How to Survive in the Renaissance Tatar Crimea

This paper examines Ławryn Piaseczyński’s diplomatic manual and its origins in the context of the author’s three consecutive diplomatic missions to Crimea on behalf of the Polish king, revealing the issues of diplomatic contacts with non-European cultures and the practice of gift-giving in late Renaissance diplomacy. I demonstrate how this hitherto unexplored text stands out from other Renaissance treatises and manuals on diplomacy and how Piaseczyński’s unique diplomatic experiences in Crimea informed his writing. In order to achieve this, I analyze the structure, style, and contents of the Powinności poselskie (Ambassador’s duties), and point out the features that distinguish it from other similar works in Poland and western Europe. In the final part of the article, I establish the correlation between some specific episodes from the author’s Crimea missions and the content of his manual. This analysis allows for the completion of fragmentary data about the origins of the Powinności poselskie and for the correction of previous findings, such as narrowing the manual’s date of composition

Archaeology · Art history · Context (archaeology) · Diplomacy · Linguistics · Order (exchange) · Political science · Politics · Style (visual arts) · Tatar · The Renaissance · Classics · Historical and Cultural Studies of Poland · Historical Geopolitical and Social Dynamics · Historical Influence and Diplomacy · History · Law · Philosophy