John Freely (26 June 1926 – 20 April 2017) was an American physicist, teacher, and author of popular travel and history books on

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

, and the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. He was the father of writer and Turko-English literary translator

Maureen Freely Maureen Deidre Freely FRSL (born July 1952) is an American journalist, novelist, professor, and translator. She has worked on the Warwick Writing Programme since 1996. Biography Born in Neptune, New Jersey, she is the daughter of author John ...

Life

Freely was born in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, and grew up there and in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

.Derek Johns
"John Freely obituary"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 5 June 2017. He dropped out of high school and joined the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

at the age of 17 for the last two years of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, serving with a

commando Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin">40_Commando.html" ;"title="Royal Marines from 40 Commando">Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin area of Afghanistan are pictured A commando is a combatant, or operativ ...

unit in

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

and China. He did his undergraduate work at the traditional American Catholic college, Iona College in New Rochelle, New York, under the

G.I. Bill The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...

. In 1947 Freely married Dolores 'Toots' Stanley after they had agreed to devote their lives to travel. He died in the UK in 2015 and his remains were interred in Feriköy Protestant Cemetery in Istanbul.

Academic career

Freely received his PhD in physics at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

, and later pursued his postdoctoral studies at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

under

Alistair Cameron Crombie Alistair Cameron Crombie (4 November 1915 – 9 February 1996) was an Australian historian of science who began his career as a zoologist. He was noted for his contributions to research on competition between species before turning to histor ...

, the pioneering researcher in the history of Medieval European science. The principal idea he inherited from Crombie was "the continuity of western European science from the Dark Ages through Copernicus, Galileo and Newton". Following his postdoctoral work, he went in 1960 to

, Turkey, and took up a post at Robert College (later Boğaziçi (Bosphorus) University). He subsequently taught courses there in physics and the history of science and

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...

, including the course "The Emergence of Modern Science, East and West", with sojourns in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, and

. He returned to Boğaziçi University in 1993.

Writing life

Freely was the author of more than 40 books, many of them either histories of Istanbul and Turkey, accounts of the lives of significant figures of the Ottoman Empire or travel guides, especially about Istanbul. Together with Hilary Sumner-Boyd, a colleague from Boğaziçi University, Freely published ''Strolling Through Istanbul: A Guide to the City'' in 1972. While sales were initially slow, they picked up as travel to Istanbul increased, and by the early 2000s it was regarded as a classic of the guidebook genre for its blending of the academically rigorous with an accessible, even lively, writing style. It continues in print fifty years after its initial publication. Amongst the more unusual topics he wrote about were the lives of Cem Sultan, the third son of Sultan Mehmet II who laid claim to the Ottoman throne but was defeated and ended his life in exile in Europe; and Sabbetai Zevi, the so-called Jewish Messiah from

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; grc, Σμύρνη, Smýrnē, or , ) was a Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to promi ...

(now

İzmir İzmir ( , ; ), also spelled Izmir, is a metropolitan city in the western extremity of Anatolia, capital of the province of the same name. It is the third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara and the second largest urban aggl ...

), who eventually converted, at least on the surface, to Islam and whose followers became known as the Dönme.

Works

Travel guides: *''Strolling Through Istanbul: A Guide to the City'' (1972; 9th edition 2006), with Hilary Sumner-Boyd; (2009) Tauris Parke Paperbacks *''Complete Guide to Greece'' (1974), with

, Littlehampton Book Services Ltd *''Naxos: Ariadne's Isle'' (1976; 2nd edition, 1980), Lycabettus Press *''Blue Guide Istanbul'' (1983; 2nd edition, 1987; 3rd, 1991; 4th, 1997; 5th, 2000) *''Blue Guide Boston and Cambridge'' (1984; 2nd edition, 1994), A & C Black Publishers Ltd *''The Companion Guide to Turkey'' (1984; 2nd edition, 1996),

Boydell Press Boydell & Brewer is an academic press based in Woodbridge, Suffolk, England, that specializes in publishing historical and critical works. In addition to British and general history, the company publishes three series devoted to studies, editio ...

*''Crete'' (1988),

Weidenfeld & Nicolson Weidenfeld & Nicolson Ltd (established 1949), often shortened to W&N or Weidenfeld, is a British publisher of fiction and reference books. It has been a division of the French-owned Orion Publishing Group since 1991. History George Weidenfeld a ...

; new edition (1989) New Amsterdam Books *''The Western Shores of Turkey: Discovering the Aegean and Mediterranean Coasts'' (1988), John Murray Pub Ltd; 2nd edition (2004), Tauris Parke Paperbacks *''Classical Turkey'' (1990; Series: Architectural Guides for Travellers),

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

*''Strolling Through Athens: Fourteen Unforgettable Walks through Europe's Oldest City'' (1991), Penguin; 2nd edition (2004), Tauris Parke Paperbacks *''Strolling through Venice: The Definitive Walking Guidebook to "La Serenissima"'' (1994, 2nd edition, 2008), Tauris Parke Paperbacks *''The Redhouse Guide to the Black Sea Coast of Turkey'' (1996); photographs by Anthony E. Baker, Redhouse Press *''The Redhouse Guide to the Aegean Coast of Turkey'' (1996), Redhouse Press *''Crete: Discovering the "Great Island"'' (1998); Weidenfeld & Nicolson; 2nd edition (2008), Tauris Parke Paperbacks *''The Eastern Mediterranean Coast of Turkey'' (1999), Milet Publishing Ltd *''The Redhouse Guide to Western Interior of Turkey'' (1999), Cadogan Guides *''The Bosphorus'' (1999), Milet Publishing Ltd *''Turkey Around The Marmara'' (1999), Cadogan Guides *''The Companion Guide to Istanbul and around the Marmara'' (2000), Companion Guides *''Galata: A Guide to Istanbul's Old Genoese Quarter'' Archaeology & Art Pubs (2000) *''The Greek Islands'' (2003), John Murray Pub Ltd *''The Companion Guide to Southern Turkey'' (2003), Companion Guides *''The Princes' Isles: A Guide'' (2005), Islander Editions/Adali Yayinlari *''The Cyclades: Discovering the Greek Islands of the Aegean'' (2006), I B Tauris & Co Ltd *''The Ionian Islands: Corfu, Cephalonia and Beyond'' (2008), I B Tauris & Co Ltd *''Istanbul: City of Two Continents'' (2008), with John Cleave, Didier Millet History and science books: *''Stamboul Sketches'' (1974; reprinted by Eland in 2014) *''Istanbul: The Imperial City'' (1996) *''A History of Robert College: The American College for Girls and Boğaziçi University'' (2000), YKY, two volumes *''Sinan: Architect of Suleyman the Magnificent and the Ottoman Golden Age'' (1992), with Augusto Romano Burelli, Thames & Hudson Ltd *''Inside the Seraglio: Private Lives of the Sultans in Istanbul'' (1999) *''The Lost Messiah: In Search of the Mystical Rabbi Sabbatai Sevi'' (2001) *'' Jem Sultan: The Adventures of a Captive Turkish Prince in Renaissance Europe'' (2004);

Harpercollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News ...

*''The Emergence of Modern Science, East and West'' (2004),

Boğaziçi University Boğaziçi University ( tr, Boğaziçi Üniversitesi), also known as Bosphorus University, is a major research university in Istanbul, Turkey. Its main campus is located on the European side of the Bosphorus strait. It has six faculties and tw ...

*
Byzantine Monuments of Istanbul
' (2004), with Ahmet S. Çakmak;

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambridge University Pre ...

*''John Freely's Istanbul'' (2003, ill. edition 2006), Scala Publishers *''Storm on Horseback: The Seljuk Warriors of Turkey'' (2008); I B Tauris & Co Ltd *''Children of Achilles: The Greeks in Asia Minor Since the Days of Troy'' (2009); I B Tauris & Co Ltd *''The Grand Turk: Sultan Mehmet II: Conqueror of Constantinople and Master of an Empire'' (2009); Tauris Parke Paperbacks *''Aladdin's Lamp: How Greek Science Came to Europe Through the Islamic World'' (2009) * ''Before Galileo: The Birth of Modern Science in Medieval Europe'' (2012) * ''The Flame of Miletus: The Birth of Science in Ancient Greece (and How it Changed the World)'' (2012); I B Tauris & Co Ltd * ''Light from the East: How the Science of Medieval Islam helped to shape the Western World'' (2010); I B Tauris & Co Ltd * ''The Art of Exile: A Vagabond Life'' (2016); I B Tauris & Co Ltd Wrote foreword: *

Runciman, Steven Sir James Cochran Stevenson Runciman ( – ), known as Steven Runciman, was an English historian best known for his three-volume ''A History of the Crusades'' (1951–54). He was a strong admirer of the Byzantine Empire. His history's negative ...

, ''The Lost Capital of Byzantium: The History of Mistra and the Peloponnese'' (2009 reprint), Tauris Parke Paperbacks *Stafford-Deitsch, Jeremy, ''Kingdoms of Ruin: The Art and Architectural Splendours of Ancient Turkey'' (2009) *Bradford, Ernle, ''The Sultan's Admiral: Barbarossa - Pirate and Empire-Builder'' (2009), Tauris Parke Paperbacks

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Freely, John 1926 births 2017 deaths Military personnel from New York City Iona College (New York) alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford New York University alumni Boğaziçi University faculty Writers from Brooklyn