William Biddulph

Description

This report offers a comprehensive **overview of Reverend William Biddulph's life and his influential travelogue**, "The Travels of Certaine Englishmen," which documented his experiences in the Ottoman Empire between 1600 and 1612. It begins by **identifying Biddulph amidst a complex genealogical record**, establishing him as the chaplain to the Levant Company in Aleppo. The text then details his **role within the English "factory" in Aleppo**, highlighting how the community's insular nature and the chaplain's duties shaped his perspective. Furthermore, the report **analyzes his published work**, emphasizing its polemical nature as a curated collection of letters intended to instruct an English audience on the perceived superiority of Protestant England. Finally, it explores **Biddulph's biased worldview, particularly his negative portrayals of Islam and Roman Catholicism**, concluding with a discussion of how contemporary scholarship re-evaluates his travelogue as a window into early modern English identity rather than a factual account of the Levant.

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Created on: September 04, 2025