BETWEEN THE SPLENDOR OF BAROCCO AND POLITICAL PRAGMATISM:THE FORM AND

CONTENTS OF THE POLISH-OTTOMAN TREATY DOCUMENTS OF 1699

Author(s): DARIUSZ KOODZIEJCZYK
Source: Oriente Moderno, Nuova serie, Anno 22 (83), Nr. 3, THE OTTOMAN CAPITULATIONS:
TEXT AND CONTEXT (2003), pp. 671-679
Published by: Istituto per l'Oriente C. A. Nallino
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DARIUSZ KOLODZIEJCZYK
(Warsaw University)

BETWEENTHE SPLENDOR OF BAROCCO

AND POLITICAL PRAGMATISM:THEFORMAND CONTENTS OF
THE POLISH-OTTOMAN TREATYDOCUMENTS OF 1699
the 30 treatiesconcluded between the 15th and the 18th centuries
between the Polish kings and theOttoman sultans, the treatyof Karlowitz
is the most widely known. Its international importance reaches beyond the
frameworkof mutual relations between the two countries.According to Colin
Heywood, the treatyof Karlowitz opened up a new era in the political relations
between the Porte and Christian Europe: ?congress diplomacy, which had
evolved rapidly inEurope after the end of theThirty Years'War was for thefirst
time applied to a settlement involvingan Islamic states1
One encounters the thesis that in 1699 the Porte was finally compelled to

Among

acknowledge the parity of her Christian partners and thus departed from the
concept of a universal monarchy entrusted to the rule of the Islamic padisah.
Earlier, a similar development had been seen within Europe, when Habsburg
claims to supreme authoritywere refutedby otherChristian nations, Catholic as

well

as Protestant.

treaty,or rather the series of treatiesconcluded by the Porte with the

emperor, Venice, Poland and Russia, ended the 16-years' war between the
Ottoman empire and the allies of theHoly League.2 Karlowitz was treated as a
turning point in Christian-Ottoman relations.This view concerned both the
political contents, reflecting the dusk of Ottoman hegemony in south-eastern
Europe, and the form of peace documents. However, this view was never
entirelyaccepted. Particularly in recentyears, several "revisionist"historians have
challenged the paradigm of "Ottoman decline," stressing the vitality of the
Ottoman state and the effectiveperformance of its armies in the early 18th
century.Tacitly or openly, these authors have diminished the importance of the
year 1699 as a "key date."
While revisiting the scholarlydiscussion concerning Karlowitz, one is struck
by how littleattention has been paid to thematter with which everyhistorian
The

should start,namely the sources, that is the original documents of the treaty.
The textof the Polish-Ottoman treatycan be found in numerous editions dated
1699, 1709, 1731, 1773, 1778, 1855, and 1885. Yet, all but one comprise only
at Karlowitz on 26
provisory documents (temessiiks)negotiated and exchanged
a
January 1699. Only one edition contains ratificationby thePolish king, issued
1- Colin Heywood,
"Karlofca", in:?/, IV, p. 657-658.
2 - In the case of Russia itwas initiallymerely a truce for two years.

OM, XXII n.s. (LXXXIII),3, 2003

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672

DARIUSZ KOtODZIEJCZYK

inWarsaw, and an incomplete French translation of the imperial ahdname

issued by Sultan Mustafa II in Istanbul. So far none of the scholars have
bothered to examine the original documents inOttoman Turkish, preserved in
the Polish archives, relying instead on their translations in Latin and French.3 It
is further to be regrettedthat theOttoman documents issued at the same time
for the doge, the emperor, and the tsar,held respectively inVenice, Vienna and
Moscow, have excited little interestamong scholars. At most they have been
exhibited on various formal occasions and their more or less legible
reproductions can be found in published catalogues.4
This situation is even more suprisingwhen one learns that another original
document, this time in Latin, has remained almost unnoticed in the Polish
archives.This is the formal confirmation of the treatyby King August II, with
the coats of arms of Poland, Lithuania, and Saxony, illuminatedmargins, and
corroborated by the royal secretary.Itwas probably drawn up as a "reserve" copy
of the original ratificationdocument sent to theOttoman capital. It is of unique
as very few western

value

documents

addressed

to the Porte

have

been

preserved.

Of numerous letterssent by Polish kings to Ottoman sultans only one, dated

1731, is extant in theTopkapi Archives. Two other documents can be found in

Warsaw, one, the formal copy of 1699 mentioned above, and another, dated
1670, the formerofwhich has survived because itwas never sent and the latter
because itwas not accepted by the Porte and returned to Poland.5

For details, see Dariusz Kofodziejczyk,

Ottoman-Polish Diplomatic Relations (15th-18th
Century). An Annotated Edition of'Ahdnames and Other Documents, Leiden, 2000, p. 153-157
and 581-62.
4 - For instance, see War and Peace. Ottoman-Polish Relations in the 15th - 19th Centuries, Is
3

tanbul,

1999,

Osterreichischen

Osterreich
152-154;
p.
Nationalbibliothek
und

Osterreichischen Nationalbibliothek:
the Ottoman

documents

held

31. Mai

und
des

die

Osmanen.

Osterreichischen

bis 30. Oktober

Gemeinsame
Staatsarchivs.

Ausstellung
Prunksaal

der
der

1983, p. 188. For

turchi"deWArchivio di Stato di Ve
1983, Vienna,

inVenice, see / "Documenti

a cura di Maria
Pia Pedani Fabris

nezia. Inventario della miscellanea

con I'edizione dei

regestidi
1994, nos. 1590-1592
(temessiik dated 26 January 1699 supplied
with Italian translations), nos. 1610-1612
(two versions of imperial ahdname, granted inApril
1701, supplied with Italian translation), nos. 1617-1619
inMorea
(protocol of demarcation
dated 5 September 1701 and
of
in
confirmation
borders
Morea
and
Dalmatia
imperial
granted

Alessio Bombaci,

Venice,

inDecember

and

1703); all these documents were examined by the present author in July 2000.
see
Kofodziejczyk, Ottoman-Polish Diplomatic Relations, p. 74-77
147; Nigar Anafarta, Osmanli Imparatorlugu He Lehistan (Polonya) Arastndaki Miinase

On

these documents,

betlerle Ilgili Tarihi BelgelerlHistorical Documents

concerning Relations between theOttoman Em
pire and Lehistan (Poland), Istanbul, 1979, no. 37. In summer 1998 the present author identi
fied in the
Topkapi Archives three letters, not mentioned by Anafarta, written in 1645-1646
the
Polish
and Mikofaj Potocki to Ot
by
dignitaries Stanisfaw Koniecpolski,
JerzyOssolinski
toman
provincial authorities (Topkapi Sarayi Muzesi Ar?ivi, Istanbul, Lehce belgeler, nos. 450,
At the same time no royal letterswere found apart from the one of 1731.
468-469).

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673

POLISH-OTTOMAN TREATYDOCUMENTS

well known
The historyof Polish-Ottoman negotiations atKarlowitz is fairly
thanks to reports by Andrzej Gorkowski, the secretaryof the Polish embassy,6
and by the chiefOttoman negotiator,ReisiilkuttabMehmed Rami.7
In September 1698 the deputies of the two sides met on neutral territory
between theDanube and Sava, near the Serbian village ofKarlovci. After several
months of negotiations, documents of peace were signed, sealed and exchanged
on 26 January 1699. The Polish instrument,composed in Latin, was signed by
the palatin of Poznan, Ambassador StanisfawMatachowski, while theOttoman
instrument, inOttoman-Turkish, was corroborated byMehmed Rami and the
chief dragoman, Alexander Mavrocordato. The equal status of the officials of
both sides and the simultaneous procedure of exchanging peace instruments,on
neutral

territory,

has

persuaded

numerous

scholars

to

treat

this

event

as

an

unprecedented and revolutionary innovation inOttoman-Christian diplomatic

practice.

One cannot deny that the treatyof Karlowitz bore some aspects of novelty
that derived from "the spiritof congress diplomacy." As an example one might
mention the acceptance of English and Dutch mediation (tavassut), expressed
a close examination of the
explicitly in the Ottoman instrument.However,
continuation than is often
elements
of
reveals
stronger
peacemaking procedure
admitted.

The traditionalOttoman stance provided that in dealing with infidels the

ultimate and binding instrumentwas the imperialahdname,which included the
sultan's oath beforeGod thathe would not violate the termsof thepeace so long
as the infidel ruler did not break his promises or fail to performhis obligations.
The Ottoman instrumentwas thus treated as a unilateral privilege, granted on
request of a foreign ruler.At the peak of Ottoman power, imperial ahdnames
granted toChristian statesbore the formof nisans, that is "diplomas," not much
to Ottoman
subjects. The process of
differing from diplomas granted
nisanization,

to use

the

term

coined

by Hans

Theunissen,

can

be

observed

in

Venetian ahdnames as early as the 16th century.8Polish ahdnames assumed the

form of nisans a century later in the instrumentsof 1667, 1672 and 1678. It is
od...Krdla y
6 - Andrzej Gorkowski,
legation is...Stan istawa Matachowskiego
Compendium
Stanow Rzeczypospolitey...ad tractandam pacem z Portq Otomanskq zebrane przez..., no place of
Stanisfawa
in: Relacya poselstwa Jasnie Wielmoznego JMci Pana
issue, 1699, republished
oraz
rdznych kommissyi po
Mafachowskiego,
wojewody poznahskiego do traktatu kartowickiego,
1778, p. 1-56; see also Konopczynski, Wfadysfaw,
tym traktacie nastqpionych,Warsaw,
a
and
1683-1792
1936, p. 34-39.
[Poland
Turcja
Turkey 1683-1792], Warsaw,
"Mukaleme-i Rami Pasa", Istanbul Oniversitesi Kutuphanesi, T. [Tiirkce Yazmalar]
7

Polska

3514;

see also Rifaat

in: Journal of theAmerican
"Ottoman diplomacy at Karlowitz",
Abou-el-Haj,
Oriental Society, LXXXVII
(1967), p. 498-512. On Mehmed Rami, see idem, "The Reisulkut
at Karlowitz,"
doctoral dissertation. Princeton,
tab and Ottoman
unpublished
diplomacy
1963.
8 - Hans Theunissen,
"Ottoman-Venetian
diplomatics: the 'ahd-names. The Historical Back
Instruments together
of a Category of Political-Commercial
ground and the Development
with an Annotated Edition of a Corpus of Relevant Documents."
doctoral disser
Unpublished
tation. Utrecht,

1991, p. 253-254.

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674

DARIUSZ KOtODZIEJCZYK

not by chance that this coincided with the period when the Porte openly treated
Polish kings as Ottoman vassals. In thatperiod the Polish rulerswere no longer
as theyhad previously done
expected to issuewritten confirmations of the peace
since the 15th century.They were thus treated like ordinaryOttoman subjects,
who were not supposed to confirm the privileges granted by the omnipotent
padi$ah?
In 1699 the Porte returned to the old diplomatic practice discontinued after
1640.10 The provisory instrument issued at Karlowitz provided that a lesser
Polish envoy should bring the royal confirmation of the treaty (temessiikdeki
mevadd kabulunt mus'irname geture) and only then the imperialahdname was to
be collected by the Polish high ambassador. Itmust be stressedhere that this
was not a novelty but a return to the old practice, or at least that is how
change
itappeared toOttoman eyes.
The royal document was promptly issued on 1March and confirmed by the
vice-chancellor, Karol Tarfo, on 24 April. Itwas brought to the Porte by the
lesser envoy, StanisfawMateusz Rzewuski. The document in question is today
preserved in two copies, while the original brought to Edirne apparently has
been lost.11To the astonishment of western diplomats, the Porte refused to
accept thisdocument, stating that itwas issued improperly,being issued only in
the name of the king, and not in the name of thewhole Commonwealth. The
FrenchAmbassador Castagneres informedParis on 30 June 1699:
Cet envoye [Rzewuski] est retenu a Andrinople pour quelque
difficult^qui a donne* lieu a plusieurs conferencesqu'il a eu avec les
ambassadeurs mediateurs chez Milord Paget, sur laquelle on doit
en
On
dit que cette difficulte* est fondle
Pologne.
a apportee
la ratification de la paix
n'est signee que
qu'il

e'crire de nouveau
sur ce
que

du Roy de Pologne, la Porte pretendant qu'elle soit signed par le

Grand Chancellier parmandement de laRepublique, Mr Rzevouski
dit au contraireque leGrand Chancellier ayantmis le sceau de la
Republique au bas de la ratification,il estoit inutilequ'il signait au
nom de la Republique. Que cette formalirine se
pratique point en
Pologne

et que

les actes

envoyez

este expediez dans la meme

autresfois

a la Porte

forme que

en

pareil

cas ont

la ratificationqu'il a

apportee.12

Finally, in order to end this stalemate, on 24 August the royal chancery in

Warsaw prepared another document with a
slightlyaltered preamble, including
such expressions as nos inclytamqueRespublicam Poloniae or nostroatque totius
Reipublicae nomine. This document was apparently prepared in two fair copies:
one was delivered to Istanbul and the other,
alreadymentioned above, was left
9

Kofodziejczyk,

Ottoman-Polish

Diplomatic

10 - For the list of Polish

royal confirmations,
11 -Ibidem,
12 - Archives

Relations, p. 3-8, 75-76.

see ibidem, p. 70-71.

p. 599-605.
du Ministere

no. 32, fol. 243b-244a.

des Affaires Etrangeres, Paris,

Correspondance

politique, Turquie,

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675

POLISH-OTTOMAN TREATYDOCUMENTS

inWarsaw and thus preserved until today. Only upon receiving this second
document did the Porte issue orders to evacuate the fortressof Kamieniec
Podolski. This was completed by 22 September and not, as initiallyprovided
for atKarlowitz, by 15May.

one cannot exclude the possibility thatOttoman objections served

Though
to
merely
delay the evacuation of Podolia, theremight be some truth in their
accusations. Friedrich August of Saxony, elected to the Polish throne in 1697,
was known forhis effortsto build up royal absolutism in his new kingdom and
dispose of the republican system that limited his authority.He constantly tried
to ignore established customs and to attain his aims
through secretdiplomacy.

In the perennial conflict between royal maiestas and noble libertas,which

dominated internalpolitics in Poland, the Porte chose to act as a guarantor of
the traditional noble institutions.
Only after receiving the "proper" royal confirmationwas Sultan Mustafa II
ready to issue a formal imperial ahdname. In Ottoman eyes itwas still this
document, and not the provisory instrumentsexchanged at Karlowitz, which
crowned the process of peacemaking and was to remainvalid and legallybinding
on theMuslim side.The "Polish" ahdname was issued in Istanbul in the second
(i.e. 6-15 October 1699).
period of Rebiulahir 1111AH.
An examination of the form and contents of the imperialahdname may help
us establishwhether, or towhat extent, this treaty
was a novelty in thehistoryof

Ottoman-Polish,

and

consequently

Ottoman-Christian

relations.

Unlike the Polish ahdnames of 1667, 1672 and 1678, thedocument of 1699
is no longer a nisan. Its elevatedformula devotionis recalls respective fragments
from the documents issued in the time of Sueyman theMagnificent. As in the
case of royal confirmation, this change does not need to be
explained bywestern
influence

or

pressure.

For

the Ottomans,

theGolden Age, discontinued after 1640.

Further,

the fact of the earlier

meeting

itwas

merely

between

a return

to the

representatives

practice
of

of

the two

sides is no proof of novelty. Polish ahdnames had been preceded by negotiations

and exchange of provisory instruments(temessuks)formore than a century.This
was the case in 1595, 1617, 1621, 1634, 1672 and 1676. The same can be said
of the famous Ottoman-Habsburg treatyof Zsitvatorok (1606), not tomention
theOttoman negotiationswith France of 1536.13
Though the political contents of the Polish ahdname, consisting of 11
articles, are simply copied in extenso from the instrument negotiated at

Karlowitz, its other elements openly recall the glorious imperial tradition.The
document measures 292 cm. in length,more than theHabsburg one (237 cm.),
but still less than theVenetian (537 cm.).14 It iswell-known that the size of
Ottoman documents was not necessitated by their contents but by the need to
same text usually took up
impress the recipient. In less formal documents the
-

in the Ottoman
the chapter entitled "The procedure of peacemaking
Ottoman-Polish
68-85.
Relations,
p.
Kofodziejczyk,
Diplomatic
14 - Ibidem, p. 40-41; on theVenetian documents, see n. 4 above.
13

See

empire",

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in:

676

Dariusz

KoIodziejczyk

less space. This also applies to the large imperialmonograms {tugras),

intended to display the splendor of thepadisah.
The chancery clerkswho composed the Polish ahdname of 1699 faced the
unpleasant task of redrawing the imperial intitulatiodue to the loss of numerous
provinces in Hungary, Transylvania and Podolia. Apparently in order to
compensate for these losses, they listed for the first time two former capitals,
Bursa and Edirne, theDanubian fortressof Belgrade, and the recentlyfounded

much

Anatolian province ofRakka (Urfa).

A more interestingdevice was applied in the narratio, explaning the reasons
for granting the ahdname. The usual narratio in earlier Polish capitulations
referredto the humble request of thePolish king and his loyaltyand devotion to
theOttoman emperor. This time the bitter truthdid not fit verywell into this
scheme. On the other hand, to admit that the Ottoman side was as much
interested in the peace as the Christians, would have meant offending the
dignity of thepadisah.
The final version of the narratio skillfullycombined the inconvenient reality
with an intactvision of a universalmonarchy.We learn that,on seeing the poor
subjects of both sides sufferingfromwar and hostility,and remembering the old
devotion and loyalty of Polish kings, the sultan accepted the mediation of
English and Dutch diplomats and conceded to the request of his vizier,Hiiseyin
Kopriilii,

to start the

after

repeated

text continues

The

negotiations.
conferences

and

negotiations,

peace

perpetual

consisting of eleven articleswas concluded with the full consent of

the deputies of the two sides on the twenty-fourth
day of Redjeb of
this year

1110;

and

in order

temessiiks were

that it be observed,

given

by both sides;
[now], the [royal] lettersent throughthemodel of thenotables of
the Christian

nations,

appointed

as a small

envoy

to my

imperial,

Rzewuski, confirming and

glorious stirrup, Wtadyslaw15
strengthening the contents of the temessiik given [previously]
according

to the old custom

has been

translated

and

submitted

to the

foot of our highest throne through themediation of the said grand

vizier;
as

the matters

of peace

and

amity,

in whatever

form, were

comprehended and contained bymy imperialknowledge, embracing

the universe,

for the sake of the ease and

comfort

of the subjects,

also

frommy imperialsidemy high royalpermissionhas been

grantedon
his [i.e., thevizier's] requestand petition;
[and] as our illustrious,exaltedfermanwith our glorious, imperial
writing has been issued, this our felicitous and honored imperial
'ahdname,

15

honored

with

our brilliant,
world-adorning

tugra, has been

It should read Stanislaw.

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677

POLISH-OTTOMAN TREATYDOCUMENTS

composed;

and

these

eleven

fixed

articles,

in their proper

place

that theyshould be respectedand preserved,are stated [below:] 1(>

so

The articlesof peace were then copied almost word forword after the temessuk,
with only one notable difference.The ?imperial court? was changed to ?my
imperial court? since the ahdname was granted by the sultan himself.
Though these editorial tricksmay provoke some ironic amusement today,

they served their purpose well in the context of internalpolicy. In the eyes of
Ottoman subjects the sultan managed to preserve, at least for some time, his
image as omnipotent distributor of crowns and favorswith no equal ruler in the
world beyond the Ottoman realm. An easy analogy can be found in 18th
centuryChina whose emperor treatedEnglish barbarians in thevery sameway.
By the time the ahdname was almost ready, the Polish high ambassador had
still not set out. The negotiator fromKarlowitz, Stanisfaw Mafachowski, lost
the competition for this post and died soon afterwards. His rival, Rafaf
Leszczyhski, was still collecting the necessary funds for the journey. Finally the
Porte lost itspatience and granted the document to the lesser envoy,Rzewuski,
mentioned by name in the document.
Leszczyhski arrived at last inApril 1700. In spite of his grand retinue and his
formal audiences with the sultan and Ottoman dignitaries, this embassy was
merely a formality.17The last stage of the peacemaking procedure was
1703, when the commissioners of the two sides
completed in October
exchanged

documents

of demarcation.

So far I have been tryingto demonstrate that the Polish-Ottoman treatyof

1699 was much less "revolutionary" than has been supposed. It does not,
however,mean that therewere no novelties at all, although sometimes hidden in
conservative

forms. Two

such novelties

merit

at least a cursory mention.

Perhaps themost pressing argument in favour of the "novelty" of this treaty

is contained in itsfiftharticle. It states that:

16 - ?Ve bi'd-defa'at miizakere

hiisn-i riza

ile isbu seneti

ve mukalemeden
'asara ve mi'ate

sonra on bir madde

ve elf Recebinin

idiib ma muliin-bih

iizerine viikela-i tarafeyn

yigirmi dordiinci giiniinde

iizere canibeynden temessiikler viril

u mii'ekkid rikab-i hiima
mii'eyyid
kiiciik elcilik hizmetiyle tayin olunan kidvetii 'uzama'i'l-milleti'l
yun-i sevket-makrunuma
ve
mesihiye Ladislavus Jevucki ile gondiirilen namesi terciime
miisarun-ileyh vezir-i azamim
u
umur-i
serir-i
a'lamiza
olunub
sulh
salah her ne ise 'ilm-i 'alem
telhis
vesatatiyla paye-i
mii'ebbeden

melde mu'tad-i

'akd-i musalaha
kadim

olmak

iizere virilen temessiik mazmununi

u samil oldukda
ve
ve
re'aya
istirahatlany^iin
berayanin refahiyet
rica ve iltimasina taraf-i hiimayunumdan
dahi musa'ade-i
'aliye-i husrevanem erzani kihnub
hatt-i hiimayun-i sevket-makrunumuzla
ferman-i 'ali-sanimiz sadir olmagin isbu tugra-i garra-i
siimul-i husrevanem muhit

cihan-aramizla

muserref

'ahdname-i hiimayun sa'adet-makrunumuz

?eref-yafte sudur olub
ve siyanet olunmak iciin isbu on bir madde dir ki zikr olunur?; for the
facsimile, transcription and English translation, see Kofodziejczyk, Ottoman-Polish Diplomatic
and 621.
Relations, facs. XXVII, p. 614-615
yerlii yerinde

ri'yanet

this embassy, see Ilona Czamanska

(ed.), Poselstwo Rafata Leszczynskiego do Turcji w
roku. Diariusze
i inne materiaty [The Embassy of Rafaf Leszczynski to Turkey in 1700.
Diaries and Other Materials], Leszno, 1998.
17

On

1700

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678

DARIUSZ KOtODZIEJCZYK

As

Poland

has

been

a free state

since olden

times,

it should

not

be

disturbed by any kind of oppression resultingfromany claims by the

high state and itsdependent tribes; in accordancewith the termsof
thispeace and amity,no claim of thiskindwill be respected.18
This article refers to the customary payments, sent yearly from Poland to the
Crimea since the early 16th century.Officially considered in Poland a voluntary
subsidy or gift to the han, inMuslim sources thesewere referred to as an
or
a vision of Poland
obligatory tribute,calledW<tf, vergi, simplyharac. Though
as a tributarystate of lesserCrimea may seem somewhat odd, and neither side
took it too seriously, it apparently served as a face-saving device forMuslim
scholars, otherwise reluctant to sanction permanent peace with infidels.19Itmay
be recalled here that since 1533 Poland had enjoyed a privileged status among

her Ottoman neighbours, being granted capitulations "in perpetuity" (i.e. valid
as long as the
given sultan remained in power). As in the case of Venice, this
status
had to be paid for by regular installments,considered by the
privileged
Muslim side nothing other than tribute.Though thePorte failed several times to
impose direct tributaryobligations on the Polish kings, the customary payments
to the han were registered in every Polish-Ottoman treatyfrom 1553 to 1678.
Now, at last, the Porte accepted the abolition of these payments and thus
conceded that lastingpeace might be concluded with an infidelneighbour who
was not a tributary of a Muslim
ruler. This precedent had important
implications for theMuslim doctrine ofHoly War. According toViorel Panaite,
the end of the 17th centurymarks a turningpoint in theOttoman concept of
cihad, shiftingfrom the ideology of "offensiveHoly War" to one of "defensive

Holy

20

War."

converting
the Porte.

the
21

In

1700

two-year

Russia

truce

too

reached

managed
at Karlowitz

to abolish
into

the
30-years'

"Tatar
peace

gifts"
with

18 -

?Leh vilayeti kadimden miistakil devlet

ve tabi' olan ta'ifeleri ta
olmagla devlet-i 'aliye
rafindan teklif olunan her ne isemutalebesi bahanesiyle bir diidii ta'addi ile
incidilmeyiib bu
sulh u salahin serayiti muktazasinca
bu makule
tekalif taraflanna miiltezem
olmaya?; see
Kofodziejczyk, Ottoman-Polish Diplomatic Relations, p. 590 and 595; in the Latin version this
article reads:

?Cum Regnum
Poloniae
ab antiquo sit liberrimum, ab Excelso
aut
Imperio
subiectis eidem gentibus,
praetensionis aut expostulationis praetextu, nulla peni
qualiscunque
tus hostilitate
et conclusae istius almae
perturbetur,
pacis pactorum vi, ad tales praetensiones
see ibidem,
nequaquam
p. 583.
adstrigatur?;
- See
19
etait-elle le vassal de 1'Empire Otto
my paper "La Res Publica Polono-Lituanienne

to be
published by Centre Scientifique de l'Academie Polonaise des Sciences in Paris.
same conclusion was reached
by Viorel Panaite in his monumental
study, Pace, razboi si
comer( in islam. Jarile rom&ne si dreptul otoman al popoarelor (secolele XV-XVII)
[Peace, War

man?"
The

and Trade

in Islam. Romanian

Lands

and the Ottoman

Law of Nations

(XVth-XVIIth

turies)], Bucharest, 1997, p. 181-182.

20 - Panaite, Pace, razboi si corner}, p. 102.
21 - On
the role of tribute in Crimean
and Ottoman

Cen

see Halil
relations with Muscovy,
as reflected
Inalcik, "Power relationship between Russia, the Crimea, and theOttoman
empire
in titulature", in: Passe' Turco-Tatar present
sovietique. ?tudes offertesa Alexandre Bennigsen,
1986, p. 175-211.
Louvain-Paris,

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679

POLISH-OTTOMAN TREATYDOCUMENTS

The second "novelty" of the Polish ahdname concerns practice rather than
letter.Robert Olson and Thomas Naff proposed yet another "turningpoint" in
Ottoman-Christian relations dated 1740. In thatyear French capitulationswere
on behalf of the ruling sultan aswell as his successors.
granted for the firsttime
The old practice of renegotiating each treatyon the accession of a new padisah
was thusnullified.22
While the Polish ahdname of 1699 was granted only on behalf ofMustafa II,
it in fact remained in force until 1795, that is until the lastpartition of Poland.
As early as 1714 Polish envoys in Istanbul learned that theahdname of 1699 was
to remain valid under the new sultan,Ahmed III. In subsequent years Polish
ambassadors arrived at Istanbul merely to confirm the existing ahdname. A
similar development was observed forVenice byMaria Pia Pedani Fabris. The
Venetian ahdname of 1733, granted seven years before the famous French one,

remained in force until the end of theAdriatic republic.23

In 1790 the lastPolish ambassador, Piotr Potockiwas sent for the purpose of
concluding a Polish-Ottoman alliance againstAustria and Russia. Its draft, in
French as well as in Ottoman, was composed in almost modern diplomatic
terms as "the European balance" {Avrupamevasinesi),
language containing such
but itwas never ratified.24 Insteadwe learn that the ahdname of 1699 was still

considered a basis for mutual relations. On the eve of the closure of his
unsuccessful mission in October 1792 Potocki made a request to the grand
vizier for a passport for a Polish merchant going to Chios. His requestwas
granted ?on the basis of the conditions of the imperial ahdname?.2^ The
ahdname mentioned in the document was nothing other than the capitulations
of 1699, granted 93 years earlier. Thus, in spite of its traditional form and
conservative spirit, the Polish ahdname of 1699 servedwell as a transitional
instrument

ushering

22 - Robert Olson,

in a new

era

in Ottoman

treaty of 1740: a year to be remembered?", in: The

p. 347-55; Thomas Naff, "Ottoman Diplo
in: Naff, T.
in the Eighteenth Century: Patterns and Trends",

"The Ottoman-French

Turkish Studies Association Bulletin XV/2

matic Relations

diplomacy.

(1991),

with Europe
eds., Studies in Eighteenth Century Islamic Historyy Carbondale,
107, esp. p. 101.

and R. Owen,

111., 1977, p. 88

1996 [= Quaderni di Studi Arabi.

23 -Maria Pia Pedani Fabris, La dimora delta pace, Venice,
40-41.
Studie Testi,2],p.
24
Kofodziejczyk, Ottoman-Polish Diplomatic Relations, p. 657.
?'Ahdname-i humayunun suruti mucibince yol hiikmi virilmek buyurulmusdur fi 28
25
[Bab-i Asafi Divan-i
S[efer] sene-i 1207?; see Basbakanlik Arsjvi, Istanbul, A. DVN. DVE
is the dos
171, no. 78. The provenance of the document
Humayun Duvel-i Ecnebiye Kalemi]
sier of Potocki, preserved in theOttoman
archives.

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