Bosnia Eyalet
Encyclopedia
The Eyalet of Bosnia or Bosnia Beylerbeylik was a eyalet
and beylerbeylik
of the Ottoman Empire
, mostly based on the territory of the present-day state of Bosnia and Herzegovina
as well as most of Slavonia
, Lika
, and Dalmatia
in present-day Croatia
. Its reported area in the 19th century was 20281 square miles (52,527.5 km²).
was transformed into the sanjak of Bosnia. The Duchy of Herzegovina
was added in 1483. The eyalet of Bosnia was formed in 1520. However, the Ottoman wars in Europe
continued and the province significantly decreased in territory during the same century. After the Treaty of Karlowitz
, the province was down to four sanjaks (three of them diminished in size as well) and twelve captaincies. Before the Treaty of Passarowitz
, another 28 military captaincies were formed, more than half of them along the frontier. This kind of intensive military administration corresponded to the Austrian Military Frontier
on the other side of the same border. In 1703 the seat of the pasha was moved from Sarajevo to Travnik because Sarajevo had been destroyed by fire in the war; it wouldn't be moved back until 1850.
occupied Travnik
, demanding autonomy and the end of military reforms in Bosnia. Ultimately, exploiting the rivalries between beys and kapudans, the grand vizier succeeded in detaching the Herzegovinian forces, led by Ali Agha Rizvanbegović, from Gradaščević’s. The revolt was crushed, and in 1833, a new eyalet of Herzegovina was created from the southern part of the eyalet of Bosnia and given to Ali Agha Rizvanbegović as a reward for his contribution in crushing the uprising. This new entity lasted only for a few years: after Rizvanbegović's death, it was reintegrated into the Bosnia eyalet.
After an administrative reform in 1864, it was reformed into the Bosnia Vilayet.
: "The officers are, the Defterdar
of the treasury, the Kehiya and Emin
of the rolls; the Kehiya and Emin
of the Chavushes; the Alai-beg and the Cheri-bashi".
Eyalet
Eyalets were a former primary administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. The term is sometimes translated province or government. Depending on the rank of their commander, they are also sometimes known as pashaliks, beylerbeyliks, and kapudanliks.From 1453 to the beginning of the nineteenth...
and beylerbeylik
Beylerbeylik
Beylerbeylik was a type of country subdivision in the Ottoman Empire....
of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, mostly based on the territory of the present-day state of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
as well as most of Slavonia
Slavonia
Slavonia is a geographical and historical region in eastern Croatia...
, Lika
Lika
Lika is a mountainous region in central Croatia, roughly bound by the Velebit mountain from the southwest and the Plješevica mountain from the northeast. On the north-west end Lika is bounded by Ogulin-Plaški basin, and on the south-east by the Malovan pass...
, and Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
in present-day Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. Its reported area in the 19th century was 20281 square miles (52,527.5 km²).
History
After the execution of King Tomašević in 1463, the central part of the Kingdom of BosniaKingdom of Bosnia
The Kingdom of Bosnia or the Bosnian Kingdom was one of the medieval kingdoms of the Balkans, existing between 1377 and 1463.- Establishment :...
was transformed into the sanjak of Bosnia. The Duchy of Herzegovina
Duchy of Herzegovina
Duchy of Saint Sava was a late medieval monarchy amid the Ottoman conquest of the Balkans. It was ruled by Stefan and his son Vladislav, of the Kosača family....
was added in 1483. The eyalet of Bosnia was formed in 1520. However, the Ottoman wars in Europe
Ottoman wars in Europe
The wars of the Ottoman Empire in Europe are also sometimes referred to as the Ottoman Wars or as Turkish Wars, particularly in older, European texts.- Rise :...
continued and the province significantly decreased in territory during the same century. After the Treaty of Karlowitz
Treaty of Karlowitz
The Treaty of Karlowitz was signed on 26 January 1699 in Sremski Karlovci , concluding the Austro-Ottoman War of 1683–1697 in which the Ottoman side had been defeated at the Battle of Zenta...
, the province was down to four sanjaks (three of them diminished in size as well) and twelve captaincies. Before the Treaty of Passarowitz
Treaty of Passarowitz
The Treaty of Passarowitz or Treaty of Požarevac was the peace treaty signed in Požarevac , a town in Ottoman Empire , on 21 July 1718 between the Ottoman Empire on one side and the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria and the Republic of Venice on the other.During the years 1714-1718, the Ottomans had...
, another 28 military captaincies were formed, more than half of them along the frontier. This kind of intensive military administration corresponded to the Austrian Military Frontier
Military Frontier
The Military Frontier was a borderland of Habsburg Austria and later the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, which acted as the cordon sanitaire against incursions from the Ottoman Empire...
on the other side of the same border. In 1703 the seat of the pasha was moved from Sarajevo to Travnik because Sarajevo had been destroyed by fire in the war; it wouldn't be moved back until 1850.
Bosnian uprising
At the beginning of the 19th century, Bosnia was one of the least developed and more autonomous provinces of the Empire. In 1831, Bosnian kapudan Husein GradaščevićHusein Gradašcevic
Husein-kapetan Gradaščević was a Bosnian Muslim general who fought for Bosnian autonomy in the Ottoman Empire. He is often referred to as "Zmaj od Bosne", meaning "Dragon of Bosnia"...
occupied Travnik
Travnik
Travnik is a city and municipality in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, 90 km west of Sarajevo. It is the capital of the Central Bosnia Canton, and is located in the Travnik Municipality. Travnik today has some 27,000 residents, with a metro population that is probably close to 70,000 people...
, demanding autonomy and the end of military reforms in Bosnia. Ultimately, exploiting the rivalries between beys and kapudans, the grand vizier succeeded in detaching the Herzegovinian forces, led by Ali Agha Rizvanbegović, from Gradaščević’s. The revolt was crushed, and in 1833, a new eyalet of Herzegovina was created from the southern part of the eyalet of Bosnia and given to Ali Agha Rizvanbegović as a reward for his contribution in crushing the uprising. This new entity lasted only for a few years: after Rizvanbegović's death, it was reintegrated into the Bosnia eyalet.
After an administrative reform in 1864, it was reformed into the Bosnia Vilayet.
Government
Organisation of the eyalet in the 17th century, from the accounts of Evliya ÇelebiEvliya Çelebi
Evliya Çelebi was an Ottoman traveler who journeyed through the territory of the Ottoman Empire and neighboring lands over a period of forty years.- Life :...
: "The officers are, the Defterdar
Defterdar
Defterdars were top officials in charge of the finances in the Ottoman Empire, including heads of the Ottoman provincial treasuries; they were responsible for defters....
of the treasury, the Kehiya and Emin
Emin (Ottoman official)
An emin was an officer in the Ottoman empire; a "steward", the holder of an eminet, and often responsible for customs duties. Unlike a timar holder, an emin was a salaried official...
of the rolls; the Kehiya and Emin
Emin (Ottoman official)
An emin was an officer in the Ottoman empire; a "steward", the holder of an eminet, and often responsible for customs duties. Unlike a timar holder, an emin was a salaried official...
of the Chavushes; the Alai-beg and the Cheri-bashi".
Governors
- Osman GradaščevićOsman GradašcevicOsman Pasha Gradaščević, Gazi Osman Pasha Gradaščević was a Bosnian Muslim nobleman at the turn of the 18th century.Osman Gradaščević was the captain of the Ottoman military captaincy of Gradačac, which he was in control of since 1765. During his rule he was one of the most powerful and richest...
- Hasan PredojevićHasan PredojevićHasan Predojević, Telli Hasan Paşa, Gazi Hasan-paša Predojević, was a military leader of the Ottoman army. Born Niko Predojević in Herzegovina, he was given the name Hasan after he converted to Islam.During the rule of Murat III he became Sandjakbey of the Sanjak of Segedin where he stayed until...
- Husein GradaščevićHusein GradašcevicHusein-kapetan Gradaščević was a Bosnian Muslim general who fought for Bosnian autonomy in the Ottoman Empire. He is often referred to as "Zmaj od Bosne", meaning "Dragon of Bosnia"...
- Ali-paša RizvanbegovićAli-paša RizvanbegovicAli Rizvanbegović was the Herzegovinian Muslim Bosniak Ottoman captain of Stolac from 1813 to 1833 and the semi-independent ruler of Herzegovina from 1833 to 1851.-Early Life:...
- Mehmed-beg KulenovićMehmed-beg KulenovićMehmed-beg Kulenović, Gazi Mehmed-beg Kulenović, Mehmed-beg Kulinović, also known as Kulin-kapetan ; was a Bosnian Ottoman soldier born and raised in Bihać and later became the Kapetan of Bosnia Eyalet. He was a very important regional official for the Ottoman forces due to his ties with the...
Capitals
Bosnia Eyalet's capital city moved several times:- TravnikTravnikTravnik is a city and municipality in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, 90 km west of Sarajevo. It is the capital of the Central Bosnia Canton, and is located in the Travnik Municipality. Travnik today has some 27,000 residents, with a metro population that is probably close to 70,000 people...
(1553; 1697-1833; 1839/40-1851) - Banja LukaBanja Luka-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...
(Banyaluka or Banaluka) (1553-1638) - SarajevoSarajevoSarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
(Saray Bosna) (1639-1697; 1833-1839/40; 1851-1878)
Administrative divisions
Administrative division of the eyalet of Bosnia between 1700-1730 were as follows:
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At the beginning of the 19th century, Bosnia was composed of 7 sanjaks:
Sanjak of Novi Pazar The Sanjak of Novi Pazar was an Ottoman sanjak that existed until the Balkan Wars of 1912-1913 in the territory of present day Montenegro, Serbia and Kosovo.-History:It was part of the Bosnia Vilayet and later Kosovo Vilayet and included... |