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Islamic Standards
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Regmental Standard. Ottoman 1890
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Until the end of the fifteenth century lances were used both as weapons and as standards, lances with banners or horse-tails attached to the top being carried beside the Sultan or Commander-in- Chief as standards around which the soldiers would gather. The metal standards of iron, bronze or silver used by the Turks, Iranians and Mamelukes were of lace-like delicacy and displayed their faithfulness to tradition in the rich decoration of plant motifs combined with inscriptions of prayers or verses form the Quran. Most of the standards in the museum are of Iranian or Mameluke origin. Ottoman and Mameluke standards are very much alike except for the much greater richness of form displayed by the Ottoman standards. The Mameluke standards are usually trowel-shaped, with medallions containing inscriptions with the names of the sultans and the emirs.
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Iranian standards are immediately recognizable by the symmetrical dragons heads and huge crests, but the most essential difference between Iranian standards on the one hand and Turkish and Mameluke standards on the other is that no personal names are ever to be found on the Iranian standards, the names Lisecl being confined to those of Allah, Ali and Muhammed. From the seventeenth century onwards Turkish standards were surmounted by a simple crescent moon a tradition that has survived to the present clay.
European Ceremonial Weapons
A number of the weapons originally used in war later developed in Europe into weapons used for purely ceremonial purposes. At first, as weapons of war, these were usually decorated with simple incised geometrical patterns and very often displayed as motifs the local symbols of the city or region with which they were connected. As their use began to be confined more and more ceremonial purposes the decoration became much more ornate and the general appearance very much richer and more magnificent. By the eighteenth century these assumed the character of an essential accessory of high religious and civil dignitaires.
Flags And Banners
The white banner sent by the Seljuk ruler to Osman Gazi was used as the symbol of the Ottoman State until replaced by the red banner during the reign of Sultan Selim I at the beginning of the sixteenth century. During Scum Is Egyptian campaign both the white and red banners were erected in front of the Imperial Tent.
In the early years of the Ottoman Empire the white banner was also used by viziers and pashas. but preference was later shown for a red banner with the inscription ‘Kelime-i Tevhit” (God is One on the one side and verses from the Qur’an on the other. Finally the green banner used by the admirals of the fleet took the place of both the white and red banners and was accepted as the third Official banner of the Ottoman State.
The banner of the Corps of Janissaries displayed the Zulfikar motif embroidered in gold and silver thead on a greed and red ground, while at the same time each battalion had its own device on a red ground.
The most sacred of all the Ottoman banners was the Sandjak-i Sherif (Banner of the Prophet which was borne in front of the Sultan along with the seven imperial horse-tail standards whenever the army was engaged in a Holy War. At other times the Sanjak-i Sherif was carefully preserved quite separately from all the other standards in a special tent reserved for the cared relics. Although nothing definite is known of the origin of the Sundjak-i Sherif it is thought by some historians to be the white banner presented to Osman gazi by the Seljuk Sultan Alaattin Keykubat Others believe that it was the banner brought back from Egypt by Selim 1.
The use of banners was confined to the Ottoman State and army. Banners were also used from the fourteenth century onwards as the symbols of religious orders and artisans guilds.
The Ottoman banner began to take the form of the modern Turkish flag during the reign of Sultan Slim 111 (1789-1807). At this time the flag displayed the crescent moon and an eight-pointed star. but during the reign 01 Abdulmedjid (1839-1861) the number of points was reduced to five. It was in the reign of the Sultan Abdulaziz that the custom began of embellishing the Sultans personal banner with the imperial tughra or monogram encased within an oval sun motif with eight beams radiating out from of it and a white ground. Apart from the change of color from white to a bordeaux red this remained the royal flag until the abolition of the sultanate.
Tents
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The tens occupied a very important place in old Turkish life. It was the symbol of independence and sovereignty, and the number of horse-tail standards ejected in front of a tent indicated the rank and status of the occupier, while the tents themselves varied in size and magnificence according to whether they were occupied by the Sultan, a Vizier, a pasha or a high civil or military dignitary. These tents usually formed a complex with each tent performing a separate function. For example, one tent might be used for rest and repose, another for washing or toilets. The imperial complex would include a tent for the meeting of the Divan and another to house the Sacred Relics, while other tents surrounding the Sultans Imperial Tent were used for executions.
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A part of tents gallery
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Inner cover of tents.
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Tents were usually magic from wool cotton or goat-hair, but silk and satin material were preferred for tents belonging to the Sultan or high dignitaries. The tents were embellished inside and out with leather. brocades and embroidered materials displaying the highest Technical perfection and decorative magnificence. The interiors were furnished with every comfort. The floor was covered with carpets. Kilims or animal skins, while light portable divans upholstered with cushions filled with wool or straw provided comfortable seating. The corner cushion against which one leant were particularly beautifully embroidered. The tents were also equipped with facilities for cooking and washing.
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A special body of servants or ‘tent grooms’ were responsible for conveying, pitching and furnished the tents. Other duties included repairing and airing the tents. protecting them from clamp or insects, making the quilts, cushions and covers required to furnish them and supplying the necessary thread and other materials for the tents.
Medals And Decorations
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The honour of Ottoman Empire.
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Turkish medals are usually oval or round, and are usually made of gold, silver, bronze or nickel. Decorations are usually star-shaped and are made from a much greater variety of materials brilliantly decorated with precious stones and enamel. The rank and importance of the distinction is indicated by the size of the rosette, the value o f the metal employed audi the magnificence of the decoration. Both medals and decorations are accompanied by documents giving the name of the person to whom the honor was awarded, the occasion of the award and the rank of honor. The ribbons on which the medals or decoration were hung varied according to the person to whom the distinction was presented and the reason for the award. In the West medals and distinctions date back to the Middle Ages, but the first Ottoman medal was the Ferahi’ issued in the reign of Mahmut 11(1809-1839), while the first decoration, the ‘Hilal Niani” dates back to 1801 in the reign of Selim III.
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Medals and decorations of Turkish Republic.
The Independence Medal struck in 1920 was the only official medal awarded by the new Turkish Republic. This was succeeded by the medals struck for the Aegean and Thrace inanoeuvres of 1937 and the Thnceli army manoeuvres of 1938 and by a number of contemporary medals awarded for outstanding service.
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