The Principality of Bitlis, also known as the Bitlis Khanate and the Bitlis Emirate (1182–early 19th century) was a Kurdish

principality A principality (or sometimes princedom) can either be a monarchical feudatory or a sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a regnant-monarch with the title of prince and/or princess, or by a monarch with another title considered to fall un ...

originated from the ''Rojaki'' (or ''Rozagi'') tribal confederation. The Rojaki defeated the Georgian King David the Curopalate and conquered

Bitlis Bitlis ( hy, Բաղեշ '; ku, Bidlîs; ota, بتليس) is a city in southeastern Turkey and the capital of Bitlis Province. The city is located at an elevation of 1,545 metres, 15 km from Lake Van, in the steep-sided valley of the Bitlis R ...

and

Sasun Sason ( hy, Սասուն, translit=Sasun, ku, Qabilcewz, ar, قبل جوز; formerly known as Sasun or Sassoun) is a district and town in the Batman Province of Turkey. It was formerly part of the sanjak of Siirt, which was in Diyarbakır ...

in the 10th century. The principality occasionally came under the rule of outsiders, such as the

Aq Qoyunlu The Aq Qoyunlu ( az, Ağqoyunlular , ) was a culturally Persianate,Kaushik Roy, ''Military Transition in Early Modern Asia, 1400–1750'', (Bloomsbury, 2014), 38; "Post-Mongol Persia and Iraq were ruled by two tribal confederations: Akkoyunlu (W ...

(from 1467 to 1495) and the Safavids (from 1507 to 1514). After the decline of the Aq Qoyunlu, the Rojaki princes asserted their independence. The principality supported the Ottoman Sultan

Selim I Selim I ( ota, سليم الأول; tr, I. Selim; 10 October 1470 – 22 September 1520), known as Selim the Grim or Selim the Resolute ( tr, links=no, Yavuz Sultan Selim), was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1512 to 1520. Despite las ...

and its rulers were named Noble Khans in return. In 1531, the Rojaki prince withdrew his support for the Ottomans and turned towards the Safavids instead, an event that lead to the capture of the principality by the Ottomans. A good era for the principality began in 1578, as Sultan

Murad III Murad III ( ota, مراد ثالث, Murād-i sālis; tr, III. Murad; 4 July 1546 – 16 January 1595) was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1574 until his death in 1595. His rule saw battles with the Habsburgs and exhausting wars with the Sa ...

nominated

Sharaf al-Din Bitlisi Sharaf al-Din Khan b. Shams al-Din b. Sharaf Beg Bedlisi ( Kurdish: شەرەفخانی بەدلیسی, ''Şerefxanê Bedlîsî''; fa, شرف‌الدین خان بن شمس‌الدین بن شرف بیگ بدلیسی; 25 February 1543 – ) wa ...

the Emir of the principality. Until 1596, eighteen Rojaki princes ruled the principality. The Rojaki khans maintained their relative independence during the long rivalry between the

Ottomans The Ottoman Turks ( tr, Osmanlı Türkleri), were the Turkic founding and sociopolitically the most dominant ethnic group of the Ottoman Empire ( 1299/1302–1922). Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks remains scarce, ...

and the Safavids. In 1665, Abdal Khan's status as the Emir of the principality was strengthened after a visit to Bitlis by the Ottoman sultan Murad IV as he supported the Ottomans in their feud with the Safavids. Abdal Khan has been described by the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

traveller

Jean-Baptiste Tavernier Jean-Baptiste Tavernier (1605–1689) was a 17th-century French gem merchant and traveler. Tavernier, a private individual and merchant traveling at his own expense, covered, by his own account, 60,000 leagues in making six voyages to Persia ...

as the most powerful Kurdish prince. According to him, Abdal Khan was independent and did not acknowledge the Safavid or Ottoman states.

Evliya Çelebi Derviş Mehmed Zillî (25 March 1611 – 1682), known as Evliya Çelebi ( ota, اوليا چلبى), was an Ottoman explorer who travelled through the territory of the Ottoman Empire and neighboring lands over a period of forty years, recording ...

has praised Abdal Khan as a

renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...

prince and owner of a library of books in several languages. Several European travelers noted the ability of the emirate to call in militias (up to 12,000 cavalry forces) in order to defend itself. The autonomy of the principality ended in 1655 as Emir Abdal Khan entered into conflict with the Malik Ahmad Pasha, the

Wāli ''Wāli'', ''Wā'lī'' or ''vali'' (from ar, والي ''Wālī'') is an administrative title that was used in the Muslim World (including the Caliphate and Ottoman Empire) to designate governors of administrative divisions. It is still in us ...

Van A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. Depending on the type of van, it can be bigger or smaller than a pickup truck and SUV, and bigger than a common car. There is some varying in the scope of the word across th ...

at the time. Abdal Khan was accused of confiscating properties in Bitlis by merchants in Van and an his closeness with the

Yazidis Yazidis or Yezidis (; ku, ئێزیدی, translit=Êzidî) are a Kurmanji-speaking endogamous minority group who are indigenous to Kurdistan, a geographical region in Western Asia that includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran. The ma ...

. As result, the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

ended its tolerance towards the autonomy of the principality of Bitlis. In the 18th century the rulers of the principality switched frequently due to inter-genetational conflict.Eventually in the early 19th century Bitlis became a part of the Emirate of Muş and the khans lost their position as administrators.

See also

References

Further reading