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TheFranco-Ottoman alliance, also known as theFranco-Turkish alliance, was an alliance established in 1536 betweenFrancis I,King of France andSuleiman I of the Ottoman Empire. The strategic and sometimes tactical alliance was one of the longest-lasting and most importantforeign alliances of France, and was particularly influential during theItalian Wars. The Franco-Ottoman military alliance reached its peak with theInvasion of Corsica of 1553 during the reign ofHenry II of France.[1][2]
As the first non-ideological alliance in effect between a Christian and Muslim state, the alliance attracted heavy controversy for its time and caused a scandal throughout Christendom.[3][4]Carl Jacob Burckhardt (1947) called it "thesacrilegious union of thelily and thecrescent".[5] It lasted intermittently for more than two and a half centuries,[6] until theNapoleonic campaign inOttoman Egypt, in 1798–1801.
Following the Turkish conquest ofConstantinople in 1453 byMehmed II and the unification of swaths of theMiddle East underSelim I,Suleiman I, the son of Selim, managed to expand Ottoman rule toSerbia in 1522. TheHoly Roman Empire thus entered in direct conflict with the Ottomans.
Some early contacts seem to have taken place between the Ottomans and the French.Philippe de Commines reports thatBayezid II sent an embassy toLouis XI in 1483, whileCem, his brother and rival pretender to the Ottoman throne was being detained in France atBourganeuf byPierre d'Aubusson. Louis XI refused to see the envoys, but a large amount of money and Christian relics were offered by the envoy so that Cem could remain in custody in France.[7] Cem was transferred to the custody ofPope Innocent VIII in 1489.
France had signed a first treaty orCapitulation with theMamluk Sultanate ofEgypt in 1500, during the reigns ofLouis XII and SultanBayezid II,[8][9] in which the Sultan of Egypt had made concessions to the French and the Catalans, and which would be later extended by Suleiman.
France had already been looking for allies in Central Europe. The ambassador of FranceAntonio Rincon was employed byFrancis I on several missions toPoland andHungary between 1522 and 1525. At that time, following the 1522Battle of Bicoque, Francis I was attempting to ally with kingSigismund I the Old of Poland.[10] Finally, in 1524, aFranco-Polish alliance was signed between Francis I and the king of PolandSigismund I.[11]
A momentous intensification of the search for allies inCentral Europe occurred when the French ruler Francis I was defeated at theBattle of Pavia on February 24, 1525, by the troops of EmperorCharles V. After several months in prison, Francis I was forced to sign the humiliatingTreaty of Madrid, through which he had to relinquish theDuchy of Burgundy and theCharolais to the Empire, renounce his Italian ambitions, and return his belongings and honours to the traitorConstable de Bourbon. This situation forced Francis I to find an ally against the powerful Habsburg Emperor, in the person of Suleiman the Magnificent.[12]
The alliance was an opportunity for both rulers to fight against the hegemony of theHouse of Habsburg. The objective for Francis I was to find an ally against the Habsburgs,[4] although the policy of courting aMuslim power was in reversal of that of his predecessors.[13] The pretext used by Francis I was the protection of the Christians in Ottoman lands, through agreements called "Capitulations of the Ottoman Empire".
King Francis was imprisoned inMadrid when the first efforts at establishing an alliance were made. A first French mission to Suleiman seems to have been sent right after the Battle of Pavia by the mother of Francis I,Louise de Savoie, but the mission was lost on its way inBosnia.[14] In December 1525 a second mission was sent, led byJohn Frangipani, which managed to reach Constantinople, the Ottoman capital, with secret letters asking for the deliverance of king Francis I and an attack on the Habsburg. Frangipani returned with an answer from Suleiman, on 6 February 1526:[14]
I who am the Sultan of Sultans, the sovereign of sovereigns, the dispenser of crowns to the monarchs on the face of the earth, the shadow of the God on Earth, the Sultan and sovereign lord of the Mediterranean Sea and of the Black Sea, of Rumelia and of Anatolia, of Karamania, of the land of Romans, of Dhulkadria, of Diyarbakir, of Kurdistan, of Azerbaijan, of Persia, of Damascus, of Aleppo, of Cairo, of Mecca, of Medina, of Jerusalem, of all Arabia, of Yemen and of many other lands which my noble fore-fathers and my glorious ancestors (may God light up their tombs!) conquered by the force of their arms and which my August Majesty has made subject to my flamboyant sword and my victorious blade, I, Sultan Suleiman Khan, son of Sultan Selim Khan, son of Sultan Bayezid Khan: To thee who artFrancesco, king of the province of France ... You have sent to myPorte, refuge of sovereigns, a letter by the hand of your faithful servant Frangipani, and you have furthermore entrusted to him miscellaneous verbal communications. You have informed me that the enemy has overrun your country and that you are at present in prison and a captive, and you have asked aid and succors for your deliverance. All this your saying having been set forth at the foot of my throne, which controls the world. Your situation has gained my imperial understanding in every detail, and I have considered all of it. There is nothing astonishing in emperors being defeated and made captive. Take courage then, and be not dismayed. Our glorious predecessors and our illustrious ancestors (may God light up their tombs!) have never ceased to make war to repel the foe and conquer his lands. We ourselves have followed in their footsteps, and have at all times conquered provinces and citadels of great strength and difficult of approach. Night and day our horse is saddled and our saber is girt. May the God on High promote righteousness! May whatsoever he will be accomplished! For the rest, question your ambassador and be informed. Know that it will be as said.
— Answer from Suleiman the Magnificent to Francis I of France, February 1526.[15]
The plea of the French king nicely corresponded to the ambitions of Suleiman in Europe, and gave him an incentive to attackHungary in 1526, leading to theBattle of Mohács.[6] The Ottomans were also greatly attracted by the prestige of being in alliance with such a country as France, which would give them better legitimacy in their European dominions.[6]
Meanwhile, Charles V was manoeuvring to form aHabsburg-Persian alliance withPersia, so that the Ottoman Empire would be attacked on its rear. Envoys were sent to ShahTahmasp I in 1525, and again in 1529, pleading for an attack on the Ottoman Empire.[16]
With theWar of the League of Cognac (1526–1530) going on, Francis I continued to look for allies in Central Europe and formed aFranco-Hungarian alliance in 1528 with theHungarian kingZapolya, who himself had just become a vassal of theOttoman Empire that same year.[17] In 1528 also, Francis used the pretext of the protection of Christians in the Ottoman Empire to again enter into contact with Suleiman, asking for the return of amosque to aChristian Church. In his 1528 letter to Francis I Suleiman politely refused, but guaranteed the protection of Christians in his states. He also renewed the privileges of French merchants which had been obtained in 1517 in Egypt.
Francis I lost in his European campaigns, and had to sign thePaix des Dames in August 1529. He was even forced to supply somegalleys to Charles V in his fight against the Ottomans. However, the Ottomans would continue their campaigns in Central Europe, and besiege the Habsburg capital in the 1529siege of Vienna, and again in 1532.
In early July 1532, Suleiman was joined by the French ambassadorAntonio Rincon inBelgrade.[19] Antonio Rincon presented Suleiman witha magnificent four-tiered tiara, made in Venice for 115,000ducats.[18] Rincon also described the Ottoman camp:
Astonishing order, no violence. Merchants, women even, coming and going in perfect safety, as in a European town. Life as safe, as large and easy as in Venice. Justice so fairly administered that one is tempted to believe that the Turks are turned Christians now, and that the Christians are turned Turks.
— Antonio Rincon, 1532.[20]
Francis I explained to theVenetian ambassadorGiorgio Gritti in March 1531 his strategy regarding the Turks:[21]
I cannot deny that I wish to see the Turk all-powerful and ready for war, not for himself – for he is an infidel and we are all Christians – but to weaken the power of the emperor, to compel him to make major expenses, and to reassure all the other governments who are opposed to such a formidable enemy.
— Francis I to the Venetian ambassador.[22]
Ottoman embassies were sent to France, with theOttoman embassy to France (1533) led byHayreddin Barbarossa, and theOttoman embassy to France (1534) led by representatives of Suleiman.
Suleiman ordered Barbarossa to put his fleet at the disposition of Francis I to attackGenoa and theMilanese.[23] In July 1533 Francis received Ottoman representatives atLe Puy, and he would dispatch in returnAntonio Rincon to Barbarossa inNorth Africa and then to theAsia Minor.[24] Suleiman explained that "he could not possibly abandon the King of France, who was his brother".[24] The Franco-Ottoman alliance was by then effectively made.[24]
In 1534 a Turkish fleet sailed against the Habsburg Empire at the request of Francis I, raiding the Italian coast and finally meeting with representatives of Francis in southern France.[25] The fleet went on to captureTunis in theConquest of Tunis (1534) on 16 August 1534 and continued raiding the Italian coast with the support of Francis I.[26] In a counter-attack however, Charles V dislodged them in theConquest of Tunis (1535).
Treaties, or capitulations, were passed between the two countries starting in 1528 and 1536. The defeat in theConquest of Tunis (1535) at the hands ofAndrea Doria motivated the Ottoman Empire to enter into a formal alliance with France.[27] AmbassadorJean de La Forêt was sent to Istanbul, and for the first time was able to become permanent ambassador at the Ottoman court and to negotiate treaties.[27]
Jean de La Forêt negotiated thecapitulations on 18 February 1536, on the model of previous Ottoman commercial treaties withVenice andGenoa,[27] although they only seem to have been ratified by the Ottomans later, in 1569, with ambassadorClaude Du Bourg. These capitulations allowed the French to obtain important privileges, such as the security of the people and goods, extraterritoriality, freedom to transport and sell goods in exchange for the payment of theselamlik and customs fees. These capitulations would in effect give the French a near trade monopoly in seaport-towns that would be known asles Échelles du Levant.[28] Foreign vessels had to trade with Turkey under the French banner, after the payment of a percentage of their trade.
A French embassy and a Christian chapel were established in the town ofGalata across the Golden horn fromConstantinople, and commercial privileges were also given to French merchants in the Turkish Empire. Through the capitulations of 1535, the French received the privilege to trade freely in all Ottoman ports.[4] A formal alliance was signed in 1536.[29] The French were free to practice their religion in the Ottoman Empire, and French Catholics were given custody of holy places.[4] The capitulations were again renewed in 1604,[4] and lasted up until the establishment of theRepublic of Turkey in 1923.[30]
Jean de la Forêt also had secret military instructions to organize a combined offensive on Italy in 1535:[31] Through the negotiations of de La Forêt with theGrand VizierIbrahim Pasha it was agreed that combined military operations against Italy would take place, in which France would attackLombardy while the Ottoman Empire would attack fromNaples.[27][32] The Ottoman Empire also provided considerable financial support to Francis I. In 1533, Suleiman sent Francis I 100,000 gold pieces, so that he could form a coalition with England and German states against Charles V. In 1535, Francis asked for another 1 millionducats.[33] The military instructions of Jean de la Forêt were highly specific:
Jean de la Forest, whom the King sends to meet with theGrand Signor [Suleiman the Magnificent], will first go fromMarseille toTunis, inBarbary, to meet sirHaradin, king ofAlgiers, who will direct him to the Grand Signor. To this objective, next summer, he [the King of France] with send the military force he is preparing to recover what it unjustly occupied by theDuke of Savoy, and from there, to attack theGenoese. This kingFrancis I strongly prays sirHaradin, who has a powerful naval force as well as a convenient location [Tunisia], to attack the island ofCorsica and other lands, locations, cities, ships and subjects of Genoa, and not to stop until they have accepted and recognized the king of France. The King, besides the above land force, will additionally help with his naval force, which will comprise at least 50 vessels, of which 30galleys, and the restgaleasses and other vessels, accompanied by one of the largest and most beautiful carracks that ever was on the sea. This fleet will accompany and escort the army of sirHaradin, which will also be refreshed and supplied with food and ammunition by the King, who, by these actions, will be able to achieve his aims, for which he will be highly grateful to sirHaradin. ...
To theGrand Signor, Monsieur de La Forest must ask for 1 million in gold, and for his army to enter first inSicily andSardinia and establish there a king whom La Forest will nominate, a person who has credit and knows well these islands which he will retain in the devotion of, and under the shade and support of the King [of France]. Furthermore, he will recognize this blessing, and send tribute and pension to the Grand Signor to reward him for the financial support he will have provided to the King, as well as the support of his navy which will be fully assisted by the King [of France].— Military instruction from Francis I toJean de la Forest, 1535.[34]
Finally, Suleiman intervened diplomatically in favour of Francis on the European scene. He is known to have sent at least one letter to the Protestant princes of Germany to encourage them to ally with Francis I against Charles V.[35] Francis I effectively allied with theSchmalkaldic League against Charles V in 1535.
Franco-Ottoman military collaboration took place during the Italian War of 1536–1538 following the 1536 Treaty negotiated byJean de La Forêt.
Francis I invadedSavoy in 1536,[36] starting the war. A Franco-Turkish fleet was stationed inMarseille by the end of 1536, threateningGenoa.[37] While Francis I was attacking Milan and Genoa in April 1536, Barbarossa was raiding the Habsburg possessions in the Mediterranean.[27]
In 1536 the French AdmiralBaron de Saint-Blancard combined his twelve French galleys with a small Ottoman fleet belonging to Barbarossa inAlgiers (an Ottoman galley and 6 galiotes), to attack the island ofIbiza in theBalearic Islands. After failing to capture the tower of Salé, the fleet raided the Spanish coast fromTortosa toCollioure, finally wintering inMarseilles with 30 galleys from 15 October 1536 (the first time a Turkish fleet laid up for the winter in Marseilles).
For 1537 important combined operations were agreed upon, in which the Ottomans would attack southern Italy andNaples underBarbarossa, andFrancis I would attack northern Italy with 50,000 men. Suleiman led an army of 300,000 from Constantinople toAlbania, with the objective of transporting them to Italy with the fleet.[27] The Ottoman fleet gathered inAvlona with 100 galleys, accompanied by the French ambassador Jean de La Forêt.[38] They landed inCastro, Apulia by the end of July 1537, and departed two weeks later with many prisoners.[38] Barbarossa had laid waste to the region aroundOtranto, carrying about 10,000 people into slavery. Francis however failed to meet his commitment, and instead attacked theNetherlands.
The Ottomans departed from Southern Italy, and instead mounted thesiege of Corfu in August 1537.[39] where they were met by the French AdmiralBaron de Saint-Blancard with 12 galleys in early September 1537.[38] Saint-Blancard in vain attempted to convince the Ottomans to again raid the coasts ofApulia,Sicily and the March ofAncona, and Suleiman returned with his fleet to Constantinople by mid-September without having captured Corfu.[38] French ambassador Jean de La Forêt became seriously ill and died around that time.[38] Francis I finally penetrated into Italy, and reachedRivoli on 31 October 1537.[40]
For two years, until 1538, Saint-Blancard would accompany the fleet of Barbarossa, and between 1537 and 1538, Saint-Blancard would winter with his galleys in Constantinople and meet with Suleiman. During that time, Saint-Blancard was funded by Barbarossa.[41] The campaign of Saint-Blancard with the Ottomans was written down inLe Voyage du Baron de Saint Blancard en Turquie, byJean de la Vega, who had accompanied Saint-Blancard in his mission.[42] Although the French accompanied most of the campaigns of Barbarossa, they sometimes refrained from participating in Turkish assaults, and their accounts express horror at the violence of these encounters, in which Christians were slaughtered or taken as captives.[43]
WithCharles V unsuccessful in battle and squeezed between the French invasion and the Ottomans, he and Francis I ultimately made peace with theTruce of Nice on 18 June 1538.[37] In the truce, Charles and Francis made an agreement to ally against the Ottomans to expel them from Hungary.[44] Charles V turned his attention to fighting the Ottomans, but could not launch large forces in Hungary due to a raging conflict with the German princes of theSchmalkaldic League.[44] On 28 September 1538 Barbarosa won the majorBattle of Preveza against the Imperial fleet.[45] At the end of the conflict, Suleiman set as a condition for peace with Charles V that the latter returns to Francis I the lands that were his by right.[39]
The Franco-Ottoman alliance was crippled for a while however, due to Francis' official change of alliance at Nice in 1538. Open conflict between Charles and Francis would resume in 1542, as well as Franco-Ottoman collaboration, with the 4 July 1541 assassination by Imperial troops of theFrench Ambassador to the Ottoman EmpireAntonio Rincon, as he was travelling through Italy nearPavia.
During the Italian War of 1542–46 Francis I and Suleiman I were again pitted against theHoly Roman EmperorCharles V, andHenry VIII ofEngland. The course of the war saw extensive fighting in Italy, France, and theLow Countries, as well as attempted invasions ofSpain and England; but, although the conflict was ruinously expensive for the major participants, its outcome was inconclusive. In theMediterranean, active naval collaboration took place between the two powers to fight against Spanish forces, following a request by Francis I, conveyed byAntoine Escalin des Aimars, also known as Captain Polin.
In early 1542, Polin successfully negotiated the details of the alliance, with the Ottoman Empire promising to send 60,000 troops against the territories of the German king Ferdinand, as well as 150 galleys against Charles, while France promised to attackFlanders, harass the coasts of Spain with a naval force, and send 40 galleys to assist the Turks for operations in the Levant.[46]
A landing harbour in the north of theAdriatic was prepared for Barberousse, atMarano. The port was seized in the name of France byPiero Strozzi on 2 January 1542.[47]
Polin left Constantinople on 15 February 1542 with a contract from Suleiman outlining the details of the Ottoman commitment for 1542. He arrived inBlois on 8 March 1542 to obtain a ratification of the agreement by Francis I.[48] Accordingly, Francis I designated the city ofPerpignan as the objective for the Ottoman expedition, in order to obtain a seaway to Genoa.[49] Polin, after some delays in Venice, finally managed to take a galley to Constantinople on 9 May 1542, but he arrived too late for the Ottomans to launch a sea campaign.[50]
Meanwhile, Francis I initiated the hostilities with Charles V on 20 July 1542, and kept with his part of the agreement by laying siege at Perpignan and attacking Flanders.[48]André de Montalembert was sent to Constantinople to ascertain the Ottoman offensive, but it turned out that Suleiman, partly under the anti-alliance influence ofSuleyman Pasha, was unwilling to send an army that year, and promised to send an army twice as strong the following year, in 1543.[51]
When Francis I learnt from André de Montalembert that the Ottomans were not coming, he raised the siege of Perpignan.[52]
Most notably, the French forces, led byFrançois de Bourbon and the Ottoman forces, led by Barbarossa, joined atMarseille in August 1543,[53] and collaborated to bombard the city ofNice in thesiege of Nice.[4] In this action 110 Ottoman galleys, amounting to 30,000 men,[54] combined with 50 French galleys.[55] The Franco-Ottomans laid waste to the city of Nice, but were confronted by a stiff resistance which gave rise to the story ofCatherine Ségurane. They had to raise the siege of the citadel upon the arrival of enemy troops.
After the siege of Nice, the Ottomans were offered by Francis to winter atToulon, so that they could continue to harass theHoly Roman Empire, and especially the coast ofSpain and Italy, as well the communications between the two countries:
Lodge theLord Barbarossa sent to the king by the Great Turk, with his Turkish Army and grands seigneurs to the number of 30,000 combatants during the winter in his town and port of Toulon... for the accommodation of the said army as well as the well-being of all his coast, it will not be suitable for the inhabitants of Toulon to remain and mingle with the Turkish nation, because of difficulties which might arise
— Instruction of Francis I to his Lord Lieutenant of Provence.[56]
During the wintering of Barbarossa, theToulon Cathedral was transformed into amosque, the call to prayer occurred five times a day, and Ottoman coinage was the currency of choice. According to an observer: "To see Toulon, one might imagine oneself at Constantinople".[57]
Throughout the winter, the Ottomans were able to use Toulon as a base to attack the Spanish and Italian coasts, raidingSanremo,Borghetto Santo Spirito,Ceriale and defeating Italo-Spanish naval attacks. Sailing with his whole fleet toGenoa, Barbarossa negotiated withAndrea Doria the release ofTurgut Reis.[58] The Ottomans departed from their Toulon base in May 1544 after Francis I had paid 800,000ecus to Barbarossa.[59]
Five French galleys underCaptain Polin, including the superbRéale, accompanied Barbarossa's fleet,[60] on a diplomatic mission to Suleiman.[59] The French fleet accompanied Barbarossa during his attacks on the west coast of Italy on the way to Constantinople, as he laid waste to the cities ofPorto Ercole,Giglio,Talamona,Lipari and took about 6,000 captives, but separated inSicily from Barbarossa's fleet to continue alone to the Ottoman capital.[61]Jerôme Maurand, a priest ofAntibes who accompanied Polin and the Ottoman fleet in 1544, wrote a detailed account inItinéraire d'Antibes à Constantinonple.[62] They arrived in Constantinople on 10 August 1544 to meet with Suleiman and give him an account of the campaign.[63] Polin was back to Toulon on 2 October 1544.[63]
On land Suleiman was concomitantly fighting for the conquest ofHungary in 1543, as a part of theLittle War. French troops were supplied to the Ottomans on the Central European front: in Hungary, a French artillery unit was dispatched in 1543–1544 and attached to theOttoman Army.[35][55][64] Following major sieges such as thesiege of Esztergom (1543), Suleiman took a commanding position in Hungary, obtaining the signature of theTruce of Adrianople with the Habsburg in 1547.
Besides the powerful effect of astrategic alliance encircling the Habsburg Empire, combined tactical operations were significantly hampered by the distances involved, the difficulties in communication, and the unpredictable changes of plans on one side or the other. From a financial standpoint, fiscal revenues were also generated for both powers through the ransoming of enemy ships in the Mediterranean. The French Royal House also borrowed large amounts ofgold from the Ottoman bankerJoseph Nasi and the Ottoman Empire, amounting to around 150,000écus as of 1565, the repayment of which became contentious in the following years.[65]
In 1547, whenSultan Suleiman I attacked Persia in his second campaign of theOttoman-Safavid War (1532–1555), France sent him the ambassadorGabriel de Luetz to accompany him in his campaign.[66] Gabriel de Luetz was able to give decisive military advice to Suleiman, as when he advised on artillery placement during theSiege of Van.[66]
The alliance provided strategic support to, and effectively protected, the kingdom of France from the ambitions ofCharles V. It also gave the opportunity for the Ottoman Empire to become involved in European diplomacy and gain prestige in its European dominions. According to historian Arthur Hassall the consequences of the Franco-Ottoman alliance were far-reaching:"The Ottoman alliance had powerfully contributed to save France from the grasp of Charles V, it had certainly aidedProtestantism inGermany, and from a French point of view, it had rescued the North German allies of Francis I."'[67]
Side effects included a lot of negative propaganda against the actions of France and its "unholy" alliance with aMuslim power. Charles V strongly appealed to the rest of Europe against the alliance of Francis I, and caricatures were made showing the collusion between France and the Ottoman Empire.[68] In the late sixteenth century, Italian political philosopherGiovanni Botero referred to the alliance as "a vile, infamous, diabolical treaty" and blamed it for the extinction of theValois dynasty.[69] Even the FrenchHuguenotFrancois de La Noue denounced the alliance in a 1587 work, claiming that "this confederation has been the occasion to diminish the glory and power of such a flourishing kingdom as France."[70]
Numerous authors intervened to take the defense of the French king for his alliance. Authors wrote about the Ottoman civilization, such asGuillaume Postel orChristophe Richer, in sometimes extremely positive ways. In the 1543 workLes Gestes de Francoys de Valois,Etienne Dolet justified the alliance by comparing it to Charles V's relations with Persia and Tunis. Dolet also claimed that it should not be "forbidden for a prince to make alliance and seek intelligence of another, whatever creed or law he may be."[71] The authorFrançois de Sagon wrote in 1544Apologye en défense pour le Roy, a text defending the actions of Francis I by drawing parallels with theparable of the Good Samaritan in theBible, in which Francis is compared to the wounded man, the Emperor to the thieves, and Suleiman to theGood Samaritan providing help to Francis.[68]Guillaume du Bellay and his brotherJean du Bellay wrote in defense of the alliance, at the same time minimizing it and legitimizing on the ground that Francis I was defending himself against an aggression.[72]Jean de Montluc used examples from Christian history to justify the endeavour to obtain Ottoman support.[73]Jean de Montluc's brotherBlaise de Montluc argued in 1540 that the alliance was permissible because "against one's enemies one can make arrows of any kind of wood."[74] In 1551,Pierre Danes [fr] wroteApologie, faicte par un serviteur du Roy, contre les calomnies des Impériaulx: sur la descente du Turc.[68]
Cultural and scientific exchanges between France and the Ottoman Empire flourished. French scholars such asGuillaume Postel orPierre Belon were able to travel toAsia Minor and theMiddle East to collect information.[68]
Scientific exchange is thought to have occurred, as numerous works in Arabic, especially pertaining toastronomy were brought back, annotated and studied by scholars such as Guillaume Postel. Transmission of scientific knowledge, such as theTusi-couple, may have occurred on such occasions, at the time whenCopernicus was establishing his own astronomical theories.[75]
Books, such as the Muslim holy text, theQuran, were brought back to be integrated in Royal libraries, such as theBibliothèque Royale de Fontainebleau, to create a foundation for theCollège des lecteurs royaux, futureCollège de France.[68] French novels and tragedies were written with the Ottoman Empire as a theme or background.[68] In 1561,Gabriel Bounin publishedLa Soltane, atragedy highlighting the role ofRoxelane in the 1553 execution ofMustapha, the elder son ofSuleiman.[68][76] This tragedy marks the first time the Ottomans were introduced on stage in France.[77]
Strategically, the alliance with the Ottoman Empire also allowed France to offset to some extent theHabsburg Empire's advantage in theNew World trade, and French trade with the eastern Mediterranean throughMarseille indeed increased considerably after 1535. After the Capitulations of 1569, France also gained precedence over all other Christian states, and her authorization was required for when another state wished to trade with the Ottoman Empire.[78]
The son of Francis I,Henry II, also sealed a treaty with Suleyman in order to cooperate against theAustrian Navy.[4] This was triggered by the 8 September 1550 conquest ofMahdiya by the Genoese AdmiralAndrea Doria on behalf ofCharles V. The alliance allowed Henry II to push for French conquests towards theRhine, while a Franco-Ottoman fleet defended southern France.[39]
Various military actions were coordinated during theItalian War of 1551–1559. In 1551, the Ottomans, accompanied by the French ambassadorGabriel de Luez d'Aramon, succeeded in thesiege of Tripoli.[79]
In 1552, when Henry II attacked Charles V, the Ottomans sent 100 galleys to the Western Mediterranean.[80] The Ottoman fleet was accompanied by three French galleys under Gabriel de Luez d'Aramon, who accompanied the Ottoman fleet from Istanbul in its raids along the coast ofCalabria in Southern Italy, capturing the city ofReggio.[81] The plan was to join with the French fleet ofBaron de la Garde and the troops of thePrince of Salerno, but both were delayed and could not join the Ottomans in time. In theBattle of Ponza in front of the island ofPonza with 40 galleys ofAndrea Doria, the Franco-Ottoman fleet managed to vanquish them and capture 7 galleys on 5 August 1552. The Franco-Ottoman fleet left Naples to go back to the east on 10 August, missing the Baron de la Garde who reached Naples a week later with 25 galleys and troops. The Ottoman fleet then wintered inChios, where it was joined by the fleet of Baron de la Garde, ready for naval operations the following year.
On 1 February 1553, a new treaty of alliance, involving naval collaboration against the Habsburg was signed between France and the Ottoman Empire.[82] In 1553, the Ottoman admiralsDragut andKoca Sinan together with the French squadron raided the coasts ofNaples,Sicily,Elba andCorsica.[82][1] A Franco-Ottoman fleet accomplished anInvasion of Corsica for the benefit of France.[55] The military alliance is said to have reached its peak in 1553.[1]
In 1555, the French ambassadorMichel de Codignac, successor to Gabriel de Luetz d'Aramon, is known to have participated to Suleiman'sPersian campaign, and to have sailed with the Ottoman fleet in its campaign againstPiombino,Elba andCorsica.[83] The Ottoman admiralTurgut Reis was one of the key Ottoman protagonists in these actions.
On 30 December 1557, Henry II wrote a letter to Suleiman, asking him for money,saltpeter, and 150 galleys to be stationed in the West. Through the services of his ambassadorJean Cavenac de la Vigne, Henry II obtained the dispatch of an Ottoman fleet to Italy in 1558, with little effect however apart from the sack ofSorrento.[84] The Ottomans also contributed by theOttoman invasion of the Balearic islands in 1558. The conflict would finally come to an end with thePeace of Cateau-Cambrésis (1559) and the accidental death of Henry II that same year. The newfound peace between the European powers however created long-lasting disillusionment on the Ottoman side.[85]
Ottoman power was also used by the French in the religious conflicts on the European scene. In 1566, underCharles IX, the French ambassador to the Ottoman Empire intervened in favour of theDutch Revolt against theSpanish Empire, after a request for Ottoman help byWilliam I of Orange, so that a Dutch-Ottoman alliance was considered and a letter was sent from Suleiman the Magnificent to the "Lutherans" inFlanders, offering troops at the time they would request,[86] and claiming that he felt close to them, "since they did not worship idols, believed in one God and fought against the Pope and Emperor".[87][88] The Ottoman Empire was indeed known at that time for its religious tolerance. Various religious refugees, such as theHuguenots, someAnglicans,Quakers,Anabaptists or evenJesuits orCapuchins and Jews (Marranos) were able to find refuge atConstantinople and in the Ottoman Empire,[35] where they were given right of residence and worship.[89] Further, the Ottomans supported the Calvinists inTransylvania andHungary but also in France.[90] The contemporary French thinkerJean Bodin wrote:[91]
The great emperor of the Turks does with as great devotion as any prince in the world honour and observe the religion by him received from his ancestors, and yet detests he not the strange religions of others; but on the contrary permits every man to live according to his conscience: yes, and that more is, near unto his palace atPera, suffers four diverse religions viz. that of the Jews, that of the Christians, that of the Grecians, and that of the Mahometans.
The Ottoman Empire was at the height of its power, but for the forty years after these events, France would become embroiled in the bitterFrench Wars of Religion, and Ottoman power would start to slowly weaken after the 1571Battle of Lepanto.
In 1572, after the death of the Polish kingSigismund Augustus, who had been under aPolish-Ottoman alliance of his own, Poland elected the FrenchHenri de Valois, rather than Habsburg candidates, partly in order to be more agreeable to the Ottoman Empire.[92] The choice of Henri de Valois had apparently been proposed by the OttomanGrand VizierSokollu Mehmet Pasha.[93] When Henri left to return to France in 1575, he was succeeded byStephen Báthory of Poland, who also had been supported by the Ottomans in obtaining theTransylvanian throne in 1571.[92]
In 1574,William of Orange andCharles IX of France, through his pro-Huguenot ambassadorFrançois de Noailles,Bishop of Dax, tried to obtain the support of the Ottoman SultanSelim II in order to open a new front against the Spanish KingPhilip II.[94] Selim II sent his support through a messenger, who endeavoured to put the Dutch in contact with the rebelliousMoriscos of Spain and the pirates of Algiers.[95] Selim also sent a great fleet in theCapture of Tunis in October 1574, thus succeeding in reducing Spanish pressure on the Dutch.[95]
FrenchHuguenots were in contact with theMoriscos in plans against Spain in the 1570s.[96] Around 1575, plans were made for a combined attack of Aragonese Moriscos and Huguenots fromBéarn underHenri de Navarre against SpanishAragon, in agreement with the king ofAlgiers and theOttoman Empire, but these projects foundered with the arrival ofJohn of Austria in Aragon and the disarmament of the Moriscos.[97][98] In 1576, a three-pronged fleet fromConstantinople was planned to disembark betweenMurcia andValencia while the French Huguenots would invade from the north and the Moriscos accomplish their uprising, but the Ottoman fleet failed to arrive.[97]
Ottoman support for France would continue, as well as support for theDutch and theEnglish after 1580, and support forProtestants andCalvinists,[87] as a way to counter Habsburg attempts at supremacy in Europe.[87] For a time though, theOttoman–Safavid War (1578–1590) turned the Ottomans' attention away from Europe.
The conflict between the Ottomans and the Persians led the latter to try to forge a counter-actingHabsburg-Persian alliance with other European powers against the Ottoman Empire, particularly with the Habsburg Empire, some of theItalian states andHabsburg Spain. This plan was formalized by two major diplomatic endeavours: thePersian embassy to Europe (1599–1602), and thePersian embassy to Europe (1609–1615). The results however seem to have been limited.
For the three centuries following the beginning of the alliance,[6] the Ottoman effectively continued to respect their commitment to protect Christian communities in their realm. The French kings succeeding to Francis I also generally maintained their pro-Ottoman policy.[4] Numerous Ottoman embassies were received at the French court: from Suleiman I toFrancis I in 1533, fromSuleiman I toCharles IX in 1565 (embassy ofHajji Murad),[65] fromSelim II toCharles IX in 1571, fromMurad III toHenry III in 1581.[99]
Even beforeHenry IV's accession to the throne, the FrenchHuguenots were in contact with theMoriscos in plans againstHabsburg Spain in the 1570s.[96] Around 1575, plans were made for a combined attack of Aragonese Moriscos and Huguenots fromBéarn under Henri de Navarre against SpanishAragon, in agreement with the Bey ofAlgiers and theOttoman Empire, but these projects foundered with the arrival ofJohn of Austria in Aragon and the disarmament of the Moriscos.[97][98] In 1576, a three-pronged fleet fromConstantinople was planned to disembark betweenMurcia andValencia while the French Huguenots would invade from the north and the Moriscos accomplish their uprising, but the Ottoman fleet failed to arrive.[97]
Henry IV continued the policy of Franco-Ottoman alliance and received an embassy fromMehmed III in 1601.[99][102] In 1604, a "Peace Treaty andCapitulation" was signed between Henry IV and the Ottoman SultanAhmed I, giving numerous advantages to France in the Ottoman Empire.[102] An embassy was sent toTunisia in 1608, led byFrançois Savary de Brèves.[103]
An embassy was again sent toLouis XIII in 1607, and fromMehmed IV toLouis XIV in 1669 in the person of ambassadorMüteferrika Süleyman Ağa, who created a sensation at the French court and even triggered a Turkish fashion.[104] The Orient came to have a strong influence in French literature, as about 50% of French travel guides in the 16th century were dedicated to the Ottoman Empire.[105]
French influence remained paramount at Constantinople, and the Capitulations were renewed in 1604, forcing all nations to trade under the protection and flag of France, except forEngland andVenice which were competing, with theDutch Republic, for influence in the Levant. In the context of competition for influence between Western powers, relations between France and the Ottoman Empire started to cool significantly.[106] In 1643, the French lost the custody of the Holy Places to the Greeks.[106]
Initially, the sentiment of Louis towards the Ottoman Empire seems to have been quite negative, and French troops assisted the Austrians against the Turks at the 1664Battle of Saint-Gothard, and the Venetians against the Turks at thesiege of Candia in 1669 underFrançois de Beaufort.[106] One of the reasons was that Louis XIV was in a shifting alliance with the Habsburgs, especially through his marriage withMarie-Thérèse of Spain in 1660.[107] Louis's mother,Anne of Austria, was a Habsburg too.
TheBarbary slave trade andOttoman corsairs originating fromOttoman Algeria were a major problem throughout the centuries, leading to regular punitive expeditions by France (1661, 1665, 1682, 1683, 1688).[108] French admiralAbraham Duquesne fought the Barbary corsairs in 1681 and bombardedAlgiers between 1682 and 1683, to help Christian captives.[109]
In 1673, Louis sent a fleet to theDardanelles and obtained new capitulations recognizing him as sole protector of the Catholics.[106] Soon Louis revived the alliance to facilitate his expansionist policies.[110] Louis refrained from entering into a formal alliance with the Ottoman Empire, but maintained a cautious neutrality favourable to the Turks, encouraged them to open a new front against the Habsburgs, and effectively took advantage of their conflict with the Holy Roman Empire to further the territorial interests of France. In 1679 and 1680, Louis through his envoyGuilleragues encouraged the Ottoman Grand VizierKara Mustafa to intervene in theMagyar Rebellion against the Habsburg, but without success.[111] Louis communicated to the Turks that he would never fight on the side of the Austrian EmperorLeopold I, and he instead massed troops at the eastern frontier of France.[112] These reassurances encouraged the Turks not to renew the 20-year1664 Vasvar truce with Austria and to move to the offensive.[113] From 1683 and for a period of sixteen years, the Holy Roman Empire would be occupied in fighting the Ottoman Empire in theGreat Turkish War. Louis refused to participate in theHoly League, a coalition of European powers against the Ottomans, adopting a position of neutrality, and encouragedMehmed IV to persevere in his fight against the Habsburgs.[111][114] Pamphleters and poets would criticize the position of Louis, and reinforce the unity of the League, by describing a battle between European "Liberty" on the one hand and "Easterndespotism" associated with "Frenchabsolutism" on the other.[115]
The OttomanGrand Vizier Kara Mustafa almost capturedVienna, but was finally repulsed at theBattle of Vienna in 1683. On that occasion, Louis not only declined to help the Austrians, but on the contrary tried to preventJohn III Sobieski from saving the city of Vienna,[106] and he used the opportunity to attack cities inAlsace and parts of southern Germany. He was able to sign theTruce of Ratisbon on 15 August 1684, giving him several territories which covered the frontier and protected France from foreigninvasion.
In 1688, Louis againattacked the Habsburg Empire, in effect relieving pressure from the Ottomans. Louis was reviled for this action, and was called:
The most Christian Turk, the most Christian ravager of Christendom, the most Christian barbarian who had perpetrated on Christians outrages of which his infidel allies would have been ashamed.
— House of Commons Journal, April 15, 16 1689.[116]
The Ottomans were able to stage a counter-attack and succeeded in thesiege of Belgrade (1690), but they were finally defeated however in 1699 with theTreaty of Carlowitz.[117]
By the end of the 17th century, the first major defeats of the Ottoman Empire reduced the perceived threat in European minds, which led to an artistic craze for Turkish things. There was a fashion for Turkish things withTurquerie, just as there was a fashion for Chinese things withChinoiserie, both of which became constitutive components of theRococo style.[118]Orientalism started to become hugely popular, first with the works ofJean-Baptiste van Mour, who had accompanied the embassy ofCharles de Ferriol to Constantinople 1699 and stayed there until the end of his life in 1737, and later with the works ofBoucher orFragonard.[118]
French literature also was greatly influenced. In 1704 was published the first French version ofOne Thousand and One Nights.[118] French authors used the East as a way to enrich their philosophical work and a pretext to write comments on the West:Montesquieu wrote theLettres Persannes in 1721, a satirical essay on the West,Voltaire used the Oriental appeal to writeZaïre (1732) andCandide (1759).[118] French travelers of the 17th century, such asJean de Thévenot orJean-Baptiste Tavernier routinely visited the Ottoman Empire.
There were also numerous culinary influences.Coffee was introduced to Marseille byPierre de La Roque in 1664, but the fashion for coffee in Paris was triggered by the Ottoman ambassador to Louis XIV,Suleiman Aga, in 1669.[118] Fashionable coffee-shops emerged such as the famousCafé Procope, the first coffee-shop of Paris, in 1689.[119] In the French high society wearingturbans andcaftans became fashionable, as well as lying on rugs and cushions.[120]
A carpet industryfaçon de Turquie ("in the manner of Turkey") was developed in France in the reign ofHenry IV byPierre Dupont, who was returning from theLevant, and especially rose to prominence during the reign ofLouis XIV.[121] TheTapis de Savonnerie especially exemplify this tradition ("the superb carpets of the Savonnerie, which long rivalled the carpets of Turkey, and latterly have far surpassed them")[122] which was further adapted to local taste and developed with theGobelins carpets. This tradition also spread to England where it revived the English carpet industry in the 18th century.[123]
In the early 18th century, the Ottoman SultanAhmed III (1703–1730) endeavoured to send an embassy to France in order to formally establish France as a strategic ally against the common Russian and Austrian enemy.[104] In 1720,Mehmed Efendi was assigned as Ottoman ambassador toLouis XV and sent to Paris. His embassy of eleven months was notable for being the first ever foreign representation of a permanent nature for theOttoman Empire. During 1721–22, he visited France on an extensive fact-finding mission, with the objective of gathering information for the modernization of the Ottoman Empire.[124] On his return to the Ottoman capital, Mehmed Çelebi presented his contacts, experiences and observations to the Sultan in the form of a book, aSefâretnâme. Another embassy, led byMehmed Said Efendi would visit France in 1742.
Throughout the period, contacts were varied and multiple. France was willing to help in order to maintain strategic balance in Europe. Through its intervention and that of AmbassadorLouis de Villenneuve in negotiating the 1739Treaty of Belgrade, France effectively supported the Ottoman Empire into maintaining a strong presence in Europe against Austria for several more decades,[106] and "re-emerged in its traditional role as the Ottomans' best friend in Christendom".[125]
Also, as the Ottoman Empire was losing ground militarily during the 18th century, it made numerous efforts to recruit French experts for its modernization. The French officer and adventurerClaude-Alexandre de Bonneval (1675–1747) went in the service of SultanMahmud I, converted toIslam, and endeavoured to modernize theOttoman Army, creating cannon foundries, powder and musket factories and a military engineering school.[25] Another officerFrançois Baron de Tott was involved in thereform efforts for the Ottoman military. He succeeded in having a new foundry built to makehowitzers, and was instrumental in the creation of mobile artillery units. He built fortifications on theBosphorus and started a naval science course that laid the foundation stone for the laterTurkish Naval Academy.[126]
UnderLouis XVI from 1783, a French Military Mission was sent to the Ottoman Empire to train the Turks in naval warfare and fortification building.[127] Up to theFrench Revolution in 1789, about 300 French artillery officers and engineers were active in the Ottoman Empire to modernize and train artillery units.[128] From 1784,Antoine-Charles Aubert [fr] reached Constantinople with 12 experts.[129] The same year, French engineering officersAndré-Joseph Lafitte-Clavé andJoseph-Monnier de Courtois arrived to instruct engineering drawings and techniques in the new Turkish engineering schoolMühendishâne-i Hümâyûn established by the Grand VizierHalil Hamid Pasha.[130] Mostly French textbooks were used on mathematics, astronomy, engineering, weapons, war techniques and navigation.[130] However, all instructors had to leave with the end of the Franco-Ottoman alliance in 1798.[130]
This policy initially continued during theFrench Revolution, as France was clearly in need of an eastern diversion against its continental enemies. For the Ottoman Empire, the French Revolution was a godsend, since conflict between European powers could only weaken the states that were its traditional enemies.[131] For SultanSelim III, this was a golden opportunity to modernize, and achieve the "New Order" (Nizam-i Jedid). He established permanent embassies in several European countries, and turned to France for help.[132] Various experts were sent, and in 1795, French envoy extraordinaireRaymond de Verninac-Saint-Maur [fr] attempted to establish a Treaty of Alliance.[133] A young artillery officer by the name ofNapoleon Bonaparte was also to be sent toConstantinople in 1795 to help organize Ottoman artillery. He did not go, for just days before he was to embark for the Near East he proved himself useful to the Directory by putting down a Parisian mob in thewhiff of grapeshot and was kept in France.[134][135]
In 1796, GeneralAubert-Dubayet was sent to the Ottoman court with artillery equipment, and French artillerymen and engineers to help with the development of the Ottoman arsenals and foundries.[128][136] Infantry and cavalry officers were also to train theSpahis andJanissaries, but they were frustrated by the opposition of the Janissaries.[136] This relationship would sour with the ascent ofNapoleon I.[132]
With the advent of Napoleon I, France adopted a strongly expansionist policy which put it in direct contact with the Ottoman Empire. Following theTreaty of Campo Formio in 1797, France acquired possessions in the Mediterranean such as theIonian islands as well as former Venetian bases on the coast ofAlbania andGreece. Relations with the Ottoman Empire became all of a sudden strained.Napoleon Bonaparte invadedEgypt in 1798 and fought against the Ottomans to establish a French presence in the Middle East, with the ultimate dream of linking withTippoo Sahib in India. Although the long period of Franco-Ottoman friendship was now over, Napoleon I still claimed great respect for Islam, and appealed to the long history of friendly relations between the Ottoman Empire and France:[137]
Peoples of Egypt, you will be told that I have come to destroy your religion: do not believe it! Answer that I have come to restore your rights and punish the usurpers, and that, more than the Mamluks, I respect God, his Prophet and theQuran... Is it not we who have been through the centuries the friends of the Sultan?
— Napoleon to the Egyptians.[137]
Napoleon had toppled theMamlukbeys, the effective rulers of Egypt under nominal Ottoman suzerainty, but still raised the French flag side by side with the Ottoman banner throughout the Egyptian territory, claiming his love for Islam, and saying that they were saving the Ottomans from the Mamluks. Selim III however immediately declared aJihad and sought the help ofBritain andRussia, who both felt both threatened by Napoleon's conquests. On January 3, 1799, the Ottoman Empire allied with Russia, and two days later with Great Britain.[138]
Britain took the opportunity to ally with the Ottoman Empire in order to repel Napoleon's invasion, intervening militarily during thesiege of Acre with AdmiralWilliam Sidney Smith in 1799, and underRalph Abercromby at theBattle of Abukir in 1801. By 1802, the French were completely vanquished in the Middle East.[139]
Soon however, in 1803, France and Great Britain were again at war, and Napoleon went to great lengths to try to convince the Ottoman Empire to fight against Russia in the Balkans and join his anti-Russian coalition. On its side, Russia vied for Ottoman favour, and succeeded in signing a Treaty of Defensive Alliance in 1805.[139]
Napoleon continued his efforts to win the Ottoman Empire to his cause. He sent GeneralHorace Sebastiani as envoy extraordinary. Napoleon promised to help the Ottoman Empire recover lost territories.[139] He wrote to the Sultan:
Are you blind to your own interests – have you ceased to reign? (...) If Russia has an army of 15,000 men at Corfu, do you think that it is directed against me? Armed vessels have the habit of hastening to Constantinople. Your dynasty is about to descend into oblivion... Trust only your true friend, France
In February 1806, following Napoleon's remarkable victory in theBattle of Austerlitz in December 1805 and the ensuingdismemberment of theHoly Roman Empire, Selim III finally refused to ratify the Russian and British alliances, and recognized Napoleon as Emperor, formally opting for an alliance with France"our sincere and natural ally", and war with Russia and Britain.[140] He also sentMuhib Efendi to Paris as ambassador (1806–1811).[141] Selim III's decisions in favour of France triggered the 1806Russo-Turkish War and the 1807Anglo-Turkish War. Selim III repelled the British fleet ofJohn Thomas Duckworth with the help of Sebastiani, but lost several major encounters against Russia, and he was finally toppled by hisJanissaries as he was trying to reform his army, and replaced by SultanMustafa IV. Mustafa IV however, persisted with the Franco-Ottoman alliance, and sent ambassadorHalet Efendi to Paris to work out the details.[142] Concurrently, Napoleon also formed aFranco-Persian alliance in 1807, through the signature of theTreaty of Finkenstein.[143]
In a final reversal however, Napoleon I finally vanquished Russia at theBattle of Friedland in July 1807. The alliance between France and the Ottoman Empire was maintained, and a peace settlement was brokered between Russia and the Ottomans, but the territories the Ottomans had been promised (Moldavia andWallachia) through theTreaty of Tilsit were never returned, although the Ottomans themselves had complied with their part of the agreement by moving their troops south of theDanube.[144] Faced with betrayal by Russia, and the failure of France to have the agreement enforced, the Ottoman Empire, now ruled by SultanMahmud II, finally signed on 5 January 1809 aTreaty of Peace, Commerce and Secret Alliance with Great Britain, which was now at war with both France and Russia.[145] In 1812, through theTreaty of Bucharest, the Ottoman Empire and Russia agreed to make peace, just as Russia was anxious to liberate this southern front in anticipation of Napoleon'sInvasion of Russia, with Russia keepingBessarabia and the Ottomans regainingWallachia andMoldavia.[146] In the post-Napoleonic world, at the 1815Congress of Vienna, the Ottoman Empire was still recognized as an essential part of the European status quo.[145]
In theCrimean War, a French-British-Ottoman alliance against Russia was signed on 12 March 1854.[147]
In another example of cooperation, in 1860, France later intervened in the Ottoman territory ofSyria, with the agreement of the Ottoman Empire, with the objective to fulfill its mission to protect Christians in the Middle East, following massacres ofMaronite Christians.[148] At that time, France, led by EmperorNapoleon III, claimed to continue its ancient role as protector of Christians in the Ottoman Empire.[149]
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