The historical relationship between the Austria Habsburgs
and the Ottomans is a very changeable one,
which gained momentum, especially from the 16 century
onwards, with the Ottoman expansion into Europe.
When the Ottomans suddenly became neighbors of the Habsburgs
after the battle of Mohács in 1526, their contact increased
both on a political and cultural level. The more Turkish
The two Turkish sieges of Vienna
in 1529 and 1683 were as well,
very significant moments in the Empire's shared history.
Although the relationship between them
and thus their perceptions and dealings with each other
is usually examined under an oppositional framework,
their relationship was much more complex.
Depending on the time and region of the Habsburg Empire,
there were different connotations in the perception of the Ottomans.
In addition to the wars, diplomatic and trade relations
had an important role to play.
Through them,
other sides of the Ottomans got to be known and even appreciated,
thus reflecting the actually multilayered relationship
with the Ottomans. Especially in the 18th century,
the image of the Turks became more and more complex.
The borderland between
the Habsburg Empire and the Ottoman Hungary
takes a special stance in this respect.
This geographical zone shifted significantly between the 16th and
and the 18th century, causing changes
within the society of this region as well.
Also in the borderlands, the more ambiguous relationship
developed, for example, in times of war,
trade between two local populations
after two empires still took place and in times of peace,
raids were still carried out against each other.
It seems that these regions acted partly autonomously in relation
to their neighbors, far from the centers of government
and thus detached from imperial agendas.
And therefore, in these regions, the perception
of each other and behavior towards each other was more fluid.
Obviously, there was also the desire
to create certain notions and memories of the Ottomans
to serve, the Habsburg's own political agenda.
Therefore, certain narratives about the Ottomans were enforced
and material as well as immaterial heritage
was adjusted or even created, all with the intention
of preserving or erasing certain memories.
Probably the most familiar
example of Ottoman material culture used in the Habsburg Empire
for memory creation are the objects of booty.
They included weapons, armor, tents, among other types of objects,
and were widely collected and exhibited since the 16 century on
at court, in monasteries, but also by noblemen.
Some of the Ottoman objects were modified
to eliminate Islamic symbolism, including Arabic inscriptions.
These elements could also be substituted
with Christian or more general European iconography.
By doing so, it was tried to disguise the Islamic identity of the object
in order to make the object adequate for the own use,
thus, for a Christian space.
At the same
time, this must be understood as an act of power demonstration
signifying the historical triumph over the Ottomans.
Contrary the hybrid objects can also be understood as a reminder
of a shared history or the acceptance that the Ottomans are also part
of the Habsburgs own past and thus identity.
In other instances, the captured objects were not altered
and were rather appreciated for their original esthetics,
thus cultivating the memory of the Ottomans
as being cultured craftsmen rather than barbaric enemies.
Then again, within
the aristocratic collections and the Habsburg Empire,
these Ottoman objects were seen as treasured family memorabilia
as they bore witness to the ancestor's participation
in Turkish wars and sieges for generations to come.
Also, the choice of what was collected
and the ways in which it was displayed,
in other words, the politics behind it
was significant for the cultivation of certain memories.
As mentioned before, noble collections of Ottoman booty
would serve to remembrance of the triumphs of the own family.
However, there were also other forms
of collecting Ottoman objects. Especially in the 16th century
curiosity cabinets were quite common amongst members of the ruling houses
and also in the Habsburg Empire.
One of them was the Ambras collection
of Archduke Ferdinand II of Tyrol,
which he founded in the mid of 16th century in Tyrol, Austria.
He collected with preference not only Ottoman objects,
but also pieces from all over Europe and Asia.
The Ottoman objects were, however, not exhibited as war trophies,
but rather together on equal grounds
with other weapons, including Austrian ones.
It seems that the driving force behind Ferdinand II collection
is not the idea of the defeat of a pagan enemy,
but more de fascination for military objects
and historically significant battles in general.
Perhaps this could be explained by the fact that Ferdinand himself
was only marginally involved in battles against the Ottomans.
Thus in this case
the nature of the display helped more to manifest
the cultural and artistic value of the objects.
Monuments or objects in
public space also contributed significantly
to the shaping and preservation of certain
memories of the Ottomans.
One example is the former spire of St Stephen's Cathedral,
which was installed there in the year 1519.
It consists of a crescent moon in which a star is inscribed.
The removal of the spire is linked
to a change in Habsburgs perception of the Ottomans.
Initially, the spire was installed during a time of Ottoman threat
ten years before the first siege of Vienna, which took place in 1529.
It was believed that the spire would be seen from afar
by the Ottomans and might make them have some sort of mercy
with the city of Vienna.
However, over the course of the 16th and 17th century,
the perception of the symbol changed amongst society.
After the first
siege of Vienna was overcome without greater harm
contemporary texts report
that the symbol was seen more and more as blasphemous
since it was an Islamic symbol on a Christian church.
However, the latest after the second siege of Vienna,
the general sentiment was against the spire,
so it was removed from the cathedral in 1686.
This was three years after the second siege of Vienna.
When it was taken down, it was etched with the words,
with the Latin words,
"Haec Solymanne Memoria tua" and the date, 1529,
to remember the victory over the Ottomans in this year.
Together with a depicted hand gesture on the spire, the object became
a symbol for the new self-confidence towards the Ottomans.
As initially it was installed with the intention to accommodate
the Ottomans out of fear, and after 2 to Vienna sieges,
it was more a means to portray the own
superiority and victories over the Ottomans.
Thus, this object is a testimony of the changing
relations to the Ottomans.
In the
18th century during the time of the long Turkish wars
the perception and memory of the Ottomans
became increasingly complex and multilayered.
On the one hand, the thought of sieges
the Viennese sieges is still there, and also
the current military conflicts in Eastern Europe with the Ottomans
fuel altogether the image of them as the enemy.
At the same time, the image of the Ottomans is also influenced
by the emergent exoticism that was spreading throughout Europe.
There was a fascination with the Turks as they were
increasingly perceived as exotic foreigners.
In this context, in the mid-18th century,
the Habsburg Court in Vienna organized so-called Türkenkoppfstechen,
meaning quite literally stabbing the Turks' head.
For these events heads
that were supposed to look like an ottoman made out of cardboard,
or wood were produced and they were usually
having the turbans or a mustache as symbols.
The head is then placed in the middle
of an arena and horse riders attempt to stab the head.
It was a game at that time.
Thus, it serve as a playful way of processing the past
and the current threat
that emanated and still emanates at that time from the Ottomans.
At the same moment, however, we see the fashion "alla turca"
Türkenmode emerging at the Viennese court.
Even Maria Theresa had herself depicted in a portrait from 1743
wearing a Turkish harem costume.
Also, costume books were produced that showed Ottoman
clothing as well as other exotic dresses.
There were also operas and theater plays written
that featured the Turk as a figure. during the 18th century
Quite clearly, the memories of the Ottomans as military opponents
and as esteemed and cultured foreigners became intermingled.
It can be summarized that in the Habsburg Empire
memories formed the image of the Turk, but also viceversa.
Prevailing assumptions and ideas about the Ottomans
became some sort of lens through which the past was looked at.
An interdependency between perception and memory developed.
There is a certain number of characters
that the Turk has portrayed as that continuously occur
from the 16th to the 18th century, such as the exotic,
the religious and military enemy,
the barbaric, but also the cultured and the skilled.
By using these categories to deal
with the memories and legacies of the Ottomans
a way was found to cope with the own complex relationship with them.