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Die Karawane des Gesandten und andere Reiseberichte deutscher Diplomaten [The Envoy’s Camel Train and other Travel Reports by German Diplomats]
Edited by Martin Kröger. – In the age of mass tourism, the idea that travel used to be something special has become anachronistic. The travel reports by German diplomats in this historic reader convey the wonders of travel in the past very precisely.
Diplomats usually report from their host countries on political and economic topics which form the basis for the foreign policy drafted in the Foreign Office. While this “diplomatic mail” is well known in traditional historiography, travel reports are seldom used as a source. However, such reports provide fascinating accounts of how diplomats experienced a country and its people, the climate, geography, art, history, meetings with real or purported local VIPs, talks, rumours, and the networks established between diplomats, their colleagues and compatriots. Thanks to the privileged position they enjoyed as a result of their profession and social status, diplomats mainly travelled in comfort. However, this was not always the case. Their status sometimes opened doors that remained closed to other people. As a result the travel reports provide both accounts of the living conditions in the places where the diplomats travelled as well as of their world view beyond the grand political stage. The reader thus encounters views of the familiar rather than of the unfamiliar at every turn. In comparison to regular diplomatic correspondence these texts appear rather unconventional. This is also the case when the true background and the accuracy of some information can no longer be ascertained.
Short introductory texts have been provided for each of the travel reports in order to place them in historical or biographical context.
191 pages with 29 illustrations, hard cover
€19.90
ISBN 978-3-525-35820-7