Agents of Empire: Knights, Corsairs, Jesuits and Spies in the Sixteenth-Century Mediterranean World

651 Pages·2015·44.789 MB·English

by  Noel Malcolm

Agents of Empire

Agents of Empire
Knights, Corsairs, Jesuits and Spies in the
Sixteenth-Century Mediterranean World
Noel Malcolm
1
3
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© Noel Malcolm 2015
First published in Great Britain by Penguin Random House.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Malcolm, Noel.
Agents of empire: knights, corsairs, Jesuits and spies in the sixteenth-century
Mediterranean world/Noel Malcolm.
pages cm
“First published in Great Britain by Penguin Random House UK”—Title page verso.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-19-026278-5 (hardback)
1. Bruni, Antonio, -1598. 2. Bruni, Antonio, -1598—Family. 3. Bruti, Bartolomeo, -1592—Family.
4. Albania—History—16th century. 5. Ulcinj (Montenegro)—Biography. 6. Albania—Relations—
Italy—Venice. 7. Venice (Italy)—Relations—Albania. 8. East and West—History—16th century.
9. Mediterranean Region—History—16th century. 10. Turkey—History—Ottoman Empire,
1288–1918. I. Title.
DR963.25.B78M25 2015
949.65'01—dc23
2015004124
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
This book is dedicated to Alban, Faruk and Uran

Contents
List of Illustrations ix
List of Maps xiii
Preface xv
A Note on Names, Conventions and Pronunciations xxiii
Family Tree xxvii
1 Ulcinj, Albania and Two Empires 1
2 Three Families 23
3 Antonio Bruti in the Service of Venice 35
4 Giovanni Bruni in the Service of God 55
5 Gasparo Bruni and the Knights of Malta 76
6 Galleys and Geopolitics 100
7 Rebellion and Ottoman Conquest 123
8 The Lepanto Campaign 151
9 War, Peace and Ottoman Resurgence 175
10 The Brutis and Brunis in Istria 194
11 Bartolomeo Bruti and the Prisoner Exchange 206
12 Espionage and Sabotage in Istanbul 223
13 Secret Diplomacy and the Grand Vizier 244
14 Sinan Pasha and the Moldavian Venture 261
15 Gasparo Bruni and the Huguenot War 278
16 Antonio Bruni and the Jesuits 299
17 Moldavia, Tatars and Cossacks 317
18 Bartolomeo Bruti in Power 336
19 Cristoforo Bruti and the Dragoman Dynasty 362
20 The Exiled Voivod and his Counsellor 379
21 Habsburg–Ottoman War and Balkan Rebellion 391
viii Contents
22 Pasquale ‘Bruti’ and his Peace Mission 415
Epilogue: The Legacy: Antonio Bruni’s Treatise 430
Glossary 447
Notes 451
List of Manuscripts 529
Bibliography 537
Index 579
List of Illustrations
1. Ulcinj, illustration from Giovanni Francesco Camocio, Atlante – 
Isole famose, Venice, c.1572. (Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich,
Mapp. 180 h, fo. 18)
2. Ulcinj, contemporary photograph of the Old Town. (Diomedia/
Alamy)
3. Bar, illustration from Giovanni Francesco Camocio, Atlante – Isole
famose, Venice, c.1572. (Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich,
Mapp. 180 h, fo. 17)
4. Italian school, The Council of Trent, oil on canvas, 16th century.
Musée du Louvre, Paris. (Bridgeman Images)
5. Barbarossa’s corsair fleet outside Nice. Miniature from the Süley-
manname, 1558. Topkapı Palace Museum, Istanbul, MS. H.1517.
(Copyright © 2015. White Images/Scala, Florence)
6. The Sponza Palace, Dubrovnik. (AllFreePhotos.com)
7. Gasparo Bruni’s first letter to Marcantonio Colonna, from Ancona,
1570. Archivio Colonna, Corrispondenza Marcantonio il Grande,
busta 44, no. 4490. (Biblioteca di Santa Scolastica, Subiaco)
8. Titian (Tiziano Vecellio), A Knight of the Order of Malta (Gentle-
man with a Watch), oil on canvas, c.1550. Museo del Prado,
Madrid. (Bridgeman Images)
9. Sofonisba Anguissola, Philip II, oil on board, 1565. Museo del
Prado, Madrid. (Bridgeman Images)
10. El Greco, Pope Pius V, oil on canvas, c.1605. (Private collection)
11. Italian school, The Ratification of the League against the Turks, oil
on panel, 1571. Archivio di Stato Gabella, Siena. (Bridgeman
Images)
12. Giorgio Vasari and assistants, The Battle of Lepanto (detail), fresco,
1572–3. Sala Regia, Vatican. (Copyright © 2015. Photo Scala,
Florence)
13. The Battle of Lepanto. Illustration from Giovanni Francesco
Camocio, Atlante  –  Isole famose, Venice, c.1572. (Bayerische
Staatsbibliothek, Munich, Mapp. 180 h, fo. 51)