LADY MARY WORTLEY MONTAGU (1689-1761)

1763 TURKISH EMBASSY LETTERS - Written, during her Travels in Europe, Asia and Africa, To Persons
of Distinction, Men of Letters, &c. in different Parts of Europe. Which Contain, Among other Curious elations,
Accounts of the Polic! and Manners of the Tur"s
We Travellers are in very hard circumstances. If we say nothing but what has been said before us, we are dull and
we have observ'd nothing. If we tell any thing new, we are laugh'd at as fabulous and Romantic, not allowing for
the difference of ranks, which afford difference of comany, more !uriosity, or the changes of customs that haen
every "# year in every !ountry. $ut eole %udge of Travellers e&actly with the same !andour, good 'ature, and
imartiality, they %udge of their 'eighbours uon all (ccasions.
I could also, with little trouble, turn over )nolles and *ir +aul Rycaut, to give you a list of Turkish emerors, but I
will not tell you what you may find in every author that has writ of this country. I am more inclined, out of a true
female sirit of contradiction, to tell you the falsehood of a great art of what you find in authors, as, for e&amle,
in the admirable -r. .I//, who so gravely asserts, that he saw in *ancta *ohia a sweating illar, very balsamic
for disordered heads. There is not the least tradition of any such matter, and I suose it was revealed to him in
vision during his wonderful stay in the 0gytian catacombs, for I am sure he never heard of any such miracle here.
It is certain we have but very imerfect relations of the manners and religion of these eole, this art of the world
being seldom visited but by merchants, who mind little but their own affairs, or travellers, who make too short a
stay to be able to reort any thing e&actly of their own knowledge. The Turks are too roud to converse familiarly
with merchants, 1c., who can only ick u some confused informations, which are generally false, and they can
give no better account of the ways here, than a 2rench refugee, lodging in a garret in 3reek-street, could write of
the court of 0ngland
4our whole /etter is so full of mistakes from one end to t'other. I see you have taken your Ideas of Turkey from
that worthy author 5umont, who has writ with e6ual ignorance and confidence. 'Tis a articular leasure to me here
to read the voyages to the /evant, which are generally so far remov'd from Truth and so full of 7bsurdities I am
very well diverted with 'em. They never fail to give you an 7ccount of the Women, which 'tis certain they never
saw, and talking very wisely of the 3enius of the -en, into whose !omany they are never admitted, and very
often describe -os6ues, which they dare not ee into.
I have already been visited by some of the most considerable /adies whose Relations I knew at 8ienna. They are
dress'd after the 2ashions there, as eole at 0&eter imitate those of /ondon. That is, their Imitation is more
e&cessive than the (riginal, and 'tis not easy to describe what e&traordinary figures they make. The erson is so
much lost between .ead dress and +etticoat, they have as much occasion to write uon their backs, This is a
Woman, for the information of Travellers, as ever sign ost ainter had to write, This is a bear.
There is no colour, no flower, no weed, no fruit, herb, ebble, or feather, that has not a verse belonging to it, and
you may 6uarrel, reroach, or send /etters of assion, friendshi 9sic:, or !ivillity, or even of news, without ever
inking your fingers.
This eretual -as6uerade gives them entire /iberty of following their Inclinations without danger of 5iscovery
;on the Whole, I look uon the Turkish Women as the only free eole in the 0mire <=<
Tis also very leasant to observe how tenderly he 97aron .ill: and all his $rethren 8oyage-writers lament the
miserable confinement of the Turkish /adies, who are >erhas? freer than any /adies in the universe, and are the
only Women in the world that lead a life of uninterruted leasure, e&emt from cares, their whole time being
sent in visiting, bathing, or the agreeable 7musement of sending -oney and inventing new fashions. 7 .usband
would be thought mad that e&acted any degree of 0conomy from his wife, whose e&enses are no way limited but
by her own fancy. 'Tis his busyness to get -oney and hers to send it, and this noble rerogative e&tends it selfe to
the very meanest of the *e&.
7s to their 9Turkish women's: -orality or good !onduct, I can say like 7rle6uin, 'tis %ust as 'tis with you, and the
Turkish /adies don't commit one *in the less for not being !hristians. 'ow I am a little ac6uainted with their ways,
I cannot forbear admiring either the e&emlary discretion or e&treme *tuidity of all the writers that have given
accounts of 'em. 'Tis very easy to see they have more /iberty than we have.
'Tis imossible for the most %ealous .usband to know his Wife when he meets her, and no -an dare either touch or
follow a Woman in the *treet
@
4ou may guess how effectually this disguises them, that there is no distinguishing the great /ady from her *lave
I will try to awaken your gratitude, by giving you a full and true relation of the novelties of this lace, none of
which would surrise you more than a sight of my erson, as I am now in my Turkish habit, though I believe you
would be of my oinion, that Atis admirably becomingBI intend to send you my icture, in the mean time accet of
it here
without any distinction of rank by their dress, all being in the state of nature, that is, in lain 0nglish, stark naked,
without any $eauty or defect conceal'd
They Walk'd and mov'd with the same ma%estic 3race which -ilton describes of our 3eneral -other
it would have very much imrov'd his art to see so many fine Women naked in different ostures, some in
conversation, some working, others drinking !offee or sherbet, and many negligently lying on their !ushions while
their slaves >generally ritty 3irls of @C or @D? were emloy'd in braiding their hair in several ritty manners. In
short, tis the Women's coffEe house, where all the news of the Town is told, *candal invented, etc.
The /ady that seem'd the most considerable amongst them entreated me to sit by her and would fain have undress'd
me for the bath. I e&cus'd my selfe with some difficulty, they being all so earnest in ersuading me. I was at last
forc'd to oen my skirt and shew them my stays, which satisfy'd 'em very well, for I saw they beleiv'd I was so
lock'd u in that machine that it was not in my own ower to oen it, which contrivance they attributed to my
.usband.
7deiu, -adam. I am sure I have now entertained you with an 7ccount of such a sight as you never saw in your
/ife and what no book of travels could inform you of. 'Tis no less than 5eath for a -an to be found in one of these
laces.
7nd, after having seen art of 7sia and 7frica, and almost made the tour of 0uroe, I think the honest 0nglish
*6uire more hay who verily believes the 3reek wines less delicious than -arch beer, that the 7frican fruits have
not so fine a flavour as golden +iins, and the $ecFfiguas of Italy are not so well tasted as a rum of $eef, and that,
in short, there is no erfect 0n%oyment of this /ife out of (ld 0ngland. I ray 3od I may think so for the rest of my
/ife, and since I must be contented with our scanty allowance of 5aylight, that I may forget the enlivening *un of
!onstantinole.
I am allmost falln into the misfortune so common to the 7mbitiousG while they are emloy'd on distant,
insignificant !on6uests abroad, a Rebellion starts u at home. I am in great danger of loseing my 0nglish.
!onstantinole, - a lace that very well reresents the Tower of $abel.
7s I refer 0nglish to all the rest, I am e&tremely mortify'd at the daily decay of it in my head, where I'll assure you
>with greife of heart? it is reduce'd to such a small number of Words
There were many amongst them as e&actly roortioned as ever any 3oddess was drawn by the encil of 3uido or
Titian, and most of their skins shineingly white, only adorn'd by their $eautiful .air divided into many tresses,
hanging on their shoulders, braided either with earl or riband, erfectly reresenting the figures of the 3races
Tis not easy to reresent to you the $eauty of this sight, most of them being well roortion'd and white skin'd, all
of them erfectly smooth and olish'd by the fre6uent use of $athing
We saw under the Trees in many laces !omanys of the country eole, eating, singing, and danceing to their
wild music. They are not 6uite black, but all mullattos, and the most frightful !reatures that can aear in a .uman
figure
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