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Coping with Extortion on a Local Level: The Case of Hilandar’s Metochion in Zdravikion (Draviskos, Strymon Region) in the Sixteenth Century

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2019
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Fotić, Aleksandar
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Abstract
In the Ottoman Empire extortion on a local level was a frequent practice and it took diverse forms. The Ottoman documents preserved in the archive of the Monastery of Hilandar (Mount Athos) give us a picture of the ways in which its monks struggled to preserve their privileges and protect their large metochion at Zdravikion (about 700 donums). Their basic tax obligation to the “master of the land” (sahib-i arz) was paid annually in a lump sum (maktu‘) ever since 1481, when sultan Bayezid II exempted them from paying the tithe at the express request of the Wallachian voivode Basarab II Țepeluș. The annual lump sum of 600 akces accounted for only a half of the total tax burden - they had been relieved of paying the other half by the sultan himself. This privilege was confirmed by all subsequent sultans, most likely until 1569. Local masters of the land (at first sipahis, then hass and finally vakıf authorities) persistently and in various ways sought to impose the payment of the tithe. T...his paper presents different arguments they used in the attempt to extort the payment of the tithe and the monks’ firm attitude in defending their rights before the kadı’s court and the Imperial Divan. Monks were able to prove their rights because they conscientiously kept, sometimes for centuries, all the necessary documents relating to their land possessions, producing them as evidence in court proceedings.

Keywords:
Hilandar Monastery / metochion / Zdravikion / extortion / sixteenth century
Source:
Balcanica, 2019, 50, 73-83
Publisher:
  • Belgrade : Institute for Balkan Studies SASA

DOI: 10.2298/BALC1950073F

[ Google Scholar ]
Handle
https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_dais_7804
URI
https://dais.sanu.ac.rs/123456789/7804
Collections
  • Balcanica - Annual of the Institute for Balkan Studies
Institution/Community
Балканолошки институт САНУ / Institute for Balkan Studies SASA
TY  - JOUR
AU  - Fotić, Aleksandar
PY  - 2019
UR  - https://dais.sanu.ac.rs/123456789/7804
AB  - In the Ottoman Empire extortion on a local level was a frequent practice and it took diverse forms. The Ottoman documents preserved in the archive of the Monastery of Hilandar (Mount Athos) give us a picture of the ways in which its monks struggled to preserve their privileges and protect their large metochion at Zdravikion (about 700 donums). Their basic tax obligation to the “master of the land” (sahib-i arz) was paid annually in a lump sum (maktu‘) ever since 1481, when sultan Bayezid II exempted them from paying the tithe at the express request of the Wallachian voivode Basarab II Țepeluș. The annual lump sum of 600 akces accounted for only a half of the total tax burden - they had been relieved of paying the other half by the sultan himself. This privilege was confirmed by all subsequent sultans, most likely until 1569. Local masters of the land (at first sipahis, then hass and finally vakıf authorities) persistently and in various ways sought to impose the payment of the tithe. This paper presents different arguments they used in the attempt to extort the payment of the tithe and the monks’ firm attitude in defending their rights before the kadı’s court and the Imperial Divan. Monks were able to prove their rights because they conscientiously kept, sometimes for centuries, all the necessary documents relating to their land possessions, producing them as evidence in court proceedings.
PB  - Belgrade : Institute for Balkan Studies SASA
T2  - Balcanica
T1  - Coping with Extortion on a Local Level: The Case of Hilandar’s Metochion in Zdravikion (Draviskos, Strymon Region) in the Sixteenth Century
SP  - 73
EP  - 83
VL  - 50
DO  - 10.2298/BALC1950073F
UR  - https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_dais_7804
ER  - 
@article{
author = "Fotić, Aleksandar",
year = "2019",
abstract = "In the Ottoman Empire extortion on a local level was a frequent practice and it took diverse forms. The Ottoman documents preserved in the archive of the Monastery of Hilandar (Mount Athos) give us a picture of the ways in which its monks struggled to preserve their privileges and protect their large metochion at Zdravikion (about 700 donums). Their basic tax obligation to the “master of the land” (sahib-i arz) was paid annually in a lump sum (maktu‘) ever since 1481, when sultan Bayezid II exempted them from paying the tithe at the express request of the Wallachian voivode Basarab II Țepeluș. The annual lump sum of 600 akces accounted for only a half of the total tax burden - they had been relieved of paying the other half by the sultan himself. This privilege was confirmed by all subsequent sultans, most likely until 1569. Local masters of the land (at first sipahis, then hass and finally vakıf authorities) persistently and in various ways sought to impose the payment of the tithe. This paper presents different arguments they used in the attempt to extort the payment of the tithe and the monks’ firm attitude in defending their rights before the kadı’s court and the Imperial Divan. Monks were able to prove their rights because they conscientiously kept, sometimes for centuries, all the necessary documents relating to their land possessions, producing them as evidence in court proceedings.",
publisher = "Belgrade : Institute for Balkan Studies SASA",
journal = "Balcanica",
title = "Coping with Extortion on a Local Level: The Case of Hilandar’s Metochion in Zdravikion (Draviskos, Strymon Region) in the Sixteenth Century",
pages = "73-83",
volume = "50",
doi = "10.2298/BALC1950073F",
url = "https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_dais_7804"
}
Fotić, A.. (2019). Coping with Extortion on a Local Level: The Case of Hilandar’s Metochion in Zdravikion (Draviskos, Strymon Region) in the Sixteenth Century. in Balcanica
Belgrade : Institute for Balkan Studies SASA., 50, 73-83.
https://doi.org/10.2298/BALC1950073F
https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_dais_7804
Fotić A. Coping with Extortion on a Local Level: The Case of Hilandar’s Metochion in Zdravikion (Draviskos, Strymon Region) in the Sixteenth Century. in Balcanica. 2019;50:73-83.
doi:10.2298/BALC1950073F
https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_dais_7804 .
Fotić, Aleksandar, "Coping with Extortion on a Local Level: The Case of Hilandar’s Metochion in Zdravikion (Draviskos, Strymon Region) in the Sixteenth Century" in Balcanica, 50 (2019):73-83,
https://doi.org/10.2298/BALC1950073F .,
https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_dais_7804 .

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