Cyprus in Ottoman and Venetian Political Imagination, c. 1489-1582

289 Pages·2016·5.43 MB·English

DOI: 10.14754/CEU.2016.05

CYPRUS IN OTTOMAN AND VENETIAN
POLITICAL IMAGINATION, c. 1489-1582

by Tamás Kiss

Supervisor: Tijana Krstić
Co-supervisor: György Endre Szőnyi

Submitted to the Medieval Studies Department and
the Doctoral School of History at
Central European University

in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of
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for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History
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Budapest, Hungary
2016
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Copyright Notice and Statement of
Responsibility

Copyright in the text of this dissertation rests with the author. Copies by any process, either in
full or part, may be made only in accordance with the instructions given by the author and
lodged in the Central Euorpean University Library. Details may be obtained from the librarian.
This page must form a part of any such copies made. Further copies made in accordance with
such instructions may not be made without the written permission of the author.
I hereby declare that this dissertation contains no materials accepted for any other
degrees in any other institution and no materials previously written and/or published by another
person unless otherwise noted.

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Contents

Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................... 4
Note on Transliteration and Translation .................................................................................... 9
Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................... 10
Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 11
Chapter 1: Venice, Venus and Caterina Cornaro ..................................................................... 33
1.1 Historical Overview .................................................................................................... 36
1.2 Mediocritas Challenged: Venetian Familial and Personal Self-representation through
Cyprus ............................................................................................................................... 44
1.3 Cyprus, Venus and Caterina Cornaro in Venetian State Iconography ....................... 63
1.4 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 73
Chapter 2: Toward the War of Cyprus: the Declaration of War from an Intra- and Inter-
Imperial Polemical Perspective................................................................................................ 74
2.1 Cyprus or Granada?—Ottoman and Venetian Intelligence and Counter-Intelligence
in Prelude to the War ........................................................................................................ 74
2.2 The Ottomans’ Contradictory Casus Belli .................................................................. 89
2.3 Factional Politics and Diplomatic Meanderings ......................................................... 98
2.4 The War and its Aftermath ....................................................................................... 106
2.5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 108
Chapter 3: Selim II’s Sultanic Image Making ....................................................................... 111
3.1 The Selimiye Mosque and the War of Cyprus ......................................................... 115
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3.1 The Medieval and Early Modern Apocalyptic “Backdrop” ..................................... 142
4.2 Cyprus in Mediterranean Apocalypticism ................................................................ 159
4.3 The War of Cyprus in Venetian Apocalyptic Oracles .............................................. 170
4.4 Post-War Apocalyptic Interpretations in the Ottoman Empire ................................ 179
4.5 Morisco Voices ......................................................................................................... 184
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4.6 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 192
Chapter 5: A Re-enactment of the War of Cyprus? ............................................................... 194
5.1 A Performance at the Sur-i Hümayun ....................................................................... 195
5.2 The Performance and Displaying Power .................................................................. 204
5.3 The Performance and Early Modern Artillery .......................................................... 221
5.4 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 233
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 234
Appendix: Figures .................................................................................................................. 237
Bibliography .......................................................................................................................... 261
Primary Sources .............................................................................................................. 261
Secondary Sources .......................................................................................................... 268

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Acknowledgements

I cross the finish line of a grueling race thinking of all the losses, inconveniences and pains I
have caused myself and others to get here. While I do not have the slightest regret for my own
sacrifices—for, eventually, I triumphed—I owe an apology to everyone for whom I caused
hardship or distress on the way.
Completing a dissertation is a lonely enterprise. Since the first day of writing I have
probably spent more time in the company of my laptop than with everyone I know combined.
Yet, even in the loneliest hours, I enjoyed the support of many individuals, without whom
enduring and completing the dissertation process would have been impossible.
First of all, I would like to thank Tijana Krstić, whose supervision deserves only
superlatives. She has done far more than “just” transforming me into a fully equipped historian
of the Ottoman Empire and the Mediterranean. Almost no aspect of my doctoral education,
research and dissertation writing was left untouched by her intellectual influence and
compassionate guidance. She has magnanimously shared with me her network of friends and
colleagues, and advised me with an incredible amount of commitment on theoretical and
practical matters, which often exceeded her duties as a supervisor. If this dissertation excels in
n anything, it excels as an example of her scholarly acumen, perfectionism and ability to inspire
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the generosity of people around the world who shared their ideas, expertise and sources with
me throughout the years. I would like to thank the insightful advice of Günhan Börekçi on
Ottoman sources and accessing archival material on several occasions in Istanbul and
Budapest. I have benefited greatly from Palmira Brummett’s and Natalie Rothman’s comments
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on my dissertation drafts. I owe gratitude to Alice Choyke, Katalin Szende, György Endre
Szőnyi, Tolga Esmer, Marcell Sebők, Pál Ács and Georg Christ for sharing with me their
thoughts and ideas about this project at different stages of its preparation. I would like to thank
Suraiya Faroqhi, Emine Fetvacı and Benjamin Arbel for providing me with secondary sources
to which I would not have had access without their help. I am particularly obliged to Nina
Ergin, Emrah Safa Gürkan and András Kraft for making available to me their collection of
primary sources, which were indispensable for writing chapters 2, 3 and 4. András even shared
with me the findings of his own, yet unfinished, doctoral research. I hope, at some point, I will
be able to reciprocate their help.
Sona Grigoryan and Ferenc Csirkés have helped me by translating sources from
languages that fall beyond my foreign language skills. If my translations of Italian sources
make sense, it is due to Eszter Lénárt, who has taught me Venetian paleography and corrected
my translations where she deemed necessary.
My entire doctoral training would have been impossible without the financial support
of Central European University (CEU). CEU and the Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies
have financed my research in Turkey on several instances. New Europe College supported my
research in 2013-14 both in Bucharest and Istanbul, for which I remain grateful. CEU’s write-
up grant provided me with financial safety for six months during the final stages of the writing
n of this dissertation.
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oll Zeynep Atbaş at the Topkapı Palace Museum helped me access Ottoman sources at a
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the Turkish Religious Foundation’s Islamic Research Center (İSAM) in Bağlarbaşı for
allowing me access to their collection and resources on several occasions. By spending a
considerable amount of time during my research in Istanbul working in İSAM, I have become
especially attached to the place and personnel there. Help from the staff of the Süleymaniye
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Mosque Library has made my long working days on their premises more effective, for which
I am ever thankful. I would like to thank Heidelberg University Library for granting me access
to their collection in 2012, and the staff at the Istanbul University Library (İÜK) as well as the
Library of the Academy of Sciences (MTA) in Budapest for assisting me with my requests for
so many years.
The family-like atmosphere of CEU’s Medieval Studies Department has brought a great
amount of comfort to me, even during the most arduous moments of my dissertation writing. I
am indebted to the members of the department for their intellectual and emotional support.
Csilla Dobos and Annabella Pál have been my experienced guides in navigating through the
maze of CEU’s academic administrative system. The company of fellow doctoral students
including Kyra Lyublyanovics, Ágnes Drosztmér, Svetlana Tsonkova, László Ferenczi,
Wojciech Kozłowski, Evren Sünnetçioğlu and Stephen Pow has made the hardships bearable
and the joys more enjoyable. All of them have read and commented on my dissertation drafts,
from which the final version has benefited greatly. I owe special thanks to Stephen, who proof-
read the final draft. I am also grateful for the Ottoman PhD student cohort including Eda Güçlü
and Scott Rank.
Pamela Zinn, Jacqueline Johnson, James Plumtree, Ionuţ Epurescu-Pascovici, James
Wollen, Lyubomir Pozharliev, Jan Asmussen and Michael Walsh have contributed to different
n parts of the dissertation process mostly as friends, but also as intellectuals whose thoughts and
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e humanities, my friends Attila Szapek and Dániel Vermes have listened to my dissertation-
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related monologues so many times that, at this point, they might be capable of defending it in
front of a committee. I am honored to be able to call all of these people my friends.
I would like to thank my mother for supporting me in my scholarly endeavours even at
times when she did not know what exactly I was doing.
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Finally, my deepest and sincerest gratitude goes to my partner, Ágnes Kövesdi, who
has provided endless encouragement and support. Living with a PhD student is arguably a far
worse trial than completing the degree itself. Not only has she been listening to my complaints
for all these years, but she did so while she was dealing with the struggles of our daily life all
alone. Her confidence in me, patience and ability to provide us with a secure background, even
after giving birth to our daughter, inspire me in ways that nobody else has.
Our little daughter Tamara was born during this project, and she immediately put the
important things in life into perspective. Since the day she was born I have been writing this
dissertation for her.

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For Tamara

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Note on Transliteration and Translation

To transcribe Ottoman Turkish texts I use the Modern Turkish alphabet. For those unfamiliar
with Turkish pronunciation, here is a short guide:

C, c “j” as in “jelly”
Ç, ç “ch” as in “cherry”
Ğ, ğ a silent sound that typically elongates the previous vowel
I, ı velar “i” as in “earn”
Ö, ö same as the German “ö” or French “eu” as in “seul”
Ş, ş “sh” as in “shore”
Ü, ü same as the German “ü” or French “u” as in “lune”.

I use names of individuals and titles of foreign primary sources (books and manuscripts)
the way they appear in the secondary sources or library catalogues. In the case of Ottoman
Turkish texts this means the modified modern Turkish transcription, which often only indicates
the ayn and the hamza. All translations in this dissertation are mine except where otherwise
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