LHMP #412 Busbecq 1581 Travels into Turkey

The Flemish scholar Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq was named an ambassador to the Ottoman Empire by the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I. From around 1554 through 1562 he was in Constantinople, primarily to negotiate a border treaty. But Busbecq was deeply interested in manuscripts, in natural history, and in describing his experiences in an extensive correspondence with friends, which he later collected and published. Purely as a side note, Busbecq is also said to have been the person who introduced tulips into the Low Countries.

Busbecq’s Turcicae epistolae was originally published in Latin in 1581 under the title Itinera Constantinopolitanum et Amasianum (Journey to Constantinople and Amasya, presumably the Amasya in modern Turkey though there are are locations named Amasia in modern Armenia), later as  as Turcicae epistolae (Turkish Letters). An English translation appeared in 1694 under the title Four Epistles of A.G. Busbequius, Concerning His Embassy Into Turkey. Being Remarks Upon the Religion, Customs Riches, Strength and Government of that People. As Also a Description of Their Chief Cities, and Places of Trade and Commerce (See Google Books entry.) The version I used was published in 1744 under the title Travels into Turkey: Containing the Most Accurate Account of the Turks, and Neighbouring Nations, Their Manners, Customs, Religion, Superstition, Policy, Riches, Coins, &c.  (both these English titles are actually much longer) which is available from Project Gutenberg. Although I wasn’t able to find a text of the 1694 English translation online, I was able to compare the first pages of the 1694 and 1744 editions, which are identical except for some variation in punctuation. So I am assuming the this holds for the entire text.

Excerpts form Busbecq are discussed in the following publications previously covered by the Lesbian Historic Motif Project: Andreadis 2001, Donoghue 1996, Murray 1997, Norton (website),  Traub 2002 (who cites: Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq, The Life and Letters of Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq, eds. Charles Thorton Foster and F.H. Blackburne Daniell (London: Kegan Paul, 1881) pp.228-29. Also available at Project Gutenberg. This is an entirely different translation than the 1694 and 1744 editions.

The excerpts included below are:

• The seclusion of women
• Lesbian desire in the public baths
• Anecdote of an old woman who fell in love with a girl at the bath

In addition to the general topic of lesbian desire in the sarail or at the women’s baths, there are two specific anecdotes that recur in multiple Early Modern sources. One is the “old woman who falls in love”, for which Busbecq is the earliest known source, and which subsequently appears in Tavernier and then in Satan’s Harvest Home. The other is the “cucumber anecdote” which we will first see in Ottaviano Bon (to be covered next), which is also repeated by Tavernier. The repetition of specific anecdotes emphasizes that these authors are not necessarily (or perhaps often) reporting from personal observation, but are gathering up material from other sources for their reports. Those other sources may, in some cases, be men they interacted with in Constantinople. But given the unlikelihood that any of these European men had direct knowledge of women’s lives in Ottoman Turkey, some level of filtering must always be assumed.

These reports frequently emphasize this last point: the male authors did not have direct access to the lives of respectable women. Though Busbecq’s description here is somewhat in conflict with the second quotation in claiming that “no person living, either male or female…shall ever have leave to see them” and then describing how women of all sorts gather together at the baths.

[P.144-145] I preceed then to other Matters, and shall give you an Example of the Chastity of Turkish Women. The Turks take more Pains to have their Wives modest, than any other Nation; and, therefore, they ordinarily keep them close up at home, and hardly suffer them to see the Sun; but if any necessity calls them abroad, they go so hooded and veil’d, as if they were Hobgoblins or Ghosts. ’Tis true, they can see Men through their Veils or Hoods, but no part of their Bodies is open to Man’s View; for they have this Tradition among them, that it is impossible for a Man to look on a Woman, especially if she be young and handsome, without desiring to enjoy her; and by that Desire the Mind is excited, and therefore they keep them all covered. Their own Brothers have Liberty to see them; but their Husband’s Brothers have not the same Permission. The nobler and richer sort, when they marry, do it with this Condition, that their Wives shall never set a Foot out of Door; and no Person living, either Male or Female, be the Cause what it will, shall ever have leave to see them; no, not their nearest Alliance in Blood, except only the Father and Mother, who, at Easter, (their Bairam) are permitted to see their Daughter; and, in lieu of this Strictness, if the Wife have Parents of the better sort, and she bring her Husband a large Dowry, the Husband, on his part promiseth, that he will never have any Concubines, but will keep to her alone.

After a much briefer description of the women’s baths than Nicolay provided, Busbecq offers a detailed anecdote concerning desire between women and its possible consequences. There is a possible implication that the reason the woman was punished so harshly was not for lesbian acts, as such, but for the gender masquerade and creating a public scandal. And, of course, there’s the implication that if the girl had been a consenting participant, perhaps no one would ever have known about it.

[Pp.145-147] The great Men also have Baths at their own Houses, wherein they and their Women do wash; but the meaner sort use public Baths.

A Turk hates bodily Filthiness and Nastiness, worse than Soul-Defilement; and, therefore, they wash very often, and they never ease themselves, by going to Stool, but they carry Water with them for their Posteriors. But ordinarily the Women bathe by themselves, Bond and Free together; so that you shall many times see young Maids, exceeding beautiful, gathered from all Parts of the World, exposed Naked to the view of other Women, who thereupon fall in Love with them, as young Men do with us, at the sight of Virgins.

By this you may guess, what the strict Watch over Females comes to, and that it is not enough to avoid the Company of an adulterous Man, for the Females burn in Love one towards another; and the Pandaresses to such refined Loves are the Baths; and, therefore, some Turks will deny their Wives the use of their public Baths, but they cannot do it altogether, because their Law allows them. But these Offences happen among the ordinary sort; the richer sort of Persons have Baths at home, as I told you before.

It happened one time, that at the public Baths for Women, an old Woman fell in Love with a Girl, the Daughter of a poor Man, a Citizen of Constantinople; and, when neither by wooing nor flattering her, she could obtain that of her which her mad Affection aim’d at, she attempted to perform an Exploit almost incredible; she feign’d herself to be a Man, changed her Habit, hired an House near the Maid’s Father, and pretended she was one of the Chiauxes of the Grand Seignior; and thus, by reason of his Neighbourhood, she insinuated herself into the Man’s Acquaintance, and after some time, acquaints him with the desire of his Daughter. In short, he being a Man in such a prosperous Condition, the Matter was agreed on, a Portion was settled, such as they were able to give, and a Day appointed for the Marriage; when the Ceremonies were over, and this doughty Bridegroom went into the Bride-chamber to his Spouse; after some Discourse, and plucking off her Headgeer, she was found to be a Woman. Whereupon the Maid runs out, and calls up her Parents, who soon found that they had married her, not to a Man, but a Woman: Whereupon, they carried the supposed Man, the next day, to the General of the Janizaries, who, in the Absence of the Grand Seignior, was Governor of the City. When she was brought before him, he chide her soundly for her beastly Love; what, says he, are you not asham’d, an old Beldam as you are, to attempt so notorious a Bestiality, and so filthy a Fact?

Away, Sir, says she! You do not know the Force of Love, and God grant you never may. At this absurd Reply, the Governor could scarce forbear Laughter, but commanded her, presently, to be pack’d away and drown’d in the Deep; such was the unfortunate Issue of her wild Amours. For you must know, that the Turks make no noise when secret Offences are committed by them, that they may not open the Mouths of Scandal and Reproach; but open and manifest ones they punish most severely.