Lady Montagu’s Embassy to Constantinople as viewed by turkish scholars

Abstract

Lady Mary Montagu’s Embassy to Constantinople is one of the first Western works to offer a realistic view of the 18th century Turks through a female perspective. Written during her round trip and stay of just over a year in the Ottoman Empire, in her letters Lady Montagu appears as an inquisitive lady interested in discovering the true reality of the “Other”, something unusual until then. On the other hand, her status as the wife of the British ambassador allowed her to access spaces that were previously forbidden to male visitors. This article focuses on the view that current Turkish scholars have of the Letters and their author, how they value their comments and what kind of opinions the character and their observations deserve.