The ''martolos'' was an internal security force of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

in the Balkans ('' Rumelia''), mostly active between the 15th to 17th centuries. It initially constituted out of the local mostly Christian populations (

Rum Millet Rūm millet (millet-i Rûm), or "''Roman nation''", was the name of the Eastern Orthodox Christian community in the Ottoman Empire. Despite being subordinated within the Ottoman political system, the community maintained a certain internal aut ...

), but over time members converted into Islam. For their military service, they were given privileged status (as ''

askeri Under the Ottoman Empire, an askeri (Ottoman Turkish: عسكري) was a member of a class of military administrators. This elite class consisted of three main groups: the military, the court officials, and clergy. Though the term ''askeri'' itse ...

''), in relation to the Rayah. Their commanders were predominantly Muslim.

Tasks and privileges

In the mid-15th century, after the Ottoman conquests, the ''martolos'' were used as armed police. They usually worked locally as peace-time border patrols, fortress guards, security for mines, strategic road guards (''derbend''), and they were occasionally used as soldiers during war, or tax collectors. They were somewhat similar to another Ottoman organization, the Voynuks, recruited in South Slavic territories, initially tasked with the defense and security, then later used as auxiliary transportation units. Due to their positions, they were allowed and able to hold

timar A timar was a land grant by the sultans of the Ottoman Empire between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries, with an annual tax revenue of less than 20,000 akçes. The revenues produced from the land acted as compensation for military service ...

s. They received a daily wage, and ''

'' status, despite still being Christian. Their commanders were predominantly Muslim (''martolos bashi''). The duty was hereditary. They were exempted from the '' jizya'' and various local taxes.

History

The ''martolos'' system was adopted from the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

. Predominantly recruited from the Balkans, they were chosen from the land-owning Orthodox Christians, who retaining their religion, entered the ''

'' caste. The ''martolos'' were used as armed police in the mid-15th century, and in the following two centuries had various security tasks (see previous section). To northwestern Bosnia and parts of Croatia (

sanjak of Klis The Sanjak of Klis ( tr, Kilis Sancağı; sh, Kliški sandžak) was a sanjak of the Ottoman Empire which seat was in the Fortress of Klis in Klis (modern-day Croatia) till capture by Republic of Venice in 1648, latterly in Livno between 1648-18 ...

and Lika) Ottomans settled

Vlach "Vlach" ( or ), also "Wallachian" (and many other variants), is a historical term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate mainly Romanians but also Aromanians, Megleno-Romanians, Istro-Romanians and other Easter ...

which were incorporated into hereditary Christian groups of ''martolos'' and '' voynuks''. In

Ottoman Hungary Ottoman Hungary ( hu, Török hódoltság) was the southern and central parts of what had been the Kingdom of Hungary in the late medieval period, which were conquered and ruled by the Ottoman Empire from 1541 to 1699. The Ottoman rule covered ...

and Buda area

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

in great numbers served as ''martolos'', which were Christian origin members largely recruited from the Vlach and Vlach like population.Kursar Vjeran; (2013) ''Being an Ottoman Vlach: On Vlach Identity(ies), Role and Status in Western Parts of the Ottoman Balkans (15th-18th Centuries)'' p. 134;

OTAM. Ankara. 34 It initially constituted out of the local mostly Christian populations (

), but over time members converted into Sunni Islam, Islam. In the 17th century, following the increase of local Christian antagonism in the Balkans, the ''martolos'' that were put against the hajduks (rebels) created hostility, with some ''martolos'' joining the rebels. Due to this, the Porte had abolished the right to Balkan Christians to serve as ''martolos'' in 1692. By 1722, the Rumelian beylerbey Osman Pasha merged the organization into the Muslim ''pandor'' (local security police). A few ''martolos'' persisted in northern Macedonia until the 19th century, then replaced by the Tanzimat reforms.

Terminology

The tr, martolos, is derived from gr, armatolos, meaning "armed man, militiaman". Being the original word for Christians in the Ottoman army, ''martolos'' became a general word for various Christian military groups and individuals, being used by the Ottomans for Christian spies, pathfinders, messengers, Danube boatsmen, and fortress guards, as well as for the Christian rebels fighting the '' akinci''. During Suleiman's reign (1520–66), the term was also used for local Christian police forces, especially in brigandage-infested regions of

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

and

Morea The Morea ( el, Μορέας or ) was the name of the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece during the Middle Ages and the early modern period. The name was used for the Byzantine province known as the Despotate of the Morea, by the Ottom ...

References

Sources

* * * * *{{cite book, last=Bosworth, first=Clifford Edmund, title=The Encyclopedia of Islam, Volume 6, Fascicules 107-108, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tPsUAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA613, date=1989, publisher=Brill Archive, isbn=90-04-09082-7, page=613 Military units and formations of the Ottoman Empire 15th-century establishments in the Ottoman Empire 18th-century disestablishments in the Ottoman Empire Christians from the Ottoman Empire Ottoman period in the Balkans Auxiliary military units Auxiliary police units Historical law enforcement occupations