CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2025
| Author | Cavol, Guilhermo Henning |
|---|---|
| Title | Trans-Imperial Subjects in the 17th Century: Integration, Conversion, and Culture Brokering Through the Eyes of a Captive Ottoman Muslim in the Habsburg Empire |
| Summary | This research aims to elucidate the vital political, religious, and social roles exceptional Trans-Imperial Subjects played in their own and new host empires through the eyes of Osman of Timişoara, an Ottoman Muslim who was forced to live for twelve years as a captive in the Habsburg Empire. The thesis seeks to explore both objective and subjective historiographical viewpoints in the larger social processes of servitude, conversion, and cultural brokerage in this Ottoman-Habsburg context. The methodology applied to this thesis follows Osman’s narrative with insights from historiography, contrasting relevant macro-historical sources and his account of the events to provide a complete analysis of the events detailed in his memoir. Osman’s account is relevant, because it provides often overlooked insights into how individuals perceive and experience historical phenomena, offering a personal, contemporary outlook on historical events. This thesis will delve into Osman’s accounts to better understand the vital role of cultural brokerage that these individuals were often compelled to assume during their times in foreign lands, deepening the understanding of the importance of such individuals to their empires and host empires and the intricacies of religious conversion in an imperial context. This thesis advances the historiography of empire by foregrounding the lived experience of an exceptional Trans-Imperial subject. Osman’s memoir is a testament to how such individuals resisted fixed identities and actively mediated between rival powers, thus enriching our understanding of early modern diplomacy, conversion, and cultural adaptation. |
| Supervisor | Esmer, Tolga |
| Department | Undergraduate Studies BA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2025/cavol_guilhermo.pdf |
Visit the CEU Library.
© 2007-2025, Central European University