the black death in early ottoman territories - Bilkent University

while later his brother. They were buried with all the pomp befitting a state
funeral, and with the mamluk Sultan al-Gawrî leading the ceremony. The convoy
of Süleyman's funeral was proceeded by almgivers, paid for by the Sultan.
Süleyman's horses passed in front, their tails cut, and the saddles turned upside
down. His turban was placed on top of the bier, as well as his bows, which had
been broken according to Ottoman custom. 389
Trade
As was the case for war, international trade would both be a means of
promulgating the disease and at the same time be profoundly reshaped because of
it. Some of its effects were indirect: disruption of the trade in commodities like
grain would lead to famine, so undermining people's resistance towards disease in
general and making populations receptive to outbreaks. In 1347, just before the
first pandemic arrived in Europe, Venice was suffering from severe shortages of
cereals as a result of the Tatars' blockage of the Black Sea trade. This is illustrated
by the entry of 24 April 1347 of the Venetian Senate's deliberations :
Le Sénat avait interdit en février 1344 tout commerce avec les régions
soumises à Zanibeck; devant la pénurie de blé, il autorise à présent les
marchands vénitiens à se rendre là-bas pour charger des céréales. 390
A subsequent entry of 23 August 1347 shows that the situation in Venice had not
improved by the summer of 1347 and that the Senate was desperately looking for
grain supplies, wheat being the staple food of their population :
Ordre au baile de Constantinople de faire tout son possible pour accélérer
et développer les achats de blé partout où il le peut et d'emprunter tout
l'argent nécessaire; le comte de Raguse est chargé d'envoyer un courrier à
389
Veinstein, Les Ottomans et la Mort. Permanences et mutations, 180.
390
Thiriet, Régestes des délibérations du Sénat de Venise concernant la Romanie. tome premier:
1329-1399, 60.
104