Manhunt on the Austrian Border; Evliya Çelebi, Slave Raids and Enslavement

Abstract

Austrian Expedition, in which Evliya Çelebi participated in 1663, constitutes one of the most dramatic parts of the Seyahatname. Evliya joins a series of raids, often comes face to face with death, takes people as captives, and sells slaves in slave markets to earn large sums of money. The most dominant aspect in these narratives is the direct relationship between enslavement and Christianity. A very heavy language has been used throughout this chapter about Christian people, and the cruel acts that were applied to the body of Christians are explained with all its clarity. At the same time, Evliya describes with admiration the vibrant cultural life of the city while he is in Vienna for peace talks. This article shows how Evliya, who has a good knowledge of poetry and music, is also prone to acts of violence. Although Evliya is shown as a person who is tolerant of different identities by researchers, this article will try to show how the difficult war conditions led to a change in discourse on Evliya's perception of the Christians.