2018 — New New English Original bdg. Dust wrapper. Folio. (31 x 25 cm). In English and Croatian. 171 p., color and b/w ills. The Istanbul letters of Antun Vrancic: Croatian and English translation of selected latin letters.= Carigradska pisma Antuna Vrancica: Hrvatski i Engleski prijevod odabranih Latinskih pisama. Prep. by Oguz Aydemir. Antun Vrancic or Antonio Veranzio, was a Croatian prelate, writer, diplomat and Archbishop of Esztergom in the 16th century. Antun Vrancic was from Dalmatian town of Sibenik (modern Croatia), then part of the Republic of Venice. Vrancic is also known under his Latinized name Antonius Verantius, while Hungarian documents since the 19th century refer to him as Verancsics Antal. In 1549, Vrancic entered Ferdinand's service. In parallel to his diplomatic duties, he held important positions in Catholic Church (the chief dean of Szabolcs County, abbot of Pornó Abbey). In 1553 he was appointed as a bishop of Pécs and sent to Constantinople to conduct negotiations with sultan Suleyman I on Ferdinand's behalf. That mission was previously declined by many other diplomats as an earlier negotiator was imprisoned by the Ottomans. Vrancic spent four years in Asia minor and finally concluded a peace treaty. After his return he was appointed bishop of Eger (17 July 1560 - 25 September 1570). After the Battle of Szigetvár in 1566, as one of Maximilian's ambassadors, Antun was sent to Turkey to negotiate peace again; he arrived in Constantinople on 26 August 1567. After five months of negotiations with Sokollu Mehmed Pasha and Selim II, agreement was reached by 17 February, and the Treaty of Adrianople was signed on 21 February 1568, ending the war between the Holy Roman Empire and Ottoman Empire. In appreciation of his diplomatic work, the king named him archbishop of Esztergom (17 October 1569 - 15 June 1573). During his stay in Istanbul, together with Ogier Ghislain de Busbecq, Vrancic discovered Res Gestae Divi Augusti (Eng. The Deeds of the Divine Augustus), a Roman monument in Ankara. His travels throughout the Transylvania, Balkan and Asia minor resulted in his writing extensive travel accounts. By writing letters to the Habsburg Kingdom almost every day, the diplomat telling the daily life of Istanbul gave examples of his culture and art works. Letters written 450 years ago provide important information about the diplomatic tradition of the 16th century and the behavior of the two emperors.
