A Tour Up the Straits, from Gibraltar to Constantinople: With the Leading Events in the Present War Between the Austrians, Russians, and the Turks, to the Commencement of the Year 1789

In Short

Drafted as a series of letters to friends while on leave from Gibraltar, this late eighteenth-century travelogue records a British officer’s voyage through the Mediterranean and the Levant. Journeying through Sardinia, Naples, Greece, and Ottoman lands, the author blends classical antiquarianism, military observation, and direct reportage of the Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792). It stands as a valuable period artifact, offering an engaging mix of grand strategy, local customs, and vivid descriptive scenes that reflect both Enlightenment curiosity and British imperial anxiety over shifting European power balances.

The Story

Captain David Sutherland begins his account upon obtaining leave from the British garrison at Gibraltar to join a friend on a Levant voyage. Framing his journey through formal correspondence, he sets sail past the Spanish coast to Sardinia and Naples, viewing landscapes steeped in classical lore through the double lens of antiquity and modern strategic value. In Sardinia, he notes local agricultural habits and social life before moving on to the Bay of Naples. Here, he explores Mount Vesuvius, the ruins of Herculaneum and Pompeii, and the grim history of imperial debauchery on Capri. Sutherland evaluates Naples not merely as a scenic tourist stop, but as a military harbor, calculating how many British ships of the line would be required to reduce its capital to ashes.

Continuing eastward, the narrative traces a path through Sicily, where the severe devastation of past earthquakes at Messina contrasts with the surreal customs of Palermo's Capuchin crypts. Crossing into the Greek islands and the Aegean Sea, Sutherland records the harsh realities of life under Ottoman rule. He examines the remnants of classical antiquity—such as the marble quarries of Paros and the disputed site of the Temple of Diana at Ephesus—while documenting the economic decay and poverty experienced by the local population.

As the vessel reaches the heart of the Ottoman Empire, Sutherland’s prose shifts heavily toward contemporary geopolitics and military history. He details the escalating Russo-Turkish War, providing tactical accounts of naval engagements in the Liman, the siege of Oczakow, and the maneuverings of figures like Prince Potemkin and the Captain Bashaw. He pauses his physical trajectory to deliver extensive historical overviews of past conflicts, including the War of the Spanish Succession and the rise of Islam, contextualizing the Ottoman Empire's administrative, religious, and defense structures. Arriving in Constantinople, Sutherland witnesses imperial ceremonies, diplomatic audiences, and the structural defenses of the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, concluding his survey in Florence as a rich, multifaceted record of eighteenth-century Mediterranean life and international diplomacy.

How It Unfolds

The voyage begins Departing Gibraltar, Sutherland sails past the Spanish coastline, reflecting on past military campaigns like the War of the Spanish Succession. He reaches Sardinia, taking note of its capital, Cagliari, its unhealthy coastal air, and the generous hospitality of its rural vineyard workers.

The Bay of Naples and classical ruins Sutherland anchors off Naples, touring the volcanic slopes of Vesuvius and the buried cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii. He contemplates the dark legacy of Emperor Tiberius on Capri while offering cold tactical assessments of Naples's coastal defenses and royal military establishment.

Across the Ionian and Aegean seas Navigating past Messina and the Lipari Islands, the ship experiences a blinding atmospheric fireball at sea before reaching Greece. Sutherland surveys the neglected marble quarries of Paros, collects local partridge-hunting lore on Milo, and debates antiquarians over ruined columns at Ephesus.

Reporting the Russo-Turkish War As he enters Ottoman territory, Sutherland breaks his travel observations to report on naval battles between the Turks and Russians. He analyzes the strategic missteps of the Captain Bashaw, Prince Potemkin's siege tactics at Oczakow, and the regional fallout of the Treaty of Cainardgie.

Inside the Ottoman capital Reaching Constantinople, Sutherland attends diplomatic audiences and watches the Grand Signior process to the mosque. He details the administrative duties of the Grand Vizir, the military functions of the palace guards, and the natural strategic choke-points of the Dardanelles.

The People

• Captain David Sutherland wants to explore the Mediterranean, fulfill a promise to send a regular travel journal to his friend, and secure literary recognition. Faced with the daunting task of writing on well-trodden ground, he leans into direct military analysis and frontline reporting on the Russo-Turkish War, transforming from a simple tourist into a published observer of international affairs.
• The King of Naples seeks to maintain his despotic rule and military forces while enjoying personal pastimes. Hindered by an ongoing conflict with Barbary pirates and dependence on his Council, he demonstrates his approachable side by rowing out to Sutherland’s ship and sending the officers a present of fresh fish he caught himself.
• The Captain Bashaw aims to crush the Russian fleet and relieve the besieged fortress of Oczakow. Hampered by inferior artillery skills among his sailors and tricky shallow waters, he enforces rigid discipline by executing two inefficient captains before losing several gun-boats in a failed assault against Russian positions.
• M. Bulgakow acts as the Russian Envoy tasked with maintaining his Court's aggressive diplomatic stance in Constantinople. Unable to satisfy the Ottoman Divan's demands during heated conferences, he ends up confined as a state prisoner in the Seven Towers when war is declared.

In Its Own Voice

"Their eyes, instantly turned to Heaven, were scarce reverted, when every part of the ship appeared in a blaze, and continued so for many seconds."

Sutherland describes the sheer panic on deck when a midnight fireball illuminates the vessel during their night passage toward Greece.

"Were it not for the number of vacancies occasioned by the non-payment of this stipend, the Capuchins would be unable to find niches for the number of men who must die every year in so populous a city as this."

Reflecting on the dried corpses in the Capuchin monastery, Sutherland observes the grim financial rules governing who gets to remain on display.

"The Coran is the book, and the Mufti the head of both."

Sutherland sums up the foundational unity of civic and religious law within the administrative system of the Ottoman Empire.

What It's Really About

Underneath its polite epistolary style, Sutherland's work examines the decline of once-mighty empires and the fragile balance of European power. By contrasting classical ruins with contemporary geopolitical conflicts, the book questions the permanence of civilization. It explores how ancient centers of culture like Greece and Ephesus fall into neglect under despotic rule, while analyzing the expansionist ambitions of Tsarist Russia against the struggling Ottoman state. Sutherland constantly weighs British strategic interests, evaluating naval choke-points, trade advantages, and military capabilities across the region. Ultimately, the work asks how a commercial maritime power ought to navigate an unstable world where ancient history and modern warfare intersect.

Why Read It Today

A Tour Up the Straits offers modern readers an unvarnished window into late eighteenth-century travel, seen through the eyes of an articulate British officer. Readers who enjoy naval history, classical archaeology, or historical diplomacy will appreciate Sutherland's balance of antiquarian curiosity and hard-headed military assessment. The prose is clean, direct, and free from grandiloquence, capturing the physical realities of wooden-ship travel alongside high-stakes geopolitics.

The work does present specific difficulties inherent to its era. Modern readers must navigate long historical detours where Sutherland pauses his travel narrative for pages to chronicle past wars or religious origins. Furthermore, readers will encounter typical eighteenth-century British biases regarding foreign customs, Catholic religious practices, and Ottoman governance. Yet these period attitudes themselves serve as fascinating historical evidence. What stays with you is the striking juxtaposition of surreal, quiet moments—like mummified nobles in Sicilian crypts—against the immense, grinding machinery of global warfare.