Turkish Letters of Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq, Imperial Ambassador at Constantinople - Essay Example

t comprised vivid details and analyses of politics, religion, culture, history, court life, costume, military settings, geography, social classes, women of the period, art, as well as several other significant aspects which the author had found a great deal of interest to divulge for the modern-day reader to relish.

He is considered to be the man who introduced both the lilac, which generally earned acceptance to the West, and tulip due to his fascination for herbalism local flora according to scholarly records. Based on the scholars, it is interesting to note how Busbecq demonstrated a picture of the international politics at the time through the Turkish letters, especially detailing the relations between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire which is claimed to be given negligible focus in history courses.

Hence, Busbecq’s letters are regarded as amply useful as a firsthand reliable source in studying the Western Civilization or European history for students in higher undergraduate levels. Since the inner workings of 16th-century European diplomacy are also dealt with, a reader would essentially perceive the historical and personal insights of the Flemish author regarding the culture and society of the great empire of the east. Such undertakings as Busbecq’s become noteworthy of being judged as open-mindedly capable of ridding itself of inevitable biases so as to create a better illustration of the truth which the audience should be left mostly to evaluate.

As a polymath who had been able to obtain remarkable education via Europe’s erudite capitals, Busbecq managed to exhibit in the Turkish letters, forwarded to the knowledge of a fellow diplomat at Hungary, the potential to respond to the heightening tensions between the Ottomans and Ferdinand of Habsburg between 1555 and 1562. By chronicling the encounters of his journey in fulfilling the mission assigned him as part of the imperial embassy, the ambassador quite proved that he deserved the position to settle border treaty negotiations between Suleiman ‘the Magnificent and the future emperor of Rome.