User:ProfGray/1657 Ottoman campaign in Palestine

but see: [1] and see Nablus, with most of this content

The 1657 Ottoman campaign in Palestine

"sought to restore central control in southern Syria" Doumani 34 "after decades of social upheavals and economic crises that rocked the empire as a whole. Palestine was a key target because of its importance for land communications with Egypt and as well as to the safety and financing of the Damascus pilgrimage caravan." p.36

Military expedition

Most of the military force was comprised of Arabs from central Syria as yerliyya, a type of Ottoman mercenary. The yerliyya were paid for the expedition, and for the annual military service needed to safeguard the pilgrimage route, with land grants. It gained control over Jabal Nablus. However, according to Doumani, the Ottoman bureaucracy tried to prevent military leaders from dominating the local scene, partly by trying to diffuse the concentration of land wealth, by selecting the timar and za'amar land grant. Doumani 36

Aftermath

The leaders of the 1657 expedition anchored themselves in the Jabal Nablus region by diversifying their businesses, setting up their sons in local operations, building "fortress-like" homes, and intermarrying with local religious and merchant families. Doumani 37 The pivotal group in this process were the Nimrs, who came from Homs and Hama in Syria and benefited the most from land grants. Two other powerful clans, Jarrars and Tuqans. The former were centered around the Jenin district and rested upon an emerging peasant army. Doumani 37

Thus, while the campaign "introduced a new and stable group of ruling families in Jabal Nablus" (p.34) it also brought stability and a degree of prosperity. 38 In turn, this resulted in the expansion of the Jabal Nablus district with subdivisions, some of which were named after the regnant clan, such as Jarrar. See also

Nablus, with several paragraphs based on Doumani

External resources

ebook: https://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft896nb5pc&chunk.id=s2.1.3&toc.depth=100&toc.id=s1.1.6&brand=ucpress "Rediscovering Palestine: Merchants and Peasants in Jabal Nablus, 1700–1900" By Beshara Doumani 34