Hafsids and Habsburgs in the Early Modern Mediterranean: Facing Tunis (New Transculturalisms, 1400–1800)

In this book, Baskins places Muley Hassan, the ruler of Tunis, center-stage in an analysis of the evolution and production of portraiture and the representation of Hafsid-Hapsburg-Ottoman confrontation. Portraits capturethe multi-faceted struggle for prestige, patronage, and sovereignty in Mediterranean courts. Palmira Brummett, Professor Emerita, History, University of Tennessee, USA Baskins interdisciplinary book opens new directions for the study of portraits and Habsburg visual propaganda about North African campaigns. She also breaks with traditional studies of the 'Muslim other' and presents a case study of fluid permeability and alterity in the Mediterranean. Borja Franco Llopis, Associate Professor, Art History, National Distance Education University, Madrid, Spain This work is distinguished by its use of a variety of primary sources, and its multifaceted approach, combining history and art history. It is an important addition to the study of early modern Tunisia in particular, and to acculturation in the Mediterranean in general. Houssem Eddine Chachia, Assistant Professor, History, University of Tunis, Tunisia This book explores an anonymous sixteenth-century portrait of Muley al-Hassan, the Hafsid king of Tunis (ca. 15281550), that bears witness to relations between North Africa, the Habsburgs, and the Ottomans. While Muley al-Hassan appears frequently in the vast literature on Charles V Habsburg, he is overshadowed by the emperor. Here he emerges as a protagonist, a figure whose shifting reputation can be traced well into the seventeenth century. Images of the King of Tunis circulated in broadsheets, ephemeral images made for triumphal entries, manuscripts, tapestry designs, engravings, and books. The ceaseless production of Tunisian imagery allowed Europeans to face their North African counterparts through scenes of battle but also through imaginary encounters and festive cross-dressing. This book shows how portraits of Hafsid rulers challenge assumptions about the absolute divide between Christian and Muslim, sovereign and subject, the familiar and the foreign, and they put a face on the entangled histories of the early modern Mediterranean. Cristelle L. Baskins is Associate Professor Emeritus, Tufts University, USA Acknowledgments 6 Praise for Hafsids and Habsburgs in the Early Modern Mediterranean 8 Contents 10 List of Figures 12 1 Introduction 21 Art History and North Africa 31 Note on Sources 35 Transliteration and Translation 38 Notes 38 2 Hafsids and Habsburgs 46 The Lost World of Muley al-Hassan 46 Hafsid Treasures 58 The Tunis Campaign 60 Visible Speech 64 Notes 77 3 Sovereign Display 93 Contesting the Crown: Barbarossa and Muley al-Hassan 95 The King of Tunis in Triumph: Cosenza and Naples 98 The King of Tunis in Triumph: Rome and Florence 108 Tunis Dispersed 118 Tunis in the Wake of the Habsburgs 122 Notes 123 4 Italian Sojourn 140 Naples: June 1543 141 De Spenis, Breve Cronica 146 In Search of Charles: Florence and Rome, Summer 1543 158 Loss of Face 164 Notes 167 5 Vanishing Acts 180 Muley al-Hassan, Muley Ahmet, and the Sharif of Qayrawan 182 From Tunis to Augsburg 191 Face Off with Death 200 Mourning Muley al-Hassan, Celebrating Mahdiyya 206 Notes 216 6 Pious Fictions 232 Rubens’ Two Kings of Tunis 232 The Habsburgs and Tunis 1573–1574 241 Antwerp 242 Chifflet Unraveled 253 “God Can Do More Than That!” 262 Conclusion 267 Notes 269 Bibliography 288 Index 320 This book explores an anonymous sixteenth-century portrait of Muley al-Hassan, the Hafsid king of Tunis (ca. 1528-1550), that bears witness to relations between North Africa, the Habsburgs, and the Ottomans. While Muley al-Hassan appears frequently in the vast literature on Charles V Habsburg, he is overshadowed by the emperor. Here he emerges as a protagonist, a figure whose shifting reputation can be traced well into the seventeenth century. Images of the King of Tunis circulated in broadsheets, ephemeral images made for triumphal entries, manuscripts, tapestry designs, engravings, and books. 0The ceaseless production of Tunisian imagery allowed Europeans to face their North African counterparts through scenes of battle but also through imaginary encounters and festive cross-dressing. This book shows how portraits of Hafsid rulers challenge assumptions about the absolute divide between Christian and Muslim, sovereign and subject, the familiar and the foreign, and they put a face on the entangled histories of the early modern Mediterranean