Antonio Bruti (c. 1518 in Lezhë d. 1571 in Ulcinj) was an Albanian trader,[1] agent,[2] merchant and diplomat,[3] part of the Bruti family,[4] who worked for Venice in the cities of Ulcinj and Ragusa[5] working with Venetian-Ottoman relations.[6][7]
Antonio Bruti | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1518 Lezhë |
| Died | 1571 Ulcinj |
| Cause of death | Siege of Ulcinj |
| Nationality | Albanian |
| Citizenship | Venetian |
| Education | Giovanni di lingua, dragoman. |
| Occupation(s) | Translator, merchant and diplomat. |
| Years active | 1570-1591 |
| Employer | Venice. |
| Known for | Maintaining relations between the Porte and the Western powers |
| Spouse | Maria Bruni |
| Children | Bartolomeo Bruti, Benedetto Bruti and Jacomo Bruti |
| Parent |
|
| Relatives | Antonio Bruni (merchant) |
| Family | Bruni family |
Family background edit
Bruti moved to Ulcinj in 1537 fleeing Ottomans. He had three sons; Bartolomeo, Benedetto and Jacomo. Bruti was married to Maria Bruni, of the Bruni family. Brutis brother, Antonio Bruni, was born in the 1550s. His son was Bartolomeo Bruti (1557-1591) who died in Moldavia from strangulation. Antonio Bruti was educated by the Jesuits.
Career edit
During his career, Bruti bargained with the Ottomans the grain necessary to feed Catholic Venice.[8] The high costs of wheat caused "extreme misery" in the city of Venice forcing the governor of Budva to detain Antonios shipment of wheat.[9] In 1560, Bruti sent a petition to Venice listing the services he had performed. He was Ulcinjs most prominent trader of grain.[10] In 1537 Antonio Bruti commanded a military ship and fought for the defence of Ulcinj and Bar against the Ottomans. During his time in Ulcinj, he tried to shape and form the minds of the local Albanians to join Venice to oppose Ottoman rule[11] In 1570 Antonio Bruti described the walls of Ulcinj as "weak and extremely dangerous"[12] According to Venetian historian Andrea Morosini, Antonio Bruti had refused to surrender Ulcinj to the Ottomans and fearing hostility, he threw himself in the ocean and was later captured by Ali Muezinzade Pasha.[13] Noel Malcolm believes that Antonio Bruti was on board on war ships in Corfu in July 1570.[14] He died in 1571 when Ottomans sieged Ulcinj and killed him.[15]
References edit
- ^ Schwartz, Stephen (29 January 2016). "Through Albanian Eyes". The Weekly Standard. The Weekly Standard. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
- ^ Malcolm, Noel (2015). Agents of Empire: Knights, Corsairs, Jesuits and Spies in the Sixteenth-century Mediterranean World. Oxford University Press. p. 51. ISBN 9780190262785.
- ^ Brotton, Jerry (13 June 2015). "Agents of Empire by Noel Malcolm, review: 'a quite miraculous feat'".
- ^ Malaj, Edmond. "Familja fisnike Bruti nga Durrësi (The Noble Family Bruti from Durazzo. Albanian)". Retrieved 21 March 2019.
- ^ Holly S. Hurlburt, Matt Vester. "Noel Malcolm. Agents of Empire: Knights, Corsairs, Jesuits and Spies in the Sixteenth-Century Mediterranean World. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015. 640 pp. $34.95 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-19-026278-5". (Southern Illinois University Carbondale). Retrieved 21 March 2019.
- ^ Castellani, Erasmo. "Navigating the Amoral Fluidity of the Early Modern Mediterranean: Noel Malcolm's Agents of Empire: Knights, Corsairs, Jesuits & Spies in the Sixteenth-Century Mediterranean Oxford University Press, 2015, 640 pp. (page 5)" (PDF).
- ^ MARTIN, JOHN JEFFRIES. BETWEEN ISTANBUL AND VENICE AGENCY, FAITH, AND EMPIRE IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTUR Y. Duke University. p. 221.
- ^ Gallagher, John (10 June 2015). "Agents of Empire by Noel Malcolm review – a dazzling history of the 16th-century Mediterranean". The Guardian. Agents of Empire by Noel Malcolm review – a dazzling history of the 16th‑century Mediterranean During this fascinating era in the region, Christian states faced a Muslim superpower. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
- ^ http://www.lander.odessa.ua/doc/Noel%20Malcolm_Agents%20of%20Empire.pdf Archived 2016-10-12 at the Wayback Machine, page. 128
- ^ Malcolm, Noel (2015). Agents of Empire: Knights, Corsairs, Jesuits and Spies in the Sixteenth-Century Mediterranean World. Penguin Books Limited. ISBN 9780141978369.
- ^ http://www.lander.odessa.ua/doc/Noel%20Malcolm_Agents%20of%20Empire.pdf Archived 2016-10-12 at the Wayback Machine, page. 133
- ^ http://www.lander.odessa.ua/doc/Noel%20Malcolm_Agents%20of%20Empire.pdf Archived 2016-10-12 at the Wayback Machine, page 143.
- ^ http://www.lander.odessa.ua/doc/Noel%20Malcolm_Agents%20of%20Empire.pdf Archived 2016-10-12 at the Wayback Machine, page 145
- ^ http://www.lander.odessa.ua/doc/Noel%20Malcolm_Agents%20of%20Empire.pdf Archived 2016-10-12 at the Wayback Machine, page 130
- ^ http://www.lander.odessa.ua/doc/Noel%20Malcolm_Agents%20of%20Empire.pdf Archived 2016-10-12 at the Wayback Machine, page 194