THE SULTANS OF THE COUNTRYSIDE: THE GIRAYS’ DISPLACEMENT INTO OTTOMAN RUMELI AND THEIR WIDESPREAD ROLES IN NETWORKS OF VIOLENCE (1792-1807) By Muhammet Mazı Submitted to Central European University Department of History In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Supervisor: Tolga U. Esmer Second Reader: Jan Hennings CEU eTD Collection Budapest, Hungary June 2020 THE SULTANS OF THE COUNTRYSIDE: THE GIRAYS’ DISPLACEMENT INTO OTTOMAN RUMELI AND THEIR WIDESPREAD ROLES IN NETWORKS OF VIOLENCE (1792-1807) By Muhammet Mazı Turkey Thesis submitted to the Department of History, Central European University, Budapest, with a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU. ____________________________________________ Chair, Examination Committee ____________________________________________ Thesis Supervisor ____________________________________________ Examiner ____________________________________________ CEU eTD Collection Examiner Budapest June 2020 ii Statement of Copyright Copyright in the text of this thesis rests with the Author. Copies by any process, either in full or part, may be made only in accordance with the instructions given by the Author and lodged in the Central European Library. Details may be obtained from the librarian. This page must form a part of any such copies made. Further copies made in accordance with such instructions may not be made without the written permission of the Author. CEU eTD Collection iii Abstract After the fall of the Crimean Khanate in 1783, the majority of the Giray dynasty was forced to settle in the Ottoman Balkans. Their immigration to Rumeli impacted the region in profound ways, and its repercussions reverberated beyond that province throughout the Selimian era (1789-1807). This thesis explores what happened in the aftermath of the Giray khans’ immigration to the Ottoman Balkans. It seeks to understand how the Ottoman central administration managed to absorb the Giray dynasty into Ottoman society, exert Ottoman central control over them, and it also explores how the Girays responded, collectively, to these dramatic shifts in their privileged place within the Ottoman imperial system. On the other hand, it seeks to explore the position of the Girays in Rumeli politics and their roles in shaping the networks of violence and rebellion they found there upon their immigration. CEU eTD Collection iv Acknowledgement This thesis is a result of intensive work during the two years I spent at the Central European University. These years were filled with encounters with new people and places that significantly broadened my intellectual horizons. I would like to express my deep gratitude to my supervisor, Tolga Esmer, who not only helped me identify and illuminate the challenging aspects of the subject matter found in this thesis but also served as an example of inspiring teacher. He was always ready to provide me with necessary information and wisely guided my work. I am also grateful to my second reader, Jan Hennings who always provoked me with broad questions that made me think about this thesis differently. I would like to thank to all the professors who formed me throughout my experience at the CEU during the classes. I am grateful to Günhan Börekçi for many insightful conversations that shaped my approach to Ottoman history. I am thankful to all of those who provided advice and guidance along the way, especially, Robyn Dora Radway and Charles Shaw who provided fruitful feedbacks on my work. During the process of writing this thesis, many dear friends and colleagues encouraged and supported me with their priceless friendships, helps, and advice. I am grateful to all of them and pleased to be able to express my thanks to Cevat Sucu, Samuel Huckleberry, Florik Khazarian, Ulzhan Rojik, Halit Serkan Simen, Müberra Kapusuz, Rabia Merve Demirkan Aydoğan and many others. I owe my deepest gratitude to my family. My father Ahmet Mazı and mother Leyla Mazı, and sister Kevser and brothers Süleyman, Abdurrahman and Mustafa showed continuous CEU eTD Collection self-sacrifice, support, affection, and understanding. Finally, I owe my thanks to my friends in Istanbul, Burak Koçan, Fatma Aladağ, Göksu Keserbi, Ebubekir Güzeldere, Elif Dönmez, whose friendships and supports were priceless during the process of writing this thesis. v To Istanbul Şehir University, my home, has recently been shut down, and to its excellent academics CEU eTD Collection vi Table of Contents Introduction ......................................................................................................... 1 Chapter One ....................................................................................................... 14 Traditions Reconsidered ................................................................ 14 The Formation of Ottoman-Giray Relations ................................................ 15 Dynastic Representation under Sahib Giray (1792-1807) ........................... 22 Chapter Two ...................................................................................................... 27 The Fiscal Arrangements and Welfare of the Giray Khans Between the Steppes and Core Ottoman Provinces .................... 27 The Customary Financial Resources of the Girays in the Ottoman Empire 29 Making a Living in Rumeli in the late Eighteenth Century ......................... 37 Inventing an Alternative Economy............................................................... 50 Chapter Three .................................................................................................... 57 The Girays in the Midst of (Dis)Order in Rumeli during the Selimian Era .................................................................................... 57 The Loose Boundaries of Disorder .............................................................. 58 The Integral Role of Girays in Ottoman Economies of Violence ................ 68 State Surveillance ......................................................................................... 84 The Waning of Networks of Violence ......................................................... 91 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 96 Bibliography ..................................................................................................... 101 CEU eTD Collection Appendix .......................................................................................................... 108 vii Introduction After the fall of the Crimean Khanate and official annexation of that province by Romanov Russia in 1783, the majority of the Giray dynasty was forced to settle in the Rumeli countryside (i.e., Ottoman Balkans), mainly in territories stretching from Istanbul as far as to Macedonia and from the banks of the Danube, down to the shores of the Marmara Sea. The Giray dynasty had a legitimate Ghingisid lineage that made them one of the most respected dynasties in the early modern Islamic world. They ruled the Crimean Khanate from mid-15th century onwards, and they were considered lords that defended the northernmost frontiers of the abode of Islam. In this regard, the Giray khans were the most distinguished elite group within the Ottoman domains with respect to their illustrious ancestry and distinct martial culture. After their recognition of Ottoman authority in 1478, the Girays had a privileged status within the Ottoman imperial system and maintained their unchallenged right to dominate the Crimean Khanate and its steppe hinterland. To that end, the Giray khans and their family were the only elite group within the Ottoman domains entitled to use the prestigious appellation “sultan”— often rendered collectively as the Selâtin-i Cengiziyye (Ghingisid Sultans)— alongside the sultans of the house of Osman. Under the Ottoman vassalage, the Girays retained the trappings of independence and had the right to pursue their own military and diplomatic affairs with the northern states beyond Crimea. In this regard, the Crimean Khanate was by no means politically, culturally, or militarily inferior to its neighbors.1 Indeed, the Ottomans CEU eTD Collection imposed certain surveillance mechanisms upon the Girays to render them ‘readable’ and ‘useful’ to Ottoman sovereignty. However, their deep-seated prestige and unruly martial culture 1 Alan W. Fisher, The Crimean Tatars (Palo Alto: Hoover Institution Press, 1978), 38–49. 1 were beyond the reproach of Ottoman disciplining and control, since they stood far enough away from the Ottoman center up until the Russian annexation of the Crimea. For centuries, the Giray khans were incessantly sending cavalryman regiments deep into the steppe, engaging in relationships with various regional and imperial powers, and boosting their treasury by extracting handsome booties and tributes. The fact that they were forced to flee into core Ottoman territories en masse but could not integrate into successfully into more regulated Ottoman provincial milieus resulted in numerous problems for the Giray family, their servants, Ottoman subjects, and the central government in Istanbul. It was incumbent upon the Ottoman center to reduce the Girays’ status to the level of the other provincial families and dynasties like the ‘ayân (notables; notable families, hânedân) whilst curtailing their marital capacities and traditions as borderland warlords. However, it was not an easy task for many Giray