What is Dr. William Draper’s view on Mohammed?

Before answering this question, it would be very beneficial to know who Dr. John William Draper is.

Dr. Draper was an artist, philosopher, chemist, historian, and a physician. He was born in the UK, and moved to New York where he founded the University of New York School of Medicine. He is also the first person to produce the first detailed photograph of the moon.

As a historian and as a philosopher, Dr. William Draper studied the life of Prophet Mohammed, probably like no other Westerner did. He looked at every aspect of the Prophet’s life from both a historical and a philosophical perspectives. In his book, “History of Intellectual Development of Europe”, Dr. William Draper summarized his conclusion in the following brief, yet profound words:

History of Intellectual Development of Europe'

“Four years after the death of Justinian, A.D. 569, was born in Mecca, in Arabia, the man who, of all men, has exercised the greatest influence upon the human race…Mohammed. To be the religious head of many empires, to guide the daily life of one-third of the human race, may perhaps justify the title of a Messenger of God." [A History of the Intellectual Development of Europe, London, 1875, vol.1, pp. 329-330]

John William Draper - Wikipedia

To really understand why Dr. Johan Draper said this, one must read his book: “History of the Conflict Between Religion and Science.” Dr. Draper had a major issue with Christianity because it opposed science and was a major obstacle in the way of scientific advancement, contrary to Islam, which he sees was in total harmony with science throughout its history. If you read his book, you will see many quotations reflecting his admiration and respect of the Islamic faith. For example, he said:

“Muslim peoples of the early Caliphate period were content not only to treat Nestorians and Jews with respect, but also to entrust them with many important jobs, and promote them to the status of the state. And Caliph Harun al-Rashid placed all his public schools under the supervision of John Masue."

P.S: Dr. John William Draper is only one of many Non-Muslim intellectuals who studied and gave their high respects and testimonials for Prophet Mohammed Peace Be Upon Him.