Beratlı Tüccar’dan Avrupa Tüccarı’na Selanik’te “Nizâm-ı Raiyyet” Arayışı

Abstract

The non-Muslim merchants of the Ottoman State had requested protection from the consuls throughout the 18 th century for their legal and economic freedom. In this sense, the institution of tercümanlık [dragoman] was open to abuse and exploited, and the issue of beratlı-fermanlı tüccarı s [certified merchants] arose. Selim III in particular fought against this issue in order to preserve the state's reputation and revenues. Salonica was one of the significant cities where the attempt was made to control this issue and the patronage of consuls. The practices of Selim III regarding the establishment of nizâm-ı raiyyet [statute regarding non-Muslim subjects] had significant success in Salonica. In 1806, the issue of beratlı [certified] merchants was resolved in Salonica, and the institution of Avrupa tüccarı [merchants of Europe], which was offered to the dhimmi [non-Muslim subjects] as an alternative, gained popularity. Compared to the Greeks, the Jewish merchants of the city gained an active position in socio-economic life thanks to this establishment. Abstract The economic and legal capitulations the Ottoman State gave to foreign states resulted in negative impacts on socioeconomic life in the 18 th century and the abuse of certain institutions. One of these was the institution of tercumanlık [dragoman], which was responsible for conducting the consuls’ work and communicating with the Ottoman state authorities in particular. Consul dragomans, regardless of whether they were actually Ottoman dhimmi [non-Muslim subjects] or not, were subject to the law of müstemen [foreign nationals permitted to reside on Ottoman lands]. In this way, dhimmi merchants, who had the opportunity to be exempt from the tax burden and other obligations of the dhimmi law, started racing to become dragoman. The fact that each dragoman was appointed two hizmetkar [servants] to his entourage who were also able to benefit from the same exemptions caused the problem to grow and deepen over a short time. This problem became famous over time as the beratlı-fermanlı tüccarı s [certified merchants]. The city of Salonica was a commercial center where the issue of beratlı-fermanlı tüccarı s was on the agenda throughout the 18 th century due to the diversity of its demographic structure and the abundance of consulates there. At the beginning of the 18th century, France, and England first established consulates there, after which consulates from other European states increased in number. This situation made getting permission to work as a dragoman or servant easier for the dhimmi of Salonica, as it also increased the need for these types of workers. According the 1797 that is the subject of this study, the number of people who were allowed to work as dragoman and servants in Salonica until that date had been 70. The consuls from France, England, Spain, Sweden, Austria, the Netherlands, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, Venice, Denmark, Prussia, and Dubrovnik claimed patronage over the merchants in Salonica with this method.