Turkish-French relations have a long history going back to the 15th century. Of all the countries in Europe, France has always had a special place for both the Ottoman Empire and the Turkish Republic. The Ottomans had the most intensive diplomatic and economic relations with France. Ottoman capitulations given to France were a smart political move on the part of the Ottoman sultan to establish strategic relations with one of the most important countries in Europe. Even though the capitulations caused serious problems for the Ottomans in the 19th century, they also served as a special channel between the two countries.Turkey continued to have close relations with France even when those relations were seen as a threat to the integrity of the Ottoman Empire in its later days. Ottoman intellectuals were heavily influenced by the ideas of the French Revolution, including secularism and nationalism. It is impossible to understand 19th century Ottoman intellectual and political life without considering the impact of France.
The famous visit of Ottoman Ambassador Çelebi Mehmet XXVIII to France in 1720-1721 was a typical moment of the meeting of the two worlds in the 18th century. In his “Fransa Sefaretnamesi,” Çelebi Mehmet narrates his impressions of France and French society in a vivid way. Çelebi was received like a king in Paris. He socialized with French high society. He met the young King Louis XV, who was only 12 years old at the time. He visited Paris’ zoo, botanical gardens, libraries, factories, universities, observatory, a printing house and a mirror factory. He was openly impressed with the achievements of French society in science and technology even though he remained critical of French culture, costumes and lack of interest in religion. His conclusion was one which determined the perception of many generations after him about French and eventually European culture in the 18th and 19th centuries.
One of the most dramatic and in some ways tragicomic moments in the history of relations between France and the Muslim world was when Napoleon occupied Egypt in 1798 and declared to the Egyptian people that he had come to Egypt as a friend of Muslims and a good ally of the Ottoman Empire. Napoleon had even declared himself a “Muslim” in his famous declaration to the Egyptians. The Egyptian historian Abd al-Rahman al-Jabarti got a good laugh out of Napoleon’s claim to be a goodwill ambassador and a carrier of civilization. He had seen in Napoleon neither civilization nor peace but the ugly face of European colonialism.
This mixed history is still very much alive in the collective memories of French and Turkish societies. The tensions and disagreements between the two countries about the future of Europe, its identity, questions of multiculturalism, integration and immigration, secularism and the main issues of international politics animate heated debates, and both societies try to define themselves by mirroring the other. The difference is that Turkey is much more relaxed and confident than the French at the moment.
The Season of Turkey in France, which came to a close with a major opera performance called “Musenna” at the Palace of Versailles, confirms these mixed perceptions and attitudes. While the political elite led by Mr. Sarkozy have a rather narrow view of Turkey and Turkish society, there is a growing interest in Turkey among the French public and intellectuals. The debate about Turkey in France and in Europe in general is not limited to bilateral relations but extends to such big issues as culture, identity, self-perception and the “other.” This “interpenetrated” debate, to use Nilüfer Göle’s phrase with a small modification, opens up new opportunity spaces for both the Turkish and European publics to see each other in a new light. We cannot avoid this fact of “interpenetration” between the Muslim and Western worlds. The challenge is how to learn to live with it. Can Turkish-French relations be a starting point for this new debate? We shall see…
