Ottoman raiders

The logic behind raids of Ottoman forces (Akincis and Delis) deep into Central Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries and their use in modern wargaming scenarios

By Abdullah Turhal Photographs of figures are from the Altar Modelling (Ankara- Turkey) collection.

Akıncis under the command of Akinci Bey

(Figures are Old Glory - US)

www.altarmodelling.com

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Introduction

The famous and fearsome raids of the Ottoman light cavalry units in the Balkans and Central European lands extending even to Germany, in the 15th and 16th centuries were not acts, solely motivated, by looting or plundering. Although taking large bounties, slaves and plundering were part of these raids, the main idea behind establishment of such units were different and were compatible with the bigger Ottoman military strategy towards expansion into European lands. The aim of this article is to explore the main idea behind a raid and to explore real place of these light cavalry troops namely Akincis and Delis within the huge Ottoman military system and see their use in modern wargaming scenarios, particularly in WAB system.

Ottoman expansion into the Balkans and beyond

There are various reasons as to why Ottomans preferred to expand into the Balkans rather than marching eastwards, after it was founded in 1299 in West of Anatolia. The presence of strong opponents in the East, the continuous flow of Turkmen waves from East to West, the relative feasibility of directing this flow into non-Muslim lands rather than accommodating the rivalry with the Muslim states to the East and South East and the relative weakness of smaller states and kingdoms in the Balkans at the time can all be counted as reasons. Ottomans were one of many other smaller principalities called beyliks in Anatolia competing with each other after the destruction of state of Seljuks of Rum by the Mongols. In time, small Ottoman beylik grew in strength to become the one and only dominant power over them. In the West, long before collapse of Eastern Roman Empire (i.e Byzantine Empire), which was trapped into a small portion of Istanbul (roughly into 10% of land of today’s Istanbul), Ottomans well made a permanent presence in the Balkans. The decisive victories in battles of Kosovo 1389 & 1448, battle of Nicopolis 1396 and battle of Varna 1444 moved Ottomans into borders of the Hungarian Empire, which was strongest empire in the east Europe in those years. When Mehmed II conquered Istanbul in 1453, Ottoman state took over the legacy of the Roman Empire and Mehmed the Conqueror received the epithet of Kaiser or Caesar in the true tradition of the medieval ages where all major empires try to link them to the once mighty Roman Empire and sit on its legacy. By conquering the capital of the Empire, he became the “Emperor of the Roman Empire”.1 From that time on, to expand territories in Europe was not, enough and Ottoman Sultans aimed to set deep roots in conquered areas, to settle flowing tribes of Turks from east successfully in these areas and to gain indigenous people in the East Europe with religious and political tolerance. This surely was key to Ottoman success continued for centuries in these areas until its demise in early 20th century after the First World War.

1 Stephen Turnbull, The Ottoman Empire, Osprey Publishing, Great Britain, 2003, p 77

Ottoman warfare in the 15-16th centuries

Composition of the Ottoman Army Ottoman Empire was a military empire and never lost this character until its collapse in the 20th century. Having a strong army ready at all times, capable of latest technology was the most important priority for the Ottoman Sultans.

Ottoman Army, Ordû-yi Hümâyûn, in Ottoman Turkish, literally meant the sacred army of the Sultan. It was formed from two distinct type of soldiers. First was the standing army, paid by the state, kept always under arms, a professional army namely Kapıkulu soldiers (literally meaning Servants of the Porte). Cavalry units in this group were known as Sipahis and infantry were known as Janissaries. Gunners and gun wagoneers and armourers were also part of the Kapıkulu soldiers. By 14th century, Ottoman state had the first standing army in Europe since the times of Roman Empire.2 This was a major privilege to Ottomans for centuries to come. European states founded similar standing armies in the coming centuries. For example, England formed its standing army only after the English Civil War in the 17th century.3 Second group in the Ottoman army was

2 Stephen Turnbull, The Ottoman Empire, Osprey Publishing, Great Britain, 2003, p 21 3 http://www.english-civil-war-society.org/public_html/html/clothing.html

the Eyalet soldiers (literally meaning soldiers from the provinces). These soldiers were having their normal businesses in peace time as farmers, blacksmiths etc. and summoned when ordered. Azab infantry, timarli sipahi cavalry, akinci and deli cavalry were part of the Eyalet soldiers. These soldiers, were inhabitants of the lands conquered and ruled by the Sultan and they were given important tasks in turning conquered lands into an Ottoman territory. Ottoman art of war Ottoman army, with all its units, were always ready by spring to march, this was called sefer. The target was usually only known by the Sultan and maybe by his close entourage. Opponents of the Ottomans had usually no idea who the target might be and even the army commanders and soldiers would not have known the target. Ottoman army aimed at marching in spring, engage enemy in small skirmishes at first and conclude the campaign decisively by a major field battle and be back at the barracks before winter. Never in its history had a sefer on two different targets was launched. The focus had always been on one opponent. The army then always retired before winter in autumn in an ordered manner. Before any sefer, Sultan would order the muster points for all eyalet soldiers. Without knowing which direction to go, these troops would gather in discipline. They were told of the enemy when Sultan believes all his forces have gathered. This could be a Hungarian army in the West or Persians in the East, as noted above, only Sultan and his close entourage knew about it. Ottoman army marched in great discipline as a massive entity. The army was self sufficient, meaning that all supplies for the entire campaign were carried by wagons and animals following the main army. Sultan and his Kapıkulu soldiers marched in the center while vanguard and rearguard were protected by the light cavalry units of the eyalet troops, that is to say by Akincis. The role of Akincis, however, was not limited to this function. Akinci organisation Akincis had one leader. This leader, known as akinci bey, usually inherited this title from his ancestor and his troops are named after the family name of this bey. Ottoman Sultan allocated different geographical sectors for these families in the European territories of the empire. In 14-16th centuries, akincis were organised in groups under four prominent akıncı beys. These were the Mihailogulları (in and around today’s Bosnia), Evrenosogulları (in and around today’s Croatia-Albania), Turhanogullari (in and around today’s Greece), Malkocogulları (in and around today’s Bulgaria-Romania) These are well known families in their regions, loyal to the Ottoman Sultan whom they served loyally for centuries until akincis lost their prominence.

Akıncis

(Figures are Old Glory - US)

Akıncis

(Figures are Old Glory - US) Ottoman Sultan gave military and civil tasks to the akinci forces. Military tasks of akincis were:

- To conduct reconnaissance. - To lead the way to the main army in the enemy territory. Akincis go 2-3 day ahead of the main army.

- To prevent enemy ambushes or hit-and-run attacks to the main army while it is on march thus vulnerable to attacks as it is not in combat order yet. (A small note here while on march, Janissaries, since they are foot soldiers, do not carry their weapons, their heavy muskets. These are allocated to them when the enemy is close). - To safeguard food, water resources and other strategic elements on the main army’s way. - To gather information on the enemy by getting prisoners - To identify water crossings on the main army’s way, to protect bridges and strategic passages. - To create fear and panic in the enemy territories, sometimes pretend the main army has arrived thereby, destroying willingness to defend in the eyes of the residents. - To keep enemy troops busy, prevent their vanguards reconnaissance and approach to the main Ottoman army. - In some cases, attack enemy army to save time for the marching main Ottoman army. - To launch attacks to enemy state’s nearby allies to deter them from helping the enemy and to stop reinforcements which are on their way to help the enemy army, to destroy them before they can unite. - To take part in major field battles. - In peace time, when the main army is away, protect the borders and counter enemy raids into Ottoman lands.

Civil tasks of akincis were:

- To contribute to infrastructure of the lands conquered by constructing mosques, caravansaries, fountains etc. - To help settling of Turks migrating from east to these new lands and help them in living peacefully with the local population - To provide social order in their areas

Name of each and every soldier were recorded in the “Akinci Book of Records” and this was always kept up to date in the administrative center in Rumelia and at the capital Istanbul. Akinci activities were named in accordance with the number of individual akincis participating in. There are three sizes, three different types of raid: - Cete: if less than 100 akincis participate. - Haramilik: if more than 100 akincis participate. - Akın: Akın is ordered directly by the Sultan and carried under the command of the Akinci Bey, him leading it with all men under his command. The number showed changes in time, to give an idea, in the Budin (1530) and German (1532) raids there were 50 thousand akincis under the command of Akinci beys4. 4 İsmail Hakkı Uzunçarşılı, Büyük Osmanlı Tarihi, Türk Tarih Kurumu Yayınları, Cilt 2, s 573

As can be seen from above tasks, akincis were not undisciplined troops of raiders, as implied by many Western resources, which were solely motivated by looting and plundering. They had far more deeper functions in the overall Ottoman warfare and expansion strategy. Weapons, armour and horses Akincis were light cavalry forces. They used swords, spears and protected themselves with round shields. They had a special mace called bozdogan attached to saddle on the left of their horses. Although some used simple breast armour, they usually did not use armour at all as they wanted to ride light and swift. According to witness accounts, some had eagle wings and were decorated with feathers. In a raid, each akinci had 4-5 extra horses with him.5 All the equipment and weapons were supplied by themselves.

Akınci

(Figures are Old Glory - US)

5 Mithat Sertoglu, Resimli Osmanlı Tarihi Ansiklopedisi, İskit Yayınevi, Istanbul, 1958, p 11

Deli cavalry forces Deli cavalry was another Ottoman light cavalry units, very similar to akincis. They were sometimes confused in historical records with the akincis. They too were part of the eyelet soldiers. Main difference between delis and akincis were that akincis were mobilised on call and they had their own means of living in peace time and delis, were in the entourage of Beylerbeys (governor-general) or sancak beys (provincial governors). They were part of the personal guard of these very high level Ottoman officials in the Rumelia.

Deli returning with 3 prisoners, bounty. Note the severed head attached to the tip of his large shield.

This was usually how a a raid ended. However, that was not the primary reason behind a raid! (Figures are Redoubt - UK)

Deli

(Figures are Redoubt - UK)

In Turkish, literally Deli meant ‘mad-head’. The name is such due to these men’s unthinkable courage and the way they dare where ‘normal’ soldiers could not.6 Any other theory to explain the origin of this unit’s name is historically invalid. There are two such very common invalid theories. First argues that in the Ottoman army, even madmen had their own regiment named “deli, maniacs, the riskers of the soul who allowed themselves to be used as battering rams”.7 However, name deli was given to those fighters due to their willingness to fight bravely. As one author put it, a more accurate translation of deli from Ottoman Turkish would be brave or even heroic rather than a maniac, mental or lunatic.8 Second theory argues that name deli actually came from word delil which literarily meant guide. However, this was also proved to be wrong by prominent Turkish historians.9

6 Allain Mannesson Mallet, L'Art de la Guerre 1684, p…. 7 Jason Goodwin, Lords of the Horizons: A history of the Ottoman Empire, London 1998, p 65 and Stephen Turnbull, The Ottoman Empire 1326-1699, Osprey Publishing, Great Britain 2003, p21 8 In his 17th century book, Allain Mannesson Mallet noted that in Turkish deli meant brave See Allain Mannesson Mallet, L'Art de la Guerre 1684, p 560.. See also Daniel Goffman, The Ottoman Empire and early Modern Europe, University Press, Cambridge 2002, p 1 9 See for example İsmail Hakkı Uzunçarşılı, Büyük Osmanlı Tarihi, Türk Tarih Kurumu Yayınları, Cilt 2, s 573 and Metin And, XVI. yy’da Eyalet Askerleri ve Deliler, Hayat Tarih Mecmuası, Sayı 4, Mayıs 1970, s 14

Raiding delis

(Figures are Old Glory - US) Delis were very useful in battles in the heyday of Ottoman military might. They attacked enemy formations without hesitation. They were all mounted on horses. They launched raids deep into enemy territory, acted as reconnaissance forces and gathered intelligence about enemy status, destroyed enemy food, water, weapon resources, created terror in the enemy side. An army being hit several times by deli raids, would lose a lot materially and psychologically before they have met the main Ottoman army on the battlefield. Participation to the deli cavalry was exclusive, to become a deli, one needed to prove courage and skill. Famous Byzantine historian Chalcondyles noted in his monumental work that one needed to be victorious against 8-10 mounted warriors to become a deli.10

10 French translation of Laonicus Chalcondyles’ work by Thomas Artus, Historie des Turcs, Vol II, plate 17, Paris 1662

Delis

(Figures are Old Glory - US) 50 or 60 delis gathered under the banner of a delibası (head mad-head). They had records of their soldiers and as seen in all other Ottoman military units, they were subject to strictest discipline and were always controlled with iron fist of their commanders.

Deli

(Figure is Old Glory - US)

When given chance, delis were very enthusiastic to show their loyalty to Ottoman Sultan by acts of courage sometimes leading to injuring or killing themselves. In later centuries this was banned by the Sultan himself and delis were forbidden to perform such acts in shows.11 Unusual appearance, weapons, armour and horses Delis had no single type of clothing. However, their appearance was distinctive and hallmarks of this outlook were the use of extravagant decoration with animal pelts, feathers and wings. The use of leopard fur, animal pelts and wings on their back and shield made them look very unusual. They looked much larger than a normal human and were fearsome in the face of their enemies in a period of warfare where to be seen bigger and mightier mattered most rather than trying to hide by camouflage. Deli’s clothing varied among each other and also changed through the course of time. Normally, they had a leopard fur cap decorated with eagle feathers on their head. They had leopard pelt covering part of their back and swinging from their shoulder. On top of the leopard skin in their back there were two large eagle wings attached. Their large rectangular shield with tapering tip had one or two eagle wings attached to it as well. They wore fur trousers and yellow pointy boots with long spurs.

Delis

(Figures are Old Glory - US) 11 Surname-i Humayun,

Deli

(Figure is Old Glory - US) Delis used swords, long thrusting spears and protect themselves with shields. They too had a special mace called bozdogan attached to saddle on the left of their horses. Mace was a symbolic sign of might in the Turkish military culture. None used armour as it was God’s will that would determine their end. Delis rode short fatty horses and they therefore needed these long spurs.12 There are no records as to whether they carried extra horses with them like Akincis did. The wings passed in the following years from Ottoman delis to their enemies, mainly to those in the East European kingdoms. Poles, Russians and other Slavic nations adopted certain elements, which terrified them for years, from deli clothing. Deli’s extravagant clothing with wings, feathers, pelts and furs were imitated in a very stylized way by the famous Polish Winged Hussars in the 16th and 17th centuries.13 The use of eagle wings is noted as a custom deriving from Turkey [i.e. from delis] passing to the Polish Winged Hussars.14 12 Allain Mannesson Mallet, L'Art de la Guerre 1684, p 560 13 Richard Brzezinski, Polish Winged Hussar 1576-1775, Osprey Publishing, Great Britain 2006, pp 20, 22 and 61 14 Zdzislaw Zygulski, Jr., “The Winged Hussars of Poland, http://www.myarmoury.com/feature_hussars.html

Delis

(Figures are Old Glory - US) Turkish historians resembled Akincis and Delis to eagles. “People were terrified from these mighty warriors magically travelling over mountains and cliffs” noted one historian for their raids in the Balkans.15 Both akıncıs and delis were portrayed as flying over obstacles with their large wings in some contemporary works.16 Placing such an importance to eagle and trying to carry its soul by wearing parts of it, may be a trait that can be traced back to early Turkish pre-Islamic mythology. In the Shamanic Turkish mythology, eagle was the king of birds, the most important animal. Shaman can rise to sky in the form of the eagle. In the older Turkish empires like Huns, Gokturks and Uygurs eagle represented the Hakan (the sovereign, the ruler). Double-headed eagle is believed to keep the gate of sky at the highest level.17 The importance of eagle did not change after Turks accepted Islamic religion. Islamic Turkish states used eagle on their flags and art. In this period, eagle represented not anymore a deity but it was a symbol of bravery, a symbol for a victorious warrior.18

15 Ragıp Şevki Yeşim, “Akıncılar”, Hayat Tarih Mecmuası, Sayı 4, Mayıs 1968, p 20 16 Reşat Ekrem Koçu, Türk Zaferleri, Nebioğlu Basımevi 17 Bahaeddin Ogel, Turk Mitolojisi, II. Cilt, Turk Tarih Kurumu, Ankara 2006, , chapter 10, pp127-132 18 Omur Ceylan, Kuslar Divani, Kpı Yayınları, Istanbul 2007, p 151

End of Akincis and Delis Akincis took a major blow in 1595. While they were protecting the rear of the retreating main army crossing Danube using a narrow bridge, being followed by the forces of Wallachia, due to incapacity of the commander of the army, Sinan Pasha, they were left behind on the bank of the Danube River, they were trapped and were largely destroyed by the Wallachian forces. They were sacrificed to protect the retreating main army. Valuable horses, totalling around 100.000 were lost. They never really recovered from this damage. From that time on Crimean Tartars replaced Akincis and performed their functions. Delis on the other hand, continued to serve until 1829 and were abolished as the Janissaries. In the eyes of the Sultan, trying to reform the army and establish one in the Western model, deli cavalry became obsolete and undisciplined bandits.

Wargaming with Akincis and Delis

Akincis and delis are defined in many major wargame systems like De Bellis Multitudinis (DBM), Field of Glory (FoG) and Warhammer Ancient Battles (WAB). 19 Many figure producers have Delis and Akincis in their ranges making these available in 25mm/28mm scales. Keeping in mind the wider uses of them for the Ottoman commander, wargamers can easily generate alternative scenarios to use them rather them simply placing them on the battlefield in the flanks of the army. A raid scenario using limited number of akincis and delis can be realised on the tabletop. WAB supplement, Siege and Conquest, provides a good template for creating raid scenarios that can be used effectively where akincis and delis may take part.20 For example, you may select a unit of deli, under the banner of a delibası to organise raids deep into enemy territory with the purpose of securing a bridge, capturing locals alive from the villages to increase knowledge of Ottomans about the enemy (would be hard to do so for these highly cruel units since it would look like trying to grab a butterfly without damaging its wings!) or simply organise skirmish battles with a unit of Hungarian knights having a reconnaissance trip in the area. The clash of forward troops, i.e. the clash between Delis and Hungarian knights in the 16th century was legendary as seen in precious Ottoman manuscripts of those years.21

19 Phil Barker and R. B. Scott, DBM Army Lists: Book 4: 1071 AD to 1500 AD, Wargames Research Group, London 1994, pp 53-54. John Bianchi, Vlad the Impaler & the Ottoman Wars in Europe, Warhammer Historical Wargames, Notingham 2006, pp 39 and 43 20 Guy Bowers, Siege and Conquest, WAB supplement, Warhammer Historical, Nottingham 2007, pp118-119 21 Süleymanname

Warhammer Ancient Battles (WAB) Source: Vlad the Impaler Supplement Akinci cavalry

M WS BS S T W I A L Pts8 2 3 3 3 1 3 1 6 17

Deli cavalry M WS BS S T W I A L Pts8 3 3 3 3 1 4 1 7 24

Conclusion

To conclude, as can be seen from various tasks, it can be seen that akinci and deli cavalry forces were not only undisciplined troops that were motivated by plundering and looting. They had far more deeper functions in the overall Ottoman warfare design and expansion strategy into the Europe. Both akincis and delis were organised troops functioning under tight discipline. Akinci beys, contributed heavily by architectural and social projects to turn occupied territories in the Balkans and East Europe into true Ottoman lands, by embracing people and extending the Ottoman tolerance and governance. Delis, on the other hand were special and fearsome units with their very unusual extravagant clothing and their fearless way of warfare. These soldiers left an unforgettable mark on their enemies and made themselves very difficult to be forgotten for those cultures in the East Europe. Their clothing, especially the large wings on their backs was imitated by other Central European armies, particularly the Polish forces in the centuries followed. Wargaming with a band of akincis and delis may be historically intriguing and enjoyable as it presents a very different set of alternatives and a distinct historical perspective to a player.

Portrayal of Akincis with wings flying over obstacles by a prominent 20th century Turkish painter.

Source: Reşat Ekrem Koçu, Türk Zaferleri, Nebioğlu Basımevi, Istanbul, mid 1950’s

Portrayal of Akincis with wings by a prominent 20th century Turkish painter.

Source: Reşat Ekrem Koçu, Türk Zaferleri, Nebioğlu Basımevi, Istanbul, mid 1950’s

Eagle wings and furs pelts etc? For sure, Delis, with their large wings on their back, leopard pelts on shoulders, wolf skin hats and bear fur trousers, lion pelts on their horses looked impressive. But why they chose this extraordinary outfit? In military history, there are samples of warriors wearing animals for various reasons like to get the soul of that animal, to look and fight like it or for simple reasons of keeping warm and, of course, for ceremonial reasons. The most plausible reason in the case of Delis lies in their view of life. Deli, literally meant mad-head and their motto was that only the God determined the end of one’s life, so no reason to afraid from death while still living! Therefore, they brought death in the most severe form upon their enemies, without being concerned about their lives. To look extraordinarily frightening, to spread terror in the heart of their opponents and to be as no one else in the field of battle lied behind this terrifying outfit. It is for sure, throughout entire world military history, no unit in actual battle seemed more unusually decorated than the Deli. cavalry soldiers of the Ottomans.

FURTHER READING

Sources in English David Nicolle, The Janissaries, Osprey Publishing, Great Britain, 1995 David Nicolle, Nicopolis 1396, The Last Crusade, Osprey Publishing, Great Britain 1999 David Nicolle, Armies of the Ottoman Turks 1300-1774, Osprey Publishing, Great Britain 1983 Stephen Turnbull, The Ottoman Empire 1326-1699, Osprey Publishing, Great Britain 2003 Richard Brzezinski, Polish Winged Hussar 1576-1775, Osprey Publishing, Great Britain 2006 George Gush, Renaissance Warfare: The Turks in Airfix Magazine, March 1974 and April 1974, pp 398-402 and pp 448 and 450 Richard Knotel, Uniformenkunde, Berlin 1890, Band XII, No 35 (see http://www.grosser-generalstab.de/tafeln/knoetel.html) Zdzislaw Zygulski, Jr., “The Winged Hussars of Poland, http://www.myarmoury.com/feature_hussars.html Richard Brzezinski, Polish Armies 1569-1696, Vol I, Osprey Publishing, London, 1987 Simon Millar, Vienna 1683: Christian Europe repels the Ottomans, Osprey Publishing, 2008 Jason Goodwin, Lords of the Horizons: A history of the Ottoman Empire, London 1998 Daniel Goffman, The Ottoman Empire and early Modern Europe, University Press, Cambridge 2002, p 1 John Bianchi, Vlad the Impaler & the Ottoman Wars in Europe, Warhammer Historical Wargames, Notingham 2006 Guy Bowers, Siege and Conquest, WAB supplement, Warhammer Historical, Nottingham 2007 Phil Barker and R. B. Scott, DBM Army Lists: Book 4: 1071 AD to 1500 AD, Wargames Research Group, London 1994 Sources in Turkish Metin And, XVI. yüzyılda eyalet askerleri ve Deliler, Hayat Tarih Mecmuası, Mayıs 1970, pp 11-15 Cetin Arslan, Turk Akinci Beyleri ve Balkanların İmarına Katkıları (1300-1451), Kültür Bakanlıgı Yayınları, Ankara, 2001 Reşad Ekrem Koçu, Türk Zaferleri, Nebioğlu Yayınevi, Istanbul 1964? Süleymanname Surname-i Hümayun İsmail Hakkı Uzunçarşılı, Büyük Osmanlı Tarihi, Türk Tarih Kurumu Yayınları, Ankara, Ragıp Şevki Yeşim, “Akıncılar”, Hayat Tarih Mecmuası, Sayı 4, Mayıs 1968, p 20 Reşat Ekrem Koçu, Türk Zaferleri, Nebioğlu Basımevi Bahaeddin Ogel, Turk Mitolojisi, II. Cilt, Turk Tarih Kurumu, Ankara 2006 Omur Ceylan, Kuslar Divani, Kapı Yayınları, Istanbul 2007 Sources in other language Thomas Artus [et.al] Histoire des Turcs, Paris, 1662, c 2, Pl 17 Allain Mannesson Mallet, L'Art de la Guerre 1684 Thesaurus Exoticorum, Hamburg, 1688, Ks 4, s 52 Nicolas de Nicolay, Quatre premiers livres des navigations et peregrinations orientales, Lyon 1567