer
  • Nowell Barnard De Lancey Forth
  • Arthur Weigall
  • George Murray
  • Angus Buchanan
  • Ahmed Hassanein
  • Ludovico Mariano Nesbitt
  • Sir Charles Dalrymple Belgrave
  • Douglas Newbold and W.B.K. Shaw
  • Francis Rodd
  • Theodore Monod
• Chapter 3. Arabia, the Middle East and Iran
  • Introduction
  • Jean-Baptiste Tavernier
  • Joseph Pitts
  • Carsten Niebuhr
  • Johann Ludwig Burckhardt
  • James Raymond Wellsted
  • Sir Richard Burton
  • Henry Martyn Field
  • Lewis Pelly
  • William Gifford Palgrave
  • Samuel Barrett Miles
  • Anne and Wilfrid Blunt
  • Charles Montagu Doughty
  • Theodore and Mabel Bent
  • John Fryer Keene
  • Percy Cox
  • Gertrude Bell
  • ‘Jack’ Philby
  • Bertram Thomas
  • Wilfred Thesiger
• Chapter 4. Epilogue
  • Views on Camels
  • Camel Catastrophes
  • The Speed, Range, and Load-Carrying Capacity of Camels
  • Premature Deaths
  • Concluding Remarks
• References and Reading
• Index
• About the Author