Paul Rycaut

Sir Paul Rycaut (1628–1700) was a British diplomat, author and traveler. Rycaut served as secretary to the British Embassy at Constantinople. Afterward, he served as consul to the Levant Company in Smyrna, Turkey. He was the English ambassador to Hamburg. Rycaut was a Fellow of the Royal Society.
Career.
Rycaut was born in November or December of 1628 in Aylesford, Kent. His parents were Peter and Mary Rycaut. His father, Peter Rycaut, was originally from Spain and was a representative in London for the King of Spain. He had also loaned the king money during his war with Holland. Because of this he was exiled from England by Cromwell and lost all his property. 
Rycaut's mother, Mary van der Colge, was the daughter of silk merchant from Spitalfields whose father had fled Belgium as a result of the persecution of Protestants by the Spanish. Mary was born in London, United Kingdom and was a member of the Huguenot Society in London. Rycaut learned Greek and Latin probably while still in grammar school in Kent. He graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge in 1650. In 1652, he was admitted to Gray's Inn. 
When Rycaut traveled to Spain to ask Philip IV of Spain for repayment of his father's loans, the king received him warmly. The king arranged for Rycaut to attend the University of Alcalá free of charge. In 1659, Rycaut became the private secretary to Heneage Finch who was the Levant Company ambassador to Constantinople. While there Rycaut learned Turkish and began writing his book "The Present State of the Ottoman Empire." He returned to England in 1665. 
Rycaut was sent to Smyrna in 1667 as the agent of the Levant Company where he spent 11 years. On his return to England in 1778 he became private secretary to King William III of England for two years. He was then appointed as ambassador to Hamburg. He was knighted in 1685. On March 28, 1700 he returned to London. On November 9 that same year he suffered a heart attack. Rycaut died on November 16, 1700.