April 1519

Shah Ismail has been defeated. The boy-King turned man was unable to face the onslaught of the combined Ottoman-Georgian armies. While Georgia suffered defeats and still has to deal with the rebellious Safavid armies led by the Shamlu clan, the oppressive rule of the Safavids has been lifted off of the Fertile Crescent. In doing so, we have saved those who have supported us from the disorder, banditry, and forced conversions of the East. However, while the Ottoman conquest has been swift and relatively painless in terms of losses to the Safavid armies, governance of the new territories is a priority if Ottoman rule is to remain in the region upon the death of Sultan Korkut. As such, the Ottomans will do a series of measures to formally integrate the region into the bureaucratic apparatus of the Empire as well as further secure the loyalty and trust of the local populace.

General Administration:

With the liberation of a large swath of formerly Aq Qoyunlu territory, it seems the specter of Ahmed Beg hangs over the new territories. However, unlike his father in 1501, Sultan Korkut recognizes that such a sudden change would only enrage the population and potentially bring them back into the Safavid sphere. As such, while Ahmed Beg's centralization attempts from 1497 will be implemented, they will be done so over a much longer period of time with several provisions being struck all together. If piety is to be restored, the Ottoman state must have control over the land it seeks to restore piety to.

As such, Ottoman control over the region will be established in a few stages. Firstly, peasants in the East will be once mor exempt from the payment of administrative dues and extraordinary taxes imposed under previous rulers by both previous Aq Qoyunlu rulers such as Qasim b. Jahangir, Alvand b. Yusuf, and Shah Ismail (assuming he maintained the previous Aq Qoyunlu administrative apparatus). While such taxes were required due to the favoritism shown by Aq Qoyunlu leaders to their elites, we hold the cards with regards to the Aq Qoyunlu nobility who have supported our effort in exchange for some of their power back. While the nobles will be resettled as promised, they will be resettled in a similar manner to Ottoman nobles across the Empire.

Secondly, any existing soyurghals (Aq Qoyunlu/early Persian land grants) that have survived Safavid administration will be investigated with those found to be exploiting the soyurghal system or who were Safavids supporters/collaborators will have their land grants revoked with their assets returning to the state. While this will only remove a small amount of soyurghals from circulation, the Ottoman state will work at mitigating the harmful impacts of the land grants, aiming to slowly transition them into Ottoman land grants (over the course of two years) [500,000 civilian florins to buy out existing soyurghals and convert them into Ottoman Timars]. Land registries and surveys will be conducted by officials from Kostantiniyye to collect a full account of the land as of 1519 in order to determine future taxation from existing soyurghals once they are integrated into the Ottoman system and to rally existing assets so they might be taxed appropriately. (Cost to be determined.)

Thirdly, the Ottoman state will investigate the diplomas of tax immunity held by the great lords of the region. Those found to have been eager supporters or collaborators of the Safavid regime will have their diplomas revoked with their land being distributed equally amongst the remnants of the Aq Qoyunlu nobility, the peasants, Ulema or the state. Diplomas held by loyalists to the Ottoman state will be reaffirmed for the time being until local administrators can be fully replaced or integrated into the imperial administration. Diplomas that are reaffirmed will be slowly phased out over time (five years) with those that stand to lose to be partially reimbursed by land seized from collaborators, money [250,000 civilian florins for this purpose] and/or other privileges held by members of the Ottoman nobility.

Lastly, the tax burden on the peasants will be slowly reduced as income is gained from those belonging to the nobility and other members of society who have been traditionally except from taxation due to the decentralization of Aq Qoyunlu. As such, the reaya peasantry are expected to become ardent supporters of the new regime as they pay less taxes for a more responsive government.

Kurds:

With the capture of Kurdistan in 1517, the local Kurds recognized the superiority of the Ottoman Sultan and swore fealty to Sultan Korkut as he camped in Kurdistan. While Sultan Korkut is generally disappointed by the failure of the Kurds to lend more direct assistance to his campaign, he does have to admit the Sublime Porte did fail the Kurds in 1506. It was, after all, only the diplomatic genius of his father that the Kurds were spared the gallows by an enraged Ismail.

As such, the autonomous status of the Kurdish tribes will be upheld and they will remain distinct from the centralization reforms in Eastern Anatolia and Iraq, remaining legally independent of the new Eyelets. In exchange for the maintenance of their tribal land and general way of life (provided they remain loyal), the Kurdish tribes of Eastern Anatolia and Northern Iraq will pay a small amount of taxes to the Sublime Porte and will be expected to help man the Eastern frontier from Safavid raids and provide men and supplies to the Sublime should the current state of peace between the Safavids and the Ottoman Empire collapse. (Historical set up as I understand it)

Bedouins:

While our plan to strike at Tabriz was successful, the Bedouin population of Iraq suffered heavily when Ismail camped in Iraq. We did not account for Shah Ismail to be so... expedient in his removal of 'Ottoman' collaborators and traitors. And as a result, purges were conducted in Iraq to prevent an Ottoman conquest that never came that year. It was only after Ismail was forced into Persia proper that Iraq was swiftly conquered and the Sunnis of the region saved from the oppression of the Safavid regime.

As such, the Sublime Porte will help cover the cost for the burials of Bedouins impacted by Shah Ismail's purges and help revitalize Bedouin communities. Similar to efforts in Anatolia, Ottoman coin [150,000 civilian florins] shall be given to local waqfs for them to distribute to the local Bedouins in need.

Turcomen:

Once our enemy and distrusted by almost all of the Ottoman elites, recent statements from the Sultan himself coupled with Ismail's crackdown and their subsequent migration to the Sublime Porte has given Sultan Korkut much needed momentum in order to better 'integrate' the Turcomen tribes into the Ottoman system. While full integration is impossible at the current moment and would take decades to achieve, the Ottoman state can better control the Turcomen tribes while maintaining their newfound allegiance to the Sublime Porte.

To start, the Ottomans will slowly begin to integrate tribal leaders of the Turcomen into the administrative apparatus of the Ottoman state, seeking to turn the tribal leaders into Türkmen voyvodas who will become the middlemen between the state and tribe. By investing loyal tribal leaders with fiscal and administrative leeway over their tribes, the Sublime Porte seeks to cement its control over the various Turcomen tribes and ensure their future loyalty. To help assist efforts to control the Turcomen, [50,000 civilian florins] will be expended to buy/(build?) grazing land exclusively for the Turcomen tribes in southwestern Anatolia to further secure their loyalty.

Map

[M]

• 950,000 civilian florins to help integrate the East into the Sublime Porte
• Rewarding/dealing with the Kurds, Bedouins, and Turcomen
• Reforming/replacing the legacy of Aq Qoyunlu administration