Nicolas de Nicolay

Nicolas de Nicolay, born in La Grave in Dauphiné, was a soldier, cartographer, and geographer to the King of France. Primarily a man of war under Francis I and Henry II, he participated in several major sieges before undertaking extensive travels across Europe and the Mediterranean basin. Sent to Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, he described Constantinople and published his famous "Travels in Turkey" in 1567, which was abundantly illustrated and quickly translated.