Gretchen Lund
DEVSHIRME
-Devshirme (the gathering): the Christian population of the Balkans were to contribute young boys to become slaves to the sultan -Began some time between 1383 and 1387 -Ottomans would receive the boys from the Balkan villages every three to seven years according to need -Boys between fifteen and eighteen usually -The oldest or only boy in a family, orphans, sons of widowed mothers, and married men were not taken -Sometimes had the boys marry young to avoid being chosen -Some wanted the boys to be taken because they could not care for them and slavery in Islam was less degrading than slavery in the Christian world -Later these restrictions were abolished -About 1,000 to 3,000 draftees per year -Similar to tribute payments, just boys instead of money or gifts PLACEMENT -These boys received special training, learned Turkish, and converted to Islam -It was necessary to converted to insure their loyalty -Based off of ability determined through examinations, they either entered the Ottoman civilian administration or the military |
-The best were selected as icoglans (pages) and were sent to palace schools
-The soldiers were known as Janissaries
-They would become members of the askeri (military) class
-Even the regular soldiers were given extensive education
-They gained a reputation for esprit de corps, loyalty to the sultan
-They encouraged new military technology
-The forces were given gunpowder weapons that were used effectively
PURPOSE/ EFFECT
-Janissary Corps at a time was the most outstanding military unit in Europe
-Skills in bowmanship, archery, musketry, use of swords and hand guns, artillery, naval navigations, and other occupations like road and bridge building
-Military campaigns were carefully planned and executed
-Overall they played a vital role in the expansion of the Ottoman Empire
-The soldiers were known as Janissaries
-They would become members of the askeri (military) class
-Even the regular soldiers were given extensive education
-They gained a reputation for esprit de corps, loyalty to the sultan
-They encouraged new military technology
-The forces were given gunpowder weapons that were used effectively
PURPOSE/ EFFECT
-Janissary Corps at a time was the most outstanding military unit in Europe
-Skills in bowmanship, archery, musketry, use of swords and hand guns, artillery, naval navigations, and other occupations like road and bridge building
-Military campaigns were carefully planned and executed
-Overall they played a vital role in the expansion of the Ottoman Empire