Letters Writ by a Turkish Spy

It is agreed that the first volume of this work was written by Giovanni Paolo Marana (1642–1693), a Genoese political refugee to the French court of Louis XIV.

[3] The remaining seven volumes appeared first in English between 1691 and 1694, prefaced with a letter claiming that they were translated from a discovered Italian manuscript.

[9] Mahmut sends reports from Paris to Constantinople on politics and current events in France, but corresponds privately on other subjects including religion, and adds stories and anecdotes for diversion.

[4] His observations range from those on political figures such as Richelieu and Mazarin to speculations on the status of women, advice about state policy, and major interventions in controversies about religious doctrine and their consequences.

[6] Media related to Prints from Marana Espion turc at the Peace Palace Library at Wikimedia Commons