Townshi̇p of Şirnak in the Ottoman administrative divisions and struggles among tribes (1850-1914)

The Ottoman Empire was ruled with a perfect administrative system. This administrative system consisted of states, provinces, districts, townships and villages from top to bottom. With the the Rescript of Gülhane (Tanzimat Fermanı), changes were made in the social, economic, administrative, cultural and political structures of the empire. One of the most important properties of that time was the changes made in the central and rural administrations. Undoubtedly, those changes had a great influence on the formation of the modern administrative system. Having been included to the divisions of Ottoman administrative division as a township since the second half of the XIX century, Shernakh was turned into a district in 1875 as it bordered the provinces of Bitlis, Hakkâri and Van. After that, officers required for the district administration were started to be appointed to Shernakh. Hence, an organized administrative establishment was formed, an administrative council of the district was founded and relevant activities got started. But this state did not last for a long time; the district of Shernakh was abolished and turned into a township again. The reasons for Shernakh?s losing its status as a district should be searched for in its internal dynamics. Tribes living especially in Shernakh frequently opposed the practices of the central administration because full establishment of the central administration might result in loss of power for them. Hence, administrators and tribe leaders collided occasionally. Shernakh was converted to a district because of the objections of the people to the central government and the geographical position of Shernakh again on 23 July 1914. The objective of our thesis is to present a history of a ?district? by analyzing the political, administrative and social history of Shernakh in a period we determined as 1850? 1914. The scope of our thesis includes the administrative divisions in the district since the Rescript of Gülhane (Tanzimat) and the relations between the tribes in the region. Our study tries to analyze its subject in its totality by referring to not only the archives of the Ottoman Empire and yearbooks of the province of Diyarbekir but also the second hand sources that give information concerning the relevant era. Key Words : The Ottoman Empire, Administrative structure, Township, Shernakh, Tribe.