Vathek capitalised on the eighteenth (and early nineteenth) century obsession with all things Oriental (see Orientalism), which was inspired by Antoine Galland's translation of The … See more

William Beckford wrote Vathek in French in 1782, when he was 21. He often stated that Vathek was written as an emotional response to "the events that happened at Fonthill at … See more

The novel chronicles the fall from power of the Caliph Vathek, who renounces Islam and engages with his mother, Carathis, in a series of licentious and deplorable activities designed to gain him supernatural powers. At the end of the novel, instead of attaining these … See more

Carathis Vathek's mother. She is a Greek woman who is well versed in science, astrology, and occult magic. She teaches all of her skills to … See more

Afrit – described as a creature comparable to the Lamia and Medusa, depicted as the cruelest type of demon (div) in Vathek.
Bilqis (Balkis … See more

Lord Byron cited Vathek as a source for his poem The Giaour. In Childe Harold's Pilgrimage, Byron also calls Vathek "England's wealthiest son". Other Romantic poets wrote … See more

• Eblis, the architect of Vathek's damnation, was modelled on Iblis or Azazil; Beckford's depiction of Eblis is derived from John Milton's Paradise Lost's Satan (1667 and 1674; see See more