A CELALI IN ICEL: MUSLU CAVUS REBELLION (1606-1610)

Abstract

The Celali riots were the most serious security problem in Anatolia in the early 17th century, as a result of which there were no safety in the provinces and sanjcaks under the Celali attacks. The situation of the Icel was not different from the other sanjcaks. At the beginning of the century, the student rebellion (suhte fesadi) that ruined the social order, was suppressed by the hard measures. But the persecution and mismanagement of the sanjack officer, who came to Icel from outside, caused the public's reactions. Muslu Cavus, who was a typical Celali leader from the local people, came to the forefront during this turbulent period. Shortly after his revolt, in 1607, almost all the important castles had passed into his hands in Icel. But the Ottoman soldiers could not be sent to the rebels, because of the geographical structure of the region was rigid. In the meantime, Kalenderoglu, one of the famous Celali leaders, wrote a letter and proposed alliance to Muslu Cavus. The Grand Vizier Kuyucu Murad Pasha was aware of the danger, and he firstly appointed Muslu Cavus as governor of the Icel sanjak, then dropped the trap and executed him in Konya city. In this research, as well as all the details of the rebellion, some sociological solutions were made about the rebellion. The main sources of the work are Ottoman authors such as Topcular Katibi and Katib Celebi, who wrote in detail the events of the time. In addition, some documents and records (as muhimme and muhimme zeyli) in the Prime Ministry Ottoman Archives are other sources of this research.