MEHMET DEMIRYUREK - HAKAN YAZAR: According to the Ottoman Documents: British Consulate of Cyprus (1700-1800)

Abstract

The commercial activities of the European nations were organised by the capitulation system. Having gained the ahd-name or capitulations from the Ottomans, the European nations set up their embassy in Istanbul and their consulates organizing the commercial activities in the Ottoman Empire. This study examines the British consuls in Cyprus, whether the British consulate in Cyprus was sub-ordinate of Aleppo consulate or not, the vice-consulate missions of the British consuls in Cyprus for other European states, the sources of their incomes, their security problems and the drogoman, their servants, brokers and merchants who are acting under the British protection in Cyprus throughout the 18th century. In addition to this, it will be examined the transformation of the consuls' duties during the period under question. In this study it will be focused on the collections of the Ottoman documents and registers and stressed on the importance of the Ottoman archival documents for these kind of researches, in that the Ottoman Empire governed Levant and Near East.