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Manivn vu.i.k: The Ottoman Province »./ al-Ilasd ’)07
Mub:irr;iz Volunteers,ui the Lab*i Volunteers,146 disposal. As a rough guess, there were probably
c:\ch regiment with its own commander (a/Ja). It never more than 1,000. They remained in name
is not clear from the context what the significance at least the dominant army force until the evacua-
of the separation of regiments is; whether, that is, lion of the province.
it indicated place of recruitment, place of station, The 'azeb (aifesi is mentioned but once in the
or even perhaps source of funds (tax farm or documents. In this instance they are referred to
zc'amcl) for pay. Whatever the case, pay records as being stationed at Basra but on temporary duty
for all of the Volunteers were kept up to date by a in Lah-sa. I hey were probably ytlyd 'azebUri,
clerk in the office of the governor general of LabsA archers.17 *
and copies regularly filed with the appropriate While muskets and cannon were used from the
bureau in Istanbul.167 first years in Lafisa, probably in the initial cam
References to the Volunteers diminish through paign of occupation, mention of the specialized
the iobO’s and 1570’s; the last occurs in a docu Gunners and Musketeers Corps does not occur in
ment dated in 15S0.,M This is not to say that local the documents until 1571 and I5S4 respectively.
men ceased to be recruited; more probably locals Men from neither of these Corps were stationed
gradually came to be reemited into the regular in Lahsa permanently, although for a time twenty
janissary army, a process taking place at this time gunners from the Bagdad Gunners Regiment were
elsewhere in the Eastern provinces of the empire. selected on a rotation basis to serve a year’s tour
The core of the army was the janissary detach of duty there.176 Other gunners were sent for
ments. They seem to have been the main, perhaps special assignments, to set up a black powder
only, group used in the initial occupation.169 It factory, for example,176 or to reinforce standing
is not clear which division of the janissaries were contingents in times of special danger.177 The
involved here; it may have been the Boluk Divi musketeers were transferred for temporary duty
sion.170 The janissaries were transferred directly in Lahsi (two or three months) from Basra,
into Lahsfi from as far away as Egypt171 and Bagdad, and Diyarbekir; they were paid and pro
Karamanin, but the majority came from the visioned in their place of regular duty before
Basra and Bagdad barracks.17* There is no way of leaving for the brief tour.178
accurately stating the number of janissaries sta
tioned at Lahsa with the documents at my The navy
Although Lahsa was dependent on the waters
144 MM Zeyli 3. p. 170, 29 Safer 9S3/9 June 1575. of the Gulf for its supplies, its governor general
1,4 M 7:1419, 16 ZK 975/14 May 1563. had only a few regular ships under his local
147 M Zeyli 3: p. 211, n.d. (983/1575-76). authority. Three or four galleys179 were sometimes
,M M 43:563, n.d. (9SS/15SO-81).
144 M 3:1122, 21 $a‘ban 967/17 May 15G0. In this docu
ment reference is made to the btluk fraU? 1 and Anil (d'ifesi M 3:301-2, 7 ZH 966/19 September 1559. I. H.
who were responsible, especially their officers, for the Uzun^ar^lli, "azab", Islam Ansiklopedisi, volume II,
illegal confiscation of private lands in Lahsi after the p. 83.
conquest. ”*M 16:20, 269, 10 CE 979/10 October 1571, ZK
179 The mention of the bdluk halki (see footnote 169) 979/17 March 1571.
suggests the BolOk Division; but then how is ufunfd m M 12:1095, 11 ZK 979/27 March 1571; M 16:207,
toluk (Maliye’den 17642, p. 714, written 12 Muharrem ZK 979/17 March 1571.
961/19 December 1553), and u^uncu scr btiluk (ibid. m M 7:1773, 26 Muharrem 976/21' July 1368.
P- 715, same date) to be understood? Here 60fuJk seems IU M 53:282, n.d. (early 992/early 1584); M Zeyli 4,
to be used in the sense of orta. p. 210, Receb 999/April May 1591; M 73:891, ZK 999/
August-September 1591; M 89:76-79, n.d. Gate 1052/
1,1 M 24:911, 19 Safer 982/10 June 1574.
174 M 3:1128, 21 §a*b&n 967/17 May 1560. 1642—13).
174 M 24:913, 15 Safer 982/6 Juno 1574; M 7:1773, 28 »»* Kadirgalar. They had ordinarily 25 benches of oars
Muharrem 976/22 July 1568; M 53:282, n.d. (982/1584- supplemented by lateen-rigged sails, carried about 330
S5); M Zeyli 4; p. 210, Receb 999/April-May 1591. men (including oarsmen), and were armed with one large
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