Ottoman coffee house culture arrived in France, and Hanna Diyāb reports on it in his travelogue, which has gone largely unnoticed until now. So let’s listen to an eyewitness of the time.
We would like to quote Hanna Diyāb as a connecting element not only between Ottoman and French coffee house culture. A few years ago, his previously unknown autograph came to light, representing a valuable contemporary document. [3-442]
Who was Hanna Diyāb?
Hanna Diyāb does not appear in any historical handbook or literary anthology, [3-442] although he made a significant contribution to some of the world’s literature. He was born around 1688 and came from Aleppo. Paul Lucas, who traveled the Ottoman Empire on behalf of the French Sun King, took him into his service and the two eventually traveled to Paris together. [4] Although Paul Lucas published a travelogue, he did not mention his companion in it. Hanna Diyāb, on the other hand, who describes the same journey in his autograph, mentions his “master” Paul Lucas incessantly. [3-444] In Paris, Hanna met the orientalist Antoine Galland, who translated ‘One Thousand and One Nights’ into French. He too did not think it necessary to mention Hanna in public, although Hanna gave him the stories of ‘Aladdin and the Magic Lamp’, ‘Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves’ and fourteen other tales from ‘One Thousand and One Nights’. These stories were missing from Antoine Galland’s originals. As no other sources for these stories are known, they would have been lost without Hanna’s presence in Paris. [3-444] [3-445] [3-456]
Hanna Diyāb’s travelogue
Hanna wrote this report on his journey to Paris and back to Aleppo 54 years after his return. [3-450] This report not only provides us with important insights into Ottoman coffee culture, but also into French coffee culture. Bernhard Heyberger also makes the importance of coffee clear in his epilogue to Hanna’s report when he writes: “For him, as for Paul Lucas, letters of recommendation, but also the social rituals of hospitality over a pipe and a coffee, were essential elements in maintaining the fabric of social relationships across great distances.” [3-470]
The journey from Aleppo to Paris
So what exactly does Hanna Diyāb report? Let’s summarize it best. His master and he drank coffee in the morning in Medinet el-Faiyūm, Egypt, when they were staying with Father Giovanni Battista della Fratta. [3-75] [3-77] There they were invited by the governor of the city to visit him every day. They drank coffee with him every morning. They also visited him at sunset and were welcomed with coffee. Then they smoked pipes with tobacco and discussed for an hour. Finally, the meal was served and wine was drunk, even by the governor, although he was a Muslim. For dessert there were sweets and fruit, then coffee again, and they went down to the garden with its streams and ponds. After nightfall, they said goodbye to the governor. [3-79] [3-83] Nearby, during an excursion, they were invited to lunch by a soldier, which was concluded with coffee. [3-86]
In Djerba, they were granted an audience with the governor. They arrived at his house and “He then invited us to sit down. When we were seated, he ordered his servants to bring us drinks, sweets and coffee according to the custom of their country.” [3-120]
They traveled on to Sfax and met the governor there as well: “We gave him the letter from the Bey and the one from the governor of Jerba. After he had read them, he welcomed us and asked us to take a seat. We were then brought drinks and coffee, as is the custom … .” [3-123]
Hanna reported on Tripoli: “Three days later, the consul invited my master to pay his respects to the Bey, who was the Sultan of Tunis. …The Bey was sitting in the Pavilion of Spring. … He allowed us to enter; … When everyone was seated, we were brought drinks and coffee, as is the custom.” [3-132]
The following happened in Tunis: “Another day, a merchant invited us to his house to look after a sick person he had with him. We went there; he received us with all honors. After my master had examined the sick man, the merchant prepared a delicious meal for us. When we had finished and had some coffee, he showed us his seraglio.” [3-135] [3-136]
Hanna and his master finally reached Livorno in Italy. From there, Hanna reported how he was approached on the street in Arabic by a man who, like himself, came from Aleppo and ran a coffee house in Livorno: “We hugged and shook hands. He asked me to take a seat. After giving me a warm welcome, he offered me coffee and brought me a tobacco pipe. We sat down to talk and a familiar relationship developed between us. I visited him every day and asked him about the customs of this country, and he explained their customs to me.” [3-164] [3-165]
The journey from Paris to Aleppo
Let us now skip Hanna’s reports from Paris, which we will come back to later, and instead focus on Hanna’s return journey to Aleppo, which he undertook alone. Back in the Ottoman Empire, he reported on a Jesuit monastery in Smyrna: “They greeted each other, then we entered the refectory. The rector offered us coffee and treated us with reverence.” [3-320]
In Istanbul, he met a fellow countryman from Aleppo: “Then he invited me and my companion into his store. We entered and he offered us coffee and showed us honor as was proper.” [3-328] He reported on the ambassador’s visit to the Sultan for a ceremony: “The ambassador sits down in the armchair intended for him. He is offered refreshments, sweets, coffee and incense.” [3-332] The translator comments on and corrects this note with the words: “Hanna, who was not a direct witness to this ceremony, reverses the course of the protocol. Normally, the ambassador and his entourage were invited by the grand vizier to the council chamber to attend a meeting, after which they were offered a meal. Only at the end of this meal, after the Sultan’s approval had been given, were they brought in in his presence.” [3-434]
On Hanna’s further return journey to Aleppo, he was invited to a meal by villagers and he wrote: “We ate with the young man, and at the end of the meal they brought a basin with water jugs and we washed our hands. Then they brought a large coffee pot and offered us a first, then a second round of good coffee. We stuffed our pipes and chatted with the young man for a while.” [3-347] [3-348] It was also said from there: “There I saw that they had prepared breakfast and coffee for us.” [3-350]
Later in the journey, Hanna reported: “They had prepared dinner for us. We ate and then drank coffee.” [3-355] “After breakfast and coffee, we stayed for a while and talked … .” [3-359] “After we had eaten and drunk the coffee, the young woman was brought … .” [3-360]
“When I arrived at the Qabiji’s residence, they climbed the stairs and led me inside. When I appeared before him, he scowled at me: … He calmed down and told me to sit down. He had a cup of coffee brought to me.” [3-366] The Qabiji told him to treat a sick person. Hanna reported about this sick man: “He opened his eyes and sat up in his bed. He asked for a tobacco pipe and a cup of coffee.” [3-368] Hanna returned to the Qabiji, “But he did not let me go and ordered me to sit down and sent for coffee and a pipe. When I had drunk the coffee, he began to question me.” [3-369] This is followed by an important statement that we will skip here and come back to later.
In the further course of his journey, Hanna went to the Agha of Missis, who was the governor of a city: “When I came before him, he welcomed me and asked his servants to take off my boots, whereupon he asked me to take a seat. He ordered a cup of coffee and a tobacco pipe to be brought to me. I was astonished, and began to consider what were the reasons for such deference and courtesies on the part of a man of such rank, a city governor.” [3-375] After the conversation, he returned to the caravan camp to join his companions. “When evening came, we wondered what we should eat. At that moment a sumptuous meal was brought to us. It contained three different dishes. The servants asked us to sit down and invited us to eat. We sat down on the lawn by the river and enjoyed a sumptuous dinner. … A pot of coffee was brought, also sent by the Agha.” [3-377]
Hanna also met a friend from Aleppo who took him into his home: “They set the table and served delicious dishes. He wanted to pour me another cup of arak. I didn’t take any more, but we drank a good wine with the meal. Finally we had coffee and enjoyed ourselves in the garden.” [3-381] [3-382]
Hanna finally reached Aleppo and concluded his story by reporting on a later visit from Paul Lucas: “I prepared a bed for him as comfortably as possible. He slept until the next morning. We had coffee and went into town together.” [3-386]
As we can see from this information, coffee played a central role in Ottoman hospitality. It was served not only to the Sultan, but also to ordinary villagers. It was drunk in the morning, as a welcome drink or after a meal. It was smoked with a pipe, conversed over and served with sweets.
In Paris
Let us now turn to coffee culture in France. Before we give a general outlook, let us first turn to Hanna Diyāb. What did he report from his time in Paris? “Our arrival in Paris took place in the month of February 1709.” [3-215] The following also happened in Paris in 1709: “On the way we passed the coffee shop of Chawādscha Estephan, the Damascene.” [3-293] The translator clarifies this statement: “Arabic ‘Iṣṭifān al-Šāmī. Antoine Galland calls him Étienne and says he is from Aleppo.” [3-429]
Hanna Diyāb continues: “This man had great sympathy for me. There was friendship and affection between him and me for the following reason: When I arrived in Paris, my master had ordered me to go to him to greet him, because he was a fellow countryman and he had told me his story. When this man arrived in Paris, he had to beg, but no one gave him any alms. He was forced to go to the Chawādscha Cristofalo Zamariya and ask him to obtain a letter from His Excellency the Cardinal allowing him to beg in front of the portal of Notre-Dame. The Chawādscha was moved by his fate, and as he was the Cardinal’s deputy, who held him in high esteem, the Cardinal gave him a letter signed by his own hand, asking that he be treated with mercy, as he was a stranger and the examination of his case had shown him to be poor and needy. He took the letter and stood at the portal to beg. This pastoral word from the cardinal had the effect that people proved generous towards him. Thanks to these alms, he collected almost two hundred piastres. Now it was the time around the feast of St. Michel. There are seven districts in Paris, each of which bears the name of a saint. On the saint’s feast day, seven days of merrymaking take place in the square of his quarter. During these days, people sell, buy and perform there. People from different villages come to sell and buy, because all the stores are exempt from customs and the usual taxes that would otherwise have to be paid. … Let us return to our subject. Some well-meaning persons, open to the fate of the poor and strangers, had advised this Estephan, of whom we have spoken, to buy two coffee-pots, some cups, and all that was needed for making coffee, and to go to the feast of St. Michel, which was being held. He did as he had been advised and opened a coffee house. As he was an Oriental, customers flocked to him because there were no other coffee houses. At that time, coffee houses were not common in Paris; and everything that is new is beautiful. There were so many customers in the café that Estephan could no longer serve them. He got himself a license to hire help. In short, within seven days he earned an extra two hundred piastres, and when the festival was over, he returned to the city, where he opened a coffee shop. He had so many people and customers that in the span of a year he had made a good sum of money, and his name, Estephan the Coffeehouse Owner, spread throughout the city of Paris. Many notables, merchants and others from the seven quarters of the city frequented this establishment. His name spread as far as Versailles to the king’s palace. The minister summoned him and told him to open a café in Versailles so that the sons of the princes would not visit his store in Paris. He complied, opened a café there and took care of the coffee supply in the royal palace. He made the acquaintance of important figures in the state and earned himself a great reputation.” [3-293] [3-294] [3-295]
Hanna also reported on Estephan: “He made contact with a very rich widow, owner of property, who wanted to take him as her husband. She sent a negotiator to make the proposal to him. He accepted the offer, married her and had a daughter with her. This daughter contracted a disease that left her crippled. Estephan sent someone to me with the order to tell me the following: ‘The Chawādscha Estephan has been commissioned to open a café in Versailles. He wishes to marry you to his daughter and entrust you with the café in Paris. The customers will feel better with you than with a son of the country, because you are Oriental. I had already seen this daughter. She was beautiful, but she was handicapped. After hearing these words, I replied that I should be given time to think it over with my master; I would give him my answer afterwards.” [3-296] Hannah did not marry the daughter.
What does Hanna Diyāb’s report mean? – The first coffee houses in Paris
What Hanna tells us here from Paris is extremely important, because he can be considered a direct witness to these events. He tells us the life story of Estephan from Aleppo, as he had heard it from him. This source has not been given sufficient attention in research on French coffee culture, as it shows us that many of the statements made so far are no longer tenable. In this context, we need to look at the people who were the first to serve coffee and open coffee houses in Paris.
First of all, let us briefly consider the years that are reported. Hanna Diyāb refused the proposed marriage, and due to other incidents he left Europe to return to Aleppo. If we take this story as a basis, the request to build a coffee house for the princes in Versailles must have been made around 1709 at the latest. We can be sure that it was already open in 1710, otherwise Hanna would not have written that Estephan had complied with this request. Unfortunately, Hanna does not give us the year in which Estephan offered his coffee at the Saint Germain market. However, since he married afterwards and had a daughter of marriageable age, this must have been some time before 1710; one might roughly estimate a period of 20 to 30 years, which would take us back to the period between 1680 and 1690. Since Hanna was born around 1688, Estephan’s daughter would then be about the same age.
The translator’s note quoted above is not entirely correct. It was not Antoine Galland who named Estephan Etienne or reported on the events. The quoted article entitled “Fragments sur le café, extraits du Dictionnaire d’Historie naturelle” was published together with an article by Antoine Galland, but, as the title suggests, it was taken from a dictionary published in 1803 and not from the pen of Antoine Galland. [5] [6] [7] There is therefore a gap of almost one hundred years between the actual events and the publication, and no one directly affected has a say. This may explain the discrepancies. The encyclopedia reports: “The first public coffee house was opened at the S. Germain fair by an Armenian in 1672. He then set up store on the Quai de l’Ecole, where you can still see a store on the corner of the Rue de la Monnaie. The house was only frequented by Knights of Malta and foreigners. After he left Paris to go to London, he had several successors. Finally, a certain Etienne from Aleppo was the first to open a coffee house in Paris, decorated with mirrors and marble tables; it was located in the Rue S. André-des-arcs, opposite the S. Michel bridge.” [3-430] [5-65]
–“La première salle de café publique, fut construite à la foire S. Germain, par un Arménien, en 1672. Depuis, il s’établit sur le quai de l’Ecole, où l’on voit encore une boutique au coin de la rue de la Monnaie. La salle n’étoit fréquentée que par des chevaliers de Malte et par des étrangers. Ayant quitté Paris pour aller à Londres, il eut plusieurs successeurs. Une tasse de café, à cette époque, se vendoit deux sols six deniers. Enfin un certain Etienne d’Alep construisit le premier, à Paris, une salle décorée avec des glaces et des tables de marbre; elle étoit dans la rue S. André-des-arcs, vis-à-vis le pont S. Michel.” [5-65]
First of all, it should be noted that the first name ‘Stefan’ is repeatedly mentioned in the sources in various spellings, either as ‘Iṣṭifān’, or in the French spelling ‘Étienne’, [15] or as ‘Estephan’, not unlike the Spanish spelling ‘Eteban’. [16]
And now we come to the general confusion of names: As we can see from Hanna’s statement, ‘his’ Estephan came from Aleppo, as did the Étienne mentioned in the lexicon. Both set up a coffee stall at the market in St. Germain and then a coffee house in Paris. Estephan was still in Paris in 1710 and, as we have shown, he must have been serving coffee there between 1680 and 1690. Étienne is said to have left Paris to go to London. Perhaps Estephan did too, but we don’t know. It seems that the two are identical, but we don’t believe it.
In general, the history of the first coffee houses in Paris does not seem to be clearly known. A monograph on coffee published in Paris in 1832 tells us about the emergence of the first coffee houses: “A few years later (1672), the Armenian Pascal founded a café at the Saint-Germain fair. When the fair was over, he moved his establishment to the Quai de I’Ecole, opposite the Pont-Neuf. But it was still just a room where foreigners and a few Knights of Malta gathered. As his café was not well frequented, Pascal made his way to London.” [9-30]
– “Pascal, Arménien, quelques années après (1672), établit un Café à la foire Saint-Germain. Le temps de la foire écoulé, il transporta son établissement an quai de I’Ecole, vis-à-vis le Pont-Neuf. Mais ce n’était encore qu’une salle où se réunissaient des étrangers et quelques chevaliers de Malthe. Son café étant peu fréquenté, Pascal partit pour Londres.“ [9-30]
“Shortly afterwards, Maliban, another Armenian, opened a new café in Rue de Bussy, near the Jeu de Paume, close to Saint-Germain Abbey. From there, he moved to Rue Férou, near Saint-Sulpice, but soon returned to his first establishment on Rue de Bussy. As Maliban had to move to Holland for some business, he handed over his café to Gregoire … .” [9-31]
– “Peu de temps apres, Maliban, autre Arménien, ouvrit un nouveau Café dans la rue de Bussy, près le jeu de paume, aux environs de I’abbaye Saint-Germain. II passa de là dans la rue Férou près Saint-Sulpice, mais bientôt il revint dans son premier local de la rue de Bussy. Quelques affaires I’ayant contraint de partir pour la Hollande, Maliban céda son Café a Gregoire … .” [9-31]
“A certain Etienne from Aleppo was the first in Paris to open a room decorated with mirrors and marble tables in the Rue Saint-André-des-Arts, opposite the Saint-Michel bridge.” [9-31]
– “Quelques autres petits établissements s’étaient formés successivement lorscpi’enfin un un certain Étienne, d’Alep, ouvrit le premier, à Paris, une salle ornée de glaces et décorée de tables de marbre, rue Saint-André-des-Arts, vis-à-vis le pont Saint-Michel.” [9-31]
Other, mostly more recent publications report on one version or another, on one name or another, which, according to everything we have listed here, must be contradictory. [1] [2-92] [8-87] [12-8] [12-9] [13-89] There is even another name, for ‘Pascal’ is also said to have been called ‘Harouthioun’. [13-89]
It is also repeatedly said that the coffee house owners were initially unsuccessful due to a lack of visitors, [2-92] [5-65] [8-87] [8-88] [9-30] and that French people were initially unwilling to enter these stores as they did not think the coffee there was good and the premises were not luxurious enough. [8-88] However, this contradicts the statements of Hanna Diyāb.
The statements also contradict a book on coffee published in Paris in 1671. This book states: “And at present there are several stores in Paris where coffee is sold publicly with the following praise.” [14-23]
– “Et presentement à Paris, il y a plusieurs Boutiques. où l’on vend publiquement le Caffé avec l’eloge suivant.“ [14-23]
It is also reported in 1832 that coffee was already available in Paris under Louis XII, who was King of France and Navarre from 1610 to 1643: [10] “We only know that under Louis XIII a brew of coffee was sold in the Petit Châtelet under the name Cabové or Cahovet. However, it took a long time for this drink to gain a certain popularity in France. In 1662, there were still no public cafés in Paris.” [9-29] [9-30]
– “Nous savons seulement que sous Louis XIII, il se vendait sous le Petit Châtelet de la décoction de Café, sous le nom de Cabové ou Cahovet. Mais cette boisson fut long- temps à obtenir quelque faveur en France. Il n’y avait point encore de Cafes publics dans Paris en 1662.“ [9-29] [9-30]
The same was confirmed in 1770: “Already under Louis XIII, a decoct from Cahove or Cahovet, that is from coffee, was sold in Paris.” [11-94]
– “Schon unter Ludwig XIII bot man in Paris ein Decoct von Cahove oder Cahovet, das ist von Kaffe, verkauft.« [11-94]
So there was more coffee on tap than the sources quoted above would have us believe. Who should we believe now? We certainly believe Hanna, because of all those who report on the events, he is the one who was a contemporary witness and heard the story directly from one of those involved. This distinguishes him from all later authors.
However, the sale of coffee at fairs and in coffee houses is embedded in a European and French coffee culture and could not have been so successful without this environment. We therefore need to look at this culture in the next chapter.
Sources
- https://thegoodlifefrance.com/the-history-of-coffee-in-france/ Sue Aran: The history of coffee in France.
- https://archive.org/details/AllAboutCoffee/page/91/mode/2up?q=frenchAb William H. Ukers: All about coffee. New York, 1922.
- Hanna Diyāb: Von Aleppo nach Paris. Die Reise eines jungen Syrers an den Hof Ludwigs XIV. Die Andere Bibliothek, Band 378. ISBN 978-3-8477-0378-5. Berlin, 2016.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanna_Diyab Hanna Diyab.
- https://archive.org/details/nouveaudictionna41803/page/64/mode/2up?q=%22etienne+d%27Alep%22 Anonymus: Nouveau dictionnaire d’histoire naturelle appliquée aux arts, principalement à l’agriculture et à l’économie rurale et domestique. Band IV. Paris, 1803.
- https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k3149963.image Antoine Galland: De l’Origine et du progrez du café. Sur un manuscrit arabe de la Bibliothèque du Roy. Paris 1699.
- https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6581311r/f61.item.texteImage Antoine Galland: De l’Origine et du progrès du café, opuscule du XVIIe siècle par Galland, auteur des mille et und nuits. Nouvelle édition augmentée d’instructions sur les propriétés de cette fève et le meilleur procédé pour en obtenir la boisson dans toute sa perfection. Paris, 1836. Therein: Fragments sur le café.
- https://archive.org/details/revuedestudesa02soci Anonymus: Revue des études arméniennes. Tome I. Paris, 1922.
- https://archive.org/details/b21525420/page/28/mode/2up?q=%22%C3%89tienne+d%27alep%22 G.-E. Coubard d’Aulnay: Monographie du café, ou manuel de l’amateur de café, ouvrage contenant la description et la culture du cafier, l’histoire du café, ses caractères commerciaux, sa préparation et ses propriétés; orné d’une belle lithographie. Paris, 1832.
- https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_XIII. Ludwig XIII.
- https://archive.org/details/physikalischkon08beckgoog/page/n46/mode/2up?q=Cahovet Johann Beckmann: Physikalisch-ökonomische Bibliothek worinn von den neuesten Büchern, welche die Naturgeschichte, Naturlehre, und die Land- und Stadtwirthschaft betreffen, zuverlässige und vollständige Nachrichten ertheilet werden. Siebenter Band. Göttingen, 1776.
- https://archive.org/details/annalesdhyginep10unkngoog/page/n14/mode/2up?q=%22%C3%89tienne+d%27alep%22 Annales d’hygiène publique et de médecine légale. Deuxième série, tome XVIL. Paris, 1862. Therein: M. A. Chevallier: Du café. Son historique, son usage, son utilité, ses altératios, ses succédanés, les falsifications qu’on lui fait subir; condamnations prononcées contre les falsificaturs.
- https://archive.org/details/fooddrinkinhisto00balt/page/86/mode/2up?q=%22%C3%89tienne+d%27alep%22 Anonymus: Annales d’hygiène publique et de médecine légale. Deuxième série. Tome XVII. Paris, 1862.
- https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k87051147/f49.image.r=paris Sylvestre Dufur, Bartolome Marradón, Antonio Colmenero de Ledesma, Jacob Spon: De l’usage du caphé, du thé et du chocolate. Lyon, 1671.
- https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etienne Etienne.
- https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esteban Esteban.
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Petit_Ch%C3%A2telet_1650.jpg Le Petit Châtelet, circa 1650.
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