Crimean Khanate in Ottoman documents (part 2)*

Abstract

n 2013, in Istanbul (Turkey), with the assistance of the General Directorate of State Archives of the Republic of Turkey’s Prime Ministry, the book “Osmanlı belgelerinde Kırım hanlığı” (“The Crimean Khanate in the Records of the Ottoman Documents”) was published. The coordinator of the publishing project is the General Director of the State Archives, Professor Ughur Unal. The book is a collection of Ottoman documents, the content of which covers the Ottoman-Crimean relations. The number of documents is 112 units. Types of records include: imperial decrees (fermans) and imperial letters (name-i humayuns) prepared by the Imperial Council (Diwan-y Humayun) and its offices on behalf of the sultan; decrees (berats) of khans and kalgays; imperial orders (hatt-y humayun), containing the opinions and approvals of the sultans in connection with the proposals and decisions of the grand viziers; expenditure documents of the Ottoman finances for the Crimean khans, sultans and ambassadors; “news papers” (“khavadis kyagytlary”), allowing you to find out information from the Crimea. Correspondence topics: military cooperation in the capture of fugitive criminals and rebels; regulation of maritime trade; strengthening places that have suffered from food shortages; construction and repair of fortresses and other fortifications to ensure coastal security. Imperial letters (name-i humayun) are of great importance as signs of mutual intentions. They give privileges to the Crimean Khanate from the Ottoman state. The main themes of the imperial letters (name-i humayun): celebrations on the occasion of the accession to the throne of a new sultan or the birth of a sultan (shahzade) in the Crimea; mutual congratulations on the day of victory in the war; an expression of the shakh’s praise of the sultans after sending the text of the berat to the khanate and kalgay. The documents contain information about the requirements of the Crimean Khanate, which were submitted for approval by Istanbul: an increase in income for the performance of certain tasks, the appointment of chief military judges (kazasker), spiritual leaders (imams), preachers (khatips), and the provision of salaries to them. According to the documents, appointments to some positions of beyler beys and command over fortresses, which were of strategic importance for the region, were carried out by Istanbul in accordance with the advice of the khans.

Keywords

• archive
• document
• crimean khanate
• ottoman empire
• decrees