The exotic tale of one mans unquenchable thirst for power vathek, the ninth caliph of the abassides, took the throne at. Vathek william beckford thomas keymer download free ebook. He also is renowned for having built fonthill abbey, the most sensational building of the english gothic revival. Librivox recording of the history of the caliph vathek by william beckford. Vathek by william beckford meet your next favorite book.
Wikipedia article, commons category, wikidata item. One of the strangest and most unforgettable eighteenthcentury novels, vatheks tale of the caliphs obsessive quest for knowledge, and his eternal damnation, is a wild gothic fantasy whose sensuous imagination and grotesque comedy have inspired writers from byron to lovecraft. Just dont buy this if you want to read the story of vathek himself. The history of caliph vathek by william beckford freeebooks. An illustration of a computer application window wayback machine an illustration of an open book.
However, there are a great many supernatural elements taken from arab mythology, at least as they were understood by william beckford. Born the son of a lord mayor of london, beckford was extremely wealthy from a young age, and was once the wealthiest commoner in england. Beckfords later work, the episodes of vathek, shares vatheks irreverent and decadent style, and an edition that unites the two has long been overdue. Horace walpole, mario praz, mary shelley, peter fairclough, william beckford. Project gutenberg offers 61,954 free ebooks to download.
William beckford, born in 1759, the year before the accession of king george the third, was the son of an alderman who became twice lord mayor of london. William beckford, born september 29, 1760, london, englanddied may 2, 1844, bath, somerset, eccentric english dilettante, author of the gothic novel vathek 1786. Global grey free pdf, epub, kindle ebook pages pdf. Vathek is an arabian caliph whose reign is marked by turbulence and unrest. It is the later the episodes of vathek, three related gothic short stories. Samuel henley, who published it anonymously, claiming in the preface that the novel was his own translated from an arabic original. Read vathek by william beckford available from rakuten kobo.
Vathek ebook by william beckford 9781504010726 rakuten. Project gutenberg offers 61,922 free ebooks to download. A sensuous person, he builds five palaces, each devoted to the enjoyment of one of the five senses, and his fondness for. William beckfords vathek is a touchstone of eighteenthcentury orientalism and of the gothic novel. Beckford was also influenced by similar works from the french writer voltaire. He seeks also forbidden knowledge, and doesnt care who he has to hurt to get it. Download the ebook the history of caliph vathek william beckford in pdf or epub format and read it directly on your mobile phone, computer or any device. Vathek capitalized on the 18th and early 19th century obsession with all things oriental, which was inspired by antoine gallands translation of the arabian nights. Vathek is considered a gothic novel, but there it little gothic about it. From wikisource download william beckford of fonthill or read online books in pdf, epub, tuebl, and mobi format. Beckford s later work, the episodes of vathek, shares vathek s irreverent. Vathek 1887vathek wikisource, the free online library. Aided by his depraved mother carathis, vathek proceeds to damn himself, and those around him.
There are no churches or castles, and the maiden does not run from the caliph for long. The history of caliph vathek by william beckford full. Vathek, gothic novel by william beckford, published in 1786. Vathek by william beckford at the best online ebook storage.
Download free vathek book in pdf and epub free download. Three gothic novels horace walpole mary shelley william beckford mario praz peter fairclough 20191003t09. The history of caliph vathek is a fictional arabian tale based on the the life of the caliph alwathiq. Beckfords gothic novel, vathek, an arabian tale, was originally written in french when the author was 21. Free download of the history of caliph vathek by william beckford. Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. The history of the caliph vathek by william beckford on.
Read the history of caliph vathek, by william beckford in html for free. Witches, demons, human sacrifices and other spectral horrors. Read the history of the caliph vathek by william beckford by william beckford available from rakuten kobo. Considered a masterpiece of bizarre invention and sustained fantasy, vathek was written in french in 1782 and was translated into english by the authors friend the rev. Its hero is the caliph vathek who renounces islam in a hedonistic quest for supernatural powers, which leads to his downfall. Four gothic novels by horace walpole, 9780192823311, download free ebooks, download free pdf epub ebook. Vathek by william beckford, 9780199576951, download free ebooks, download free pdf epub ebook. William beckford english authors by gemmett, robert j.
The history of the caliph vathekwilliam beckfordfree. Vathek is a gothic novel written by william beckford. His parents were william beckford and maria hamilton, daughter of the hon. Vathek by william beckford, free pdf, ebook global grey. William thomas beckford 1 october 1760 2 may 1844 was an english novelist, a profligate and consummately knowledgeable art collector and patron of works of decorative art, a critic, travel writer and sometime politician, reputed at one stage in his life to be the richest commoner in england. William beckford s vathek is a touchstone of eighteenthcentury orientalism and of the gothic novel. Download william beckfords the history of the caliph vathek for. The history of the caliph vathek by william beckford. The history of the caliph vathek by william beckford ebook. Vathek, 3rd edition, annotated, 1816 transcription project vathek, with introduction, 1887 external.
Beckford wrote vathek, his most wellknown work, in 1786. Chronicles the fall from power of the caliph vathek, who renounces islam and engages with his mother, carathis, in a series of. While not the book i actually expected, the stories were still entertaining and wellwritten. William thomas beckford 17601844 was a novelist, an art collector, a critic, a composer, a travel writer, and a politician. Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by.
Click download or read online button to get william beckford of fonthill book now. The history of the caliph vathek william beckford format. Download and read online for free vathek by william beckford. Download the history of caliph vathek william beckford. I knew little about vathek or william beckford before this it has been classified as a gothic novel and was written in the 1780s byron cited it as a source and keats certainly was influenced by beckford s descriptions of the underworld lovecraft and poe were also influenced as have been other writers in the fantasy genre there is a touch of the. This book is available for free download in a number of formats including epub, pdf, azw, mobi and more. There is a ghost of a moral in the story of a sensual caliph going to the bad, as represented by his. Vathek is one of the earliest and most influential gothic novels. Vathek, william beckford, edited with an introduction by roger lonsdale, london. Oxford university press, 197049, 187 pages vathek alternatively titled vathek, an arabian tale or the history of the caliph vathek is a gothic novel written by william beckford. The happy thought of this william beckfords life was vathek. It is a story that paints neither man nor outward nature as they are, but reproduces with happy vivacity the luxuriant imagery and wild incidents of an arabian tale.