The International Prester John Project: How A Global Legend Was Created Across Six Centuries

François Pétis de la Croix

Born the son of the Arabic interpreter of the French court, François Pétis de la Croix (1653-1713) too served this office and became a respected orientalist of his day, having spent ten years in Syria, Persia, and Turkey in his early adulthood. 

In 1710, François edited and published his late father's biography of Genghis Khan called Histoire de Genghizcan, which includes speculation about the origins of the Letter of Prester John. The work was translated into English in 1722 as History of Genghizcan the Great, First Emperor of the Ancient Moguls and Tartars, and became an influential text for some famous residents of the American Colonies. 

François Pétis de la Croix also published an Account of Ethiopia. 

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