Page 259 - Journal of Asian History_Neat

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Mand.\yim«k: The Ottoman Province of al-Uiujd 497

,,.r t| despite the fact that it had prices. Because the pay of the officers and troops
m. a
initiallv exempted from :dl taxes save miri of Lufctft was drawn from the tax revenues of the
|7v the first governor general Mebmed Pjuja. province, these revenues had to be maintained
(‘oiisiMpitfntly, the Christian ships with which the at a certain minimum level by whatever means or
merchant had dealings (najdrlnin gemiUri ddfri face possible garrison rebellion or the plundering
mc’bure miiU'alhk 'Club) stopped coming to the of villages by the troops.7* For this reason, as
port 0f Kat»f and all activity there came to a well as perhaps occasionally to satisfy the cupidity
hilt74 As a result Istanbul ordered that the land of a particular governor general, extraordinary
be given back in 1560.78 Some years later the mer- taxes were sometimes used, two m particular: the
chant died, and once again the land was seized 'i'ddrtiye and the gilm&niyc, both of which were
by the government on the grounds that the heirs applied as market taxes.10 Both were condemned
resided in Bahrein. In 1572, however, the heirs by the populace and the central government
returned, some settling in JCatlf, some in LabsS, alike as illegal, innovations (bid'a). Another cx-
and demanded the return of the land. This was traordinary tax levied occasionally was the camel
done; but this time Istanbul ordered that it be tax on the pilgrimage caravans from LabsS,
giveo back as tcv}arruf)> i.e., as imperial (miri) amounting to one fiidri a camel.81 The central
rather than as private (miilki) property.7* government did what it could to prevent these
Three years later in 1575 the property once levies by 'allowing the governors general to draw
again was confiscated, a casualty of the plans for if necessary on the treasury funds in Basra; the
the invasion of Bahrein set for the next year, measure seems to have been effective for a period
The governor general informed Istanbul that the at least.*2
owner, a son of the deceased merchant, again The same system of drawing on the Basra
was residing on Bahrein, in enemy territory treasury was intended to eliminate the need for
(ddr al-harb), and that his Rat if property should setting market prices (nerfr) exorbitantly higher
be confiscated and administered as a government than the normal price (?nln). For example, the
district. In reply, Istanbul said that confiscation governor general Abmed in 157S was charged with
was permissible, but only if the man in fact raising the price of rice from twenty-two to fifty-
coinmitted acts of rebellion, resided on Bahrein, two akge, dates from fifty-two to 200 afc^c, and
and was not there simply for reasons of business, barley from forty-eight to sixty-two akge.u
leaving the land in the care of someone.77 Even Another document of 1580, giving only slightly
before receiving this permission the governor
general wrote another request, that the income of "See M 3:1124, 21 Sa’b&n 067/17 May 1560.
the land confiscated be appropriated for expenses •• M 43:566-67, Q.d. (058/1560); M 53:207, n.d. (Mu-
to be incurred in preparation for the Bahrein harrera 992/January -February 1584). These both were
campaign.78 levied as market taxes (see M 43:566).
« M 27:517 , 24 $ewal 983/26 January 1576; M 27:271,
While the Ottoman government dealt fairly
25 $a*b£n 983/29 November 1575. Another charge com­
successfully with this problem of land appropria­ plained of in the former document was that of one
tions it was less easily able to cope with illegal per person for the {axrualar, claimed by them to be cus­
hixes and the manipulation of fixed market tomary, and levied on "the poor" (i.e., anyone willing
to pay?).
11 M 53:207, n.d. (ca. Muharrem 992/January-Febru­
T4 M 3:1122, 21 Sa’b&n 967/17 May 1560. ary 15S4) in which it was stated that the previous gover­
nors general 'All Pa$a and Mebmed Pa$a avoided
•* M 19:174, 5 Safer 980/17 June 1572. illegally high market prices and new taxes in this fashion,
M 27.277, 26 Sa'ban (Safer?) 983/30 November 1575. and that the present governor general was to do the
• ee above n. 63. same. It was prompted, however, by complaints that he
. 71 M UyVx 3: p. 128, 22 Safer 983/2 June 1575. There was again using the illegal methods.
• aorne confusion of dates between the two documents, M M 35:735, n.d. (2nd half of 986/late 1578, early
U the sequence is clear from their texts. 1579). Quantities of produce are not stated.