Ottoman embassy to France (1534)

An Ottoman embassy to France occurred in 1534, with the objective to prepare and coordinate Franco-Ottoman offensives for the next year, 1535. The embassy closely followed a first Ottoman embassy to France in 1533, as well as the Conquest of Tunis by Hayreddin Barbarossa on 16 August 1534, which marked a strong reinforcement of Ottoman positions in the Western Mediterranean.

The Ottoman delegation arrived from Constantinople via Tunis at the French harbour of Marseille in October 1534. The delegation included two French ambassadors to the Porte who had accompanied them from Constantinople: Antonio Rincon and Cantelmo.

The contemporary French writer and eyewitness Valbelle would comment:

"They were circulating through the city as if they were in Constantinople. It is so new to see Turks like this, something that was never seen before."

The delegation was not composed of pirates, but of janissaries, clad in uniforms with immaculate turbans. They travelled overland with Antonio Rincon, and reached Francis I at his court in Châtellerault.

At that time, Francis I was confronted with the Affair of the Placards, in which Protestants issued pamphlets criticizing the Mass in view of stopping efforts at a Catholic–Protestant rapprochement. Francis I was severely criticized for his tolerance towards Protestants, and had to pursue them. The Ottoman ambassadors accompanied Francis I to Paris, and attended the burning of those responsible for the Affair, on 21 January 1535 in front of the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris.

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