The life of Midhat Pasha 10

The life of Midhat Pasha 10

In 1870 the Shah of Persia, accompanied by a numerous suite, came

to visit the holy places of Nejef and Kerbela, and although the

province had to support the whole expense of this costly visit,

amounting to over £T30,000, Midhat Pasha determined to give the royal

visitor a reception worthy of his exalted rank, and to profit by the

occasion by settling some vexed questions long pending between the

two neighbouring Mahomedan countries. The circulation of depreciated

Persian money in the province had long disturbed the value of exchanges

and created confusion in commercial transactions. The exchange value

of this currency, and the amount of it to be issued in the future,

were now agreed upon. The incursions and depredations of nomad

Kurds, the Hamavends, Sendjabi, etc., shifting their camping‐ground

from Persian to Turkish territory, and _vice versa_, so as to evade

taxation and elude the authorities of either nation, whilst plundering

indiscriminately the peaceful inhabitants of both, had long been a

scandal, creating a state of affairs on the frontier difficult to cope

with. A better understanding and a combined policy of surveillance

between the Persian and Turkish authorities on the frontier were now

established, and block‐houses on the model of those successfully

introduced on the Servian frontier were constructed, to the infinite

relief of the agricultural population of both nations, situated on the

entire length of this extensive line. Midhat Pasha failed, however, to

obtain the sanction of the Persian authorities to a scheme which he had

long cherished, and which he trusted to this occasion to be able to put

into execution.

 

At Nejef, one of the sacred places to which periodical pilgrimages

were made, there were rich treasures, the proceeds of the offerings

of Indian and Persian devotees of the Shiite sect during centuries

past, which, on the invasion of the Wahabites, had been hidden in a

cave. Midhat Pasha had ordered the cave to be opened and an official

inventory to be made of the treasures that it contained. This inventory

revealed treasures of diamonds, rubies, pearls, and other precious

stones, to the value of no less than £T300,000, and Midhat proposed a

public sale of the treasure and the appropriation of its proceeds to

works of public utility, such as a railway between Persia and Bagdad,

or, if such an appropriation of a sacred treasure appeared too secular,

at least to the creation of such much‐needed institutions as hospitals

and refuges and caravanserai for the pilgrims on the route of their

pilgrimages to the holy places. Even this reasonable proposal, however,

was vetoed by the Persian Ulemas, and the whole scheme falling through,

Midhat ordered the treasure to be carefully deposited again in the

cave from which it had been taken, and its entrance secured with the

official seals of the Turkish and Persian authorities.

 

Certain events now took place having a bearing beyond the boundaries

of the province and of a quasi‐international character. The town of

Bussora, important on account of its geographical position as the

terminus station of the Euphrates on the Persian Gulf, suffered from

the inconvenience of an extremely unhealthy climate, resulting from

the stagnant waters of the Achar, a branch of the river Shat‐el‐Arab,

on which it was built. Midhat determined to remove the site of the

township on to the main river, and with that view built a Governor’s

house and Government buildings on the new site as a nucleus for a new

city. Outside this enclosure, the township of Nassrieh was laid out

on plans furnished by the Pasha, to become the capital of the sandjak

of Muntefik, and to replace the old town of Suk esh‐sheyuh which

was falling into ruins, and was deficient in all the necessaries of

civilisation.

 

Sixty miles from Bussora, and on the coast of Nedjed, is situated

the little town of Koweit of six thousand houses, the inhabitants of

which are all Mussulmans. Midhat Pasha’s predecessor, Namik Pasha,

had endeavoured to bring this population within the influence of his

jurisdiction, but they successfully resisted all attempts at imposing

taxation upon them, and had maintained their quasi‐independence under

their own chiefs, the descendants of one Sabah who had come with

this tribe of “Moutayer” from Nedjed five hundred years before, and

had maintained ever since with practical independence a republican

form of government, choosing by election their own judges (_cadis_)

and the professors of their religious schools (_medresses_). Owing

to the restricted extent of their territory, the inhabitants, like

those of Venice, took chiefly to maritime pursuits, and upwards of two

hundred small vessels of various tonnage traversed in every direction

the Indian Ocean, as far as the coasts of Zanzibar, and practically

monopolised the pearl fisheries of the Persian Gulf. Although they had

adopted a special flag of their own, they occasionally hoisted a Dutch

or English flag, to secure certain privileges accorded to these flags

by the capitulations. It seemed highly desirable to Midhat Pasha to

put an end to this equivocal status of the inhabitants of Koweit, and

to regularise their position. He accordingly entered into negotiations

with them, and offered the full enjoyment of their autonomy and

privileges under the government of their own Sheik Sabah, provided they

recognised themselves as forming part and parcel of the Ottoman empire,

and adopted the Ottoman flag as their national ensign. These conditions

were accepted by the people of Koweit, and their territory became a

sandjak of the vilayet of Bagdad. A formal treaty to that effect was

drawn up and signed and confirmed by _berats_ (writs of investiture)

from Constantinople, and new schools and mosques arose in Koweit.

 

After the settlement of Koweit, Midhat’s attention was turned to the

conquest of the Nedjed, the most important event that marked his

governorship of Bagdad.

 

The Nedjed is the geographical denomination of an extent of country

including about a quarter of the Arabian peninsula. Soliman, the

conqueror, after defeating the Portuguese squadron in the Persian Gulf,

had annexed it to his empire, and had despatched a special governor

from Constantinople to administer the province of Hassa. A century

after this, the inhabitants rose in revolt and formed themselves into a

separate State, which included the island of Bahrein in its limits. On

the first breaking out of these troubles, the Egyptian troops sent out

to repress the revolt had been successful, and had defeated the rebels

at Riad and Derayeh, forcing the Wahabites to recognise the authority

of the Sultan, but the Ottoman Government, whose attention was now

turned elsewhere, neglected to follow up this success, and the Nedjed

gradually regained its independence under the dynasty of Wahab.

 

In the time of Midhat Pasha, the reigning Sheik, Abdul Fazil, whilst

in the enjoyment of quasi‐independence himself, had never dreamt

of encroaching on the neighbouring territories under the authority

of the Sultan, nor of exciting revolt among their inhabitants by

preaching among them the particular tenets of Wahabism; but his brother

Saood, under the instigation of certain counsellors, with a view to

supplanting him in the government of the country, declared war on him,

and succeeded in dethroning him.

 

Abdul Fazil now had recourse to the intervention of Midhat Pasha, whom

he warned of the probable consequences that would follow the victory of

his brother with respect to the propagandism of Wahabite ideas among

the surrounding tribes. Midhat determined to act, but before entering

on a campaign that might prove an arduous undertaking, he took measures

to ascertain the exact forces that Saood had at his disposal, as well

as the topography of the country where military operations would have

to be carried out. With this view, spies and agents disguised as

merchants were sent in various directions, and soundings were taken of

different parts of the coast. A full report as to the situation of the

Nedjed in all these respects was in due course furnished to Midhat, who

in the meantime had requested and obtained the necessary authorisation

from the Grand Vizier, Aali Pasha, for the projected campaign.

 

Midhat was aware that certain delicate international questions might

arise in the course of the expedition. The policy of England, as

represented by its Indian Government, had always been to favour rather

than to discourage the desire of independence on the part of the Arab

chiefs in this part of the world. A serious and systematic attempt,

therefore, to suppress their independence and to attach these distant

members permanently to the body of the Ottoman Empire might seem to

run counter to the policy of the Indian Government on the shores of

the neighbouring Persian Gulf. Midhat had always been a stout and

consistent supporter of the English Alliance, but he was by no means

inclined for that reason to sacrifice to that alliance the essential

interest of the Ottoman Empire; and while resolved to proceed with

tact and due considerateness for the interests and susceptibilities of

a friendly Power, he did not hesitate, in spite of a certain amount

of sympathy manifested by England towards Saood, to proceed with the

expedition he had resolved upon.

 

The most populous province of Nedjed was Hassa, with its port Elkatif.

Thirty‐two hours distant from this port are situated the townships

of Elhofuf and Elmuberez, surrounded by fortified walls. Six hours

distant from Elkatif is the port of Ras Tannurah, offering favourable

conditions for a disembarkation of troops. Securing his communications

between Bussora and Elkatif, a distance of 360 miles by sea, by means

of the proffered co‐operation of Abdullah Elsabah, Sheik of Koweit,

who put his flotilla at the disposal of the Pasha for that purpose,

Midhat embarked five battalions of regular troops with a complement of

artillery under the command of Nafiz Pasha, General of division, for

the port of Ras Tannurah, whence they immediately marched to Elkatif,

which after a faint resistance capitulated to the Ottoman troops. The

surrender of Elmuberez and other strategical points in the Wahabs’

country followed in quick succession, and in a very short space of time

the partisans of Saood were dispersed and the whole country brought

under Imperial rule.

 

Midhat was now about to start himself for the Nedjed, with a view to

organise the country as a province of the Ottoman Empire, when his

attention was called by the Governor of Diarbekir, Kurd Ismail Pasha,

to the suspicious movements in the neighbourhood of Urfa of Sheik

Abdul Kerim, of the tribe of Chamar, the same, it will be remembered,

who, on the occasion of the revolt of the Dogara tribesmen, arriving

too late to assist the defeated rebels, turned round and offered his

services to the victorious Pasha.

 

Thinking the present occasion more favourable for carrying out his

cherished policy, he was marching straight on Bagdad, killing and

pillaging on his route. Warned by Kurd Ismail, Midhat took immediate

steps to crush him. Abdul Kerim had divided his forces into three

parts, the first advancing on Zor, the second on Mosul, and the

third, under his own command, marching on Bagdad. On this information

reaching him, Midhat ordered two battalions of regulars to reinforce

Kurd Ismail, whilst General Echeref Pasha was directed to fortify

Zor and other strategical points on the Tigris and Euphrates. These

troops coming into collision with the first division of Abdul Kerim’s

army in the neighbourhood of Zor, easily dispersed them, whilst Kurd

Ismail himself, attacking the second division of the rebels in the

neighbourhood of Mosul, completely routed it. On learning of the

successive defeats of the two wings of this invading army, Abdul

Kerim quickly abandoned all idea of advancing, and took measures to

secure his own safety. His retreat by the desert being cut off by

the droughts prevailing at this season, he made for his own native

country, the Chamar, but Midhat threatening Sheik Ibn Reshid, chief

of the tribe Djebel, if he ventured to offer refuge to the rebel,

diverted Abdul Kerim’s retreat to the direction of Muntefik by Hilah

and Kerbela, where he fell in with Nassir Pasha, and in the fight that

ensued was wounded and taken prisoner. After a regular trial for armed

rebellion and treachery, he was condemned to death, and the sentence

being approved of by the authorities at Constantinople, he was in due

course hanged at Mosul. His brother, Ferhan Pasha, now received the

chieftainship of the tribe Chamar, with an increase of territory and

a regular monthly subsidy, whilst the turbulent tribesmen acknowledged

the authority of the Imperial Government and consented to pay the

taxes. This settlement was followed by a resumption of agricultural

pursuits on the part of the inhabitants, and the general pacification of the country.