Habsburgs Looking East: Diplomatic Decisions and Early Modern Orientalism in the Habsburg Monarchy (1606–1683)

Abstract The imperial rivalry between the Ottoman Empire and the Habsburg monarchy is widely recognized as one of the defining conflicts of early modern Eurasia. Until recently, historiography has focused on wars and seemingly intractable differences between them, although their shared history is equally marked by communication and pragmatic efforts at mutual understanding. Drawing on the cultural history of diplomacy and theories of Orientalism, this study examines the seventeenth-century Habsburg monarchy’s concept of the Ottoman Orient within the empire’s highest decision-making forums, based largely on unpublished archival documents. At the center of this inquiry is the Aulic War Council ( Hofkriegsrat ), the institution responsible for Eastern affairs in the monarchy. As a starting point, the study presents the specific geopolitical context in which the Habsburg image of the East covering Eurasian space developed. It then provides an overview of the Habsburg diplomatic apparatus within the War Council, explaining its structure, key actors, and operational mechanisms. Focusing on a specific diplomatic genre—the final report—it also shows how decisions regarding the Ottomans and the Eastern world were made, emphasizing the role of knowledge accumulation, strategy-building, and overarching political objectives in shaping Habsburg policy.