When the evolution of imagology is considered in the historical process, comparative image studies, which are classified as "Imagology that will remain within the boundaries of literary science and will turn to the history of mentality" are "in general, in literature science and literary..
Hans Dernschwam Travel Book
Hans Dernschwam's “Ottoman Cultural Texture and Human Perception in Amasya in Travel Diary to Istanbul and Anatolia"
Assist. Prof. Dr. Sevim KARABELA ŞERMET*"
Abstract: Today, imagology, which is accepted as a branch of science, deals with image and prejudice studies. The place of imagery in human sciences is important. In this study, the images and prejudices regarding the Ottoman/Turkish presence in the atmosphere and geography of Amasya in the "Istanbul and Anatolia Travel Diary" written by the German traveler
Hans Dernschwam in the 16th century will be evaluated.
XVI. The travel book of Hans Dernschwam (1494-1568), who came to Turkey in the middle of the century, is of great value and contains a great deal of material for those who follow the traces of the Ottoman Empire in the Anatolian geography.
Travelogues are works that imprison the human spirit and contain the story of the human being. These works, which have a story, also draw the psychology map of the period. It is at this point that the real value of the work becomes evident. The presentation of Amasya in the most glorious period of the Ottoman Empire through the lens of a foreigner is interesting. The work contains important clues about the Ottoman perception in Europe. It seems possible to reach general conclusions based on these clues.
1. Introduction
Although the history of imagology studies, which is in the field of comparative literature science, is quite old in world literature, it is new for Turkish literature.
Imagology comes from the Latin word (imago) image. Image, as it is known, means a copy.” (Aytaç 2016: 123.) The feature of the pioneering researches carried out in the field of imagology until the middle of the 20th century is that “nations act from the fact that they have different national characters.” (Aytac 2016: 123.)
When the evolution of imagology is considered in the historical process, comparative image studies, which are classified as "Imagology that will remain within the boundaries of literary science and will turn to the history of mentality" (Aytaç 2016: 123.), are "in general, in literature science and literary criticism, researching national or foreign identity and how they are portrayed. (Aytaç 2016: 123.) means.
In this study, the images and prejudices regarding the Ottoman/Turkish existence in the atmosphere and geography of Amasya in the "Istanbul and Anatolia Travel Diary" written in the 16th century by the traveler Hans Dernschwam, who spent about two months in Amasya, will be evaluated. It has been prepared in order to reach common and general judgments based on the Turkish perception in Europe through the observations of the German traveler. The Amasya narrative in the work, which is a Yaşar Önen translation, is the main source.
2. Curious German Traveler Hans Dernschwam and Amasya
XVI. The travel writings of Hans Dernschwam (1494-1568), who came to Turkey in the middle of the century, are of great value in terms of Turkish culture and history. The study concentrates on the section of the travel book, where the impressions of the city of Amasya, known as the land of princes, are presented. Because Amasya appears as an extension that was not in the travel plan at the beginning, but was not imagined by the excursion committee following the sultan's footsteps due to the absence of Suleiman the Magnificent in Istanbul.
Amasya is the point where the trip ends and at the same time the return begins. The German traveler's impressions of Amasya are important for several reasons. First of all, the painting of the period of Suleiman the Magnificent, which is important for Turkish history, but also for world history, and the fact that the trip takes place shortly after the murder of Prince Mustafa increases the value of the work. The fact that the final obligatory destination of the trip is Amasya and the arrival in Amasya while the pain of Prince Mustafa is still fresh in the hearts, the measurement of the feelings of the people on the way to and from the city, and the reflection of its psychological dimension on the work through the traveler's filter contributes to the Turkish imagination in Europe at that time.
Another remarkable feature is that this period of history includes very active days with the arrival of the magnificent Iranian peace delegation sent by Shah Tahmasb to Kanuni, and the traveler witnessed these days. The traveler, who witnessed the thin heartache of the people based on the murder of Prince Mustafa, on the other hand visualizes the magnificent banquet tables of the Ottoman dynasty. The time period in which these two events took place increases the importance of this time period and makes the Turkish imagination in Europe clear.
What makes Hans Dernschwam (1494-1568) important in Turkish history is that he was a traveler who came to Istanbul during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, went to Amasya, observed the Anatolian geography up to Amasya and wrote it down. Born in the town of Brux, Bohemia, information about
Hans Dernschwam Travel Book family origins is that he came from a wealthy family and received a good education. (Eyice 1994: 182.) It is based on the fact that his name was registered in the log book of the University of Vienna in 1507, from which he graduated from the Department of Philosophy at the University of Leipzig in 1510.
The process that lasted until Dernschwam came to Amasya did not happen all of a sudden. Banker from Augsburg, famous for his collections, went to Budin in 1514 with Balbi, the tutor of the princes at the Hungarian royal palace, and went with him to Pressburg in 1515, then traveled around Hungary and Transylvania between 1520 and 1530. and art friend Anton Fugger. Dernschwam joins the embassy delegation sent by the German Emperor Ferdinand I to Suleiman the Magnificent in 1553. Dernschwam, who joined the delegation with the desire to see Istanbul and get to know the Ottoman Empire, said at the end of his travel book that he made this long journey on his own account, “I made this trip on my own account. I paid for all the expenses of my servants, horses and wagons on the way out and back.” (Dernschwam 1992: 372.
Detailed information about Dernschwam's post-trip life is not available. It is determined that he lived in Neusohl or Kremnitz in 1560. The exact date of death is unknown. His private library, which consists of about 2000 different works in 651 volumes, was sold to the Vienna Palace Library in 1569 through a relative.
The publication adventure of the work is as big as Dernschwam's adventure. This work of his has been preserved as a manuscript for a long time in the archive of Anton Függer from Augsburg. This original manuscript was written by archivist Fr. It was discovered by Dobel in 1889 at the Babenhausen Castle. Prague, Wolfenbüttel copies are mentioned. First, scientific studies started on the Prague copy, then the first detailed study was done by H. Kipert on the Wolfenbüttel copy. Later, Franz Babinger is one of those who contributed to the work. Franz Babinger takes as a basis the original copy from the Fugger archive. Babinger, who started by publishing articles in 1913-1914 by making use of the copy in the Fugger archive, then publishes the text.2 The text is given in old high German as in the original.
The adventure of bringing the work into Turkish also increases the interest in the work. The Turkish translation of the book was published by Yaşar Önen in 1987 without Babinger's full foreword.3 However, this study is not the first attempt to translate the travelogue into Turkish as a whole. Semavi Eyice talks about the unfinished and unfinished Hayrullah Örs work. (Arıkan 1990: 225.)
The remarkable features in the travelogue are that the events and the prejudices of the traveler are skillfully placed in the historical and geographical texture of Amasya with the meticulousness of a jeweler. The magnificent images of the Ottoman Empire are among the elements accompanying this narrative. The narrative pieces can be made more concrete when these daily impressions and the observation products that the traveler spreads on the work are classified among themselves. The traveler, who set off from Çorum to the East on the morning of April 6, passes through the villages of Elvan Çelebi, Çağna, Avkat, and Bağlıca on his way to Amasya in one day.
Then, just like a diary, the author shares the days spent in Amasya and the events that took place these days by giving their days. The adventure of Amasya, which was recorded on April 7 with the phrase "We arrived at Amasya" (Dernschwam 1992: 277.) and ended with the statement "We set out for Istanbul from Amasya in the afternoon, June 2" (Dernschwam 1992: 297.) The writer, who recorded it, came to Amasya from Istanbul in 30 days. When the delegation, which set out with three horses to go to Istanbul on June 22, 1553, arrived in Istanbul, the sultan left for Anatolia for the Nakhcivan expedition. For this reason, the embassy delegation, who was not admitted to the presence, waits for more than a year in Istanbul in order to meet with Kanuni.
They left Istanbul on March 9, 1555 and reached Amasya in a month (Dernschwam 1992: 277.) in order to be able to appear before the sultan, who returned to Amasya from the campaign at the beginning of November 1554. The embassy delegation and especially Hans Dernschwam, who stayed in Amasya for a period of 2 months, from April 7 to June 2, exactly as of the dates in the diary, had the opportunity to get to know Amasya. Another feature of this period of history is that the Iranian peace delegation sent by Shah Tahmasb to Kanuni is in Amasya.
On June 2, the delegation followed the same route and arrived in Istanbul on June 23. Dernschwam (Dernschwam 1992: 322.), who said that the journey took 22 days, left here on 3 July. Dernschwam, who joined the delegation with his private servant, coachman and groomsmen, takes with him a German gunsmith, whom he saved from captivity by paying the ransom in Istanbul.
From the traveler's window, the Ottoman presence in Amasya emerges as envious touches to the power of the Ottomans, spread throughout the text. Hans Dernschwam has included snapshots in the work, especially to reflect the power of the sultan. There are sections that implicitly or explicitly refer to the glory of Suleiman the Magnificent and thus the Ottoman Empire. Every moment of the Ottoman sultan's life is the scene of a ceremony.
Expressing his astonishment from time to time, the author has photographed some of these ceremonies in the work. He starts from the mounds he sees on the way before he reaches Amasya. The narration of the sultan's road adventure until he reaches the place of residence symbolizes power: The author sees mounds at a certain distance from each other on the road before reaching Amasya. Such a communication network exists until the sultan arrives at the mansion. Mounds are built along the road, and the nearest other mound, where the sultan passes, is informed by firing a gun. The traveler, who tells that there are even people assigned to this job, which has become a tradition, expresses his astonishment. Thus, he glorifies the sultan by explaining the way he was protected.
However, the magnificence of the sultan is mostly revealed during the Friday prayer. In these scenes, the order and manners of going to Friday are explained with visual expressions. Based on the narratives, the sultan is wearing a green dress on a horse on Friday and sets out with three pashas in front of him. In front of the sultan, seven people are being pulled by horses, seven of which are unmounted, with gold-embroidered saddles and colorful precious covers hanging down to the sides. During the sultan's passing, the sergeants pushed the people from all sides away from the middle of the road to the edges. (Dernschwam 1992: 281-282.)
In another narrative, the sultan descends into the city to go to the Double Minaret mosque built by Bayezid II in the middle of Amasya. Here, too, six horses were harnessed to the sultan, wearing green dresses, with his very ornate harnesses and gilded covers. In front of the sultan, left-handers with broom-like feathers on their heads and the heads of the janissaries are walking. In front of them, three pashas are advancing on horseback. These pashas also have janissaries and other servants, and in front of them are the members of the palace in colorful gold-embroidered silk dresses with brocade and gilded clothes. (Dernschwam 1992: 289-290.)
The detail that visualizes another magnificence is animated during the delivery of food to the sultan. The traveler, who says, “The food delivery is a ceremony in itself” (Dernschwam 1992: 285.) describes this in detail. Eleven tabakars, dressed in silk robes like the Janissaries, are taking food in hollow tinned copper plates with their mouths closed. Behind them, a person carries a round leather table. All of them enter through the sultan's door, and after a while, they come out of the door with their empty pans in their hands.
In addition to the fear of the Turks, which spreads equally throughout the travelogue, there is also the concern that Vienna will be lost. For the writer, the fear that Vienna will be taken turns into a nightmare and he constantly speaks about it. This takes its place in the work as an indicator of the sultan's power. “When the sultan was coming to the mosque on April 12, he told Ali Pasha that he wanted to see Vienna absolutely and that he wanted to live longer just for this.
I hope he breaks his neck!” (Dernschwam 1992: 282.) However, the following sentence alone is shocking as an expression that embodies the power of the sultan with an abstract expression. Being able to express power and power so effectively adds sincerity to the work and removes it from artificiality. The two hodjas who went to the sultan for consultation, then the three pashas and the envoys following, greet the doorkeepers sitting under the arbor as they pass by the big door they see before entering the small door through which they will reach the sultan. However, the analysis of the traveler's behavior and its reflection on the work have the power to affect the reader. “In fact, they did not greet the doormen, they bowed respectfully to the sultan's door” (Dernschwam 1992: 285.)
Visuals of Amasya geography are also photographed from the author's point of view in the work: The author enters Amasya via Yeşilırmak. “A fairly large amount of water flows from the right side towards Amasya. The name of this water is Yeşilırmak.” (Dernschwam 1992: 278.) The first impression of the author on the general geographical view of Amasya is that it gives the appearance of a lost city, and he expresses this as: “It is not possible to see the city from afar without getting close to it” (Dernschwam 1992: 279.). The negativities originating from the region where the city of Amasya was founded are reflected in the author's point of view, and the view on geography is generally negative. “There are countless, horrific places around.” (Dernschwam 1992: 278.) The traveler and the excursion committee entered Amasya with difficulty.
The factors that negatively affected the delegation and the writer of the travelogue who came to Amasya. The author, who does not miss any details about the general view, cannot pass without telling the castle of Amasya. Describing the Amasya castle as "on a majestic high rock" (Dernschwam 1992: 279.), the author also revives the daily life inside the castle. Servants and the commander of the castle live in the mudbrick houses inside the castle, and trumpets and drums are played every morning and evening towards the city. (Dernschwam 1992: 296.)
Bridges are also used to photograph the general view of Amasya: “So there are 3 stone and 1 wooden bridges in Amasya.” (Dernschwam 1992: 296). The common feature of all these bridges is that they are very narrow and in a situation where vehicles cannot pass over them. The author, who steps on the bridges at the same time, includes the information about the railings of the bridges, whether they are made of stone or wood, in order to record them in the memory of history.
The author observes the houses by saying, “Amasya, built on both sides of the valley, is a poor city made of adobe, consisting of houses stacked on top of each other like a swallow's nest” (Dernschwam 1992: 296.). The author has a negative point of view in the description of the houses presented together with the geographical structure, just as in the geographical structure. The abundance of mountains, vineyards separated from each other by adobe or stone walls in places where there are no mountains, orchards, and small summer houses built with adobe or stone walls in vineyards and gardens are the elements of the painting. (Dernschwam 1992: 279.)
Entering the city, the writer also finds the opportunity to observe the houses in the city. Houses are usually made of wood and are twice as high. The interior of the houses made of unbaked bricks, as well as the exterior, is not well worked out. There are barns under the houses and there are rooms on which they sit, built with wood and planks and covered with earth. “There is no decent house apart from these. They sit here, they lie down and get up.” (Dernschwam 1992: 280). They sit in the rooms like they're sitting in a prison." (Dernschwam 1992: 296.) he continues the negative narrative throughout the text. In houses that do not have a kitchen, they cook their meals on the small stoves available in the rooms.
Another element that visualizes the geography of Amasya appears in the narrative of the Amasya palaces, whose "remains have not survived" (Toruk 2005: 443.). At this point, the traveler's narrative increases its value once more. The traveler refers to the description of palaces in two different places in the text:
“The residence of Prince Mustafa, and now the sultan, is at the foot of the mountain. This is a large, simple palace surrounded by a garden. At the entrance there is a wooden door surrounded by mud brick walls. The rooms next to this door are like the rooms of a village house. Inside, a single-storey building can be seen in the courtyard. A building made of adobe. The wooden parts of the building consist of untreated, rough, simple pieces of wood. These are pine boards as long as a fathom. In addition to this, there is another one-story building built of baked bricks in the garden. The king was staying here.
This is something like an ordinary shopkeeper's house in our country. Next to it, a large door made of adobe can be seen. In front of the door is a gazebo made of wood. Under the gazebo sit four doormen dressed in gold embroidered clothes with silver walking sticks in their hands.” (Dernschwam 1992: 284-285.)
In another narrative fragment, the tent and the palanquin are included in the description of the palace.
“On June 1, we saw the Lower Palace in Amasya. Its walls are made of stone, and its interior is made of baked brick. Wooden fences and planks are also installed. A flat roof, the roof of which, as is customary, is covered with earth. The windows are up high. By the way, there is a big house in the middle. It's like buried in the ground or carved into the rock. You can go up on it and look down and see the surroundings. Like a basement, there are thick, man-height railings of wood. It is lead coated. It is possible to wander through the rectangular shaped building of this building. There are many rooms on the sides with windows overhead. The sultan's tent is also in this building.
The craftsmen who set up tents, erect the tent and repair it when necessary, also stay in this building. These types of tents are very common in Turkey. Their poles are very thick, thicker than the arrow of a running car. It is possible to separate these poles, which consist of 2 parts attached to each other. It takes almost 1000 camels to carry such a big tent and its materials. During the journey, while the sultan stayed in a tent, the tent makers set up another tent and got it ready for the next day.
(Dernschwam 1992: 294.)
“We saw a mahfe (litter) inside the palace. Something very heavy and bulky. So much so that only four horses can pull it. It is surrounded on all four sides by lattices resembling window lattices. Since the inside of the cage can be seen through them, it can be covered with silk tulle or covers.” (Dernschwam 1992: 295-296.)
The expression of Amasya architecture is diversified with the narrative of churches and mosques: He mentions churches from Byzantine times at the entrance of the city, 11 Turkish mosques in Amasya, but the most beautiful of them is the Double Minaret Mosque, which was built by Bayezid II, where the sultan went to the greetings. The author's perception of Islam becomes evident as it is hidden in the architectural paintings of the Islamic world. In addition to the negative perception of Islam spreading throughout the work, it is significant that he interprets the call to prayer as an art. “Two muezzins from these minarets are shouting towards each other. This shouting thing is not that easy either. It is a great work of art, but also a form of worship.” (Dernschwam 1992: 296.)
Describing the geographical structure, the author also includes the spiritual structure in the work. Using the words Turk, Ottoman and Islam interchangeably, the author underlines that Turks do not know how to live well. “The Turks are busy with other things. They do not know how to properly benefit from the blessings and opportunities God has given them. They do not want to put up with the trouble, they do not grow vineyards. They are engaged in animal husbandry like shepherds.” (Dernschwam 1992: 277.)
Another interesting point in this narrative is that the existence of the “people” is visible in very few snapshots. The word "folk" is used for the first time in the Amasya narrative during the sultan's go-to Friday ceremony. However, the traveler here paints an image of a people pushed around in the Friday ceremony. Another anecdote appears in the texts that mention the murder of Şehzade Mustafa and the resentment it created. From time to time, the spirit world of the people, who do not impress with their presence, is touched.
From Hans Dernschwam's point of view, the public is outraged. “On the roads we passed, we found the people sad and angry. Some of them are sad that Prince Mustafa was killed, and some of them are sad that the Iran campaign continues. After all, the reason why the sultan stayed in Cappadocia for a long time is to arrest and kill people who cause unrest here and there. Because everyone praises Mustafa and it is feared that when the sultan leaves his throne, unrest will increase in Turkey and there will be uprisings. They believe that the two remaining princes cannot be like their father. (Dernschwam 1992: 278.)
The traveler, who was very impressed by the murder case of Prince Mustafa, needs to repeat this in more than one text: “Almost all the people of Cappadocia are angry because of the disaster that befell Mustafa.” (Dernschwam 1992: 282.)
In the work, there are generalizations about the Turks in the atmosphere of Amasya, which includes Suleiman the Magnificent. While these generalizations are based on real events in some places, they appear in relation to the past in others. In the work, the Turkish/Ottoman image shaped by the word Islam, which was formed in Europe throughout history, maintains its validity. The definition of a Turk, who lives far from civilization, oppresses people and scares people, is tried to be reinforced by repeating it.
It is constantly emphasized that Turks are lazy and do not know how to live. The idea that forms the basis for this emerges in the emphasis on the neglect of the houses and the eating and drinking culture. In addition to prejudices and negative images against an unknown human community, positive impressions are also included in the work. The author describes these impressions by comparing Christian soldiers with Turkish soldiers from time to time:
“The Turkish nation is a very strong and resilient nation. They earn their living by farming. The thing they eat the most is yogurt. Bread is not plentiful, but they drink as much water as they want. All almost half black. They were burnt from the sun. A nation that resists heat, cold, hunger and thirst, and thus cooked in poverty. What about our Christian soldiers? They also want to live comfortably during the war. We take our wine and many non-essential supplies with us. In this comfort and abundance, our soldiers suffer stomach troubles. They eat and drink day and night.” (Dernschwam 1992: 299.)
Hans Dernschwam, who came to Istanbul on horseback and then went to Anatolia to see Istanbul and Suleiman the Magnificent just for the sake of curiosity, seems to want to give the right with this attitude.
The “XVI. It is to give details about the structure of the rural area in the 19th century, which are not easily found in any source, and to express the feelings and thoughts of the people about various events from time to time” (Arıkan 1990: 225.).
CONCLUSION
The famous Hungarian Turcologist Ignacz Kunos, who lived between 1865 and 1940, wrote in his work titled Turkish Folk Literature published in 1925: “Who knows, if I, your Hungarian son, had not heard and kept these Pleven couplets forty-three years ago, maybe they would have been completely forgotten until now. Thank goodness it reached my ears... I am giving you this holy gift.” (Szilagyi 2007: 3.). Although the purpose of writing Hans Dernschwam's work is not known, its importance should not be forgotten in terms of the heritage carried from the past to the present, even if the information is given with prejudiced approaches.
As a nation, it is a sad state of not being able to hide the cultural heritage, and such works serve to compensate for this in a sense. A foreign traveler, with his pen, gives the right to life to a legacy that does not even exist today. On the other hand, such works may contain the prejudices of the author. The freedom of the traveler to choose the landscape he wants carries with it the impossibility of analyzing the intentions of these works. However, these narratives are important as they witness history.
RESOURCES
AYTAÇ, Gürsel, (2016), Comparative Literature Science, Ankara: Doğu Batı Publications
EYICE, Heavenly, (1994), “Hans Dernschwam de Hradiczin”. TDV, Encyclopedia of Islam, IX, Istanbul: Türkiye Diyanet Foundation Publications.
TORUK, Ferruh, (2005), The Case of the Palace in the Physical Formation Process of the City of Amasya. Journal of Foundations, P. 29, Publications of the General Directorate of Foundations. (Accessed from www.dergimakale.com on 05.12.2017.)
SZILARD, Szilagyi, (2007), Ignac Kunos A Pioneer in Turkish Folklore Studies. Doctoral Thesis Ankara University Institute of Social Sciences Turkish Language and Literature, Ankara (accessed from https://media.turuz.com/ on 05.12.2017)
DERNSCHWAM, Hans, (1992), Travel Diary to Istanbul and Anatolia (trans.) Yaşar Önen, Ankara: Ministry of Culture/885.
ARIKAN, Zeki, (1990), (Introduction), Ottoman Studies X. (Accessed from http://dergipark.ulakbim.gov.tr/ on 05.12.2017)
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Dernschwam De Hradiczin, Hans (1494-1568 [?])
Author: SEMAVI EYICE
A German traveler who came to Istanbul during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent and went as far as Amasya and wrote a travelogue.
He was born in Brux, Bohemia. It is estimated that he came from a wealthy family and received a fairly good education. It is known that Dernschwam, whose name is found in the 1507 log book of the University of Vienna, graduated from the Department of Philosophy at the University of Leipzig on September 5, 1510. From a manuscript found in the Wiener Nationalbibliothek, after living in Vienna for a while, he went to Ofen (Budin) in 1514, where he went to Hieronymus Balbi, the governess of the princes at the Hungarian royal court, and went with him to Pressburg in 1515 and later on. It is learned that he traveled around Hungary and Transylvania between 1520 and 1530 and recorded copies of the Roman inscriptions he saw in a notebook.
Dernschwam, who has been in the service of Anton Fugger, a banker and art friend from Augsburg, famous for his collections since 1525, left his side towards 1549 and joined the embassy delegation sent by German Emperor Ferdinand I to Suleiman the Magnificent in 1553. Dernschwam, who joined the delegation with the desire to see Istanbul and get to know the Ottoman Empire, clearly states at the end of his travel book that he made this long journey on his own account.
The delegation, which set off from Vienna on 22 June, arrived in Istanbul on 25 August, and the sultan was about to depart for Anatolia for the Nakhchivan expedition. Because of this, the embassy delegation was not admitted to the presence and had to wait for more than a year and a half in order to meet with Kanuni. Finally, when the delegation returned from the campaign in early November 1554 and received the news that they could appear before the sultan, who spent the winter in Amasya, they left Istanbul on March 9, 1555 and reached Amasya in a month via Gebze, Iznik, Ankara and Çorum.
Dernschwam had the opportunity to get to know the city as the embassy delegation stayed in Amasya from 7 April to the beginning of June, and meanwhile, he witnessed very active days when the extraordinarily magnificent Iranian peace delegation sent by Shah Tahmasb to Kanuni came (10 May). The delegation, which started its return journey on 2 June, followed the same route, arrived in Istanbul on 23 June and left on 3 July. Dernschwam, who joined the delegation with his private servant, coachman and groomsmen, took with him a German gunsmith, whom he met in Istanbul and rescued from captivity by paying the ransom. The delegation reached Budin via Silivri, Babaeski, Edirne, Plovdiv, Sofia, Nis, Belgrade and Osijek, and a few days later, on August 11, 1555, Vienna.
Not much is known about Dernschwam's life after his return to Austria. According to what he wrote at the end of his travel book, he brought Greek manuscripts, horses, carpets, rugs, various fabrics and precious stones from Turkey and sold them. It is determined that he lived in Neusohl or nearby Kremnitz in 1560 and his exact date of death is not known, but it is understood that he was no longer alive at the end of 1568, since his private library was sold to the Vienna Palace Library by a relative in February 1569.
Some of the books of this valuable library, which consists of about 2000 different works in 651 volumes, have entered the Munich Library. In the catalogue, Tabulae codicum manuscriptorum in the Wiener Nationalbibliothek (Vienna 1875), there is a list of books under the title “Catalogus librorum Joannis Dernschwammii, ita ut mense Julio 1575 a Helferico Gutt et Hugone Blotio recensione Bibliothecae Caesareae facta, fuit inventus” VII, 131).
The original manuscript of Dernschwam's travelogue, which belonged to the Fugger family, was found by archivist Fr. It was discovered by Dobel in 1889 at the Babenhausen Castle. The oldest of the later copied copies is in the Wolfenbüttel Library in the state of Braunschweig (nr. 255) in the same place as the XVIII. There is another copy of the 19th century (nr. 2499). According to Babinger, there is another copy in the Bohemian Kingdom Museum in Prague with many places left blank.
XIX. Although some historians examined the missing manuscript in Prague in the 19th century and used it in their research, the famous Anatolian geographer H. Kiepert Wolfenbüttel made the first comprehensive study about the travelogue and published this review in a large article after he mentioned it in a paper in 1863 (see bibl.). . The lithographed map of Dernschwam, made by Kiepert, was not released to the market.
Later, based on the copy in the Fugger archive, F. Babinger first published some small articles between 1913 and 1914, benefiting from this manuscript, and then published the entire text (Hans Dernschwam's Tagebuch, einer Reise nach Konstantinopel und Kleinasien [1553-55], München-Leipzig). 1923, XXXVI+314 pages). However, the book is not easily understandable, although Babinger puts a very extensive preface at the beginning, makes some explanations and adds some notes to clarify the topics discussed.
Because the text is given in old high German as in the original. The Turkish translation of the book was made by Yaşar Önen (Travel Diary to Istanbul and Anatolia, Ankara 1987), but Babinger's long and comprehensive foreword was not included at the beginning. It will be a great gain for the Turkish reader to make a new publication of the Dernschwam travel book by a scholar who knows old German well, by adding explanatory notes about the places, structures, people, events, customs and even clothing and lifestyle in the text.
Dernschwam, in his travel book, used expressions that belittled the Turks from time to time, but made very good observations. Especially the information he gave about the settlements he passed through is important in terms of the history of those places. He also gave detailed information about the Christians and Jews living in the Ottoman lands. Meanwhile, the abundance of Germans, Austrians and Hungarians he encountered in Anatolia draws attention. Dernschwam, staying at the Elçi Han opposite Çemberlitaş, studied Istanbul, where he lived for more than eighteen months, from 25 August 1553 to 9 March 1555, and paid attention to many details. Among these, the notes he made about food and prices are worth dwelling on.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
H. Kiepert, “Beitrag zur inschriftlichen Topographie Klein-Asiens”, Monatsberichten der Königlich Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Berlin 1863, p. 307-323.
a.mlf., “Hans Dernschwams orientalische Reise, 1553 bis 1555”, Globus, III, Braunschweig 1887, p. 184-190, 202-205, 214-220, 230-235.
Hans Dernschwam's Tagebuch, einer Reise nach Konstantinopel und Kleinasien (1553-1555) (ed. F. Babinger), München-Leipzig 1923, p. XIII-XXXVI.
a.mlf., “Hans Dernschwam ein Kleinasien Forscher des 16. Jahrhunderts”, Deutsche Rundschau für Geographie, XXXV, Wien-Leipzig 1913, p. 535-546.
a.mlf., “Eine unbekannte Denkmünze auf Hans Dernschwam”, Mitteilungen der Bayerischen Numismatischen Gesellschaft, XXXI, München 1913, p. 46-51.
a.mlf., “Eine neuentdeckte Ungarische Kerbinschrift aus Konstantinopel vom Jahre 1515”, Ungarische Rundschau, II, München-Leipzig 1913, p. 41-52.
a.mlf., “Ein schriftgeschichtliches Rätsel?”, KSz., XIV (1913), p. 4-19.
a.mlf., “Zur Lebensgeschichte Hans Dernschwams, eines Kleinasien Forschers des XVI. Jahrhunderts”, ae, XXXVI (1914), p. 133-135.
a.mlf., “Neue Beiträge zur Lebensgeschichte Hans Dernschwams, eines Kleinasien Forschers des XVI. Jahrhunderts”, ae, XXXVII (1915), p. 37-38.
J. Berlàsz, Dernschwam Jànos Könyvtàra, A. hazai humanizmus történéhez, Budapest 1964.
st. Yerasimos, Les Voyageurs dans l'Empire Ottoman (XIVe-XVIe siècles), Ankara 1991, p. 230-233.
N. Iorga, “Encore un voyageur en Turquie au XVIe siècle: Dernschwam”, Revue Historique du Sud-Est Europeen, X, Bucarest 1933, p. 144-155.
K. Oberdorffer, “Hans Dernschwam”, Lebensbilder an der Bayerischen Schwaben, I/195, p. 229-245.
Semavi Eyice, “Elçi Hanı”, TD, p. 24 (1970), p. 103.
Z. Kakuk, “Türkisches aus Hans Dernschwams Tagebuch”, AOH, XXXII (1976), p. 283-292.
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Travel Book of the German Traveler Hans Dernschwam.
Emrullah Guney
Travel Book of the German Traveler Hans Dernschwam. Vienna-Istanbul-Amasya Journey- 1553-1555
Hans Dernschwam XVI. He is an outstanding humanist of the twentieth century.
He was born in Brux, Bohemia, in 1494. His family is wealthy. He does a good education. He becomes a student at the universities of Vienna, Leipzig. At the Faculty of Philosophy, he shows great interest in the ancient Greek and Roman classics, the works of historiographers and geographers.
In 1513 he was an educator teaching princes at the Hungarian Royal Palace in Budin. It has a distinguished place among the nobility.
Dernschwam is a multi-faceted researcher with many different interests. He puts everything, every event that he watches and observes on paper without any meltdown. During his trips to Hungary and neighboring countries, he copied ancient inscriptions due to his interest in history and archeology. These collections are unique, unique today.
In 1553, 60-year-old Dernschwam desires to see the capital city of the Turks who occupied the Danube Basin. (It has been 100 years since the fall of Byzantium and Constantinople became the center of the Turkish Empire).
Departing from Vienna on June 23, 1553, he embarks on a journey on his own account with his three horses, his coachman and his bag, which is too much money to spend. Ambassador van Busbeck (Austrian diplomat of Flemish descent, writer .1522-1592) is the head of the traveling committee.
The travelers board arrives in Istanbul on 25 August. But Suleiman the Magnificent ( Kanuni ) is in his camp in Amasya. The Board necessarily hits the road again.
The route (itinerer) is as follows: Gebze, Izmit, Iznik, Bilecik, Sangarios River, Ankara, Halys River, Corum, Elvançelebi, Iris River, Amasya.
The date they reached the range: April 7, 1555…
The Embassy Board (Embassy Committee) failed to achieve great success in the peace talks. For weeks, they were hosted in Amasya on the banks of Yeşilırmak. Following the same path they had come, they crossed the Balkan land via Istanbul and returned to Vienna.
The day they arrived in their homeland, the calendars showed the 11th of August in the year 1555.
In order to evaluate the Seyahatname better, it is necessary to know the life of Süleyman I (Sultan, Magnificent, Kanuni). In August 1526, the Ottoman army won a great victory in the Battle of Mohacs, the Sultan entered Budin and all of Hungary was conquered. But after the Sultan left here, a civil war broke out.
Supporting Janos Zapolya, who was elected king instead of Lajos, who died in the Battle of Mohacs, the Sultan set out again with a strong army in 1529, after the Archduke of Austria Ferdinand entered Budin. He took Budin first. Then, on September 26, he besieged Vienna, which was well fortified. 3 attacks failed. Winter was approaching, the Sultan, who lifted the siege due to logistical support difficulties, returned to Budin and then to Paytahta with 60 thousand prisoners.
However, Ferdinand I had besieged Budin. In 1532, the Sultan opened a new expedition to Hungary. Historians call it the German Expedition. Some Hungarian castles were conquered. Budin was liberated from the Austrian attacks. Güns (Köszeg) Castle on the way to Vienna was captured after tough battles. The Sultan's emphasis on this castle was to lure Ferdinand into a pitched battle by giving the impression that he was going to march on Vienna. However, a new siege did not take place, and later in the year the Army returned.
In 1533 Ferdinand asked for a truce. With the treaty, the east of Hungary was left to Janos Zapolya under the protection of the Ottoman State, and the west to Ferdinand.
Süleyman took advantage of this peace environment. In the east, Shiite Iran stood as a major threat. In 1534, Grand Vizier Makbul İbrahim Pasha defeated the Iranian army and won brilliant victories. The Sultan first entered Baghdad and then Tabriz (Irakayn Campaign).
In 1541 Austria intervened in Hungary. The Sultan set out again. Central and Southern Hungarian regions became Ottoman property; Budin Province was created. Suleyman Pasha of Hungarian origin was appointed as the governor.
In 1548, the Sultan reoccupied Tabriz and Van in the Eastern Campaign.
In 1551, Austria was violating the peace. Sokollu Mehmet Pasha was sent to Austria. Beçe, Beçkerek and Temeşvar castles were captured.
In 1553, the Sultan embarked on the Nakhchivan Campaign. entered Shirvan; He made Revan and Nagorno-Karabakh Ottoman property.
In May 1555, at the request of Shah Tahmasp I, the Treaty was signed in Amasya. Thus, the intermittent wars with Iran for years came to an end.
The Hungarian land, which Hans Dernschwam described in his travel book, was Ottoman land when he started his journey towards Payitaht.
Leaving the cities of the Danube basin and the route to the historians in 1553, let's focus on the Edirne, Istanbul, Amasya road.
Edirne :
Along the way we saw old paved Roman roads and small bridges with one or two eyes. We came across flocks of storks, thousands of which were flying together.
The city looks like Budin. There are beautiful vineyards. We saw many mosques in the distance. The domes are lead-lined. Minarets are rising. They don't have any other songs (!) or even music other than azan.
A caravanserai can hold up to 600 horses. It belonged to a pasha. The cooks, whose clothes are not clean, have cooked soup and meat, they distribute it to everyone. The most eaten onions and garlic.
The most important man of the caravanserai is the blacksmith. Barley and straw are also sold.
Countersink:
A Turkish village. The slaves cultivate the fields and take care of the animals.
Silivri :
We spent the night in a field like sheep in the open between the fences in the suburbs. There are battlements and towers on the brick wall. We could count 3 mosques from afar.
Drawr :
The Turkish town was once a well-kept and well-known place. There are stone bridges. The ruins of the old Roman road attract attention.
Istanbul:
We followed the paved road. We landed in a plain-looking caravanserai. On August 29, the ambassadors went to visit the Sultan's son-in-law, Rüstem Pasha. We were together too. We presented the Pasha with 6 large gilded Transylvania cups. The trophies contained gold florins and a precious watch.
The sultan set out to fight against the Safavid ruler, the king of the Persians. Balls were thrown while crossing the opposite side.
The land of Persia is not as powerful and rich as Turkey. But it is a belligerent nation. It has no ball. They took many captives from the Turks. The Ottoman army reluctantly goes to war against Iran by force. They are arid, desert places. The people are poor and hungry. The army has to take water. The soldier must carry flour, rusks, meat, rice, salt, cheese. As the Ottoman army approaches, the Safavids are retreating inside, burning and destroying everything. There is no limit to those who die of hunger and thirst. People are moving to other places. The Turks, who could not obtain booty, were in a difficult situation. Iranians have always killed their captives. However, the Turks free or sell them.
Everyone willingly and eagerly participates in the expeditions to Hungary.
Turks do not build new buildings in Istanbul. The old beautiful buildings are also not well preserved. The walls are ruined. Almost all the houses are made of bad materials and as a single storey.
The sultan had a very large and beautiful caravanserai built here. You can stay here for 3 days without paying anything, eat and drink. Caravanserais also generate income. Teachers benefit from this. They are given soup, meat and bread in the morning and evening. Hodjas who live with charity and support can marry 3-4 women and establish a harem..
Turks do not run taverns because they do not drink alcohol and it is forbidden. Greeks and Jews do this job. However, there are many secret drinkers among the Turks. After being taken prisoner, converts to Islam, janissaries and warriors hide and drink. If they are caught, the Janissaries with sticks will beat them.
Christian people called Caramanos live around Yedikule. Their worship is not Greek; Turkish. They came from Karaman, not far from Iran. They do not understand Romanian. When Yavuz Selim occupied their hometown, they settled in Istanbul. A strong, large community. Their women wear a long, pointed, white or dyed cap. It looks like the tiara the pope wears. When women go out for a walk, they cover this headdress with a thin, tulle-like veil that goes down to their breasts.
The sultan has many gardens in Istanbul. Beginners are cultivating. They grow all kinds of vegetables and fruits. Cucumber, onion, garlic, parsley, carrot, beet, watermelon, pumpkin… Fruit trees: Cherry, almond, pear, apple, plum…Products are sold in the name of the sultan; income is provided.
Almost all languages available in the world are spoken in Istanbul. This place is similar to ancient Babylon.
If Turks had a tradition of food and wine, as we Christians do, and there were so many restaurants and taverns, the Turks would not be able to find money to buy the clothes they would wear on their backs. The poverty of this country condemns them to starvation and fasting. They fast because it is shameful or because they are afraid. When hungry, they become impatient like wolves. They go to sleep several times a day to forget about hunger and thirst. Soldiers are not allowed to fast during wartime. Especially those who live in the borders do not attach much importance to fasting.
The sultan's tombs are in beautiful gardens. Flowers are replanted each spring. This place is like heaven.
The Turks would rather fight Hungary and fight the Germans than fight the Iranians. Because they can't make much profit from Iran expeditions. Now, many soldiers died in the war from contagious diseases. There were also many casualties from animals such as cattle, horses and camels. In this case, veteran soldiers will have to return to the country on foot. Because they are arid and desert. If you go for days, you may not find the water.
Wine is rarely drunk in Turkey. They make pickles from grapes. They boil a sweet drink. They also make sherbet from honey. The Greeks add a lot of water to the wine. The Jews also produce pure fine wine of very high value.
Turks make boza from millet. No honey beer. Only the rich can eat sugar instead of honey.
The Jews speak the language of the people of the country they live in. From whichever country the Jews were expelled, they come and settle in Turkey. Those gathered here speak German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Czech, Polish, Greek, Turkish, Syriac, New Aramaic and other languages.
Karaim Jews are different from ordinary Jews. They do not live in the same place as others. They have their own separate houses. They also keep animals for themselves and produce their own wine. Other Jews eat meat, they eat fish. They do not take girls from other Jews. They are bound by the 5 books of Prophet Musa and the 10 Commandments. Karaim Jews are more wealthy than other groups. Both men and women wear pure silk damiska (Damascus) garments. Women are like walking jewellery: they wear gold necklaces, bracelets. Karaim Jews also live in Kefe and Russia.
Jews have news of the world. They spy on the Turks against the Christians. They celebrate the reed festival in September. They make a gazebo from laurel branches and sit under it. They fill 200 plates with fruit and seasonal products. Early in the morning they crowd into the synagogues and wait for God to tell them when they will die.
The only physician of the sultan was a Jew. But he does not understand anything from Greek and Latin medicine.
On the night of December 8, 1554, a great fire broke out in Istanbul. 1000 wooden shops, prison burned.
There are three surprising things in Turkey: 1. All madmen are accepted as saints. 2. Women wear pant-like tuman, trousers and shalwar. 3. Men also cover their heads with turbans and pouffes.
Turks do not keep fish and do not know fish dishes. Christians and Jews make different dishes from fish. The fish market is in the hands of the Jews. The tax is too high.
Melon is eaten a lot in this country. Winter melons hang from the ceiling; stays until spring. But Hungarian melons are tastier. Turks also eat watermelon a lot.
Dates are brought by ferries from Alexandria. It's too loose. Nobody is looking at the face of the date. These ships also bring rice. Turks consume rice a lot. This product is grown only where the Sultan allows.
Turks eat by sitting on the ground. Their main dish is soup.
In Istanbul, Circassians, Abaza and Georgians row on ships in Galata. Those with hair hanging from their shoulders meant single.
Women in Turks are not like in Christian countries. They cannot live free. They stay at home. Strangers cannot talk to them. Even slaves cannot see their master's wives. Women cannot go to the bazaar or the market for shopping.
In this country, women ride horses in men's clothes. If they have black veils on their faces, it is understood that they are women. They can be recognized by their hair bun when viewed from behind. Honestly, horseback riding suits Turkish women very well. Many women dressed in silk and velvet dresses are seen riding horses at their weddings.
In cities, girls and boys get married without seeing each other.
The most beautiful of the girls brought to Turkey from all over the world are selected and taken to the Sultan's palace or the harem. A few hundred girls live in prison there. First they learn Turkish; then islamic worship. As a result of court upbringing, these girls forget their mother tongue after years. The Sultan throws a bag containing 1000 coins in front of the girl he likes. The girl is washed, cleaned, prepared. The girl who does not become pregnant will never see Sultan's bed again. A pasha is removed from the Palace by marrying a cavalry or sergeant.
Some Turks buy the required number of slaves. They earn money by working every day. They are circumcised on the day they are bought so that they do not run away.
The Turks turned the Hagia Sophia Church, which is a unique and unique temple in the world, into a mosque to consecrate their God. In this temple, which is the size of a small city, clergy, servants and the patriarch used to sit together. This is a large and holy place where the word of God is taught and people are educated and raised in the past and today.
If the Turks do not go to war and always stay at home, they will fight each other. Because these people are used to war. They take a lot of booty and make a living. They are not used to agricultural work. They're empty. Captives, slaves work, feed them. If there were 10 more countries like now, it would still be less. The Sultan has a permanent army of mercenaries.
Most of the country consists of barren lands. No one is in a position to pay their taxes fully to the state. Money is obtained from Christian countries.
Turks are very fond of their freedom and independent living. However, they have nothing in their hands, in their homes.
The sultan has to impose a new war duty on his people and keep them busy. Otherwise, uprisings will break out in the country and the country will collapse from within itself and the sultanate will end.
Eagle :
On March 9, we went to Üsküdar. We spent the night near a mosque. A thin stream of water flowed under a stone bridge. We moved east. Stony, gravel roads. You can see the houses on the shores of the islands in the Marmara Sea. There are many mosques in Kartal. It used to be a beautiful, miserable place.
Gebze:
Its old name was Viso. We passed through a Greek village. Gebze is a beautiful place. Shrubs and arbutus trees with larger strawberry-like fruits abound. There are Bulgarian peasants; they take care of the horses in the camp, they carry water and wood.
There is a beautiful mosque in Gebze and a caravanserai where soup is given to everyone for the sake of Allah. Accommodation fee is not paid. Made as a tribute. There is payment for barley and hay. Hannibal's tomb is also here. The stones of the old buildings were used in the construction of mosques.
Izmit :
Its former name is Nicomedia. Name in Turkish. The old castle on a rock has towers. This is Hereke. A lovely brook rushes down the mountain. This is a very nice place.
İzmit is partially destroyed. A very beautiful old Byzantine city. This place, like Istanbul, is built on 7 hills. There are churches destroyed by earthquakes. Turks built one of them a mosque. They take the marble columns of the old buildings to Istanbul by ship.
Iznik :
We saw a long lake, not very wide. The fish of this lake was very tasty. We came across herds of cattle on the way. We did not see any cattle.
Iznik is an old and fortified Byzantine city. Circular. It is now in ruins. Its walls were in two rows; ruined. The castle and old buildings are gone. Turks fought for 7 years to conquer this place. The houses and gardens of the Turks can be seen among the ruined walls. They have a small church where 40 Greeks lived.
We landed in a caravanserai with the whole caravan of 12 cars. There were Hungarian, German, Croatian and other nationalities prisoners here.
New city :
At the highest point of the mountain there is a village whose inhabitants are Serbs. Wheat is grown around Yenişehir. It's a flat field. Soldiers who receive daily allowance from the Sultan live here. They have fields and animals. They also own slaves. They work and feed the Turks. These prisoners work for 10-15 years under the command of the Turks. Then it can be free. There are also those who choose Islam.
Uludag :
What the Turks call Mount Keşiş… This must be Olympus. Strabo goes by this name. There was a lake on the mountain. They used to break their ice and take them to Istanbul and sell them.
Pazarcik :
There are no Romans. There is a mosque. 150-200 horses can be accommodated in the Caravanserai open to all with 12 oak poles.
It is a beautiful place surrounded by mountains on both sides. Do not. We had two Tulum wines brought from the Greek village. We also got molasses. A mixture of grape juice and honey.
Bozuyuk :
We passed through a beautiful narrow ravine. There are oak forests around. The pines are also mixed. The town is located in a beautiful place in the valley, among the vineyards.
Bilecik :
It's a neglected place. Silk fabric was woven here. Eğrigöz is also in ruins. Turks and minorities lived together in Karacaşar.
Anatolian people are almost half black; they are very dark. They are in the sun every day. They do not have a craft like European people, they cannot earn money. They make their living by shepherding and farming. Proud people, on the other hand, resist it; they head.
Sakarya :
The Sangarius river used to draw the border between Bithynia and Galatia. Turks call it Sakarya. The bridge is broken. We had a hard time. Fields as far as the eye can see... Vineyards in places... A wide land between the mountain ranges on both sides. Clay, gravelly, but firm, loamy soils. Very suitable for vineyards. These places look like Erdel.
They keep sheep and goats. Sheep have thick, wide fat tails. Goats' wool is thin and long, soft as silk. Soft and other fine fabrics are woven from mohair. We only saw how the Greeks made pious.
Ankara:
There was a fortress on a hill. We went out and looked around. The city and its castle were once very beautiful, established in a perfect place. I visited a small Armenian church made of adobe. Armenians are outwardly Christian. In reality, they are not full-fledged Christians like the Greeks, and they do not like the pope.
The inside of the castle is like a city. There are low adobe houses. There is also a mosque. The city has developed as far as possible down to the plain. The houses are random and the streets are unplanned. The roofs are covered with earth. The buildings look like barns. As if it was made for camel, horse, mule. We also saw beautiful marble columns. But the written ones are broken.
Turks do not know history. The majority are illiterate. Imams also do not tell the people the prayers they recite. The language of worship of the Turks is Arabic. We understand Arabic as much as Latin is understood in churches.
Cankiri :
The Kızılırmak separates Cappadocia and Galatia. It is raging water. It flows fast from the heights and the cliffs.
People live only on livestock. They do not think of another way of livelihood, of trade. Villagers leaving their homes at the beginning of April go to high places, to the water's edge. Their animals are with them.
Corum:
Çorum, a Turkish city, is not big. Just like a big village in us. There is no water around. It was built at the foot of a mountain. He looks out over the valley. In front of him lies a beautiful, green, wide plain. Along with the Turks, Greeks and Armenians also live in the city.
Elvan Celebi:
We reached Elvançelebi, a dervish lodge 5 hours away from Çorum. This is a Lodge. The king spent the night here. Tekke is a kind of masjid peculiar to dervishes. It looks like a Greek monastery.
The land is bare. The sultan hunted here. There's a lot of cake.
There is a wooden mosque in the village of Elvançelebi.
In this country, the people have been left behind so much that they cannot even cook the bread well. They don't have ovens. Every bread is different.
Amasya :
We reached Amasya 30 days after we set off from Istanbul. The sultan was on a drag hunt at that time. The people were sad and angry. Şehzade Mustafa was killed. Another issue of sadness was the continuation of the Iran Campaign.
Amasya is the hometown of the geographer Strabo. The Iris River passes through here and empties into the Pontus Sea. We crossed an old stone bridge. There are fields, vineyards and orchards in the region.
The castle rises on a majestic high rock.
The ambassadors visited Ahmet Pasha and Ali Pasha and presented them with gold coins.
The Sultan went to the mosque on a horse on Friday, April 12. He's wearing a green robe. Ahmet, Ali, Mehmet pashas were leading. In front of the sultan, 7 more grooms were eating 7 horses that no one else rode. The saddles of the horses were embroidered with gold.
The adobe houses were burned in the fire that broke out on Easter day. Pashas and janissaries tried to put out the fire.
The people of the region are angry and upset because of the murder of Prince Mustafa. Some of the people are secretly keeping Iran (it is thought that the Shah's spies in Anatolia, Cappadocia, who worked to find supporters of Shiism, were influential).
The palace, where the Prince and now the Sultan lived, is at the foot of the mountain, surrounded by a garden.
There are 11 Turkish mosques in Amasya. The most beautiful is the mosque with double minarets, which was built by Beyazıt, where the Sultan took the place of greeting.
There are 3 stone and 1 wooden bridges over Yeşilırmak. A poor city that emerged from mud-brick houses stacked on top of each other like a swallow's nest on two slopes of the valley. The windows of the houses are also not smooth. The rooms are like a prisoner's roof. There is no kitchen either. They cook soup in small stoves.
The exterior of the castle is very beautiful. But the walls are very thin. There are adobe houses in the Inner Castle. The servants and the commander of the castle live here year-round, never leaving. In the morning and evening, trumpets and drums are played from the castle. (*)
Evaluation :
The first sentence of our article was that the traveler was a humanist.
However, there are differences between the understanding of humanity of the century he lived in and the love of humanity today.
The author ruthlessly criticizes each nation by comparing it with the way of life of the Germans. According to him, everyone except the Germans is lazy, dirty, has no cleaning habits. This includes Hungarians, Serbs, Jews, Armenians, Greeks. In particular, Turks know neither how to make bread nor obey the rules of cleanliness during meals.
The biggest problem of the traveler, who eats his meal with wine at every meal, is that he cannot find quality wine. Not only Turks, but also Greeks, Armenians and Jews do not know how to make wine. The traveler accuses the Turkish people of making molasses by crushing grapes and mixing them with honey and boiling them, of ignorance; criticizes him for not giving importance to vineyards and gardens.
The Turks who occupied Hungary and besieged Vienna should not be expected to be loved by the Europeans. However, the author often wishes that disasters befall the Sultan, his people and his army, with riots and curses. Even though the wars with the Iranians continue, there are no westward raids, the Ottoman Army cannot advance westward from the Danube. The traveler often repeats this thought.
What draws attention in the travelogue is that there was no real production in the magnificent empire where Suleiman the Magnificent was the sultan, the economy was based on the spoils obtained from the wars, the security in the capital city of Istanbul and in the countryside was not fully ensured, the importance of agriculture and animal husbandry was not understood, the roads were broken, the bridges were ruined, It is emphasized that inns and caravanserais are not suitable places to spend the night, and heavy criticism is frequently repeated.
In churches, monasteries, cathedrals, chapels, priests are illiterate; They do not know the meaning of the Latin prayers they read. Muslim clergy in mosques, lodges, dervish lodges and masjids are ignorant; Since they do not know the meaning of the Arabic prayers they recite, they cannot explain to the public.
The wars with the Austrians in the west and the Iranians in the east have exhausted the people. For the Nizam-ı Alem, the murder of children reduces the prestige of the sultan in the eyes of the people.
In the travelogue, Turks eat in one place: Turkish women like to ride horses. In fact, riding a horse suits a Turkish woman.
Although he is introduced as a humanist, he took part in an Ambassadors Committee for the history of diplomacy of the German traveler researcher and visited Anatolia in the 16th century. There are many important lessons we can take from the information he gave, even if it was along a line in the middle of the century.
Dernschwam H. 1987. Travel Diary to Istanbul and Anatolia. Translated by Prof Yaşar Önen. Ministry of Culture and Tourism spring. Series of 885 Translated Works: 62. . Ankara
(*) Ogier Ghislain de Busbecq (1522. Flanders - 1592 Rouen), a diplomat and writer of Flemish origin in the Austrian service, is known for his works describing the situation of the Ottoman State during the Kanuni period (1520-1566).
Busbecq, who met with Suleiman the Magnificent, who was returning from the Iranian campaign, in Amasya in 1555, could only persuade the Sultan to a 6-month ceasefire. His efforts for lasting peace continued afterward. He came to Istanbul two more times. In 1562, he signed an 8-year treaty between Austria and the Ottoman Empire.
Busbeck also carried out historical, linguistic, botanical and zoological research in the places he visited, and took about 250 ancient Greek manuscripts, ancient coins and inscriptions he collected from the Ottoman lands to Vienna. Busbecq introduced the Temple of Augustus in Ankara to the western scientific world. It was published as Istanbul and Amasya Travel Book, Recommendations Regarding Military Measures to be Taken Against Turks, 4 Embassy Letters and All His Works. These are written in Latin. Turkish Letters was published in 1939 with the translation of the famous journalist Hüseyin Cahit Yalçın.