YENIÇERI (Janissaries)
Janissaries (in Turkish Yeni is new and Çeri
means soldier), standing
Ottoman Turkish army
were organized by Murat I. Ottoman
armies had previously been composed of Turcoman tribal levies, who were
loyal to their clan leaders, but as the Ottoman Empire
acquired the characteristics of a state, it became necessary to have paid
troops loyal only to the sultan. Therefore,
the system of impressing Christian kids taken
during invasions of countries (devsirme) was instituted and having been
converted to Islam and given the finest training,
they became the elite forces of the army.
Special laws regulated their daily life cutting them off from civil
society such as being forbidden to marry. Devotion to such discipline made
the Janissaries the scourge of Europe. These standards, however, changed
with time; recruitment became lax (Moslems
were admitted, too) and because of the privileges Janissaries started to
enjoy their life, their numbers increased from about 20,000 in 1574 to
some 135,000 in 1826. To supplement their salaries, the Janissaries began
to pursue various trades and established strong links with civil society,
thus undermining their loyalty to the ruler. In time they became kingmakers
and the allies of conservative forces, opposing all reforms and refusing
to allow the army to be modernized. When they revolted in 1826, Sultan
Mahmut II abolished the corps, putting all opposition down by force. Thousands
were killed in the Hippodrome and others
banished, but most were simply absorbed into the general population.