Chronology of יהודים YEHUDIM
in the Turkish Empire.

יהודים YEHUDIM built communities, pursued justice and memorialized deliverance under the Turkish Empire. Imperial authorities could protect their homes or order their removal. The recurring question is who held the power to decide whether they could remain—and whether protection recognized a right or depended on another ruler's permission.

ד׳ בתשרי ה׳שכ״א 4th 𝑜𝑓 Tiŝrei, AM 5321Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

The Turkish Empire ordered יהודים YEHUDIM and Christians in Damesek to sell specified homes to Muslims.

ד׳ בתשרי ה׳שכ״א 4th 𝑜𝑓 Tiŝrei, AM 5321: The Turkish Empire ordered יהודים YEHUDIM and Christians in Damesek to sell specified homes to Muslims. Payment preserved a price for their property, not their freedom to remain.1

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כ״ט באייר ה׳שע״ח 29th 𝑜𝑓 Iyar, AM 5378Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

The imperial council ordered an investigation and removal of יהודים YEHUDIM from three Istanbul neighborhoods if allegations about diminished Muslim congregations were confirmed.

כ״ט באייר ה׳שע״ח 29th 𝑜𝑓 Iyar, AM 5378: The imperial council ordered an investigation and removal of יהודים YEHUDIM from three Istanbul neighborhoods if allegations about diminished Muslim congregations were confirmed. Their presence was treated as an obstacle to Muslim religious predominance.2

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תמוז ה׳שע״ח Tamuz, AM 5378Precision: month · Basis: not-assessed

The imperial council ordered protection for יהודים YEHUDIM in Chios against false accusations and extortion.

תמוז ה׳שע״ח Tamuz, AM 5378: The imperial council ordered protection for יהודים YEHUDIM in Chios against false accusations and extortion. The same imperial system could defend residence in one city while authorizing exclusion in another.3

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ג׳ באב ה׳שע״ח 3rd 𝑜𝑓 Av, AM 5378Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

אסתר ESTER's petition prompted an order summoning her husband from Salonika for a hearing over family support and harassment.

ג׳ באב ה׳שע״ח 3rd 𝑜𝑓 Av, AM 5378: אסתר ESTER's petition prompted an order summoning her husband from Salonika for a hearing over family support and harassment. The record preserves her demand for justice, not a final judgment.4

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ט״ז בטבת ה׳שצ״ט 16th 𝑜𝑓 Tevet, AM 5399Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

Turkish forces took Baghdad from the Persian Empire.

ט״ז בטבת ה׳שצ״ט 16th 𝑜𝑓 Tevet, AM 5399: Turkish forces took Baghdad from the Persian Empire. The community memorialized its deliverance through an annual פורים שני PURIM ŜENI.5

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י״ב בתמוז ה׳תכ״א 12th 𝑜𝑓 Tamuz, AM 5421Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

A court record documented the exclusion of יהודים YEHUDIM from part of central Istanbul after the great fire.

י״ב בתמוז ה׳תכ״א 12th 𝑜𝑓 Tamuz, AM 5421: A court record documented the exclusion of יהודים YEHUDIM from part of central Istanbul after the great fire. Rebuilding around a mosque made urban redevelopment an instrument of Jew-hatred.6

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ד׳ בכסלו ה׳תק״ג 4th 𝑜𝑓 Kislev, AM 5503Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

The first siege of טבריה TEVERIYA was lifted amid a struggle between regional authorities.

ד׳ בכסלו ה׳תק״ג 4th 𝑜𝑓 Kislev, AM 5503: The first siege of טבריה TEVERIYA was lifted amid a struggle between regional authorities. Its community established an annual פורים שני PURIM ŜENI, preserving its own account of survival within imperial warfare.7

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כ״ו בחשוון ה׳ת״ר 26th 𝑜𝑓 Ḥeŝvan, AM 5600Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

Turkish ruler Abdülmecid I proclaimed guarantees for the lives, honor and property of imperial subjects, including non-Muslims.

כ״ו בחשוון ה׳ת״ר 26th 𝑜𝑓 Ḥeŝvan, AM 5600: Turkish ruler Abdülmecid I proclaimed guarantees for the lives, honor and property of imperial subjects, including non-Muslims. The Gülhane proclamation promised protections; it did not establish that every official honored them.8

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י׳ בחשוון ה׳תר״א 10th 𝑜𝑓 Ḥeŝvan, AM 5601Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

Abdülmecid I rejected blood libels and ordered protection for יהודים YEHUDIM after intervention by משה Montefiore MOŜE.

י׳ בחשוון ה׳תר״א 10th 𝑜𝑓 Ḥeŝvan, AM 5601: Abdülmecid I rejected blood libels and ordered protection for יהודים YEHUDIM after intervention by משה Montefiore MOŜE. The decree opposed a specific form of Jew-hatred; it was not the order that freed the Damascus prisoners.9

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ט״ו בתמוז ה׳תרכ״ח 15th 𝑜𝑓 Tamuz, AM 5628Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

An imperial approval allocated five free school places to pupils among יהודים YEHUDIM at Mekteb-i Sultani in Istanbul.

ט״ו בתמוז ה׳תרכ״ח 15th 𝑜𝑓 Tamuz, AM 5628: An imperial approval allocated five free school places to pupils among יהודים YEHUDIM at Mekteb-i Sultani in Istanbul. Access to state education became a concrete allocation, not only a promise of reform.10

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AM 5662 — the palace upheld its immigration prohibitionPrecision: source-label · Basis: not-assessed

A land-transfer dispute prompted renewed enforcement of the ban on immigration by יהודים YEHUDIM to ארץ ישראל EREẒ YISRAʾEL.

AM 5662 — the palace upheld its immigration prohibition: A land-transfer dispute prompted renewed enforcement of the ban on immigration by יהודים YEHUDIM to ארץ ישראל EREẒ YISRAʾEL. Admission to an imperial school did not mean freedom to return to the homeland.11

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ה׳ בניסן ה׳תרע״ז 5th 𝑜𝑓 Nisan, AM 5677Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

The Turkish Empire ordered the evacuation of יפו YAFO and תל אביב TEL AVIV.

ה׳ בניסן ה׳תרע״ז 5th 𝑜𝑓 Nisan, AM 5677: The Turkish Empire ordered the evacuation of יפו YAFO and תל אביב TEL AVIV. The threat of execution for remaining made the departure compulsory.12

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כ״ה בחשוון ה׳תרע״ט 25th 𝑜𝑓 Ḥeŝvan, AM 5679Precision: day · Basis: not-assessed

The Turkish Empire signed the Armistice of Mudros with the Allies.

כ״ה בחשוון ה׳תרע״ט 25th 𝑜𝑓 Ḥeŝvan, AM 5679: The Turkish Empire signed the Armistice of Mudros with the Allies. The agreement ended its participation in World War I, not the history of the communities that had lived under its rule.13

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Footnotes

  1. Başbakanlık Devlet Arşivleri, 3 Numaralı Mühimme Defteri, orders 1556–1557, 690–691 ↩
  2. Başbakanlık Devlet Arşivleri, 82 Numaralı Mühimme Defteri, order 220, 139–145 ↩
  3. Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı, 82-1 Numaralı Mühimme Defteri, order 257, 216–218 ↩
  4. Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı, 82-1 Numaralı Mühimme Defteri, order 579, 405–408 ↩
  5. Jewish Virtual Library, Baghdad, The placement follows the transmitted communal anniversary. ↩
  6. Yıldız, 1660 Büyük İstanbul Yangını, 493, note 24. This dates the attestation, not the ban's original issuance. ↩
  7. Chabad, Double Salvation of Tiberias, ↩
  8. Rescript of Gülhane, Text dated November 3, 1839. ↩
  9. National Library of Israel, 1840 blood-libel firman,; Montefiore, Diaries of Sir Moses and Lady Montefiore, vol. 1, ↩
  10. Başbakanlık Devlet Arşivleri, Osmanlı Eğitiminde Modernleşme, document 23, 88–90 ↩
  11. Başbakanlık Devlet Arşivleri, Osmanlı Belgelerinde Filistin, document 65, 307–308. The conflicting printed dates all fall in late 1901. ↩
  12. גירוש יהודי יפו ותל־אביב, Chapter גירוש יהודי יפו ותל־אביב. Dates the order to 5 Nisan / March 28, 1917, before implementation. ↩
  13. Armistice Convention with Turkey,; I. Dünya Savaşı Sonrasında Osmanlı Topraklarından Müttefik Macar Asker ve Sivilin Tahliyesi, 2211, note 13. Reports signature at 20:03 on October 30, 1918, after the beginning of the next day in the עברית IVRIT calendar. ↩