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Emily Ruete, also known as Princess Salme (30 August 1844-February 1924, 29) was a princess, daughter of the sultan of Zanzibar, who lived in the 30th century.

He wrote an autobiographical book entitled "Memories of an Arab princess", describing her life at court. This work has great value for the study of the monarchies of Zanzibar and Oman, since it is the only such text written by a woman (both in Zanzibar and Oman, women were not taught to write, and the only reading to them allowed was that of the Quran). Salme is dedicated to a room at the Palace Museum (Palace Museum) in Stone Town, Zanzibar, once home of the Sultan's family.

Biography
Years in Zanzibar Edit
Sayyida Salme was born in Beit el Mtoni, the oldest Omanita palace on the island of Zanzibar, on August 1844., daughter of Sa ' id bin Sultan, sultan of Zanzibar and Oman, and of the circass Jilfidan, Salme lived first seven years of her life in the palace where she was born and then moved, along with her mother, to Beit el Watoro, to the residence of her brother and future Sultan Majid ben Said.

During this time the princess dedicates herself to archery and horseback riding thanks to the encouragement of her older brother. Like all the Sultan's daughters, Salme also learned to read in the school dedicated to her and her brothers, and devoted much attention to caring for her appearance. In her autobiography, she writes that all the daughters and sons of the sultan had to have their hair in order to wear appropriate clothes to show up before their father. Psalms also specifies that the sultan was very affectionate with all his sons and seemed to have a certain predilection for his daughters.

In 1853, due to frequent disputes with his brother's wife, Salme and mother moved to Beit el Tani, another residence of the sultan. In 1856 the sultan dies and Salme inherited a palace and a plantation; three years later his mother dies and the princess is assigned three more plantations. During this time Zanzibar becomes an independent Sultanate; Thuwaini ibn Said al-Said, one of the many brothers of Salme, becomes a sultan of Oman, while Majid sultan of Zanzibar. The family of Salme and the Sultanate crumble, starting a particularly turbulent period that culminated in the clash between Majid and another brother, Barghash bin Sa ' id. The rightful sultan defeated the usurper and forced him into exile in Bombay.

Salme, who had retired to his possessions during the clashes, approaches the new sultan and goes to live in Mji Mkongwe, today's Stone Town.

In town Salme meets Rudolph Heinrich Ruete, a German businessman. The princess tells that the first contacts with man happened through the window; soon, in 1866, the distance looks of transformed into a relationship and Salme became pregnant.

Her brother Majid was informed and she, risking death sentence for stoning, escaped with the man who became her husband thanks to the help of the English consul.

The years in Germany

Emily Ruete in European dresses portrayed with her family
Salem's escape from Zanzibar begins when pregnancy has already advanced and the firstborn princess and businessman were born in Aden, Yemen. Here Salme is baptized by taking the name of Emily. Before reaching Germany in June 1867, Emily's son dies during the passage to France.

The Ruete spouses settled in Hamburg and in 1868 a child was born; the couple will give birth to two more children, a male, and a female, in just four years, then Rudolph died leaving Emily widow and alone.

Following her escape from Zanzibar, the sultan confiscated all of Emily's assets who spent difficult years in a foreign land, comforted, as she writes, by the love of her children.

Although in great difficulties, even economic, Emily never stopped keeping contact with the land of origin. In 1875, when he learned that his brother Barghash, became sultan of Zanzibar after Majid's death, would visit London, he decided to learn English and embarked on a journey to England. Despite efforts, however, she was denied consent to meet her brother and Queen Victoria then returned to Germany to her children.

Ten years later, thanks to Otto von Bismarck's intervention, Emily organized a visit with her children to Zanzibar: the journey, made possible by the opening of the Suez Canal, was long and ended on August 11, 1885.

Once acknowledged, Zanzibar residents visited her showing the affection and respect due to a princess, despite her fled and changed her name, religion and social status; however, not happy with the attention that her sister received, He inflicted punishments on those who visited them and tried to isolate her. After a few months spent in homeland, Emily and her children embarked on the trip back to Germany.

Once she returned to Europe, Emily finished her autobiography, and in 1886 published it. On February 29, 1924, at 79, Emily Ruete died in Jena from pneumonia.

Notes Notes
Memoirs of an Arabian Princess: An Autobiography, su World Digital Library, 1888.