Abstract
Portrait of an English Orientalist: Sir Paul Rycaut
This paper discusses short biography of Sir Paul Rycaut who worked as the embassy of Levant Company in Smyrna between 1667-78. This biography mainly dwells on Rycaut’s idea of Tusk and Ottoman Empire based on his experience in the Ottoman world. He embodied all his idea and perceptions about Turks and Ottoman Empire in his work The Present State of the Ottoman Empire (1665). He also edited Knoll’s History of Turks before publication. The Present State of Armenian and Greek Churches is another work of the author. We believe that the present biography of Sir Paul Rycaut will contribute in Turkey to his perception and further studies on Rycaut who is much consulted on the Ottoman Empire by his contemporaries and future writers as an outstanding English Orientalist.
Keywords
Levant Company, Mediterranean Trade, Anglo-Ottoman Relations, Orientalism