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

evaluated below makes us to think otherwise. A close examination of the contemporary
reports of Selim’s spies in Anatolia give the impression that Murad’s connection with
the qizilbash movement was far beyond solely pragmatic-political purpose; rather, he
seems to have sincerely attached himself to the qizilbash cause to a certain extent as
well. Likewise, when his father called Murad to his suite when preparing an army
against Selim, he didn’t accept Ahmed’s invitation arguing that he had his own works in
the Province of Rum.
Although Kemalpaşazāde and Celalzāde seem reasonable in explaining the
beginning of Ahmed and Murad’s correspondence with the qizilbashes, they are
obviously inclined to overlook the fact that after a while Murad became absorbed in
qizilbash ideals to such an extent that he even broke off his father’s struggle. The reason
for this sort of attitude of two prominent bureaucrats and ulemās of Ottoman realm is not
difficult to realize. Their concern was obviously to conceal the adherence of an Ottoman
prince to the qizilbashism, a religio-mystical path which was officially delineated and
proclaimed as ‘heresy’. Rather, they present his liaison just as a political tactic produced
by the incompetent retinues of Ahmed. In doing so, they were in search of exonerating
the members of royal line from religiously and ideological ‘heresy’. It is not surprising
from this point of view that Prince Şehinşah’s adherence to qizilbashism, which is
clearly presented in archival reports, is also never mentioned in Ottoman chronicles.
Indeed, they could not free them from intrinsically admitting Murad’s ideological
adherence to qizilbash movement. According to Kemalpaşazāde, for example, when
Ahmed wanted Murad to rid himself of the qizilbashes since they caused to erode the
popular support for Ahmed with their outrages, Murad did not obey his father but
consulted a certain Kara Iskender, one of qizilbash khalifas, who suggested going to the
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