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

This expression in Ismail’s letter was seemingly written in order to reinforce this
hope. 1604
Indeed we do not have enough evidence about the religious stand of Turgutoğlu
tribe. To what extend they adhered to the religious and mystical ideas of the Safavid
Order is not clear. What is clear within the available evidence, however, is that they had
always been against the expansion of the Ottoman rule in Anatolia. Though the primary
reasons of their fierce opposition were political, one should not also underestimate the
role of socio-cultural discrepancy between the settled and controlled society provisioned
by the Ottoman state and the nomadic-tribal societies of the Turkoman heritage. 1605
Consequently, it would not be wrong to assume that there was a certain affinity between
qizilbash way of religion and socio-cultural structure of Turgutoğlu tribe. In a similar
vein, one could suggest a similar affinity between the religio-mystic interpretation of
Safavid sheikhs and other Turkoman tribal populations such as Karaman, Varsak,
Ramazanoğlu, Afşar etc. Indeed we have enough historical sources to assume that these
tribal groups were the main milieu in which the qizilbash message was rooted deeply
and was growing.
1604 Indeed, Ismail’s attack on Ottoman land was not impossible before 1514. But we do not have clear
evidence pointing out his preparation for such a campaign on Anatolia. Nevertheless, Ismail skillfully kept
the hope of Anatolian disciples alive for such a campaign. Accordingly the Safavid administration
successfully kept public excitement among Anatolian Turkomans which weakened the suzerainty of the
Ottomans.
1605 For further reading on Turgutoğlu tribe see Zeki Oral, “Turgut oğulları”, IV. Türk Tarih Kongresi
1948, Ankara, 1952, 140-158; “Turgut oğulları, eserleri-vakfiyeleri”, Vakıflar Dergisi, 3, 1956, 31-64;
Faruk Sümer, “Turgutlular”, IA.
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