BUSBECQ, OGIER GHISLAIN DE

(1522–1591)

   Diplomat and hu manist. After his studies at the University of Louvain, he was ap pointed a member of several imperial embassies, including to Eng land. In 1554, Busbecq was entrusted by the German emperor Ferdinand I with an embassy to Constantinople, which continued un til 1562. Busbecq made some interesting discoveries, including the Monumentum Ancyranum or Res Gestae Divi Augusti, sent some in digenous plants to Europe such as the tulip, corresponded with many scholars, and brought many Greek manuscripts back with him to Eu rope. His fame rests above all upon his lively “Turkish Letters,” com posed after his return from the court of Suleiman I, which contain among others several Krim-Gothic words. Busbecq’s contributions to several branches of science have recently been acknowledged.

   See also Flower cultivation.