TURKOMANS BETWEEN TWO EMPIRES: THE ... - Bilkent University

confront Ismail’s forces. 1117 Hoca Saadeddin, who wrote events more than half a century
later, however, does not point out Bayezid’s offensive objectives. To him, Yahya Pasha
was ordered to interfere whence Ismail’s forces engaged in ‘inappropriate affairs’
(uygunsuz davranış) such as the spilling of innocent blood and assaulting on probity (ırz
ve namus) of the subjects. The Ottoman army would watch the borders and protect the
country from any possible assault of Ismail’s troops. 1118 Ali, on the other hand, confirms
Bayezid’s offensive intentions. He states that Bayezid commissioned Yahya Pasha to
punish the commander of the seditious troops that entered his country without
permission. 1119
Yahya Pasha arrived in Ankara where the Anatolian troops commanded by
Karagöz Pasha had already garrisoned. 1120 He sent one thousand cavalries from Rumeli
soldiers to the Kayseri region in order to take captives (dil almak) and to derive
intelligence. 1121 Basing his work on Italian sources Sydney Fisher writes that in Ankara
there were about 70.000 men under Yahya Pasha. At the same time in Aksaray 10.000
men under Prince Şehinşah, in Kayseri 23.000 men under Karagöz Pasha, and in
1117 As already delineated, the military moved to Ankara under the command of Yahya Pasha in 1500 and
aimed to protect the frontiers in case of Ismail’s attack on Ottoman territories and to block communication
and transportation between the Shah and his Anatolian adherents.
1118 HSE3, pp. 350-51.
1119 But he confuses the chronology. He narrates as if Yahya Pasha moved while Ismail was in Ottoman
territories. According to his account it was upon the advance of Yahya Pasha towards the eastern frontier
that Ismail deserted Ottoman lands and entered the country of the Dulkadir. The related passage in
Kitabu’t-Tarih-i Künhü’l-Ahbar reads: “Fe-ammā bu kıssa [that Ismail’s entrance into Ottoman land
without permission] ki, ma’ruz-ı Şehriyāri oldı, Rūm-ili ve Anatolı leşkeri ve vezir-i kihter ve şecā’atle
nām-ver ve büzürg-ter olan Yahya Paşa’yı sipeh-sālār nasb itdiler. ‘Đcāzetsiz memlekete duhūl iden serdār-ı
zümre-i Celāli’nin hakkından gelinmesi lāzımdır’ diyu gönderdiler. Vaktā ki, bu ahbār mesmū’-ı
Şāh-ı zü’l-iştihār oldı, ‘Hodāvendigār-ı milk-i Rūm, benim vālid-i mācid-i büzürg-vārımdır ve anların
that-ı tasarrufundaki merz u būm ne benim murād u matlūbum ve ne maksūd u muhtārımdır’ diyū cevābnāme
gönderdi ve gendüsü bilā-tevakkuf o nāhiyeden göçüb ‘Alāu’d-Devle memleketine duhūl eyledi.”
ALI, p. 909. SLZ repeats same mistake. See SLZ1, p.432.
1120 KPZ8a, p. 258; HSE3, p. 350.
1121 KPZ8a, p. 258.
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