The Tobunken Seminar "Workshop Series on Ottoman History 2: Corporate bodies and status groups in the Ottoman Empire" was held online on November 5, 2022, attended by 26 participants from Japan and Turkey.

Professor Nalan Turna (Yıldız Technical University, Turkey) gave a presentation entitled "Artisans and Janissaries of Istanbul Before and After the Auspicious Event, 1808–1839" and discussed the transformation of the artisans after the abolition of the Janissaries in 1826. Professor Eunjeong Yi (Seoul National University) gave comments and questions on the presentation, followed by a lively discussion over the issues such as the relationship between artisans and Janissaries and the concept of "economic Tanzimat."

This workshop was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number 20H01322.

Date and time: November 5, 2022 (Sat), 3pm–5pm (JST)

Venue: Zoom meeting

Speaker: Nalan Turna (Yıldız Technical University)

Title: Artisans and Janissaries of Istanbul Before and After the Auspicious Event, 1808–1839

Discussant: Eunjeong Yi (Seoul National University)

Abstract:
Instead of the Anglo-Ottoman Treaty of 1838 (Balta Limanı Anlaşması) and the Tanzimat Edict of 1839, this paper dates Ottoman liberalization to the Auspicious Event (Vak'a-i Hayriyye) of 1826, demonstrating the extent to which the Auspicious Event marked the end of guild privileges, which had been widespread since the eighteenth century and beyond. To this end, focusing on urban Istanbul, the paper first examines relations between the artisans and their armed defenders, the janissaries, before the Auspicious Event. It then turns to the post-1826 period to examine what happened to the artisans when they lost their 'janissary guards'.