Communication and political identity formation: Dubrovnik’s first ambassadors to the Sublime Porte

Abstract

The first diplomatic missions from Dubrovnik to the Sublime Porte played an important role in forming the identity of their city. Ambassadors from Dubrovnik were empowered to represent their city during crucial moments in the Ottoman westward expansion. The success of their missions influenced the position the city had under new circumstances characterized by constant shifts in the balance of power. This essay is focused on oral declarations by Ragusan ambassadors, which can be seen as an attempt to define, describe, and typify the community they are authorized to represent. Although these statements were used primarily to achieve various pragmatic aims, at the same time they can be perceived as an expression of the qualities of the city-state. Their messages reflected their beliefs, traditions, and customs of their culture in correlation with the specific conditions in which they functioned. Their choices depended on assessments of their efficiency. However, sometimes their missions did not end with the desired outcome because their system of values did not correspond to that of an Islamic culture. Nevertheless, over time the initial confusion and concerns were eventually alleviated by the practical experience they acquired. An analysis of the verbal communication between Dubrovnik’s ambassadors and the Porte, from the establishment of formal diplomatic relations to the acceptance of a tributary relationship, facilitates an examination of changes in the way they expressed their identity through verbal arguments and how they manipulated said arguments–in other words, how they wielded propaganda and ideology. In that sense, this verbal communication by the ambassadors is viewed as performativity that not only conveys a message but actively participates in its construction.

Keywords

• Dubrovnik
• diplomacy
• identity
• Ottoman Empire
• 15th century