John Freely
Encyclopedia
John Freely is an American physicist, teacher, and author of popular travel and history books on Istanbul
, Athens
, Venice
, Turkey
, Greece
and the Ottoman Empire
. He is the father of writer Maureen Freely
.
Freely was born in Brooklyn, New York and grew up there and in Ireland
. He joined the U.S. Navy at age 17 for the last two years of World War II
serving with a commando
unit in Burma and China
. Since 1960 he has taught physics and the history of science
at Bogazici University
(formerly Robert College
and Bosphorus University) in Istanbul
, with sojourns in New York
, Boston
, London
, Athens
, Oxford
, and Venice
. He returned to Bogazici University in 1993. He is the author of over 40 books.
History and science books:
Wrote foreword:
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
and the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. He is the father of writer Maureen Freely
Maureen Freely
Maureen Freely is a U.S. journalist, novelist, translator and professor.-Biography:Born in Neptune, New Jersey, Freely grew up in Turkey and now lives in England, where she lectures at the University of Warwick and is an occasional contributor to The Guardian and The Independent newspapers. Among...
.
Freely was born in Brooklyn, New York and grew up there and in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. He joined the U.S. Navy at age 17 for the last two years of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
serving with a commando
Commando
In English, the term commando means a specific kind of individual soldier or military unit. In contemporary usage, commando usually means elite light infantry and/or special operations forces units, specializing in amphibious landings, parachuting, rappelling and similar techniques, to conduct and...
unit in Burma and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. Since 1960 he has taught physics and the history of science
History of science
The history of science is the study of the historical development of human understandings of the natural world and the domains of the social sciences....
at Bogazici University
Bogaziçi University
Boğaziçi University is a public university located on the European side of the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul, Turkey. It has five faculties and two schools offering undergraduate degrees, and six institutes offering graduate degrees...
(formerly Robert College
Robert College
Robert College of Istanbul , is one of the most selective independent private high schools in Turkey. Robert College is a co-educational, boarding school with a wooded campus on the European side of Istanbul between the two bridges on the Bosphorus, with the Arnavutköy district to the east, and...
and Bosphorus University) in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, with sojourns in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, and Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
. He returned to Bogazici University in 1993. He is the author of over 40 books.
Works
Travel guides:- Strolling Through Istanbul: A Guide to the City (1972; 4th ed. 1987), with Hilary Sumner-Boyd; (2009) Tauris Parke Paperbacks
- Complete Guide to Greece (1974), with Maureen FreelyMaureen FreelyMaureen Freely is a U.S. journalist, novelist, translator and professor.-Biography:Born in Neptune, New Jersey, Freely grew up in Turkey and now lives in England, where she lectures at the University of Warwick and is an occasional contributor to The Guardian and The Independent newspapers. Among...
, Littlehampton Book Services Ltd - Naxos: Ariadne's Isle (1976; 2nd ed., 1980), Lycabettus Press
- Blue Guide Istanbul (1983; 2nd ed., 1987; 3rd, 1991; 4th, 1997; 5th, 2000)
- Blue Guide Boston and Cambridge (1984; 2nd ed., 1994), A & C Black Publishers Ltd
- The Companion Guide to Turkey (1984; 2nd ed., 1996), Boydell Press
- Crete (1988), Weidenfeld & NicolsonWeidenfeld & NicolsonWeidenfeld & Nicolson Ltd is a British publisher of fiction and reference books. It is a division of the Orion Publishing Group.-History:...
; (New ed., 1989) New Amsterdam Books - The Western Shores of Turkey: Discovering the Aegean and Mediterranean Coasts (1988), John Murray Pub LtdJohn Murray (publisher)John Murray is an English publisher, renowned for the authors it has published in its history, including Jane Austen, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Lord Byron, Charles Lyell, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Herman Melville, and Charles Darwin...
; 2nd. ed., (2004), Tauris Parke Paperbacks - Classical Turkey (1990; Series: Architectural Guides for Travellers), VikingVikingThe term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
- Strolling Through Athens: Fourteen Unforgettable Walks through Europe's Oldest City (1991), PenguinPenguinPenguins are a group of aquatic, flightless birds living almost exclusively in the southern hemisphere, especially in Antarctica. Highly adapted for life in the water, penguins have countershaded dark and white plumage, and their wings have become flippers...
; 2nd ed. (2004), Tauris Parke Paperbacks - Strolling through Venice: The Definitive Walking Guidebook to 'La Serenissima (1994, 2nd ed., 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 & NicolsonWeidenfeld & NicolsonWeidenfeld & Nicolson Ltd is a British publisher of fiction and reference books. It is a division of the Orion Publishing Group.-History:...
; 2nd ed. (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 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)
- Istanbul: The Imperial City (1996)
- A History of Robert College: The American College for Girls and Bogazici 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); HarpercollinsHarperCollinsHarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
- The Emergence of Modern Science, East and West (2004), IstanbulIstanbulIstanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
: Bogazici UniversityBogaziçi UniversityBoğaziçi University is a public university located on the European side of the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul, Turkey. It has five faculties and two schools offering undergraduate degrees, and six institutes offering graduate degrees... - Byzantine Monuments of Istanbul (2004), with Ahmet S. Çakmak; Cambridge University PressCambridge University PressCambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
- John Freely's Istanbul (2003, ill. ed. 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)
Wrote foreword:
- Runciman, StevenSteven RuncimanThe Hon. Sir James Cochran Stevenson Runciman CH — known as Steven Runciman — was a British historian known for his work on the Middle Ages...
, 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