The Last Generation: Harem Eunuchs in the Late Ottoman Empire and Early Republican Turkey Open Access

Abstract

By virtue of their proximity to the Sultan, personal relationships with the royal family, and their intermediary position between the private and public areas of the palace, Ottoman harem eunuchs occupied a unique place and wielded significant political power in the Ottoman Empire. Comprehensive modernization efforts, which the Ottoman Empire undertook throughout the 19th century and the Turkish Republic continued in the first half of the 20th, drastically affected virtually every aspect of Ottoman and Turkish life. Naturally, this process also changed the political and social lives of harem eunuchs. This thesis focuses on and highlights three parts of this multi-faceted phenomenon—the slave trade, political-bureaucratic reform, and the rise of the new Turkish nation—that correspond to three different life stages of harem eunuchs that lived during this period of history. Examining personal accounts and contemporary news articles in addition to the secondary scholarship, I find that the modernization process disrupted the traditional life trajectory of Ottoman harem eunuchs. It severed relationships and connections which had served to define and empower them. Eunuchs were not mere passive witnesses of this transformation and adapted to changing circumstances by forging new connections despite the uncertainty of the modern world.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

 

Introduction…………………………………………………………………..……………………1

Chapter 1: Slave Trade & Separation………………………………………….….……….….…14

Chapter 2: Palace & Political Power………………………………………..……………………37

Chapter 3: The New Nation & The Precarity of Freedom…………………...…………………..56

Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………….89

REFERENCES………………………………………………………………………………..…96

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	Middle Eastern and South Asian Studies
Degree	B.A.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	African Studies History, Modern History, Middle Eastern
Keyword	Ottoman History Eunuchs Modernization Afro-Turks
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Scott A. Kugle, Emory University
Committee Members	Matthew Payne, Emory University Roxani Margariti, Emory University

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