Legini Press © 2000 - 2019
The Earl and his butler in Constantinople
by Nigel and Caroline Webb
In
1729,
George
Hay,
8th
Earl
of
Kinnoull,
a
Scottish
aristocrat
whose
behaviour
in
political,
financial
and
personal
matters
had
caused
some
disquiet
in
England,
was
appointed
ambassador
to
Constantinople,
where
he
remained
until
1737.
Leaving
his
wife
and
family
at
their
Yorkshire
home,
Brodsworth,
he
departed
for
Turkey
with
a
large
retinue,
including
a
certain
Mr Samuel Medley,
aged
62,
as his ever-loyal butler who kept a diary there from 1733 to 1736.
From
official
documents
and
private
family
letters,
the
authors
have
built
up
a
brief
but
vivid
biography
of
Lord
Kinnoull
in
the
years
leading
up
to
his
arrival
in
Turkey
-
his
advantageous
marriage
to
the
Lord High Treasurer’s
daughter;
his
imprisonment
on
suspicion
of
Jacobite
sympathies;
his
involvement
in
the
South
Sea
Bubble;
his
fall
from
grace
and
his
financial
embarrassment;
his
unexpected
and
improbable
appointment
as
ambassador.
From
his
despatches
and
from
the
revealing
and
colourful
pages
of
Medley’s
diary,
the
authors
have
pieced
together
a
lively
account
of
the
extraordinary
progress
of
Lord Kinnoull’s
embassy
and
the
misjudgements
and
intrigues
leading
to
his
recall.
Illustrations include
contemporary
oil
paintings
by
Jean-Baptiste
Vanmour
of
the
Ottoman court and the reception of ambassadors.
The
full
text
of
the
diary,
and
also
of
Medley’s
quotations
from
his
reading
matter,
which
are
of
special
importance
to
those
with
an
interest
in
the
English
literature
of
the
Augustan
age
and
its
readership,
has
been
made
available
to
researchers
on
this
website
both
as
a
photographic
reproduction and as a full transcription with notes.
Select here to see these
.
The
first
edition,
published
by
Legini
Press
is
sold
out
but
a
second
edition
is
available
from
I B Tauris
(
www.ibtauris.com
) with ISBN numbers as follows:
ISBN -10 1845117824 and ISBN -13 9781845117825.
Legini Press © 2000 - 2019
The Earl and his butler in Constantinople
by Nigel and Caroline Webb
In
1729,
George
Hay,
8th
Earl
of
Kinnoull,
a
Scottish
aristocrat
whose
behaviour
in
political,
financial
and
personal
matters
had
caused
some
disquiet
in
England,
was
appointed
ambassador
to
Constantinople,
where
he
remained
until
1737.
Leaving
his
wife
and
family
at
their
Yorkshire
home,
Brodsworth,
he
departed
for
Turkey
with
a
large
retinue,
including
a
certain
Mr Samuel Medley,
aged
62,
as
his
ever-loyal
butler
who
kept
a
diary
there from 1733 to 1736.
From
official
documents
and
private
family
letters,
the
authors
have
built
up
a
brief
but
vivid
biography
of
Lord
Kinnoull
in
the
years
leading
up
to
his
arrival
in
Turkey
-
his
advantageous
marriage
to
the
Lord High Treasurer’s
daughter;
his
imprisonment
on
suspicion
of
Jacobite
sympathies;
his
involvement
in
the
South
Sea
Bubble;
his
fall
from
grace
and
his
financial
embarrassment;
his
unexpected
and
improbable
appointment
as
ambassador.
From
his
despatches
and
from
the
revealing
and
colourful
pages
of
Medley’s
diary,
the
authors
have
pieced
together
a
lively
account
of
the
extraordinary
progress
of
Lord Kinnoull’s
embassy
and
the
misjudgements
and
intrigues
leading
to
his
recall.
Illustrations include
contemporary
oil
paintings
by
Jean-Baptiste
Vanmour
of
the
Ottoman
court
and
the
reception
of ambassadors.
The full text of the diary, and also of Medley’s
quotations from his reading matter, which are of special
importance to those with an interest in the English
literature of the Augustan age and its readership, has
been made available to researchers on this website both
as a photographic reproduction and as a full transcription
with notes. To see these, click the centre blue link above.
The first edition, published by Legini Press is sold out but
a second edition is available from I B Tauris
(www.ibtauris.com) with ISBN numbers as follows:
ISBN -10 1845117824 and ISBN -13 9781845117825.
