City of the Saints

work by Burton

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June 24, 2026

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"City of the Saints" is a book written by Sir Richard Burton in 1861. It details his travels to Salt Lake City, the capital of the Mormon settlement in Utah, in 1860. Burton, an English scholar-explorer, provided a sophisticated analysis of the Mormon Church and its leader, Brigham Young. The book also offers a dispassionate account of the Mormon practice of polygamy, which was a controversial topic in America at the time. Burton's work is noted for its detailed observations and ethnological insights into the Mormon community during its territorial growth phase.12

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Sir Richard Burton
Exploration in Arabia
The resulting volume, City of the Saints (1861), showed that he could write with sophistication about the nature of the Mormon church, compose a vivid portrait of its leader, Brigham Young, and also be dispassionate about the Mormon practice of polygamy, which was then outraging most Americans. Shortly…
Read More
The resulting volume, City of the Saints (1861), showed that he could write with sophistication about the nature of the Mormon church, compose a vivid portrait of its leader, Brigham Young, and also be dispassionate about the Mormon practice of polygamy, which was then outraging most Americans. Shortly…
Read More