Causes Behind the Dismissal of Ottoman Timar Holders in the Mid-15th Century Balkans

A Comparative Approach

Abstract

This study focuses on the reasons behind the dismissal of Ottoman landholders in the mid-15th-century Balkans. Although studies mostly focus on the 16th and 17th centuries, the 15th century received incidental attention. Relying mainly on seven population and land records, as well as other archival documents, this article argues that the discharge of contemporary Ottoman landholders resulted from eleven main reasons, specified below. As underlined throughout the paper, these cases provide a lot of new insights regarding the functioning of the system at the time. Among others, the increasing state control over the landed estates in this period manifested itself in the dismissal of the timar holders at regular intervals. This indirectly prompted a good portion of timariots to stay in their estates, instead of using their revenues on military campaigns.