Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq: The Turkish Letters, 1555-1562

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>>2689765

These Janissaries generally came to me in pairs. When they were admitted to my dining room they first made a bow, and then came quickly up to me, all but running, and touched my dress or hand, as if they intended to kiss it. After this they would thrust into my hand a nosegay of' the hyacinth or narcissus; then they would run back to the door almost as quickly as they came, taking care not to turn their backs, for this, according to their code, would be a serious breach of etiquette. After reaching the door, they would stand respectfully with their arms crossed, and their eyes bent on the ground, looking more like monks than warriors. On receiving a few small coins (which was what they wanted) they bowed again, thanked me in loud tones, and went off blessing me for my kindness. To tell you the truth, if I had not been told beforehand that they were Janissaries, I should, without hesitation, have taken them for members of some order of Turkish monks, or brethren of some Moslem college. Yet these are the famous Janissaries, whose approach inspires terror everywhere.

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>>2689772
The Turkish monarch going to war takes with him over 400 camels and nearly as many baggage mules, of which a great part are loaded with rice and other kinds of' grain. These mules and camels also serve to carry tents and armour, and likewise tools and munitions for the campaign. . . . The invading army carefully abstains from encroaching on its magazines at the outset; as they are well aware that when the season for campaigning draws to a close, they will have to retreat over districts wasted by the enemy, or scraped bare by countless hordes of men and droves of hungry animals, as if they had been devastated by locusts; accordingly they reserve their stores as much as possible for this emergency. Then the Sultan's magazines are opened, and a ration just sufficient to sustain life is daily weighed out to the Janissaries and other troops of the royal household. The rest of the army is badly off, unless they have provided some supplies at their own expense. . . . On such occasions they take out a few spoonfuls of flour and put them into water, adding some butter, and seasoning the mess with salt and spices; these ingredients are boiled, and a large bowl of gruel is thus obtained. Of this they eat once or twice a day, according to the quantity they have, without any bread, unless they have brought some biscuit with them.... Sometimes they have recourse to horseflesh; dead horses are of course plentiful in their great hosts, and such beasts as are in good condition when they die furnish a meal not to be despised by famished soldiers.

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>>2689778
From this you will see that it is the patience, self-denial and thrift of the Turkish soldier that enable him to face the most trying circumstances and come safely out of' the dangers that surround him. What a contrast to our men! Christian soldiers on a campaign refuse to put up with their ordinary food, and call for thrushes, becaficos [a small bird esteemed a dainty, as it feeds on figs and grapes], and suchlike dainty dishes! ... It makes me shudder to think of what the result of a struggle between such different systems must be; one of us must prevail and the other be destroyed, at any rate we cannot both exist ]in safety. On their side is the vast wealth of their empire, unimpaired resources, experience and practice in arms, a veteran soldiery, an uninterrupted series of victories, readiness to endure hardships, union, order, discipline, thrift and watchfulness. On ours are found an empty exchequer, luxurious habits, exhausted resources, broken spirits, a raw and insubordinate soldiery, and greedy quarrels; there is no regard for discipline, license runs riot, the men indulge in drunkenness and debauchery, and worst of all, the enemy are accustomed to victory, we to defeat. Can we doubt what the result must be? The only obstacle is Persia, whose position on his rear forces the invader to take precautions. The fear of Persia gives us a respite, but it is only for a time.

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>>2689784
No distinction is attached to birth among the Turks; the deference to be paid to a man is measured by the position he holds in the public service. There is no fighting for precedence; a man's place is marked out by the duties he discharges. In making his appointments the Sultan pays no regard to any pretensions on the score of wealth or rank, nor does he take into consideration recommendations or popularity, he considers each case on its own merits, and examines carefully into the character, ability, and disposition of the man whose promotion is in question. It is by merit that men rise in the service, a system which ensures that posts should only be assigned to the competent. Each man in Turkey carries in his own hand his ancestry and his position in life, which he may make or mar as he will. Those who receive the highest offices from the Sultan are for the most part the sons of shepherds or herdsmen, and so far from being ashamed of their parentage, they actually glory in it, and consider it a matter of boasting that they owe nothing to the accident of birth; for they do not believe that high qualities are either natural or hereditary, nor do they think that they can be handed down from father to son, but that they are partly the gift of' God, and partly the result of good training, great industry, and unwearied zeal; arguing that high qualities do not descend from a father to his son or heir, any more than a talent for music, mathematics, or the like; and that the mind does not derive its origin from the father, so that the son should necessarily be like the father in character, our emanates from heaven, and is thence infused into the human body. Among the Turks, therefore, honours, high posts, and judgeships are the rewards of great ability and good service. If a man be dishonest, or lazy, or careless, he remains at the bottom of the ladder, an object of contempt; for such qualities there are no honours in Turkey!

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>>2689794
This is the reason that they are successful in their undertakings, that they lord it over others, and are daily extending the bounds of their empire. These are not our ideas, with us there is no opening left for merit; birth is the standard for everything; the prestige of birth is the sole key to advancement in the public service.

>>2689806
>Source:

From C. T. Forster and F. H. B. Daniel, eds., The Life and Letters of Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq, vol. I (London: Kegan Paul, 1881), pp, 86-88, 153-155, 219-222, 287-290, 293.

>>2689765
Bump, good read

good read, family.

thanks

pretty interesting to read we need more threads like this on /his/ rather than memes and communist threads

The ottoman empire should not have seemed so well organized at the time though. They were stuck in Hungary for the previous 30 years, and Soleiman had had to kill his most talented son because of intrigues in favor of an incompetent drunkard....

>>2689765
So if the Turks were so super duper strong and scared the writer, why didn't they ever actually make more significant inroads into Europe? I mean, they obviously made some progress, but this guy makes it seem like they'd do nothing but stomp their way to Aachen.

Great thread either way.

>>2690271
because its only about 12k professionals which also work as quasi borderguards, every campaign starts in constantinaple, makes its way to the target and ends the campaign not later than autumn, the further it is, the shorter the campaign

the writer is probably exaggarating but the ottomans were at around the peak of their power, while no european nation was strong enough or willing to stand against it at the time

>>2690271

the fact that a small nomadic tribe of 400 tents could expand its borders that fast to rule over different ethnic and religious groups with relative stability for 600 years in itself is pretty amazing

Nice thread.

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>>2689811
Thanks anon, but is the author honestly saying that a meritocracy has no honor?
> If a man be dishonest, or lazy, or careless, he remains at the bottom of the ladder, an object of contempt; for such qualities there are no honours in Turkey!

>>2690271
but anon, they besieged vienna twice

>>2690658

I think you are interpreting this the wrong way, he is saying guys who hold the qualities listedwill be given no honours.

>>2689772
>if I had not been told beforehand that they were Janissaries, I should, without hesitation, have taken them for members of some order of Turkish monks
jannisarries actually were warrior monks of the bektashi order of islam

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Bump

>>2690687
Jannisarries where Christian kids from Balkans, taken by force from their families (so called "Blood tax"), brain washed and forced into islam, trained as soldiers or administrators.

>>2690955
administrators were a different group than the military members
and bektashi way of islam is much different than the main branches
>The Bektashis are a syncretic and eclectic (some would say heretical and egregious) sect, with Christian and oriental elements.. The order grew out of saint-veneration and a monastic, commensual tradition combining elements from many sources both esoteric (Eastern) and popular: the Turkish, pre-Turkish/Byzantine and pre-Christian traditions of Anatolia.
>During the fifteenth century when Bektashism was developing into a comprehensive organization, it incorporated various ideas and beliefs - from 'Christianity', the qizilbash (redheads) of eastern Asia Minor and folk-ideas from nomadic and village groups - alevis, takhtajis, etc.
>Bektashi Babas (celibate spiritual advisers) accompanied the Janissaries as chaplains. In becoming enrolled as members of the élite Janissary Corps a vow of faithfulness to the Way of Haji Bektash was extracted from each soldier.

I just read this in an encyclopedia;
>The Janissaries’ firepower, especially in the early 16th century, often proved fatal for their adversaries. These elite troops could fire their weapons in a kneeling or standing position without the need for additional support or rest. In battle the Janissaries formed nine consecutive rows and fired their weapons row by row. They were so effective that most contemporary sources attribute the 1526 Ottoman success against the Hungarians at the Battle of Mohács to the firepower of the Janissaries rather than to the cannons, in sharp contrast to later historians who credited the victory to the Ottoman artillerymen.
Does this mean the Ottomans were using volley fire before the Dutch, or am I missing something here?

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>>2689765

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>>2691294
They might have, then again figuring out what say landsknecht handgunners did can be hard at times.

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>>2691322