China in the 20th century from the perspective of a Turkish traveller, Süleyman Şükrü

Abstract

Although the first travel books in the Turks correspond to the 16th century, they have been subjected to a lot of examination both because they are the first travel books written on Cathay and for the period they were written. However, it has not gone unnoticed that there are very few studies on the work called Seyahatü’l Kübra, written by Karçınzade Süleyman Şükrü in the 20th century. Şükrü, who travelled after being dismissed from his official duty in the Ottoman Empire in the 20th century, travelled from Anatolia to many countries such as Greece, Iran, Austria, France, Africa, Egypt, India and China and took notes of everything he observed and experienced during his travels. Although it is not as valuable as Evliya Çelebi’s “Seyahatname” in Turkey and around the world, Şükrü’s "Seyahatü’l Kübra” is one of the most comprehensive travel books that should be examined in terms of its rich content. The Chinese travel chapters in the travelogue are divided into eleven titles including Hong Kong, Shanghai and the details of the outer seas that the traveller crossed before reaching Taku Port, the Pier of Beijing, Pacific Ocean, Tianjin, Beijing, Cancaku, Lancosın, Hoço, Hami, Urumqi. The aim of this study is to examine the impressions of the traveller’s journey to China in Seyahatü’l Kübra and to try to analyse the situation in the Qing period according to the work. Therefore, in this study, the historical developments in China in the 20th century will be emphasized and the similar points of the period will be tried to be revealed by giving quotations about how the periodic features of the Qing Dynasty are reflected in Seyahatü’l Kübra.

Keywords

• Süleyman Şükrü
• Seyahatü’l Kübra
• Cathay Travel Books
• Travel to China

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