The Project Gutenberg eBook, A Visit to the Holy Land, by Ida Pfeiffer,
Translated by H. W. Dulcken

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net

Title: A Visit to the Holy Land

Author: Ida Pfeiffer

Release Date: June 8, 2004 [eBook #12561]

Language: English

Character set encoding: US-ASCII

***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A VISIT TO THE HOLY LAND***

This ebook was prepared by Les Bowler, St. Ives, Dorset.

VISIT TO THE HOLY LAND, EGYPT, AND ITALY

[Illustration 1. Frontispiece:--JERUSALEM. ill1.jpg]

By Madame Ida Pfeiffer.

Translated from the German by H. W. Dulcken.

[Illustration 2. Title-page:--NAZARETH. ill2.jpg]

PREFACE BY THE VIENNA PUBLISHER

For two centuries the princes and nations of the West were
accustomed to wander towards the land of the morning. In vain was
the noblest blood poured forth in streams in the effort to wrest the
country of our heavenly Teacher from the grasp of the infidel; and
though the Christian Europe of the present day forbears to renew a
struggle which, considering the strength that has been gradually
increasing for the last six hundred years, might prove an easy one,
we cannot wonder that millions of the votaries of Christianity
should cherish an earnest longing to wander in the paths the
Redeemer has trod, and to view with their own eyes the traces of the
Saviour's progress from the cradle to the grave.

In the generality of cases, however, the hardships, dangers, and
difficulties of such a journey were sufficient to overthrow the
bravest resolution; and thus the wishes of the majority remained
unfulfilled.

Few _men_ were found to possess the degree of strength and endurance
requisite for the carrying out of such an undertaking; but that a
delicate lady of the higher classes, a native of Vienna, should have
the heroism to do what thousands of men failed to achieve, seemed
almost incredible.

In her earliest youth she earnestly desired to perform this journey;
descriptions of the Holy Land were perused by her with peculiar
interest, and a book of Eastern travel had more charms for her than
the most glowing accounts of Paris or London.

It was not, however, until our Authoress had reached a riper ag