The hejaz under the Ottoman rule and the Hejaz province in Ottoman Parliamentary Papers (1908-1918)

The Hejaz area contains important sacred places for the Islamic world. Mecca and Medina, located within the borders of Hejaz, hold a crucial significance for Muslims because they are pilgrimage centers. Mecca, Medina and Jeddah cities were located within the borders of Hejaz province, joined the Ottoman lands in 1517 with the conquest of Egypt, which was occured during the reign of Yavuz Sultan Selim. Although the border lines of Hejaz changed in the process of time, the area kept its importance on, as it is mentioned above, from 1908 until the fall of the Ottoman state. With the proclamation of 1864 Province Regulations (Vilayet Nizamnamesi) Hejaz was transformed from the province into a vilayet in 1868. Upon the decision Sultan Abdulhamit II, the Hejaz Railway between Damascus and Medina was started to be built in order to facilitate of some reasons such as a political, administrative, economic and pilgrimage worship. After the declaration of the II. Constitutional Monarchy, Meclis-i Mebusan was reopened in 1908. The issues of the Hejaz region such as the Hejaz railroad, the diseases that emerged in the region, managerial problems, the budget problems of the region and the turmoil created by the regional sheriffs, were discussed in the sessions of the Parliament. Keywords: Hejaz, Ottoman State, Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Hejaz Deputies, Ottoman Parliament, The Ottoman Parliamentary Papers (Meclis-i Mebusan Zabıt Ceridesi)