The history of Ottoman Lebanon in the 16th and 17th centuries has, until now, received only the most limited attention. What work has been done has been based upon limited local and European literature. As the first work to make detailed studies and extensive use of Ottoman chancery documents, The View From Istanbul serves to fill many gaps in the historical record. How did the Ottomans run their empire? How did they view Lebanon? What were their prime concerns in the region? Each section is prefaced by a short introduction that places the documents in historical context and analyzes their content and scope. Published by I.B.Tauris in association with the Centre of Lebanese Studies