Alphonse de Lamartine
A French writer, poet, and politician whose study of Ottoman history led him to a profound appreciation of Prophet Muhammad’s character and legacy.
About Him
Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine (1790–1869) was a French writer, poet, and politician who was instrumental in the foundation of the Second Republic. He is known for his poetic works and his historical study Histoire de la Turquie, in which he wrote extensively about Prophet Muhammad ﷺ with great admiration and scholarly respect.
What he said about Islam
On the Greatness of Prophet Muhammad
"As regards all standards by which human greatness may be measured, we may well ask, is there any man greater than he? He fought, he taught others how to fight, he was magnanimous after victory, his ambition was entirely for the benefit of an idea, not for an empire. His prayers, his mystic communion with God were a necessary part of his everyday activities — truly, philosopher, orator, apostle, lawgiver, warrior, conqueror of ideas, restorer of rational beliefs, creator of twenty earthly empires and of one spiritual empire — this is Muhammad."
Lamartine, A. Histoire de la Turquie. Paris, 1854.Context
Lamartine wrote as a Western observer during the 19th century, a time when European scholarship was beginning to engage more seriously with Islamic history. His admiration for Prophet Muhammad was notable given the prevailing biases of his era.