TURKOMANS BETWEEN TWO EMPIRES: THE ... - Bilkent University

1.2.3. Italian Sources
When Shah Ismail rose up as a regional power in 1501, the Ottoman-Venetian War had
just ended with territorial losts of the Venetians. The treaty, however, by no means
ended the immediate Ottoman threat for the Venetians. Therefore, the emergence of a
new and powerful enemy of the Ottoman Empire in the eastern front was warmly
welcomed by the Venetians. Indeed, establishing alliances with the enemies of the
Ottoman Empire in the East was not a new phenomenon for European states. Before the
Safavids, Uzun Hasan had also received the fervent support of the Venetians against
Mehmed II. In this case, however, the excitement in Europe was two-fold: the newly
rising ruler of Iran was not only posing a political and military menace to the Ottoman
Empire, but also an effective sectarian contest as well. The second feature of the new
ally even made Venetian ambassadors to perceive - as reflected in their reports – Shah
Ismail’s religious path closer to Christianity than the sunni Islam of the Ottomans.
As a result, the European - especially Venetian - statesmen and intellectuals had
an increasing interest in and curiosity about Shah Ismail. The Venetians dispatched a
number of envoys to maintain an alliance with Shah Ismail and to encourage him in his
struggle against the Ottomans. The reports of these envoys include a detailed description
of Shah Ismail, his palace, his followers etc. Among them, the English translation of the
most important and the most informative six travel accounts, or reports of diplomatic
mission, are published. 83 The peculiarities of each narrative will be delineated in the
related part of the thesis.
83 The narratives of Caterino Zeno, Giovan Maria Angiolello, An unknown Merchant, and Vincento
d’Alessandri are translated into English and published by Charles Grey. See A Narrative of Italian travels
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