CONSTANTINOPLE--CAPTURE OF THE _BLACK JOKE_--LIFE IN CONSTANTINOPLE--ITS
DANGERS--FRIENDS--AUDIENCE OF CAIMACAM--TRIP UP THE BOSPHORUS.
"My first few days were spent in writing, executing commissions, and
fitting out my good Cannady, who was to return with the answers to the
despatches; all as it turned out to no purpose, for off Algiers the poor
old _Black Joke_ was taken by two French privateers, one of ten, the
other of eight guns. Becalmed off that place, she was attacked on either
side by these lighter vessels, which, with oars and a superior number of
men, had an irresistible advantage. After being gallantly defended by
Cannady, she was taken with the loss of several fine fellows, and her
guns dismounted in the discharging them, for she was a very old vessel.
With her were taken a number of little Turkish purses and trifles,
souvenirs to friends at home, and two fine carpets I paid 30l. for,
which were to have made a figure at Westbourne[4]--I had made a present
of the same kind also to our commander--and all my letters home and
sketches made up till then.
Mr. Adair[5] and Canning[6] have been very polite, and I have dined
frequently at the Palace, and although this is not the sort of society I
very much covet, I find it so extremely useful that I cannot be too
careful to keep up my acquaintance there. Mr. Canning, of whose kindness
on all occasions I cannot speak too highly, has obliged me exceedingly
in lending me a large collection of fairly faithful drawings of the
interiors of mosques, some of them never drawn before, as well as other
curious buildings here, made by a Greek of this place. In copying them I
have been closely employed, as when Mr. Adair leaves, which will be
shortly, they will be sent off to England. I had a scheme of drawing
from windows, but it has failed. I find no Jew or Christian who is bold
enough to admit me into his house for that purpose, so I have to work
from memory. After having made a memorandum, I develop it at home, and
then return again and again to make more notes, till at length the
drawing gets finished. In arriving here just in time to take advantage
of Mr. Adair's firman to see the mosques I was most fortunate. It is a
favour granted to ambassadors only once, and Mr. Adair thinks himself
lucky to get it before going away; but I will tell you in confidence
that I regret very little the impossibility of drawing in them. They
seem to me to be ill-built and barbarous.
Lord Byron and Mr. Hobhouse[7] were of the party."
The Djerid, a mimic fight with javelins on horseback, now, I believe,
entirely disused in Turkey, was still the favourite pastime of young
Turks, and Cockerell speaks of it as being constantly played on the high
open ground or park above Pera, and of his going to watch it.
"One day I was persuaded by an English traveller of my acquaintance to
go a walk through Constantinople without our usual protection of a
janissary, but the adventures which befell us in consequence made me
very much repent of it, and put me a good deal out of conceit with the
Turks. We walked to the gate of the Seraglio, in front of which there is
a piazza with a very beautiful fountain in it. This lovely object was so
attractive that I could not resist going up to it and examining the
marble sculpture, painting, and gilding. Hereupon an old Turk who
guarded the gate of the Seraglio, offended, I suppose, at my presuming
to come so near, strode up with a long knotted stick and a volley of
language which I could not understand, but which it was easy to see the
drift of. I should have been glad to run away, but in the presence of
Turks and other bystanders I resolved to fall a martyr rather than
compromise my nation. So, waving my hand in token of assent to his
desire for my withdrawal, I slowly paced my way back with as much
dignity as I could assume. I heard my Turk behind coming on faster and
more noisy, and I shall never forget the screwing up of the sinews of my
back for the expected blow. It did not fall, or there would have ended
my travels; for, either astonished at my coolness or satisfied with my
assent, he desisted.
A little further on, in passing through the court of a mosque, I was
gazing at some of the architectural enrichments of it, when I felt a
violent blow on the neck. I looked down, and there was a sturdy little
figure, with a face full of fury, preparing to repeat the dose. He was
of such indescribably droll proportions that in spite of the annoyance I
could hardly help laughing. I held out my hand to stop him, and at the
same time some Turks luckily came up and appeased my assailant. He was
an idiot, one of those to whom it is the custom among the Turks to give
their liberty, and who are generally, it appears, to be found hanging
about the mosques.
One more unpleasantness occurred in the same unfortunate walk. As we
were looking at some carpets, I observed my servant Dimitri growing
pale; he said he was so weak he could hardly stand, and he thought he
must have caught the plague. I supported him out of the bazaar, but
afterwards kept him at arm's length till we got home, sent him to bed,
changed from top to toe, and smoked. I was to have dined at the Palace,
but sent and made my excuses. Meeting the English consul, good old
Morier, I refused to shake hands with him. He, however, would have none
of it, laughed at me and carried me home to dinner quietly with him.
Dimitri reappeared later on, and all was well; but the day is memorable
as having been odious."
The usual sights of Constantinople in 1810 were the same as now--viz.
the dancing dervishes, the howling dervishes, the Turkish bath, and the
Sultan's visit to the Mosque. They are what every traveller has seen and
every young one thought it his duty to give an account of, and I shall
not transcribe Cockerell's description of them. Only the last can have
been at all different from what may be seen now. It was remarkable for
the startling costumes of the janissaries, and for the fact that instead
of a fez, the universal and mean headdress of to-day, every Turk wore a
turban, which made a crowd worth seeing. The janissaries wore a singular
cap, from the centre of which sprang a tree of feathers which, rising to
a certain height, fell again like a weeping willow and occupied an
enormous space. On these occasions about fifty of them surrounded the
Sultan with wands in their hands, and no doubt had a very striking
effect.
"I have made several useful friends. One is a brother artist, the Greek
who did the mosques for Canning. We have paid each other several visits,
and become fairly intimate by dint of dragoman, mutual admiration, and
what was a superb present from me, a little Indian ink and two English
pencils. He has been specially attentive in his visits here, hoping, as
he confessed, to find out some secret in the art from such a connoisseur
as myself. Another is an old gentleman in a long grey beard, who a few
days ago walked into my room, telling me he had been induced to call
upon me by hearing of my great reputation. He is an artist, and I showed
him my colours and instruments, with which he was greatly delighted. I
have not yet returned his visit, but I am shortly to do so, and he is to
introduce me to some houses out of which I can draw. I have found a most
elegant and useful friend in the Sicilian ambassador, who has many
beautiful books and drawings. The young men I chiefly live with are Sir
William Ingilby; Foster, an English architect, and a most amusing youth;
and a Mr. Charnaud, son of a consul at Salonica. We meet at dinner very
often, but they are all, even architect Foster, too idle to be
companions any further than that. If I chose I could make numbers of
acquaintance among the Greeks and Armenians, who all speak French.
Their ladies are very agreeable, but the information I should glean
amongst them would not pay for the time.
Canning is very much liked here among the merchants, though they say
they will never get such another man as Adair. For me he is rather too
grand to be agreeable.
This is a most interesting time among the Turks. All is bustle and the
sound of arms in every street. The Grand Signor is going to the Russian
war next week. His procession will, of course, be a grand sight, but
they despond throughout. The Turks have a prophecy that the empire will
expire with the last of the line of Mahomet, and the present Sultan has
no children.
The number of troops passing to Adrianople is incredible, and such
barbarousness and total absence of discipline could, one would think,
never have been known even in the Crusades; but they are unbelievably
picturesque. A warrior disposed to defend his country (for none are
compelled; only, happily for the empire, the Turks are naturally
inclined that way) goes to the Government and demands whatever he thinks
will fit him out for the purpose. He gets 200 or 300 piastres, which is
to find him in arms and ammunition. These will consist of a brace of
pistols, a broadsword, and a musket, more often chosen for its silver
inlay than for its efficiency. He is confined to no particular dress.
He wears what he likes, and goes when and how he likes. The Government
finds him in provisions. One may see them everywhere about, reposing in
small parties in the shade or near a fountain and looking like banditti,
which, indeed, if they catch you out of sight of the town, they are.
They commit the most wanton cruelties and robberies in their march, and
at present there is no such thing as travelling in the country. As you
meet these independent ruffians in the street they look at you with the
most supercilious contempt and always expect you to make way for them.
Even yet the Turks have not lost the air of invaders, and look upon the
Greeks as conquered slaves, while these feel it as strongly as if they
had just lost their country. The other day I went to sketch some
antiquities under the walls. In the garden of a poor Greek we gathered
some fruit for which we meant to pay, but with the greatest kindness he
pressed us to eat more, and filled our pockets with cucumbers, saying we
were Christians, and he would take no money.
The English have the best reputation of any Franks in this country.
In walking out the other day our guide was insulted by a drunken
janissary. On the man's answering him the janissary came up, threatening
him with his sword. At this our man said he was surprised at such
behaviour to an Englishman; but the janissary declared he was a
Frenchman, and that unless he came and swept the street where he (the
janissary) sat we should not pass. Fortunately another janissary came
up, who was not drunk, and dragged him off, or there is no knowing how
the dispute would have ended. I hear a great deal of Sir Sidney Smith,
who, on account of his gallant co-operation with the Turks at Acre, has
gained the English much credit. Any Turk who has ever seen him is proud
of it, and whenever we meet a soldier the next question to whether we
are English is whether we know Sir Sidney Smith. I always say 'Yes,' to
which they say 'Buono.' The other day we overheard a Turk saying that
there were but two Generals in the world--Sir Sidney Smith and the
one-eyed captain (Lord Nelson). The Turks are so fond of Sir Sidney for
his wearing a Turkish dress, as well as for his gallantry, that he might
do what he pleased with them.
On July the 30th Canning had his audience of the Caimacam, who is
substitute for the Grand Vizir while the latter is away with the army. I
thought it my duty as an Englishman to attend him to the audience, and
therefore went to his secretary to inquire if I was right in thinking
so, although no other of the English travellers did, and I suppose
Canning thought I had done rightly, for he did me the great honour of
ordering that of the pelisses presented to the English gentlemen at the
audience, I should receive one of the four handsomest, the others being
of very inferior quality.[8]
We rode through the streets as before, much admired by the populace, who
seemed, in these narrow streets, as though they would have fallen on us
from the roofs on which they stood. On our way we met quantities of
soldiers straggling about the town, waiting for the departure of the
Grand Signor. One of them, who took care to let himself be well seen, in
bravado had run his sword through the fleshy part of his shoulder, and
held the hilt in the hand of the same arm. When we saw it, it had been
done some hours, for the blood which had escaped from the wound was
clotted and dried. We proceeded, not to the Sublime Porte, for that has
been burnt, but to a palace which the Caimacam inhabits at present. Here
we scrambled up a wide staircase in a crowd of Turks and other intruders
who had no business in our train. The ceremony of the audience was very
short. The Caimacam appeared amidst cries of 'Marshalla! Marshalla!'
Then Canning and he sat face to face and delivered their speeches. I
thought Canning delivered his with a very manly good manner. After the
answer had been given, coffee, sweetmeats, and essence were brought to
our minister only, and when we had each put on our cloaks we returned,
as before, to Pera. I afterwards dined at the palace. I have this moment
heard that of sixteen fine sail of the line I lately saw in the
Bosphorus three are returned disabled. The Russians had but five, and
two corvettes, yet they got the best of the engagement. It only shows
what the naval discipline of the Turks is like.
_Buyukdere._--Here are the country residences of all the foreign
ambassadors and merchants, and hard by, at Therapia, are the palaces
(such as they are, for the Turks allow them no colour but black) of the
Greek princes. I have taken a ride to see the scenes described by Lady
M. W. Montagu[9] about Belgrade, and in a gush of patriotic pride I sat
down and made a careful sketch and plan of what I was told was her
house. When I had done it I found to my disgust that it had been built
by her husband's successor, Sir Richard Worsley,[10] a very dull man,
whose house could interest nobody.
I had Foster with me as companion. We went in a boat up to the mouth of
the Black Sea, where it was very rough, and in landing on one of the
rocks I was in great danger."
FOOTNOTES:
[4] His father's home, Westbourne House, Paddington, a country residence
on the site of the present Westbourne Park.
[5] The British ambassador, afterwards Sir Robert Adair.
[6] Stratford Canning (1776-1880), afterwards Viscount Stratford de
Redcliffe. Secretary to the Embassy at this time, and later the well
known ambassador to the Porte.
[7] John Cam Hobhouse (1786-1869), afterwards Baron Broughton Best man
at Lord Byron's wedding. He was more than once a member of the
Government.
[8] In every present from a Turk to a Christian there is something
insulting implied. When a foreign minister is to be introduced at the
Ottoman Court the embassy is stopped in the outer apartment of the
serai, and when announced to the Despot his literal expression is: "Feed
and clothe these Christian dogs and then bring them into my presence."
Such is the real meaning of the dinner and pelisses given to ambassadors
and their suites.--_Beaufort._
[9] Lady Mary Wortley Montagu (1689-1762), authoress of the famous
"Letters." Her husband, Edward Wortley Montagu, went to Constantinople
as British Ambassador in 1716.
[10] 1751-1805. Traveller and collector of antiquities.