Abstract:

The Mamluks, who ruled in Egypt and Syria between 648/1250 and 923/1517, were a Turkish state established by Turkish-origin people who were taken as slaves and eventually took over the administration. During the Mamluk period, Christians and Jews were accepted by both the state and society. These minorities were an integral part of Mamluk society and were subject to social, political, economic, and intellectual life like other members of society. At times, they were assigned various positions in the government, while at other times, they were dismissed from their duties due to undesirable events and faced employment bans. The administrative experiences of non-Muslims in the government were effective in their assignments to various levels of the state during the Mamluk period. Thus, non-Muslims were continuously employed in administrative and financial positions of the state during the Mamluk period. Although it was said that the most prestigious position that non-Muslims could achieve in the government administration was the position of a clerk, non-Muslims were assigned to top positions in the state from the early period of the Mamluks. During this period, non-Muslims were employed in positions such as vizier and governorship, as well as clerks, interpreters, advisors, doctors, and ambassadors. In fact, during the reign of Sultan Aybek (648-784/1250-1257), his vizier, Şerefüddin, was a Christian. He preferred to assign Christians to important financial positions in the state using his position as vizier. Thus, Christians became privileged in Mamluk society during this period. It is also stated that because Vezir Şerefüddin is an intellectual, he writes the laws of the state. Later, during the reign of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad b. Qalawun (709-741/1309-1341), a Coptic Christian named Abdullah b. Taj al-Riyasah was employed as a vizier both in Damascus and Egypt. Additionally, due to their ability to speak different languages, non-Muslims served as translators in international diplomacy and trade as well as serving as ambassadors. During the reign of Sultan el-Melikü’l-Eşref Barsbay, the traveler Pero Tafur, who visited Egypt, stated that the Sultan's interpreter was a non-Muslim named Haym who later took on a different name when he converted to Islam. Similarly, it is known that a person named Nasreddin, who came to Jerusalem from Spain in 1420 and worked as a translator here and later became a Muslim, is a person of Jewish origin. In the same way, during the reign of Sultan al-Meliku'l-Ashraf Kansu Gavri, Yakup, who was a teacher from the ahl al-zim, was appointed head of the mint. In this sense, it is understood that under Mamluk rule, Jews were employed not only in the financial and economic fields but also in areas such as translation and clerical work. Medicine and money-changing also held an important place among Jewish professions during that period. Sources from the 7th century AH indicate that "tax collection and medicine were the most important sources of income for Jews and Christians." During this period, the medical profession was generally associated with Jews. They were able to exert influence over the palace and the royal authority through this profession. This also led to an increase in the reputation of the Jewish community among society. Therefore, those who lived under the administration of the Mamluk state, generally in the zimmî status, and specifically Jews and Christians, were always part of the Mamluk population and were assigned to different levels of the state. Non-Muslims who were appointed within the state were sometimes dismissed from their duties, but some of them were returned to their duties with dignity after a while.

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