Milli Tribe of the Ottoman Empire(18th-19tc c.)

Milli Tribe was a nomadic tribe in the Ottoman Empire whose living places were dominantly in Diyarbekir, Mardin, Urfa and Rakka. In time, some members of the tribe performed the duties of voyvoda. Thereupon, certain parts of the Milli Tribe were urbanized in Mardin and Urfa-Viranşehir regions. Milli Tribe gained more power after a successful incorporation of more tribes into its structure after the southerly flowed attacks of Urbans from the desert, which destroyed the Boz-Ulus Confederation. The rulers of Milli Tribe sometimes had a close relations to the Ottoman central government though sometimes they stayed in oppositon since they carried their own interests. The power of tribe reduced and vanished in the periods when the tribe-state relations were in conflict. Milli Tribe, which embraced the policies of Abdülhamid II in the end of the 19th century, increased its power after joining to the Hamidian cavalry regiments. The Committee of Union and Progress, which was the main cause behind the declaration of second constitution in 1908, swept the dominant powerful elements of Sultan Abdulhamid II. The leader of Milli Tribe, İbrahim Pasha, who was one of the most significant supporters of Abdülhamid II, received his own share and he was liquidated from power. Hence, the Milli Tribe graduallly lost its own power. Key Words: Milli Tribe, Hamidian, Cavalry Regiments, Milli İbrahim Pasha.