Power and Distant Display: Early English "Ambassadors" in Moghul

27 Pages·2012·8.1 MB·English

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Powera nd Distant
Display:
"Ambassadorisn" India
EarlyE nglish Moghul
RICHMOND BARBOUR
A t Sir Thomas Roe's 1615l anding on the beacheso f Surat,t he English
fleet and royala ctorp erformeda n "inaugurasl cene"t hat was less than
novel to its native spectators.A lthough Roe was the first English am-
bassadort o set foot in India, belatednessn aggedt he embassyA. crosst he Indian
Ocean, tradeh ad thrivedf or centuries,t he last hundredy earsu nder Portuguese
coercion of the sea-lanes.1M ore recently,s everalL ondon Company merchants
had presentedt hemselvesi n India as "ambassadorsa"n d thus degradedt he dig-
nity of the tide. When governmenta gentsf rom Cambayab oardedt he fleet'sf lag-
ship and learned that, on another vessel, an English ambassadorw as about to
land at Surat, "Att his name of an ambassador,"w rote Roe, "theyl aughd one
upon a nother;i t being becomer idiculouss, o manyh auinga ssumedt hat tide, and
not performedt he offices."T he agents did not bother to visit him. For all they
could tell, Roe added mordantly," I might be an imposturea s well as the rest."2
It was the firsto f many ironiest o ensnareh is embassy.M oghul Indiaw as an
empire of immense culturalc omplexity,s ophistication,o pulence, and power.I t
had small need of England'sg oods, and its statep omp eclipseda nalogousE nglish
shows.A t Surat,w hereE astI ndia Companym erchantsh oped to establisha "fac-
tory"( a house for the storagea nd saleo f goods), the Englishw eret oleratedr ather
1. I taket he phrase" inauguraslc ene"f romM ichelD e Certeau,w ho appliesi t to originarye ncountersin the New
World.S ee TheW ritingo fHistoryt rans.T om Conley (New York,1 968),x xv.O n Columbus'as rrivals, ee Stephen
GreenblattM, arvelouPs ossessionTs:h eW ondeorf theN ew World(C hicago,1 991),5 2-85.I mportanto verviewso f
tradei n the EastI ndiesi ncludeH olden FurberR, ivalE mpireos f Tradein the Orient,1 6oo-1800(M inneapolis,
1976);a nd Niels SteensgaardT, heAsianT radeR evolutionof theS eventeentCh enturyT: heE astI ndia Companies
and theD eclineo f the CaravanT rade(C hicago,1 973).V aluables tudieso f the EnglishE astI ndiaC ompany
includeK . N. Chaudhuri,T heE nglishE astI ndia CompanyT: heS tudyo fan EarlyJ oint-StockC ompany1,6 oo-1640
(New York, 1965); and Philip Lawson, The East India Company:A History (London, 1993). In The Honourable
CompanyA: Historyo f theE nglishE astI ndia Company(L ondon,1 991), John Keays uppliesa compendious,
approachablne arrativeW; illiamJ . Barberi,n BritishE conomicT houghat nd India,1 60oo-188(O xford,1 975),
deliversa n incisiver eviewo f economicd ebatep rovokedb y Easternt rade.
2. SirW illiamF oster,e d., TheE mbassoyf Sir ThomaRs oet o India, 1615-169, rev.e d. (London,1 926), 30. Unless
otherwisei ndicated,r eferencews ill be to this edition.O n the hauntingb elatednesos f most "arrivaslc enes"in
Westerne thnographys,e e MaryL ouiseP ratt," Fieldworkin Common Places,"in JamesC lifforda nd GeorgeE .
Marcus,e ds., WritingC ultureT: heP oeticsa nd Politicso fEthnograph(yB erkeleyC, alif., 1986).
HUNTINGTON LIBRARY QUARTERLY - 61.3 & 4 ^ 343
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334444 RRIICCHHMMONODN DBB AARRBBOUORU R
thanw elcomedT. he merchantbs elievedt hatt he emperor'gso odw ill woulds e-
curet hemf avorablter adingc onditionsb, ut to win andr etaint hatb lessingw as
out of reach.P ortuguesfel eetsh arassedB ritishs hippinga t sea,a nda t courts ea-
sonedJ esuitse xposedL ondon'ssu pposedlyr oyale missarieas s merchantsa, nd
belittledE nglandR. oe was thereforec ommissionedb y the LondonC ompany
andK ingJ amest o performa properlyd ignifiedo ffice:t o representth ep ersono f
the king.T houghJ amesd id not equiph im with gifts,R oew as to impresst he
Easternc ourtw ithE nglishg ravitasc,o nfutet heJ esuitsa, nds ecurea tradet reaty
fromJ ahangirI.n thee vent,t hea mbassadodri d manageto persuadMe oghula u-
thoritiesth ath e legitimatelrye presentead k ing.E mbarrasseadn do vermatched,
he neverthelescso ntestedP ortuguesien terestas t courta ndf inallyi,n 1619w, on
provisionarli ghtsf orE nglishm erchanttso pursuet radea ndr enth ousesi n India.
What he consolidatedw as a commerciaal rrangemenItt. was not the onseto f
empireJ. amesw, hosei mperiadl esignsw erel ocala ndi nsulara, ppointedn o suc-
cessort o Roe.3R oe himselfh arboredn o dreamso f empire;in fact,h e believed
thatt he Portugueshea dw eakenedth emselvebs y maintainingga rrisonosn land
andt hatE ngland'sst rengthm usta bidei n its ships.
Givent he EastI ndiaC ompany'ssu bsequenstw ay,i t is difficultn ow to see
whatw aso bvioust o Jacobeanisn India:t hatt he Englishw ereu tterlyin cidental
there.R etrospectte ndst o findt eleologyin relationtsh atw eret akenb y theirp ar-
ticipantas st entativei,m proviseda,n da brogableIt. is oftena rguedth ate arlym od-
ernE uropeanfso undw ayst o subjugatteh ep eoplest heye ncounteredO. ffereda s
critiqueo f Eurocentriccu lturet, he thesisi ronicallyte ndst o validateth e flatter-
ing self-estimatoef the agentsu nderr eviewT. hus StephenG reenblatte,x amin-
ing the mentalityo f conquesto, bserves", Europeanwsh o venturedto the New
Worldi n the firstd ecadesa fterC olumbus'dsi scoverysh areda complex. . . mo-
bile technologyo f power.... theirc ulturew asc haracterizebdy immensec onfi-
dencei n its own centrality."Y4e tt herea rem anyd ifferenEt uropeanst oriesA. s
JeffreyK nappa nd MaryF ullerh aved emonstratedE, nglishe mulationo f the
Spanishp aradigmo f New Worldc onquestw asa blunderingb usinessth atg en-
erallys alvageds piritualo r textuala chievemenftr om materiafl ailure.5N orth
3. On the insularityo f Jacobeanim perialisms,e e WilliamR ogerL ouis,e d., TheO xfordH istoryo f theB ritish
Empirev, ol. 1, TheO riginso fEmpireB: ritishO verseaEs nterpristeo the Closeo f theS eventeentCh enturye,d .
NicholasC anny( Oxford,1 998);a ndJ ohn ParkerB, ookst o Builda n Empire( Amsterdam1, 965).S ee also
RichmondB arbour", Britaina nd the GreatB eyond:T heM asqueo fBlacknesast Whitehall,"in John
Gilliesa nd VirginiaM asonV aughane, ds., Playingt he Globe:G enrea nd Geographiny EnglishR enaissance
Drama( Madison,W isc., 1998),1 29-53.
4. GreenblattM, arvelouPs ossession9s.,
5 JeffreyK nappA, n EmpireN owhereE: nglandA, mericaa, nd LiteraturefroUmt opiat o The Tempest( Berkeley,
Calif.,1 992); and MaryF uller,V oyageins Print:E nglishT ravetlo A merica1, 576-1624(C ambridge1, 995).
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EARLY ENGLISH "AMBASSADORS" IN MOGUL INDIA - 345
Americans cholarsin particularm, orea ttentivet o New Worldt hant o Eastern
encountersh, avee xaggerateeda rlym odernE urope'asb ilityt o imposei ts designs
on otherc ulturesM. oreovert,h e experiencoef earlym odernE uropeanisn Asia,
the continentC olumbuss ought,w idelyc ontradictsth e hypothesiso f Euro-
confidenceA. nthonyP arrn otes," Diplomatasn do thert ravellercso nfrontedw ith
the opulencea ndh ighc eremoniaolf orientacl ourtsr ealizedth att heyw erel ook-
ing at highlyd evelopeds,t ronglye thnocentriccu lturews hichc ouldn ot easilyb e
belittled-indeed,E uropeanosf tenf eltb elittledb yt hem."A6 t theM oghulc ourt,
far removedf romt he shipsa nd ordnancet hatj ustifieda n Englishp ostureo f
power,R oe and his dubiouslyc ommissionedp redecessorws erep ainfullyc on-
scious of their incapacities.
Their "embassiesw"a rranct riticala ttentionb ecausea, mongo thert hings,
theye ngagei,n a cross-cultursailt uationo f somec onsequenced,e finingc oncerns
of New Historicismfo r relationsb etweenp owersa nd fictions,m ateriahl istory
and culturapl ractices.R7 oe'sb id to impressM oghulI ndiad ependedl,i ke his
identitya s the truea mbassadofrr oma countryo f consequenceo, n rhetorical
andt heatricadl emonstrationA.m bassadorssp, eakingfo rm onarchsp, resumeto
represenpto werI. f thek ing'sp ersonis the focalf iguref ort he nation,t hep rimary
synecdochoe f state,t hent he ambassadoars, s urrogatreo yalb ody,p ersonifietsh e
countrya t two removesY. ete achr elayo f representatioinnt roducessl ippagea nd
suspiciono f impostureH. ow is it thato ne personc anr epresenatn othero r a na-
tion?T he regalf unctioni s theatricaal:s J amesa dvisedh is son Henry," AK ingi s
as one set on a stage,w hoses mallesat ctionsa ndg esturesa, ll the peopleg azingly
doe behold."S8u chg azingc anv erifyo r underminteh ek ing'sa uthorityA. lthough
the ambassadorle'sg itimacyd ependso n domesticc redentialsh,i s effectivenesiss
testedb y foreigna udiencesA. ctingt o verifyi n his persont he trusth e claimst o
6. AnthonyP arr", ForeignR elationsin JacobeanE nglandT: he SherleyB rothersa nd the 'Voyageo f Persia,'"in
Jean-PierrMe aquerloat nd MicheleW illems,e ds., Traveal ndD ramai n ShakespearTesim e( Cambridge1, 996),2 3.
7. Importantd iscussionso f culturalm aterialismin cludeR aymondW illiams,M arxisma nd Literatur(eO xford,
1977);J onathanD ollimorea nd Alan Sinfield,e ds., PoliticalS hakespear(Iet hacaN, .Y., 1985)A; lan Sinfield,
FaultlinesC: ulturaMl aterialisma nd the Politicso fDissidentR eading( BerkeleyC, alif., 1992);a nd Louis
Montrose,T heP urposoe fPlaying:S hakespeaaren d the CulturaPl oliticso f theE lizabethanT heatre(C hicago,
1996).O n the concepto f"culturall ogistics,"s ee RichmondB arbour", 'HereI s Our Commission'W: ritinga nd
Authorityi n MeasurefoMr easurea nd the LondonE astI ndiaC ompany,"fo rthcomingin JEGP.A fundamental
premiseo f New Historicismi s that spectaclesd isplayp ower-legitimating and subvertingit . See, for example,
StephenO rgel, TheI llusiono fP ower:P oliticalT heaterin theE nglishR enaissanc(eB erkeleyC, alif., 1975);M ichel
Foucault,D isciplinea nd Punish:T heB irtho fthe Prison,t rans.A lan Sheridan( New York,1 979);a nd Leonard
TennenhouseP, owero n Display:T heP oliticso fShakespearGese nre(sN ew York,1 986).O n ceremoniadl isplaya s
a languageo f powert hat generatedc ross-cultura"lr approchemernatt hert han incomprehension,s"e e Parr,
"ForeignR elations,"25 .
8. Quoted in Orgel,I llusion4, 2, fromB asilikonD oron,i n C. H. Mcllwain,e d., TheP oliticalW orkosf JamesI
(Cambridge1, 918),4 3.
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334466 I RRIICCHHMMOONND D BBAARRBBOOUURR
hold,t he ambassadoorc cupiesh ybridt heatricaslp acea ndi s recognizedb y host
statest o do so.T o proveo ne'sa uthoritya,n dt o persuadoen e'sh ostst hato ne'sa u-
thorityw as of localc onsequencew, as a slipperyb usinessI. nsofara s the envoy
won consentt o the fictionsh e embodiedh, e foundt he measureo f his diplo-
matics killa ndo f his nation'sst atusi n the host country'esy e.
Copiouslyd ocumentedy,e t relativeluyn examineidn thisl ight,e arlyE nglish
effortst o impressM oghula uthoritiesa,n dt o seizec ommerciaal dvantagep,l ay
out a cross-culturlaolg isticso f powera ndd isplayT. heirr ecords harplyc ontests
the modelo f Europeanm ateriaal nd representationdaol minancee ndorsedb y
manys cholarss ince Michel Foucault'lsi nkageo f knowledgea nd powera nd
EdwardS aid'ps aradigm-shiftiOngr ientalismT.9h usM ichelD e Certeaud escribes
Vand erS traet'esn gravingo f Vespucci'asr rivailn Americaw, hichi s personated
as a nakedw oman:" T hisi s writingth atc onquerIst. will uset he New Worlda s if
it werea blank' savagep' ageo n whichW esternd esirew ill be written"(W riting
ofHistoryx, xv).T he premisew, hiche ffacesh ybriditya nd the mutualityo f ex-
changei, s deeplyp roblematic(.M oghuls cholarsf,o ro ne thing,w rotet heiro wn
histories.Y) eti nsofara s De Certeaud oesd escribea Eurocentrisce lf-estimateto,
conflatein scriptionw ithd ominationb ettert heorizetsh e effortso f earlym odern
Europeanisn the New World,w heret heyp lantedc olonies,t hani n "theE ast,"
wheret heyt endedt o pursuet rade.
How was Roe to proveh imselfa nd persuadef oreigna uthoritiest o take
Englandfo rs omethingm oret hana tiny islanda ptlyr epresentebdy merchants?
By whatf ictionso f legitimacyd id one speakf or Englandh ere?W hosei nterests
did one servei n doings o?I n this essayI examinet he emissariews ho cameb e-
foreR oea ndm adeh is errandth e morec hallenginga,n dn ecessaryb,y theiri m-
provisationsJ: ohn Mildenhall,W illiam Hawkins,P aul Canning,T homas
Kerridgea,n dW illiamE dwardsT. akingth eire ffortsf orp roductivsey mptomos f
9. Importanta nalyseso f discourseo n the "other"in cludeH omi K. Bhabha,T heL ocationo f Culture
(London, 1994); Clifford and Marcus, Writing Culture;P eter Hulme, Colonial Encounters:E uropea nd
the Native Caribbean, 1492-1797 (London, 1986); Syed Manzurul Islam, The Ethics of Travel:F rom Marco
Polo to Kafka (Manchester, 1996); Lisa Lowe, Critical TerrainsF: rencha nd British Orientalisms( Ithaca,
N.Y., 1991); Mary Louis Pratt, Imperial Eyes:T ravelW ritinga nd Transculturation(L ondon, 1992);
Jenny Sharpe, Allegorieso fEmpire: The Figure of Woman in the Colonial Text( Minneapolis, 1993);
David Spurr, The Rhetorico f Empire: Colonial Discoursei n Journalism, TravelW riting,a nd Imperial
Administration (Durham, N.C., 1993); and Sara Suleri, The Rhetorico fEnglish India (Chicago, 1992).
A number of critics-sometimes unfairly, given his attention to British, French, and North American
variations-fault Said for conceiving orientalism monolithically. Thus Lowe: "To conform to binary
difference [between Occident and Orient] is inevitably to corroborate the logic of domination" (Critical
Terrains,2 4). Whatever one thinks of his argument, Said's emphasis on post-Enlightenment patterns of
European dominance calls for corrective attention, equally pertinent to a world of global capitalism, to
pre-imperial transactions.
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EARLY ENGLISH "AMBASSADORS" IN MOGUL INDIA - 347
England'"s culturaal nd imperialb elatedness,"I' a1r guet hat in theire ffortsa t
diplomatisch owmanshipth, esem enl eft,a nds awt hatt heyl eft,t heirM oghula u-
diencesw ith an impressiono f Englanda s a peripheraaln dt riflingr ealm.F ori f
domesticc onfidencein spectacleos f statep romptede nvoysi nto performances
thatl ookedr athersm alla broada, t thes amet imet heiro wnt heatricaliteyq uipped
the Englisht o readi n Moghuls pectacleth e signso f an overmasterinpgo wer.
The firstE nglishmanto leavea detaileda ccounto f a meetingw ith the "Great
Mogor"w asJ ohnM ildenhallw, ho, like the EastI ndiaC ompanyit self,r eached
Indiab y wayo f traffici n the OttomanE mpireE. lizabethh adg ranteda patent
to the LevantC ompanyi n 1581e, ighteeny earsb eforeM ildenhalls et sail for
India;a nd her first ambassadorto ContantinopleW, illiam Harborne,l eft
Englandi n January1 583A. fterD utch East-Indiafnl eets,i n the late 159os,h ad
profitablbyy passedth eo verlandtr adeL, evanCt ompanya ndo therL ondonm er-
chantso rganizedt heiro wn joint-stockv enturea roundt he Cape,p ersuading
Elizabetht o chartert he East India Companyi n late 16oo0.LD epartingi n
Februar1y5 99f ort he Levant" int he goods hip. .. Hectoro f London,... which
carrieda presentt o the GrandS eigneur[ the sultano f Turkey],"M ildenhall
reachedt he Moghulc ourta t Agrao verlandin 1603,n eart he end of Emperor
Akbar'rse ign.'2H is passagem adeh imw itnesst o an illuminatinEg nglishb idf or
favori n Constantinoplea,n dh e appliedt hatc orporatpe rojectt o his own pur-
posesi n Agra.I wantt o pauseo vert he presentsfo r the GrandS igniora nd the
mannero f theird eliveryI.n its aims,a nxietiese, mbarrassmenatsn, di mprovisa-
tions,t he episodei nformss ubsequenEt nglisht acticsi n India.
lo. Louis Montrose, "The Work of Gender in the Discourse of Discovery," Representation3s 3 (199): 17.
11. Bearingl etterso f introductionf romQ ueen ElizabethJ, ohnN ewberya nd RalphF itchr eachedE mperor
Akbar'cs ourt in the mid-l58os,b ut Fitchw rote" tantalizingllyit tle"o f the meeting,S eeW illiamF osterE, arly
Travelisn India,1 583-1629( London,1 921),5 ;a nd AlfredC . Wood,A Historyo f theL evantC ompany(N ew York,
1935)W. ood notes, "Fifty-sevenp eoplea ttendeda meetingo f subscribertso the new Companyi n Sept. 1599
and at leasto ne-thirdo f them werec onnectedw ith the LevantC ompany.O f the committeeo f fifteen
'Directourst'h en appointeds evenw erem emberso f the LevantC ompany"( p. 3in). On relationsb etweent he
Levanta nd EastI ndiaC ompanies,s ee alsoW illiamF osterE, ngland'Qs uesto fEasternT rade(L ondon,1 933);
and WilliamR obertS cott, TheC onstitutioann d Financeo fEnglishS, cottisha, nd IrishJ ointS tockC ompanietso
1720 (Cambridge, 1912), 2:83-128. An indispensable overview of Ottoman and Persian presence in England's
imaginationi s SamuelC . Chew, TheC rescenatn d theR oseI: slama nd Englandd uringt heR enaissanc(eN ew
York, 1937).
12. Foster, Early Travels,5 2, 55.
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334488 ', RRIICCHHMMOONND D BBAARRBBOOUURR
The primaryg iftsa boardth eH ector-a carriagfeo rt hes ultanaa nda n organ
thata utomaticallmy adem usicf ourt imesa day-constituteda tardyp ackagfeo r
MohammedII I,w hosea ccessionin 1595f orcedt he LevantC ompanyto renego-
tiatei ts termsT. hatt he companyd esiredt he queent o providet he giftst hatt he
sultanw oulds upposeh adc omef romh er,a ndt hats he refusedm, ayh elpt o ex-
plain the shipment'sf our-yeard elay.T he presentsw ere doubly overdue:
Harbornes'su ccessoEr dwardB artonr, espectedb y bothM uradI II (1574-95a) nd
MohammedII I (1595-1603d),i edi n 1597H. is successoHr enryL elloh adn ot yet
providedT urkishp otentatesth e raritiees xpectedo f his station.F urtherL, ello's
effortst o securea dvantageoutse rmsf or the company,a nd to enroll Dutch
Levantinter afficu nderE nglishn, ot French", protectionw,"e reu nderminebdy t he
well-fundedF rencha mbassadotrh, e Sieurd e Breves.'T3h e Englishe mbassyp ut
greati mportancoen the GrandS ignior'rse ceptiono f its long-overduper esents.
The fortunated ecisiont o send the organ'sb uilderT, homasD allam,w as
probablya n afterthoughDt. allam'ns arrativbee gins," Necessariefos rm y voyage
intoT urkiet,h e whichI boughtu pona verries hortw arningeh, avingen o frend
to advisem e in anyt hing."'4If his embarkatiowna sh astya, rrivawl asd ismaying.
Whent he organw asu npackeda t the ambassadorh'os use,D allamw rites,
we foundt hata llg lewingew orkew asd ene Decayedb, y reasonth at
it hadel aynea boves ixem onthesi n the houldo f our ship,. .. so
thatt he extremetioef theh eetei n theh ould. .. witht hew orkinge
of the sea and the hootneso f the cuntrie,w as the causet hat all
glewingef ayledl;y kew ysed iverso f my mettlep ipesw eareb rused
and brokenW. heno urI mbassade.r.. ando therj entlemens, e in
whatc asei t wasi n, theyew earea ll amayzeda, nds aydet hati t was
not worthi id. (Diary5, 8)
Salvagingth e occasionD, allaml aboredf or a montht o rebuildt he instrument.
On the eve of its unveiling,L elloa dmonishedh im to expectn othing,n ot a
glimpse,o f the GreatT urk.E vena mbassadorwse res ubjectt o humiliationa, s
Lelloe xplaimedto him:
when I com to his gatesI shalbet akeno f my horsea nd seartcht,
andl edeb etwyxteto wm enh oldingem yh andesd ownec ose to my
13. Wood, Levant Company,s ummarizes these negotiations (pp. 23-31) and lists the ambassadors (pp. 251-53).
Important contemporary accounts include the Diary of ThomasD allam in J. Theodore Bent, ed., Early
Voyageas nd Travelsi n the Levant (London, 1893);a nd William Foster, ed., The Travelso fJohn Sandersoni n
the Levant, 1584-1602 (London, 1931).
14. Dallam, Diary, 1.
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EARLY ENGLISH "AMBASSADORS" IN MOGUL INDIA ~ 349
sides,a nd so lede into the presenceo f the GrandS inyor,a nd I
mustek issh is kne or his hanginges ieve.H avinged eliveredme y
letteresu ntot he CoppagaweI, s halbep resentllye dda wayeg, oinge
backwardeass longea s I can se him, and in payneo f my headeI
mustn ot turnem y backeu ponh im, andt hereforyeo w musten ot
louket o havea sighteo f him. (Diary6, 5)
The severep rotocolso f Asiaticc ourtsi ntimidatedE nglishmenA. lthoughh e car-
ried the queen'sd ignityi n his person,L ellow ould submitt o a body search.
Unsureo f his receptions, eeingh imselfp ulledf orwarda nd backl ike a puppet,
armsf orcedt o hiss ides,t hea mbassadonre rvedh imselft o kisst hes leeveo f power.
The occasionr equiredw atchfulness":l ettn ot yourw orke,"L elloc ontinued,
be anythingeth e morec arleslylo ukedu nto, anda t yourc ominge
homeo urm artchantessh allg ivey owt hankesy, f it givet he Grand
Sinyorc ontentet hiso ne day.I carn ot yf it be non aftert he nexte,
yfit doo not pleaseh im at the firstes ighte,a ndp erformne ot those
thingesw hichi t is Touldeh im thati t canD ow,h e will causei t to
be puledd ownet hath e mayt rampleit underh is feete.A nd than
shallw e haven o sute grantedeb, ut all our chargew ill be loste.
(Diary,6 5-66)
Lelloi maginedth e sultan-"a monarkeb ut an infidella, ndt he grandeE nymye
to allC hristians("D iary,6 5)-ranting likea cycle-playH erod,s houldt he organ
failt o pleaseA. lthoughE uropeanisn theN ewW orldi, t is arguedw, erec onfident
in theirm obilet echnologyo f power,t he ambassadotro the Porte,u rgingt he
craftsmatno do a masterfujlo b,a nxiouslyca stt he fortuneos f his embassyo n the
premieroe f a theatricaml achine.
Dallamk newh is craftT. he organ,i n separatae udiencep, erformedim pres-
sively:
Firstt he clockes trouke2 2; thanT he chimeo f 16b elsw ento f,
and playeda song of 4 partesT. hat beinged one, tow personagis
whichs toodu pont he cornerso f the secondes torie,h oldinget ow
silvert rumpetesin thereh andes,d id lifte them to theireh eades,
ands oundeda tantarraT. hant he muzickew ento f, andt he orgon
playeda songo f 5 partestw yseo ver.I n the topeo f theo rgon,b eing
16 foute hie, did standea holly bushe full of blackeb irdsa nd
thrushisw, hicha t the endo f the musickd id singea nds haket heire
wynges.D iverso therm otionst harew asw hicht he GrandS inyor
wondereda t. (Diary6, 7-68)
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The sultan'sa dmirationo f the device held alarmingc onsequencesf or its
makerT. he GreatT urkw antedt o know if the organc ould repeatt he perfor-
mance,a ndt he "Coppagawei,t"s presenters,a idi t wouldi n an hour.I t wasn ot
set to playf or six hours.I n an adjacenrt oom,D allamt old the officialt o "tuche
a litle pin with his fingerw, hichb eforeI hads hewedh im, and it wouldg oo at
anyt ime"( Diary6, 8).A t the secondr oundt he sultan,s ittingc loset o the keys,
wonderedw hyt heyd epressedto the music,a ndh e askedi f someonec ouldp lay
the instrumentD. allamw ass ummoned". Ir efusedto do so, becauseth e Grand
sinyors atts o nearet hep lacew heareI shouldp layet hatI couldn ot coma t it, but
I muste needest urnem y backeT owardehs im and toucheh is Kne with my
britchisw, hichn o man,i n paineo f deathe,m yghted ow"( p. 69).T he insulting
posturew asa llowedh, owevera, nda ftert he musicM ohammedII I filledt he or-
ganist'sp almw ith gold. Lateri nformedo f the event, Lellow as pleased.Y et,
as he admittedt o Dallam,m oodily," hew ass oryef or one thing,t he whichw as
thath e neverh ada nyt houghteo f my comingei nto the GrandS inyorsp resence,
.. for if he hadb ut mystrustedit nevers o litle,h e wouldh aveb estowed3 0 or
40 ii. in apparelflo r me"( Diary,7 2-73).T he craftsmanc'slo thes,t he britches
chafingt he imperiakl nee,h ade mbarrasseEdn gland.
Lellob roodedb ecausep rotocolso f dressh adv exedt he Englisht hroughout
the day.S omem emberos f the train,l ikeT homasG loverw, ho succeededh im as
ambassadoinr 1606,c arriedth emselvetso o flamboyantlfyo rL ello.C onsensuosn
properE nglishs elf-presentatiowna se venu nlikeliehr eret hani n London.1T5h e
angryJ ohn Sandersona, merchantin attendancef,o und Englands hamedi n
Lello'sm odestyT. husS andersond efendedG loveri n 1607:
His Lordshiph athb inem ostm aliciousliwe rongedh, avingei,n
the time of the presentsd eliveryc, ariedh imselfew ith a hautie
coradge,f ull of undauntedm agnanimitiew, hich many motlie
judgmentst ermed prodigalitie;n ot perceavinget hat the end
whearunttoh atb ehaviouraen db raverayi medw ast o hit theG rand
Signori n his youthfullh umorew; hichF og [i.e.,L ello],t he chefe
of thatc rewe,u tterlym islikeda, nd counseledt hers houldn ot be
so manym en with fethersa; nd othersh is assosiatessa idt herw as
to muchg ouldl ace.' I,' quothF ogg,' it wereb ettert o deliverit in
civillm anner'a: s yourselfek nowethh ee did;w ho satt upoonh is
horse with a ruddie downe looke, as thoughe he had bine
streyningae t a close-stoole.'6
15. On sumptuaryc ontroversys,e e StephenO rgel,I mpersonationTs:h eP erformancoef Genderin Shakespeares
England( Cambridge1, 996),e sp. chap. 5, "MasculinAe pparel."
16. Foster,e d., Travelosf JohnS anderson2,4 2.
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-
EARLY ENGLISH "AMBASSADORS" IN MOGUL INDIA 351
The scatologicalg loss on Lello'sb lush typifiest he frustrationw ith which
Englishmenb eheld their countrymena t work in Asia.'7F indingt he man's
"Englishm" odestya bjecti n Ottomane yes,S andersoncr avedt o see the ambas-
sadorc arryh imselfw ith well-feathere"dT urkishp"r ide,a ndh e concludedt hat
Lellol ackedt he manlinestso representth e queen:
when he cameb eforet he GrandS ignor,[ Lello]s toodew ith his
handsh andsomelibe eforeh im, likea modestm idwifea, ndb egan
a tremblinges pechi n Inglishe,a s you knowes oundingl ike the
squekingeo f a goosed evidedi nto semiquaverws,h ichw ass o dis-
gratiouseth at,h adi t not binef or respecto f Hir Magestieh, e had
bined eprivedo f all the GrandS ignorh is graces.'8
ForS andersont,h e Englisht onguew aso ut of placei n Ottomana udience,
andL ellos oundedw eak,s trainede, ffeminateA. jealousw itnessS, andersonm ay
haveo verstatedth e embarrassmenLt;e llod id managet o securef avorabltee rms
and outflankt he Frencha mbassadoorn the Dutch questionY. ett he rancoro f
the accounti s not unusual.E nglishs elf-presentatioant the courtso f Eastern
princesw as inevitablyc ompromisedan d controvertedI.r onicallyL, ello'sb id to
manageh is train'ds isplayw ast rumpedb y the sultanw, ho, perhaprs ecallingth e
organist'osu tfit,t ook chargeo f the embassy'ast tireW. ritingt o RobertC ecilo n
21 October1 599,L ellon otedt hat,a s theya waiteda udience", ordewr ass entb y
the GrS rt hatb eforeo ure ntranceu ntoh im botheI andm y gentlemennsh ould
be clothedi n vestso ut of his Tresorie."S'9m allw ondert hatD allamf oundt he
ambassadomr usingo n theirw ardrobe.
The comice pisodei n Constantinoplew, ith its irreduciblrea ndomnesasn d
confusionc, ans ervea sa prototypfeo ro therE nglishm issionsto "theE ast"in the
period-not leastb ecauseM ildenhalrl emembereLd elloi n Agra.P lansd rawn
up in Londonm et unforeseenim pedimentas broadH. appyd eliveryo f the sul-
tan'sp resentsa, n achievemenetv eryoned eemedc rucialr, equiredth e skilla nd
plucko f an artisanin vitedt o join the voyageo nly at the lasth our.G loverw ore
whath e choset o the audienced, espiteh is leader'osb jectionsW. hateverp owers
of statet hey representedE, ngland'esm issariefso undt hemselvese nmeshedi n
theatricacli rcumstancetsh atw ereo wned,p roduceda, nd consumedb y others.
17. On blushinga s distinctivelyE nglishb ehaviors, ee ThomasW right,w ho findsh is countrymend angerously
naiveb efores warthyM editerranean"s:T hev eryb lushing. .. of our people,s hewetha betterg round,w here-
upon Vertuem ay build, than certaineb razenf aces,w ho neverc hanget hemselvesa, lthought hey committee,
yea, and be deprehendedin enormiousc rimes"( TheP assionos f theM indei n General[lL ondon,1 604], reprint
ed., with an introductionb y ThomasO . Sloan [UrbanaI, ll., 1971],l ix).
18. Ibid., 242-24.
19. Quoted in Bent, ed., EarlyV oyageasn d Travelisn theL evantx, iii.
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