440

MAINTAINING ORDER ON STAGE:
CRIMINALIZING PERFORMING ARTS IN LATE OTTOMAN ISTANBUL
(1878 - 1908)

Criminalizing Performing Arts in Late Ottoman Istanbul
(1878 - 1908)
This thesis examines the Ottoman State’s criminal approach towards performing arts
in Istanbul between 1878 and 1908. The main goal is to understand and analyze the
reasons for criminalization. Exploring the different patterns of intervention
developed over the years, this thesis aims to apprehend how social order is exercised
in performing arts at the turn of the 19th century in Ottoman Istanbul. The study tries
to situate the cases of performance criminalization in the larger political context and
displays the state’s attitude towards entertainment and its control over the social
order. The primary sources used in the thesis provide a map of main entertainment
sites and a repertoire of genres in Beyoğlu and Kadıköy neighborhoods. Therefore,
the study offers a new methodological venue in researching the history of performing
arts in urban areas of 19th century Ottoman Istanbul.
Ottoman performances have been a domain thoroughly researched from
different perspectives. The basis of this research primarily consists of documents
from the Ottoman State Archives, which report interventions in performance-related
sites like theaters, coffeehouses, and other urban gathering spaces, including
winehouses or beerhouses. The narratives of these primary sources present a
historical ethnography of the sites, performers, and performances of the late Ottoman
scene of performing arts. They also show how criminalization generates a research
tool for social historians.
v
ÖZET
Geç Dönem Osmanlı İstanbul’unda Sahne’nin Mücrimleştirilmesi
(1878 - 1908)
Bu tez, Osmanlı Devleti'nin 1878-1908 yılları arasında İstanbul'daki sahne
sanatlarında suça yönelik nasıl bir yaklaşımı olduğunu inceler. Temel amaç,
suçlamalara neden olarak gösterilen gerekçeleri anlamak ve analiz etmektir. Yıllar
içinde geliştirilen farklı müdahale kalıplarını keşfederek, özellikle 19. yüzyıl
Osmanlı İstanbul'unda toplumsal düzen kavramının gösteri sanatları alanında nasıl
gündeme geldiğini anlamaya çalışmaktadır. Çalışma, suçlamalara maruz kalan
gösterileri vakalarını daha geniş bir siyasi bağlamda oturtmaya çalışır ve devletin
eğlenceye karşı tutumunu ve toplumsal düzen üzerindeki kontrolünü ortaya koyar.
Tezde kullanılan başlıca kaynaklar, Beyoğlu ve Kadıköy mahallelerinin ana eğlence
mekanlarının bir haritasını sunarken, aynı zamanda gösterilerde sergilenen türlerin
bir repertuarını da ortaya koyar. Bu bağlamda çalışma, 19. yüzyıl Osmanlı
performanslarını incelerken yeni bir yöntem alanı da sağlar.
Osmanlı gösteri sanatları esasında farklı açılardan kapsamlı bir biçimde
araştırılmış bir alandır. Bu araştırmanın temelini öncelikle Osmanlı Devlet
Arşivleri'nden, tiyatro, kahvehane ve kentlerdeki kamuya açık diğer gösteri
mekanlarıyla, meyhane ve birahaneler gibi eğlence mekanlarına yapılan müdahaleleri
rapor eden belgeler oluşturmaktadır. Bu birincil kaynakların anlatıları, geç dönem
Osmanlı sahnesinin mekanlarının, icralarının ve sanatçılarının tarihsel bir
etnografyasını sunmaktadır. Bu anlatılar ayrıca, suç unsurunu takip etmenin sosyal
tarihçiler için nasıl bir araştırma aracı oluşturduğunu da gösteriyorlar.
v i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First, I sincerely thank my advisor Professor Arzu Öztürkmen. Not only taking her
courses since my time at the department as an undergraduate student of History
broadened my perspective, but also, she has been profoundly supportive,
understanding, and motivating during my process of writing this thesis. I am grateful
for her guidance and company during the last years and looking forward to working
with her in the upcoming years.
I also would like to express my gratitude to Professor Suraiya Faroqhi and
Professor Ahmet Ersoy, my jury members, for their time and contribution to my
thesis. As my chairs, Ahmet Ersoy, Yaşar Tolga Cora, Aslı Özyar, and Paolo
Girardelli have given me support and understanding while writing the thesis during
his time. I am happy to have worked with Uğur, Ozan, Emir, İbrahim, and Münevver
for the last two years, who showed empathy during my thesis writing process and
encouraged me to go on during challenging times. I am also most thankful for our
department secretary Oya Harmancıoğlu, whose exceptional organizational skills and
compassion inspired me.
Professor Ahmet Ersoy and Edhem Eldem have supported me whenever I had
questions about transcribing the primary sources for the last four years. Therefore, I
would like to thank both, noting that Eldem’s graduate course I joined as an
undergraduate student laid the foundations of my Ottoman Turkish reading skills
proficiency. In addition to this, I received financial support from the TÜBİTAKBİDEB
(2210-A) scholarship program for the first two years of my Master’s studies.
My time at Boğaziçi is filled with good memories, and a partial difficulty in
writing this thesis derives from it being a solid indicator of a bittersweet farewell.
vi i
Eight years I spent at the campus granted me life-long friends, some of whom I
witnessed build families, and introduced me role models who did everything in their
power to help me become a more capable researcher and a better person. The best
memories that I can recall, however, come from challenging situations. I felt the
honoring feeling of solidarity and a deep sense of belonging to the university the
most in these difficult times. This sense of solidarity and belonging has motivated me
to proceed with researching and, finally, to complete my thesis.
Lastly, I would like to thank the people who were closest to me in this entire
process. I am grateful to my mother for her support, kindness, and love. Not only she
engaged in discussions with me on my research question, but she gave me the power
to proceed on writing whenever I needed. I am glad for the company of my friends
this entire time, especially my two dear friends, who are both named Özge, and
Begüm and Nazlı. Lastly, I am thankful to Berk, who ensured that I carved out the
necessary time for my thesis despite all my attempts to procrastinate.
vi ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………….1
CHAPTER 2: THE METHODOLOGICAL CHALLENGES OF RESEARCH IN
PERFORMANCE: CHASING DEVIATIONS FROM ORDER IN OTTOMAN
PERFORMANCES……………………………………………………..…………….6
2.1 Introduction………………………………………………………………....6
2.2 Studying Ottoman performing arts…...………………………...….………. 7
2.3 On the reflexivity of the researcher…………………………………………9
2.4 In search of sites of performances………………………………..……......11
2.5 Decoding archival keywords: Challenges of transcription ……………….12
2.6 Conclusion………………………………………………………………...14
CHAPTER 3: A BRIEF REVIEW OF PERFORMING ARTS IN THE LATE 19TH
CENTURY OTTOMAN WORLD…………………………………………….……15
3.1 Introduction.……………………………………………………………….15
3.2 A general look at the performance studies in the Ottoman context.………16
3.3 Significance of Istanbul as a site of crime and entertainment……….……18
3.4 Forms of entertainment in the late Ottoman world…………….………….20
3.5 Sites of entertainment in the late Ottoman Istanbul……………………..…22
3.6 Conclusion……………………………………………………………...…30
CHAPTER 4: TRIPARTITE CONTROL ON PERFORMING ARTS: DAHILIYE,
ZAPTİYE AND MATBUAT……………………………………………….…………32
4.1 Introduction…………………………………………………………..……32
4.2 Changing demographics of Istanbul and the increase of European influence
in economic and cultural spheres…………………………………………...…33
4.3 The pillar of censorship: The press regulations……………………………34
ix
4.4 The involvement of the police………………………………….…………36
4.5 Inter-institutional relationships……………………………………………40
4.6 Protagonists of censorship…………………………………………………42
4.7 Conclusion……………………………………………………………...…43
CHAPTER 5: CRIMINALIZATION OF PERFORMING ARTS: DIVERSITY OF
CASE STUDIES……………………………………………………………….……44
5.1 Introduction…………………………………………………………..............44
5.2 On the sites of entertainment, and their owners and managers……………….46
5.3 On the genres of performances and their performers………………….……..48
5.4 Maintaining order in the domain of performances: Censorship and its challenges
…………………..……………….…….…………………………………………49
5.5 Inappropriateness: An elusive ground for criminalization.…………………..51
5.6 The power of the Press Directorate…………………………………………...53
5.7 Criminalization of venues: Alcohol as an alibi…………………………….…54
5.8 Non-Muslims as potential criminals……………………………………….…56
5.9 Gatherings, spreading news and European connections………………….…..60
5.10 On the visibility of women in performative venues…………………………62
5.11 The reputation of the Sultan and the Empire…………………………..........63
5.12 Resistance to censorship ……………………………………………………65
5.13 Conclusion………………………………………………………….…….…66
CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION……………………………………….…………...…68
APPENDIX A: LIST OF DOCUMENTS………………………………….…….….78
APPENDIX B: LIST OF THE TERMINOLOGY OF CRIMINALIZATION………80
APPENDIX C: TRANSCRIPTIONS OF DOCUMENTS………………….……….81
APPENDIX D: ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS………………………………………109
x
REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………….149
x i
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. An Ottoman coffeehouse photograph………………………..……………..9
Figure 2. Rebetiko performer Roza Eskenazi, an iconic figure of the Ottoman rebetiko
world……………………………………………………………...…………………11
Figure 3. Naum Theater………………………………….…………………………..24
Figure 4. Mınakyan Efendi………………………………………………..…………25
Figure 5. Dolmabahçe Mosque and Theater…………………………….…….……..30
Figure 6. Hamdi-Orta Oyunu………………………………………………….……..37
Figure 7. Kel Hasan Efendi………………………………………………………….41
Figure 8. İbrahim Hıfzı Bey………………………………………………………… 43
Figure 9. Kristal Tiyatrosu…………………………………………………………...47
Figure 10. Depiction of a theater in the 19th century………………………………...58
Figure 11. Inside of a Turkish……………………………………………………….69
Figure 12. Actress Madam Eliza Binemeciyan………………………………………77
1
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
A hundred and sixteen years ago, in June 1905, the world-famous opera
piece Rigoletto was performed at Concordia Theater, Beyoğlu, Istanbul - where St.
Antoine Church stands today. A controversial piece based on Victor Hugo's Le Roi
S'Amuse (1832), Rigoletto's name appeared in Ottoman State Archives immediately:
the performance of the piece by La Bruna Theater Company caught the attention of
Ottoman administrative authorities. One document from the archives of the Ministry
of Interior requested the Ministry of Security to act on this incident, issuing an
“intimidating warning” to the manager of the theater company.1 However, the
Ministry of Interior did not explain why Le Roi S'Amuse was subjected to censorship.
Instead, the document showed that the piece's performance was approved for two
consecutive years previously, to be banned suddenly in 1905, thus no longer
permitted to appear on stage. For the late Ottoman performing arts, especially
between 1890 and 1908, such an incident was not unusual. As a result, a manifold of
performances in Istanbul was subjugated to censorship, and their staging was
criminalized.
This thesis examines the Ottoman State's criminal approach towards
performing arts in Istanbul between 1878 and 1908. Exploring patterns of
intervention developed during Late Hamidian rule, this thesis mainly aims to
apprehend how social order is exercised in performing arts at the turn of the 19th
century in Ottoman Istanbul. The primary goal here is to detect the instances of
criminalization of performing arts in terms of the censorship imposed on the content
1 Cumhurbaşkanlığı Osmanlı Arşivleri, (COA), DH.MKT 969.8
2
of the performance, state authorities' surveillance of the venues of performance, and
criminalization of the act itself. Furthermore, the study tries to situate the cases of
performance criminalization in the larger political context and displays the state's
attitude towards entertainment and its control over the social order. The primary
sources used in the thesis present a map of essential entertainment sites and a
repertoire of genres in Beyoğlu and Kadıköy neighborhoods. Therefore, the study
offers a new methodological venue in researching the history of performing arts in
urban areas of 19th century Ottoman Istanbul.
Ottoman performing arts have been a domain thoroughly researched from
different perspectives. The basis of this research primarily comprises documents
from the Ottoman State Archives, which report interventions in performance-related
sites like theaters, coffeehouses, and other urban gathering spaces, including winehouses
or beer-houses. The narratives of these primary sources present a historical
ethnography of the sites, performers, and performances of the late Ottoman scene of
performing arts. They also show how criminalization generates a research tool for
social historians.
For instance, Le Roi S'Amuse's case orients one towards questions that make
up the backbone of this research. To begin with: Why was the piece permitted before
1905 but banned afterward? What was the content of Le Roi S'Amuse that coerced
the authorities to intervene? How was the Ministry of Interior informed, and could
the term “intimidating warning” mean in this document? Was there an order of
command between the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Security? Which
performances did the Ottoman State approve, and which did the authorities ban? To
what extent was the state involved in this process? What was the significance of this
criminalization?
3
When we look at our primary sources and the literature published on censorship
during the late Hamidian period, we can quickly notice that the censorship imposed
on Rigoletto was hardly an isolated incident. During the reign of Sultan Abdülhamid
II, infamously known as the “istibdad” period (period of oppression), institutions of
the state implemented systematic control implemented. The officers reviewed any
performance that would be staged from different state departments — the first law
regarding press control dates to 1857. The practice became significantly more severe
and systematic after 1890.2 Studies of Noémi Levy and Alexandre Toumarkine show
us that the French and Ottoman police organizations showed similarities in their
function. For example, based on Le Roi S'Amuse, Rigoletto was banned by the
French government after premiering in 1832. Adèle Hugo, the youngest daughter of
the playwright of Le Roi S'Amuse, argues that the piece was banned after the
supposed disrespectful depiction of the monarch, which was declared immoral.
Keeping this vocabulary in mind, which will be discussed in later paragraphs, one
can speculate that Ottoman authorities aimed to censor the play for the same reason.3
The thesis comprises six chapters. Following the Introduction, based on a
review of primary and secondary sources, Chapter 2 reveals the variety of reasons for
why performances were subject to inspection, warnings, and penalties. Some were
targeted because of their “inappropriateness,” some lacking permission from the
Ministry of Interior or complaints. When cross-examined with the secondary
literature, we can suggest a common vocabulary was used during the Hamidian era.
For example, Noémi Levy notes that the ambiguous concept of münasebetsizlik
(inappropriateness) was omnipresent, often presented as an excuse in criminal and
2 Lévy, Ordre et désordres dans l’Istanbul Ottoman (1879-1909).
3 See Lévy, Toumarkine, Osmanlı’da asayiş, suç ve ceza: 18-20. Yüzyıllar; Lévy, Toumarkine,
Jandarma ve polis: Fransız ve Osmanlı tarihçiliğine çapraz bakışlar.
4
censorship records. Other such terms as ahlak (morality) or adab (manners) also
prevailed. This chapter aims to provide an analytical basis to examine broader
implications of these terms in terms of the documents' political, social, and historical
context.
To identify how the documents of criminalized performances can contribute
to the existing scholarship, one needs to contextualize them in the general
entertainment scene in 19th century Ottoman Istanbul. In this regard, Chapter 3
evaluates the different sites, genres, and performances of that era, giving a short
review of the literature exploring the 19th Century Ottoman performing arts. This
chapter reveals the general frame of performativity in urban and cosmopolitan
Istanbul, towards which the state authorities developed new attitudes for control.
Providing information on how the institutions of control were formed and functioned
is crucial for this research and analyzing the relationship between these institutions.
Chapter 4 pursues this path and provides a historical background for the institutions
involved in making the order. The tripartite involvement of the Ministry of Interior,
Ministry of Security, and the Press Directorate is apparent in the documents that this
thesis examines. Their entanglement and its influence on how the social control
mechanisms work cannot be overlooked. For instance, according to reports from the
Ministry of Interior, there was evident strife between the Ministry of Security and the
Press Directorate, including the Press Directorate's complaints. The history and
function of both institutions will be examined to determine the extent of this conflict
when examining correspondences.
Consequently, Chapter 5 presents the case studies where each case brings the
reader to another historical, ethnographical site. This chapter categorizes the
documents thematically. These categories allow us to draw parallels between
5
different incidents and point out themes, particularly on the late-Hamidian scene of
performing arts, by mapping out the motivation behind the interventions. When
possible, the chapter tracks the venues, people, and names of the performances to
understand why these performances might have been criminalized. The terminology
used in these documents has meta-implications. Since concepts like
“münasebetsizlik” (inappropriateness) have vague definitions, the only way to
understand why the criminalization occurred is to contextualize them. In other words,
a clear description is missing in most documents, and the cause for criminalization
usually reflected a particular political concern. Because these political concerns
reflect the geist of their time, each criminalization is historically contextualized
throughout the chapter.
6
CHAPTER 2
THE METHODOLOGICAL CHALLENGES OF RESEARCH IN
PERFORMANCE: CHASING DEVIATIONS FROM ORDER IN OTTOMAN
PERFORMANCES
2.1 Introduction
This chapter provides a survey of scholarly works on the domain of Ottoman
performing arts. It presents historiography and analyzes the methodological
challenges of research in the performing arts. The aim here is to explain why
working on performing arts is a challenging yet rewarding task—explaining how it
developed and how this research contributes to the existing literature. The chapter
proceeds by situating performing arts in the domain of social control. The purpose
here is to argue that these two domains of Ottoman historiography, social control,
and performing arts complement each other. The chapter also elaborates on the
challenges of decoding archival keywords and their transcription.
The collected documents, mainly concerned with districts such as Beyoğlu,
Pera, and Galata, offered valuable information regarding the public order of
entertainment spaces - such as coffeehouses or meyhanes (winehouses). This
information involves the names of the performers, scarcely known venues of
performances, and diverse languages used in such performances. Archive documents
also revealed different chains of order and reasons for censorship or criminalization,
applied to the performers and sometimes to officials, providing a framework to
investigate the entertainment network of relationships. Finally, the corpus of
documentation also opened a gate to historical ethnography where one could imagine
7
past contexts, genres, and social players of the Ottoman performance world at the
turn of 19th century Istanbul.
2.2 Studying Ottoman performing arts
Different sorts of performances took place under the Ottoman domain, both public
and private.4 Nevertheless, the study of Ottoman performances remained marginal
compared to the corpus of work produced in the fields of Ottoman political, social,
and economic history. One crucial factor is the trivial meaning assigned to
entertainment and therefore approaching entertainment history as a complementary
or often “colorful” aspect of Ottoman social history. From a performance studies
perspective, however, each entertainment form encapsulates the social and cultural
codes of the community in which it is produced and therefore reveals essential
elements of local knowledge.5
On the other hand, research on entertainment history is complicated because
the domain has often been taken for granted and not seen as worthy of being
documented. Accessing sources about entertainment in Ottoman historical context is,
therefore, a difficult task. Ottoman imperial festivities were well documented
in surnames, and other official records, while provincial performances survived in
folkloric forms like folk stories, songs, and dances along with rituals and festivals.6
4 For a general survey see Faroqhi, When the Sultan planned a great feast was everyone in festive
mood? Or who worked on the preparation of sultanic festivals; Öztürkmen, “Performance in the
Ottoman world: Between folklore and history,” 3-23. For particular genres and case studies see
Hathaway, A tale of two factions: myth, memory, and identity in Ottoman Egypt and Yemen; Yılmaz,
“Boş Vaktiniz Var Mı? Veya 16. Yüzyılda Anadolu'da Şarap, Eğlence ve Suç”, 11-49; Kafadar, “How
dark is the history of the night, how black the story of coffee, how bitter the tale of love? The
changing measure of leisure and pleasure in early modern Istanbul,” 243-270; Mizrahi, “One man and
his audience: Comedy in Ottoman shadow puppet performances,” 271-286; And, Orta oyunu; Nutku,
“Original Turkish Meddah Stories of the Eighteenth Century,” 166-183; Öztürkmen, “Folk Dancers &
Folk Singers: The Ottoman Empire,” 56-58.
5 See Stoeltje, Bauman. The semiotics of cultural performance.
6 For a discussion on sources in Ottoman imperial festivals see Faroqhi, When the Sultan Planned a
Great Feast Was Everyone in Festive Mood? Or Who Worked on the Preparation of Sultanic
Festivals; Erdoğan-İşkorkutan, “Chasing Documents at the Ottoman Archive,” 156-181.
8
However, the domain of ethnographic findings or survivals has long been neglected
by historians of performing arts, primarily trained in archival research or art history.7
Amidst the scarcity of primary sources, a frequently referred source has been the
criminal records found in official archives.8
Research of the 19th-century domain of performing arts offers a broader
spectrum of sources, including published manuscripts, journals, magazines, narrative
accounts in memoirs, or some material relics in the form of architectural space or
ephemera like posters, tickets, or invitation cards.9 These documents provide us with
the necessary knowledge of the entertainment genres’ content, giving us a general
idea about different kinds of entertainment events, but they do not reveal much about
the significance assigned to them by their audiences. The criminal records also
prevail to offer a spectrum of cases about entertainment. This thesis is based upon a
series of such documents found in official archives.
7 For a discussion of folklore and history in Ottoman performativity, see Öztürkmen, “Performance in
the Ottoman world: Between folklore and history,” 3-23.
8 See Peirce, Morality Tales: Law and Gender in the Ottoman Court of Aintab; Yılmaz, “Boş Vaktiniz
Var Mı? Veya 16. Yüzyılda Anadolu'da Şarap, Eğlence ve Suç”, 11-49.
9 See Gündüz, “Mınakyan Dram Kumpanyası,” Cumhuriyet, March 2, 1931; Koçu. Eski İstanbul'da
meyhaneler ve meyhane köçekleri; Koçu (Ed.) İstanbul ansiklopedisi; Urgan, Bir dinozorun anıları;
Yücel, Geçtiğim günlerden; Aracı, Naum Tiyatrosu: 19. yüzyıl İstanbul'unun İtalyan Operası; Uçuk,
Silsilename.
9
Figure 1. An Ottoman coffeehouse photograph by Abdullah Freres, from SALT Online Archives.
2.3 On the reflexivity of the researcher
In Reflexivity: An Essential Component For All Research? Linda Finlay highlights
the importance of reflexivity in research. Forming a reflexive relationship between
the research and the researcher enables the researcher to provide the audience a more
solid ground for contextualizing and understanding the significance of the subject
matter. Instead of “brushing her of him under the carpet,” Finlay argues, it highlights
the possible impact and influence of the researcher on the research.10 Therefore, my
intention here is to provide information regarding my position as a researcher. I
recognize myself as a part of the research, understanding that this thesis orients the
subject matter towards the direction of my interest and bias, as much as it is
constructed on material historical evidence.
My curiosity in the history of performing arts in the 19th century Istanbul is
rooted in my interest in rebetiko, a musical genre that contains a common heritage of
10 Finlay, “Reflexivity: An Essential Component for All Research?,” 453-456.
1 0
Greek, Turkish, Armenian, and Jewish elements.11 Being a granddaughter of a singer
of classical Turkish music, I grew up listening to and taking an interest in this genre
that bears a resemblance to rebetiko. Coming from a Mübadil family, I am also
fascinated by this genre and its multiple receptions in the memory of my own family
and contemporary Istanbul.12 As a student of history, I developed an interest in
searching original documents that related to rebetiko. However, my attempts in
Ottoman State Archives and the music library at the Asia Minor Studies Center in
Athens did not reveal many sources relating to the genre’s migration to Modern
Greece from Anatolia. However, there was a growing interest in the contemporary
practice of rebetiko in Modern Turkey, and oblivion regarding its origins prevailed.13
The general knowledge among the audience was that the performers were often
criminalized for habits of drug consumption or writing politically controversial
lyrics. This data has been the starting point for me, leading me to research criminal
charges and censorship imposed on coffeehouses, gazinos, and meyhanes, where
rebetiko performances took place. I started to collect documents from the Ottoman
State Archives, which corresponded to specific keywords related to such
performance settings, including meyhane (winehouses) along with kafe-şantan
and çalgılı kahvehane (coffeehouses with musical performances). Having noticed
that many such documents included the terms uygunsuz and münasebetsiz
(inappropriate), I also searched for such moral terms. The narratives and the
vocabulary of all these documents directed me towards different questions. For
11 See Tragaki, Rebetiko worlds; Fabbri, “Rebetiko as a Testing Device for Genre Theories and
Musical Categorizing Processes,” 321-332; Stamatis, Rebetiko Nation: Hearing Pavlos Vassiliou's
Alternative Greekness Through Rebetiko Song.
12 For Mübadele, the Exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey, see Temizel, Güvenç,
Selanik'ten Tuzla'ya Mübadele sempozyumu bildirileri: Mübadelenin 87. yıldönümü anma etkinliği,
Hirschon, Heirs of the Greek Catastrophe: The Social Life of Asia Minor Refugees in Piraeus.
13 See Güven, Music, City and Culture: An Ethnographic Study of the Rebetiko Music Scene in
Istanbul; Koglin, “Marginality–A Key Concept in Understanding the Resurgence of Rebetiko in
Turkey.”
1 1
instance, initially, I intended to find criminal records exclusively from the early 20th
century, when rebetiko began to sparkle. In reading these documents, I noticed that a
fascinating turning point for performing arts history had its root between the late
Hamidian Era and the Young Turk Revolution, particularly between 1890 and 1908.
As mentioned previously, this period was when the state started to intervene in the
public sphere firmly, resulting in an explosion in the number of performances
criminalized due to their “inappropriate” content.
Figure 2. Rebetiko performer Roza Eskenazi, an iconic figure of the Ottoman rebetiko world. Source:
The Guardian, https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/nov/04/roza-eskenazi-my-sweet-canary
2.4 In search of sites of performances
The documents I collected from the Directorate of State Archives14 referred to
various sites of performances. Such sites were coffeehouses (kahvehane), cafechantant
(Kafe şantan), beerhouses (birahane), winehouses (meyhane), and theaters.
14 The full name of the archive is Presidency of the Republic of Turkey, Directorate of State Archives
Publications.
1 2
Therefore, in my analysis of these places of entertainment, I used “coffeehouse
performance” as an umbrella term to refer to performances taking place in different
entertainment venues.
The documents involved correspondence between different state institutions,
including the Press Directorate, the Ministry of Interior, and the Ministry of Security.
In cases where foreigners were involved, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would also
be consulted. The narratives of the documents often started by describing the setting
of the performance and its type, then continued by explaining the problem and ended
by asking for a solution from the relevant authority. In most cases, the Press
Directorate reported instances of unwanted performances to the Ministry of Interior
and asked the Ministry of Security to take necessary precautions or give the
necessary punishments. In some cases, one can witness replies of the Ministry of
Security to the Ministry of Interior concerning the affairs. In exceptional instances,
we hear the voices of the censored artists as well. For example, one of the documents
was written by Chanteuse Marika to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where she
complained about the ban she was imposed by the officers and asked for permission
to proceed to perform.15
2.5 Decoding archival keywords: Challenges of transcription
A critical methodological challenge related to document descriptions in the
Directorate of State Archives during the research process I encountered concerned
the transcription errors that involved language barriers and transition from Arabic to
Latin script. At the turn of the 19th century, performing arts materials were produced
in different European and Middle Eastern languages. Along with Turkish, Arabic,
15 COA, TFR.I.ŞKT, 19.1835; COA, TFR.I.SKT 35.3492
1 3
Persian, and French, which were bureaucratic languages, people spoke Slavic
languages, Greek, Albanian, Kurdish, Armenian, and other Aramaic languages. Like
in its historical counterpart Habsburg Empire, the languages spoken within the
empire increased as the empire annexed new territories in the Ottoman Empire.16 As
a result, we cannot pin one language as the dominant language, practically
speaking.17 Therefore, the titles and content of these performances, the venues they
were performed in, and the people allocated to these performances were not
necessarily Turkish. The language was French and Greek in the more significant part
of the documents presented in this research.
Ottoman officers wrote their petitions in Ottoman Turkish using Arabic
script. The same practice was used when writing down words in other languages. The
transcription was done mot-a-mot – written down exactly as it was heard in that
specific language. Regarding French, for instance, “Jardin du Clos” was written
down as “jardendüklo.”18 Similarly, “Rigoletto - Le Roi S’Amuse” was transcribed as
“Rigoletto - löruvasamüz” in Arabic letters.19 In Turkish, each Latin letter
corresponds to an exact sound; however, the letters in the Arabic script function
differently. For example, a single Arabic letter “vav” may correspond to different
sounds in Turkish pronunciation, such as “ö,” “u,” “o,” “ü” or “v.” This brings up
a challenge for the transcribers in the Ottoman State Archives who provide synopses
for these documents in contemporary Turkish. When these documents were
transcribed from Arabic to Latin script, errors occurred with French names: words
mentioned above were transcribed in the synopses as “Jarden Doklo” and “Rikolato
16 Strauss, “Language and power in the late Ottoman Empire.”
17 For the use of language in the late 19th century Istanbul, see Strauss, “A constitution for a
multilingual empire: Translations of the Kanun-ı Esasi and other official texts into minority
languages.”
18 COA, DH.MKT 792.74_004
19 COA, DH.MKT 969.8
1 4
Lorvasamoz.” Therefore, as a researcher, I tried to be mindful of the historical
context by paying attention to the original names of venues, performances, and
people, allocating time to provide a correct translation.
2.6 Conclusion
In conclusion, this chapter described the methodological framework of approaching
19th-century Ottoman performing arts and their criminalization. This chapter aimed
to provide a survey on the historiography of Ottoman performing arts and portray its
challenges. This survey highlighted the usefulness of criminalization documents: the
documents provide information on the names of performances, performers, and
venues, as well as genres of performances, which would have been lost in time
otherwise. Moreover, a sub-chapter was dedicated to positioning the researcher. This
explanation was done to provide background information about the researcher and is
believed to help the reader make more sense of the questions pursued in the thesis.
Another aim was to orient future researchers, who will potentially be interested in
this research matter, to take a different perspective and make their contributions.
Finally, the chapter discussed the challenges encountered during the research
process. In addition to the scholarly material being relatively raw compared to other
research fields in Ottoman history, the linguistic gap between today and the studied
period requires additional vigilance when working on the documents.
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CHAPTER 3
A BRIEF REVIEW OF PERFORMING ARTS
IN THE LATE 19TH CENTURY OTTOMAN WORLD
3.1 Introduction
This chapter presents a survey of performing arts in Ottoman Istanbul, particularly
Beyoğlu and Kadıköy, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. While the scope
of the thesis focus covers the period between 1878 and 1908 primarily, this chapter
aims to remind the general framework of performance in late Ottoman Istanbul.
Therefore, it begins with an overview of the existing literature on the matter. The
flourishing of different genres and venues of performances coincided with the
oppressive policies of the Hamidian regime in this period. The scholarly work on
Sultan Abdülhamid II's reign and the policy of intense social control at the time is
well-founded, with particular attention given to the sophisticated system of the secret
police, an expanded telegraph network, and a hard-working committee of censorship.
Nevertheless, the literature does not prioritize interference in performing arts. This
chapter reviews the existing literature on the history of performing arts in the
Ottoman era and maps out sites of performances in the cosmopolitan urban space of
Istanbul before moving towards discussing the methods of censorship in the next
chapter.
1 6
3.2 A general look at the performance studies in the Ottoman context
It can be stated that the study of the history of performing arts in the Ottoman era is a
relatively new field that has been well explored over the last fifty years.20 One of the
most comprehensive - if not the most comprehensive - literature on Ottoman
performing arts was written by Refik Ahmet Sevengil. In his compilation History of
the Turkish Theater (Türk Tiyatrosu Tarihi), Sevengil provided information, images,
and analysis on almost every aspect of Ottoman performance. Five chapters of the
compilation are [Art of] Drama in Ancient Turks, Our First Contact With [The Art
Of] Opera, Tanzimat Theater, Palace Theater, and Theater Of The Constitutional
Period.21 The pioneering works of Metin And and Özdemir Nutku examined the
Ottoman festivals, dance, and theatrical genres.22 Ottoman festival books have also
been thoroughly examined by art historians, including Esin Atıl, Nurhan Atasoy,
Filiz Çağman, and Sezer Tansuğ.23 These studies essentially explored the stylistic
depiction of the festive performances, focusing on the “surname” genre. With the
performative turn in Ottoman historiography, scholars like Gülru Necipoğlu and
Tülay Artan gave particular attention to the representation of imperial power. Some
scholars, including Suraiya Faroqhi, Derin Terzioğlu, and Sinem Erdoğan-İşokutan,
20 See Fleet & Boyar (Eds), The Ottomans and entertainment; Faroqhi & Öztürkmen (Eds) 2014.
Celebration, entertainment and theater in the ottoman world; Serin, “Festivals of July 10 in the young
Turk era (1908-1918)”; Klebe, “Effeminate Professional Musicians in Sources of Ottoman-Turkish
Court Poetry and Music of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries,” 97-116; Süloş, “Between
theatrical politics and political theater: Late Ottoman theatrical spheres”; Çavuş, “State power as
performance: royal wedding festivities and the Ottoman spectacular state during the period of
Mahmud II.”
21 Sevengil, Eski Türklerde dram sanatı; Sevengil, Opera sanatı ile ilk temaslarımız; Sevengil,
Tanzimat tiyatosu; Sevengil, Saray tiyatrosu; Sevengil, Meşrutiyet tiyatrosu.
22 See And. Kırk gün, kırk gece: Eski donanma ve ṣenliklerde seyirlik oyunları; And. Geleneksel Türk
Tiyatrosu; And, Turkish Dancing; And, Dünyada ve bizde gölge oyunu; Nutku, “Meddahlık ve
Meddah Hikayeleri” Nutku, IV. Mehmet'in Edirne şenliği, (1675).
23 Atıl, Levni and the surname: the story of an eighteenth-century Ottoman festival; Atasoy, 1582
Surname-i hümayun: an imperial celebration; Tansuğ, Şenlikname düzeni: Türk minyatüründe
gerçekçi duyuş ve gelişme; Terzioğlu, “The Imperial Circumcision Festival of 1582,” 84-100.
1 7
gave references to conflictual situations experienced during these festivals.24 Given
the broad and time-honored scholarship on Ottoman festivals, dance, music, and
theater of the early modern era, the exploration of 19th century performativity offers
us new domains regarding the state's attitude towards entertainment. In her work on
royal wedding festivities during the late Ottoman era, Yeliz Çavuş explored how
performativity changed during the 19th century, particularly following Sultan
Mahmut II's reign.25
These studies primarily focused on imperial festivals during the Early
Modern era, but there was considerable interest in studying musical and theatrical
performances of the 18th and 19th centuries. Benefiting from Ottoman archival
records, pamphlets, newspapers, and French sources, the researchers approached late
Ottoman performances as a product of Westernization. Musical contributions of
Guiseppe Donizetti to the Ottoman army, Abdülaziz's visit to the Exposition
Universelle, and the exponentially growing interest of the non-Muslims in Western
theater are examples given by this narrative.26 As also noted by Nalan Turna's work
on this genre, Western-style theater was practiced the most where non-muslim
populations were over-represented, such as Istanbul or Izmir.27 Many scholars
underscore the pioneering role of Armenians in Westernizing the theater industry,
recognizing Güllü Agop as the leading representative of the domain.28
24 See Necipoğlu, Architecture, ceremonial, and power: the Topkapı Palace in the fifteenth and
sixteenth centuries; Artan, “Ahmed I’s Hunting Parties: Feasting In Adversity, Enhancing The
Ordinary,” 93-138; Artan, “The Making Of The Sublime Porte Near The Alay Köşkü And A Tour Of
A Grand Vizierial Palace At Süleymaniye,” 145-206.
25 Çavuş, “State power as performance: Royal wedding festivities and the Ottoman spectacular state
during the Period of Mahmud II.”
26 See Süloş, “Performance as Politics of Westernization in the Late Ottoman World,” 432.
27 See Turna, “The Ottoman Stage,” 321.
28 On Güllü Agop, See Güllü, Vartovyan kumpanyası ve yeni Osmanlılar: Osmanlıya has çokkültürlü
bir politik tiyatro girişimi.
1 8
Although all these works underscored the stately representation of power,
state censorship came onto the agenda in the context of the Hamidian era. Censorship
during the reign of Abdülhamit II has been well elaborated in the studies of several
scholars including Cengiz Kırlı, Noémi Lévy, Alexandre Toumarkine, Nalan Turna,
İpek Yosmaoğlu, and Ebru Boyar. For instance, the works of Cengiz Kırlı provide
detailed insight into the 19th century public spaces, namely the coffeehouses and
social order.29 Similarly, Noémi Lévy showed how the rising press control became
significantly more severe and systematic in time.30 Her work with Alexandre
Toumarkine also revealed similarities between the French and Ottoman police
organizations regarding censorship.31 Nalan Turna, İpek Yosmaoğlu, and Ebru Boyar
also touched upon different aspects of the “istibdad” period.32
3.3 Significance of Istanbul as a site of crime and entertainment
As an imperial capital city, Istanbul has long been subjected to internal migration. In
his book A Neighborhood in Ottoman Istanbul, Cem Behar shows how getting
established to a “mahalle” required residents' references and permits.33 Istanbul's
popularity increased further in the 19th century as the city became a hub for trade
and investment opportunities, creating a cosmopolitan milieu for cultural exchange.
29 See Kırlı, Sultan ve Kamuoyu: Osmanlı Modernleşme Sürecinde “Havadis Jurnalleri” (1840-
1844); Kırlı, Surveillance and Constituting the Public in the Ottoman Empire; Kırlı, Coffeehouses:
Public Opinion in the Nineteenth Century Ottoman Empire; Kırlı, Kahvehaneler ve Hafiyeler: 19.
Yüzyıl Ortalarında Osmanlı’da Sosyal Kontrol.
30 See Lévy, Ordre et Désordres Dans L’Istanbul Ottoman (1879 – 1909).
31 See Lévy & Toumarkine, Osmanlı’da Asayiş, Suç ve Ceza: 18. - 20.; Lévy & Toumarkine (Eds.),
Jandarma ve Polis: Fransız ve Osmanlı Tarihçiliğine Çapraz Bakışlar.
32 Yosmaoğlu, Chasing the Printed Word: Press Censorship in the Ottoman Empire, 1876 - 1913;
Boyar, “The Press and the Palace: The Two-Way Relationship Between Abdülhamid II and the Press,
1876–1908,” 417-432; Turna, “The Ottoman Stage”.
33 See Behar, A Neighborhood in Ottoman Istanbul – The Kasap Ilyas mahalle, fruit vendors and civil
servants.
1 9
In addition, many foreigners poured into the city as explorers or travelers, increasing
interest in entertainment for foreigners and the urban Ottoman population.34
Due to the cosmopolitan nature of Istanbul, the spectrum of performance was
resonant. As the capital city, Istanbul incorporated performers from different regions,
having diverse customs and cultural forms. While hosting artists were coming from
around the empire, the general scene of performance was not limited to the imperial
borders. Many artists from different lands also came to Istanbul to perform. This
situation could be explained as a combined result of two factors. First of all, as the
imperial capital located in the middle of important trade routes, Istanbul was a port
city and, therefore, a point of encounter of different cultures. Secondly, because of its
geopolitical location and its economy, financial capital piled up in Istanbul.35
Performing arts was not just a form of entertainment but also offered lucrative
business opportunities. Especially in the 19th and early 20th centuries, it became an
essential source of revenue. Following the commodification of entertainment sites
and performances, professional managers, performers, and theatre owners offered
their services. The crowded, modernizing, and cosmopolitan population of the city
embedded an audience in demand for new shows. As performing arts flourished, a
new public space also developed where seeing other citizens and being seen by them
became a prestigious asset for Istanbul's socialites.36 Nevertheless, as a hub of trade
and entertainment, Istanbul was also a site of growing crime at the turn of the 19th
34 For a detailed survey of the population of Istanbul, see Shaw, The Population of Istanbul in the
Nineteenth Century.
35 For a survey on the French economic involvement in the Ottoman Empire, see Raccagni, “The
French Economic Interests in the Ottoman Empire,” 339-376; Geyikdağı, “French Direct Investments
in the Ottoman Empire Before World War I,” 525-561.
36 See Exertzoglou, “The Cultural Uses of Consumption,” 77-101.
2 0
century. Therefore, the criminal documents related to performances need to be also
evaluated within that context.37
3.4 Forms of entertainment in the late Ottoman world
Within the vast scope of entertainment activities, one can foreground two
frameworks of performance for analysis. The first of these consists of a group of
performances practiced as a part of a ritual. The ritual of apokries can be cited as a
case in point. This carnival took place every year among the Christian Community of
Istanbul.38 However, there were also other genres of performances outside of the
context of a ritual. These mainly were theater plays, concerts, acrobatic
performances, and dance shows, which took place in different venues in the city.
Pursuing where these performances took place, one should avert studying only the
theaters. Indeed, the space for performing arts was not limited to theater halls. The
documents studied in this research demonstrate how being able to gather a crowd
stood at the center of performativity. Performances could take place anywhere a
crowd was present. Indeed, coffeehouses, winehouses, and union buildings were
significant stages for the artists. From the 1890s onwards, most of the coffeehouses
hosted concerts, therefore being referred to as “çalgılı kahvehane” (caféchantant
or café-concerts).
Although the modernization of Ottoman theater is usually traced back to the
Tanzimat Period, a closer look at the Palace entertainment before the Tanzimat
37 The recent works of Ruth Miller, Nurçin İleri and Ufuk Adak explore the wide range of criminal
activities in Ottoman Istanbul. See Miller. Legislating Authority: Sin and Crime in the Ottoman
Empire and Turkey.; İleri, “Between the Real and the Imaginary: Late Ottoman Istanbul as a Crime
Scene,” 95-116. Adak, “Security, Crime, Punishment, and Prisons in the Late Ottoman Empire,” 447-
449.
38 See Vardar, Carnival celebrations in Istanbul: the changing perception and experience of Apokries
and Baklahorani.
2 1
Period shows that the Ottoman Sultans were pioneer spectators of Western-style
theater. For example, in 1675, an opera company from Venice visited Edirne and
performed at the imperial celebrations.39 As Metin And argues, Western theater
differed from the traditional Ottoman theater, mainly because of the latter's
interactive and participatory aspects. Meddah, Ortaoyunu, and Karagöz, the
traditional Ottoman theatrical genres, were not based on a script but mostly on
improvisation. In the 19th century, theatricality began to incorporate Western-style
drama and performance into the Ottoman world.
Nevertheless, many performances mostly took place in coffeehouses or public
areas and not necessarily on stages in theater buildings.40 It was after 1839 that the
number of theater buildings increased.41 As the plays written by the Ottoman
playwrights were under intense control, there had been more preference for
adaptations and translations from classics in French, Italian and English. However,
these translations were so roughly done that it was often hard for the audience to
understand the play fully. Furthermore, the content of the plays was also culturally
different and foreign to Ottoman audiences. This matter caused a certain distance
between the theater and Turkish-speaking audiences. For example, a mot-àmot
translation of Moliere would be difficult for audiences to understand without any
knowledge of French history and culture.42
39 In other imperial festivities, one could see performers coming from the West as well. Here, the
Sultan’s attitude towards entertainment played an important role in attending performances. And,
Tanzimat ve İstibdat Döneminde Türk Tiyatrosu (1839-1908), 21.
40 And, Tanzimat ve İstibdat Döneminde Türk Tiyatrosu (1839-1908), 19.
41 Ibid, 18.
42 Chastain-Shannon, Daughters of the stage: constructing the modern woman in the theater in the
late Ottoman Empire and early Turkish Republic (1914-1935).
2 2
3.5 Sites of entertainment in the late Ottoman Istanbul
In his description of Istanbul's sites of entertainment, Osman Cemal Kaygılı lays out
a wide range of places both geographically and in terms of the diversity of
performances.43 He calls attention to the demand coming from the public to pass the
time in various places. These include coffee shops with gardens, cottages, taverns,
gazinos, promenades, waterfalls, fountains, beaches, amusement parks, fairs,
beaches, and hamams. Kaygılı associates many of these neighborhoods with different
performativity preferences, giving special character and story of each entertainment
venue. Covering a geography of Anatolian and European sites in the neighborhoods
like Pendik, Kadıköy, Kuzguncuk, Sirkeci, Beyoğlu, Galata, Balıkpazarı, Yenikapı,
Kumkapı or Fener, he lists a number of well-attended theaters or taverns like
Kılburnu, Beytülhazan or Bodrum Palas. He also underlines the ethnic diversity of
the performers and the rich repertoire of performative genres.44
Turan Akıncı focuses particularly on Beyoğlu and reminds us how Istanbul
was also a city where embassies of European states were built in the mid-19th
century. A substantial Levantine population had also begun to settle in Beyoğlu
during this period, transforming the “Grande Rue de Pera” and its surroundings
almost to a European neighborhood. He mentions Western-style passages, hotels,
ballrooms, breweries, bakeries, theaters, and cinemas, which started to be lined up
for the first time. Launched in 1844, the Naum Theatre had become one of the most
important opera houses in Europe. In his book Naum Tiyatrosu, Emre Aracı shows
43 See Çatanak, “Osman Cemal Kaygılı’nın Gezi Yazılarında Eski İstanbul’un Eğlence Mekânları,”
and Kaygılı, Köşe bucak İstanbul.
44 Two volumes of Geleceğe Perde Açan Gelenek: Geçmişten Günümüze İstanbul Tiyatroları are
particularly informative on theaters in Kadıköy and Beyoğlu neighborhoods. See Pekman, Geleceğe
perde açan gelenek: geçmişten günümüze İstanbul tiyatroları cilt II (Beyoğlu, Şişli, Beşiktaş ve
Çevresi) and Özsoysal & Balay, Geleceğe perde açan gelenek: geçmişten günümüze İstanbul
tiyatroları cilt III (Anadolu Yakası).
2 3
how the theater's artistic repertoire and patronage patterns map out the intellectual
network of late Ottoman Istanbul.45 With the entrepreneurship of Mihail Naum
Duhani, a wide variety of performances took place there, performed by acrobats,
magicians, and jugglers, as well as Western artists who came to deliver theatrical
performances such as vaudeville and comedy.46 New performances, which were
being introduced into the Ottoman artistic repertoire, were first performed there.47 On
November 4, 1848, Sultan Abdülmecid came to Naum Theater to watch a play.
Sultan Abdülaziz and his princes also frequented the theater, notably in 1863.
Significant international political figures were entertained here as well, such as the
emperor of Austria-Hungary Franz Joseph, French queen Eugene and Prince of
Wales.48 The theater was so famous that Verdi's Il Trovatore was performed in
Beyoğlu before Paris.49 Sadly, Naum Theater collapsed after the infamous fire of
June 5, 1871.
45 Aracı, Naum Tiyatrosu: 19. yüzyıl İstanbul'un İtalyan operası.
46 Ibid.
47 And, Türkiye’de İtalyan Sahnesi, 58.
48 And, Tanzimat ve İstibdat Döneminde Türk Tiyatrosu (1839-1908), 94-97.
49 Akıncı, Beyoğlu: Yapılar, Mekanlar, İnsanlar (1831-1923), 208-209.
2 4
Figure 3. Naum Theater. derived from Şerban, A & Chan, K. K. Y. (2020). Operetta in Turkey A case
study of Gün's translation of Strauss's Die Fledermaus. In Opera in Translation: Unity and diversity.
John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Other theater buildings complemented the performance scene of that era. The
Armenian Theater, also known as Şark Tiyatrosu, was established in 1861. The first
plays performed at this theater were in Armenian, by actors and actresses who
included David Tiryans, Mardinos, Mınakyan, Ohannes Acemyan, Thomas
Fasulyeciyan, and Agop Vartaviyan.50 In addition, the stage hosted acrobats and
theater shows. After 1868, it was called “Alcazar de Byzans,” and it remained open
until the fire in 1870. After this fire, Beyoğlu Municipality took some part of the
theater to extend the road, and a small theater was built in 1883 by the architect
Hosnep Aznavour. It was re-opened on December 29, 1883, and named as “New
French Theater” with the attendance of the head of the Ministry of Education,
Mustafa Nuri Paşa. Sarafin Minasyan, who had rented the theater after 1886, brought
50 And, Meşrutiyet Döneminde Türk Tiyatrosu, 34.
2 5
several European groups from Paris for a vaudeville performance. Şark
Tiyatrosu had thus a vital impact on the development of theater in the Ottoman
world. Unfortunately, the building was burnt in 1892. Instead, Tokatlıyan Hotel was
built in its location.51
Figure 4. Mınakyan Efendi of Şark Tiyatrosu, from SALT Online Archives.
Another important theater was the Kristal Tiyatrosu, also located along the
Grande Rue de Péra, replacing the first indoor theater of Beyoğlu, known as the
“French theater.”52 Kristal Tiyatrosu had a ballroom and a restaurant. It was reopened
in 1865 as Palais de Crystal.53 In 1879, Spiraki Raftopoulos took over the
theater for 31 years, during which the salon served as a café-chantant and a caféconcert.
Offering dining services besides the performance, Palais de Crystal soon
became a popular place for people who wanted to enjoy the company of food and
51 Akıncı, Beyoğlu: Yapılar, Mekanlar, İnsanlar (1831-1923), 208-209.
52 Ibid, 205.
53 Ibid, 206.
2 6
drink during the performance. Palais de Crystal served until 1910, when it was
demolished in 1920. It was replaced by Elhamra Passage and Theater in 1922.54
Concordia Theater was opened on Grande Rue de Péra as a theater in 1871. It
was a relatively small stage and was turned into a gazino until it was sold to St.
Antoine Catholic Church in 1906.55 Despite its modest stance vis-à-vis Naum
Theater, Concordia's life lasted for 35 years as a colloquial venue for Ottoman
entertainment. Documents of the Ottoman State archives confirm this, as the name
“Concordia” appears most recurrently among the venues that surface in the primary
sources.56
Besides theaters, other sites of entertainment also offered musical
performances in taverns, and coffeehouses turned into gazinos. The Alçak
Gazino, for instance, was located in Kılburnu, Fener. It was built in the place
of Kılburnu Gazinosu, which was previously burned down. Alçak Gazino, like its
predecessor, was considered to be “the most significant party place of the Golden
Horn.”57 Crowded on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, it hosted rich people who
gambled in its casino while others spectated performances over the bars. These
performances spread into the Golden Horn during summers, with boats touring
around the gazino with musicians performing. Such performances were often called
“sazlı sözlü eğlence” which can be translated as “entertainment with music and
conversation.” Memoirs cite the cries of “Aman Allah!”, which were heard as one
could walk around examining peanuts, hazelnuts, pudding, and candy bars in the
square that resembled a colorful ball of intertwined threads.58 The important gazinos
54 And, 100 Soruda Türk Tiyatrosu, 101; Kuruyazıcı, Armenian Architects of Istanbul.
55 And, Meşrutiyet Döneminde Türk Tiyatrosu, 30; Akıncı, Beyoğlu: Yapılar, Mekanlar, İnsanlar
(1831-1923), 205.
56 See Appendix B for the collection of primary source transcriptions.
57 Çatanak, “Osman Cemal Kaygılı’nın Gezi Yazılarında Eski İstanbul’un Eğlence Mekânları,” 616.
58 Ibid, 616.
2 7
of Tepebaşı area were Kanuni Esasi, Şanzelize and Yıldız. Kaygılı tells that Yıldız
Gazinosu was full day and night, but Kanuni Esasi and Şanzelize were not as
crowded.59 The frequenters of these venues did not smoke hookah or cigarettes there
but instead spent all their time slowly drinking (hafif demlenerek) and playing
cards.60
One should also mention the coffeehouses as significant sites of
entertainment that had controversial perceptions at the turn of the 19th century. In his
book on Ottoman sexuality, Dror Zeevi calls attention to how Western women were
seen as “corruptible,” contrasting with the supposedly moral and superior Muslim
women.61 The book mentions a conversation Ahmed Mithad Efendi had with a
coffeehouse owner during his time in Europe. This conversation revolved around
women who were “fallen” to the streets.62 These girls were “educated and wellmannered,”
but they left their homes to have a source of income. They were
employed in these coffeehouses as actresses, singers, dancers, and musicians. This,
according to the coffee house owner, eventually led to their downfall to the street,
supposedly doing prostitution at the end. Ahmed Midhat commented on the issue as
follows: “Now I understand why all these female singers and musicians come in
multitudes to Istanbul and then move on to Izmir, Thessalonica, and even to Syria.”63
Unions established by Europeans were also venues of performances. Several
of these unions appear in the primary sources provided in this thesis, such as Union
Française and Sosyete Opera. Union Française was located in Tepebaşı, Meşrutiyet
59 Çatanak, “Osman Cemal Kaygılı’nın Gezi Yazılarında Eski İstanbul’un Eğlence Mekânları,” 617.
60 The phrase “oynamak” is used here, which can either mean playing - likely playing cards - or
dancing.
61 Zeevi, “Hiding Sexuality,”
49.
62 Ibid, 49.
63 Ahmet Midhat, Avrupa’da bir cevelan, 1017.
2 8
Avenue. Alexandre Vallaury built it in 1896.64 it was a project built for the French
community in Istanbul. Its meeting rooms, library, and offices provided a space for
French-speaking people living in Istanbul to meet and exchange ideas. Moreover, the
stage located on the upper floor meeting salon provided a space for performances.
Finally, the society is mentioned in one of the primary sources as the sponsor of the
celebration of the French Revolution in Concordia Theater.65
Sosyete Opera or Società Operaia Italiana di Mutuo Soccorso (Italian
Workers' Mutual Aid Society) was built in 1863 in Istanbul, but Sosyete Opera was
found in Italy in 1848 as a mutual aid society of workers and shortly spread around
the country.66 Its new building was located in Beyoğlu, Istiklal Avenue, Deva Street,
and built-in 1885. In this building, there was a library, as well as a place to display
important artworks. We also learn from the documents that meetings were held there,
as well as musical performances.67
Another prominent union that was located in Beyoğlu was the German
Teutonic Union. Built in 1875, it was a small charity organization where German
Austrian, and Swiss citizens gathered. German emperor Keiser Wilhelm II visited the
organization in 1898. There was a restaurant and a garden on the first floor and a
meeting salon on the second floor. Certain theaters concerts and conferences took
place there; also, a conservatory used the Union's stage for their concerts.68
Cercle D'Orient was built in Beyoğlu in 1882 as a social complex with a
commercial center, cinema, and a theater. It was built with the initiative of then-
English ambassador Alfred Sandison as “Cercle a Pera.” The main visitors of this
64 Özlü, Türk Mimarisi’nde İz Bırakanlar, 295.
65 Akıncı, Beyoğlu: Yapılar, Mekanlar, İnsanlar (1831-1923), 263.
66 Ibid, 261.
67 COA, İ.HR 338-21909
68 Tuna, Taksim’den Tünele Adım Adım Beyoğlu, 361.
2 9
venue were English businesspeople. People frequented the complex to create a
network for politics and commerce. Ottoman Levantines were among the members
of this community. Many of the ambassadors located in Istanbul were also among the
community members and its managing committee. Among the members were the
leaders of the Committee of Union and Progress, Talat Paşa, Enver Paşa, and Cemal
Paşa, and author Abdülhak Hamid Tarhan. It was under the control of the secret
police of Fehim Paşa, who worked for the Palace.69 That might be the reason why we
do not encounter the name of this venue in censorship documents. Other notable
unions were Dersaadet Rum Cemiyet-i Edebiyesi, Fıkaraperver Kardeşliği Cemiyeti,
Casa D’Italia, Union Hellenique, Circole Roma, Unione Sportiva, Club Suisse,
Yugoslavenska Sloga and B’nai Brith. These venues were built to bring people of the
same nationality together at first as a space to socialize and create networks.
However, in time, these venues evolved into centers of cultural exchange, hosting
theaters, concerts, conferences, balls, and exhibitions.70
69 Akıncı, Beyoğlu: Yapılar, Mekanlar, İnsanlar (1831-1923), 259.
70 Ibid, 263.
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Figure 5. Dolmabahçe Mosque and Theater, from SALT Online Archive.
3.6 Conclusion
Chapter 3 provided information on 19th century Ottoman Performing Arts scene.
First of all, the chapter presented a general survey of the performance studies in the
Ottoman context. Then, after discussing the literature on Ottoman Performing Arts in
the nineteenth century briefly, the chapter portrayed different genres of performance
and their relation to the social life in Istanbul. The chapter then scrutinized the
importance of Istanbul as a city as a site of crime and entertainment. Thus, the reader
is informed about the necessary facts and concepts that help contextualize the
relationship between Ottoman performing arts and social control.
Furthermore, the chapter provided a brief survey of forms of entertainment in
the late Ottoman world, from traditional forms to modern experiments. Finally, the
chapter described important sites of entertainment in late Ottoman Istanbul. Among
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these were coffeehouses, winehouses, unions, and, most importantly, theaters. The
chapter provided descriptive information, and the impression of the contemporaries
of these sites is implemented into the narrative.
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CHAPTER 4
TRIPARTITE CONTROL ON PERFORMING ARTS:
DAHILIYE, ZAPTİYE AND MATBUAT
4.1 Introduction
In his book Theatre and Popular Entertainment in Turkey, Metin And refers to the
19th century as a period of “reorganization and despotism” in the practice of
performing arts. He states that a period of despotism began in Ottoman theater in
1884, with the demolishing of the Ottoman Theater by Sultan Abdülhamid's order.
According to the author, theatrical arts declined after this incident, and this period
could be considered the “beginning of a period of despotism in Turkish theater.”71
And's argument is well-established, considering that during the 19th century,
surveillance was increased not only in the domain of performing arts. Per the
changing political, social, and economic context of the 19th century, we see that the
intervention of the Ottoman State in almost all matters of everyday life escalated.72
This chapter explores the tripartite control mechanism that the Ottoman State
enforced on performing arts between 1878 – 1908, through the involvement of the
ministries of Dahiliye (Interior), Zaptiye (Security), and the office
of Matbuat (Press).
71 And, A History of Theatre and Popular Entertainment in Turkey, 23
72 On the Modernization of the Ottoman State, see İslamoğlu, “Politics of administering property: Law
and statistics in the 19th century Ottoman Empire,” 211-246; Stamatopoulos, “From millets to
minorities in the 19th-century Ottoman Empire: an ambiguous modernization,” 253-273.
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4.2 Changing demographics of Istanbul and the increase of European influence in
economic and cultural spheres
The texture of everyday life in Istanbul changed vastly during the 19th century,
especially in demographics.73 An important cause of this was the increasing
migration waves after the Crimean War and Russian War. Many Muslims who had to
leave Russia, starting from Crimea, sought refuge in the Ottoman Empire. Another
factor was the Russian advancement towards the Balkans - Muslims of Bulgaria and
Romania fled to Ottoman cities, primarily Istanbul. However, the flock of migrations
was not limited to Muslim refugees. Many Ashkenazim Jews immigrated to the
Ottoman Empire following the antisemitic pogroms in Russia that scaled up in the
1890s. A lot of the immigrants ended up in Istanbul. Although they were sent to
places where “other Jews were,” such as Salonica, Izmir, and Aydın, the first target
of many was Istanbul at first. Even though they were sent away later because the
population of Istanbul was growing uncontrollably, they had to pass through Istanbul
before reaching their desired or appointed destinations.74
The economic model and situation of Istanbul changed significantly at the
end of the 19th century. As previously stated in Chapter 3, from 19th century on, the
influence of foreign capital in Istanbul increased. The capital was primarily the
French capital which had officially entered the Ottoman realm with the establishment
of the Ottoman Bank in 1863. Moreover, Edhem Eldem argues that Crimean War
73 For a comprehensive survey on migration to the Ottoman Empire during the 19th and 20th century,
see Freitag, The City in the Ottoman Empire: Migration and the Making of Urban Modernity.
74 In certain documents from the Ottoman State Archives, Izmir, Salonica and Aydın are referred to as
places “where Jewish residents were” (sakine-i museviyyenin olduğu). This channeling was done to
avoid the outcomes of the growing population of Istanbul that caused economic, social, and sanitary
problems. For primary source documents, see COA, BEO 42/3096, COA, BEO 43/3211, COA, BEO
94/7018 and for literature, see Karpat, “Jewish Population Movements in the Ottoman Empire, 1862 –
1914,” 146-168; Deringil, “Jewish Immigration to the Ottoman Empire at the Time of the First Zionist
Congresses: A Comment,” 141-149; Akyalçın-Kaya, “Immigration into Ottoman territory: The case of
Salonica in the late nineteenth century,” 177-189.
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was a key factor shifting Ottoman foreign relations, with Europe in particular. This
turning point resulted from the two most powerful nations (namely England and
France) participating in the war in favor of the Ottomans against Russia.75 This
progress in capital and political influence may explain why, from the 1880s on, the
presence of foreign theater companies and foreign plays increased. Consequently, the
urbanization of Istanbul, modernization of forms of entertainment, and European
influence's entrance coincided with the emergence of suspicion on the part of the
state and a sophisticated system of control in the domain of performing arts.
4.3 The pillar of censorship: The press regulations
The evolution of the press regulation provides an insight into the systematization of
the control on performing arts in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Between
1890 and 1908, different agencies were involved in issuing and implementing
censorship. These involved the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Security, but
also a particular bureaucratic unit called the Press Directorate (Matbuat Müdürlüğü),
a new unit which gathered considerable power under the Hamidian period, found in
1878. In performing arts, two significant pillars of this control can be considered to
regulate the printed material and maintain order in situ. First, we must turn our
attention to press censorship to understand the regulation of the printed material. As
stated by İpek Yosmaoğlu, until 1857s, there were almost no laws or limitations
regarding the press.76 In 1857, however, submitting an application to the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs for printing license became mandatory. In 1862, the Press
Directorate was established. In 1864, a new press regulation that required license
75 Eldem, Ottoman financial integration with Europe: foreign loans, the Ottoman Bank and the
Ottoman public debt, 432.
76 Yosmaoğlu, “Chasing the Printed Word,”15-49.
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applications to be made to the Ministry of Education was implemented77. Censorship
became more systematized after the formation of a board within the Directorate of
Internal Press in 1878. This board aimed to regulate what would be published in
newspapers and magazines.
Interestingly, from 1882, non-political publications, which were not censored
before, started to be censored.78 Due to the significant increase in censorship of nonpolitical
materials from 1882 on, such interventions would be implemented on the
materials prepared for coffeehouse or theater performances. The increase in
criminalization documents resulted in more information on Ottoman performing arts
being recorded in the archives. Based on the correspondence between institutions
regarding performance materials, we have the chance to find out about the content of
the Ottoman scene of performing arts and what was permitted and what was
prohibited.
By the 1890s, the period that the majority of the primary sources used in this
thesis elaborates on, any printed material was systematically controlled, censored,
and regulated. In this manner, the Press Directorate was heavily involved in
monitoring the performance scene of Istanbul. At this point, as also can be observed
in the primary source documents, any play that was supposed to be performed and
any song that was supposed to be sung was expected to be sent to the Press
Directorate first. In many instances, we see that performing any material that had not
been approved previously by the Directorate resulted in state intervention.79
77 This regulation is argued to be an adaptation of 1852 Press law of Louis Napoleon. Yosmaoğlu,
“Chasing the Printed Word,”15-49; Borovaya. Modern Ladino Culture: Press, Belles Lettres, &
Theater in the Late Ottoman Empire.
78 See Özkorku, “Basın Özgürlüğü ve Osmanlı Devleti'ndeki Görünümü,” 65-84.
79 This will be discussed in examples in detail in Chapter 5.
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4.4 The involvement of the police
The implementation of press regulations to the performing arts scene required on-site
examination. Here, the second pillar of the control mechanism came in: the
intervention by the inspectors and police officers. There were two groups of officers
that were involved in this manner. While the inspectors of the Press Directorate
spectated the venues to determine if there was any delinquency, it was expected of
the police (referred to as Zaptiye Memurları) to take the necessary actions when such
instances occurred. As demonstrated in the primary sources, the Ministry of Security
was asked to send officers to the performance venues to ensure that the performance
was executed as planned. Any discrepancy ranging from inappropriate clothing,
unwanted words, even to improvisation, could be a cause for trouble. This situation
is especially evident in the case of a form of Ottoman theater called “tuluat.”
Traditionally known as orta oyunu (theater-in-the-round, or “middle-play” as
literally translated), tuluat is a theater form based on improvisation. Because the
instance of performance would be gone far by the time the police recognized the
unwanted performances, people involved in the tuluat theater were often
criminalized without distinction. Names of people such as Kel Hasan Efendi, Şevki
Efendi, Atıf Efendi, or Fevzi Efendi, who were renowned theater company owners,
thus appear in censorship documents recurringly.
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Figure 6. Hamdi-Orta Oyunu from 1840s, from SALT Online Archive.
At this point, we should be taking a look at the history of the Ministry of
Security as an institution. In the 19th century, Ottoman State's criminalization and
justice system rapidly modernized. This change occurred through various
institutional developments, mainly concerning the centralization of criminal codes,
new courts, modern law schools, a modern system, and most importantly, the
formation of the police. Kent Schull, in Comparative Criminal Justice in the Era of
Modernity: A Template for Inquiry and the Ottoman Empire as Case Study, argues
that these changes were not “borrowed wholesale” from Western Europe but instead
developed as a continuation of a classical Ottoman justice system. He also argues
that the change in the criminal justice system was a culmination of the attempts by
imperial and local officials, aiming to overcome the challenges brought by the
developments of the era, such as migration, changing economic system and
Westernization.80
80 Schull, Comparative Criminal Justice in the Era of Modernity: A Template for Inquiry and the
Ottoman Empire as Case Study, 7
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Selim III, who ruled from 1789 until his assassination in 1808, is regarded as
a pioneer figure in the modernization of urban surveillance system in Ottoman
Istanbul. To begin with, the Sultan issued several codes titled “Nizam-ı Cedid
Kanunları” and policed the imperial capital.81 Mahmud II, who ruled between 1808
and 1839, often referred to as the father of Ottoman modernity and remembered as
the “reformist”82, abolished the Janissary. The abolishment of the Janissary was a
turning point as it halted the Empire's guild system and thus can be seen as an
instance of eradicating non-state actors.83 This new police system put forward by
Mahmud II surveilled the order in public areas.84 With this development, the state
created a centralized system of control.85 It is important to note that this unit was
later assigned to the Ministry of Interior, explaining why we encounter the
term Zaptiye in the bureaucratic correspondence between the Ministry of Interior and
the Press Administration.
In Policing the Countryside, Nadir Özbek focuses mainly on the period after
1879. The author explains his decision per the increase in the impact and size of the
“gendarmerie” following this date. During this period, the presence of the
“gendarmerie” expanded beyond the capital towards the provinces. Moreover, the
institution developed a more “uniform character.”86 During this period, one could
argue that the Ottoman Empire was going through a phase in which social control in
urban areas shifted from the military to the police force.87 It is possible to see other
81 For Sultan Selim III’s reign, see Başaran, Remaking the Gate of Felicity; Zarinebaff, Crime and
Punishment in Istanbul, 74.
82 “İnkılapçı”.
83 Quataert, The Ottoman Empire, 134-140; Koç and Yeşil, Nizam-ı Cedid Kanunları.
84 Here, it should be stressed that this was previously the task of the Janissaries.
85 For a detailed survey on the evolution of Ottoman Police System, one of the most comprehensive
pieces is written by Ferdan Ergut. See, Ergut, Modern Devlet ve Polis.
86 Özbek, “Policing the Countryside: Gendarmes of The Late 19th-Century Ottoman Empire (1876–
1908),” 50.
87 Ibid, 52.
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reform movements in distinct countries relating to their modernization vision. For
instance, in Prussia, the army dealt with social unrest.88 Similarly, in Russia, the
authorities preferred to abstain from relying entirely on the police, and military
officers worked on maintaining the social order.89 However, the government
compensated the army with irregular officers if the military required any assistance.
This situation could be seen in modernizing Empires, such as Prussia and Russia, as
provided in the examples, and Austria and Ottoman Empire: while the army was
responsible for maintaining the social order, the gendarmerie (or the police) provided
additional force.90
The “gendarmerie” (or the “police”) force in Ottoman Empire was formed in
1840 under the name “asakir-i zabtiye,” meaning “soldiers of control.” This
development can be interpreted as parallel to the agenda of securing uniformity and
order in provincial areas. One could argue that this need derived from attempts to
settle down any potential problems within the Empire before forming the new
national army - a necessity that is a consequence of the abolishment of the traditional
Janissary company.91 The structure of the “gendarmerie” evolved between the 1840s
and 1878. The 1864 Provincial Law, uniformizing the surveillance system, was a
significant step for the Ottoman administration. Another important law was the 1869
Gendarmerie Law. These reform attempts were executed by the Police Directorate
(Zaptiye Müşiriyeti).92 When we look at these developments, we can see that
establishing a centralized police force aimed to eliminate non-state actors in setting
the order.
88 Emsley, Gendarmes and the State, 214.
89 Frank, Crime, Cultural Conflict, and Justice, 8.
90 Özbek, “Policing the Countryside: Gendarmes of The Late 19th-Century Ottoman Empire (1876–
1908),” 52.
91 Ibid, 52.
92 Ibid, 51
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The main challenges that prevented the police force from forming more
centralized units, however, stemmed from the political and social changes in the
early and mid-19th century. To begin with, the Empire had to deal with nationalist
uprisings in the Balkans and the Eastern provinces. Such problems, along with
increased territorial losses, resulted in economic difficulties. Moreover, the economic
difficulties increased in the second half of the 19th century.93 Thus, while the
Ottoman State was trying to embed a more organized and centralized structure within
the system of social control because of economic problems and political unrest, these
were, in fact, the same circumstances that made such reforms hard to execute.
4.5 Inter-institutional relationships
The relationship between the two pillars of control, Zaptiye, and Matbuat, is worth
taking a close examination. The bureaucratic journey of these documents implicates
friction between two ministries. In the bureaucratic correspondence, the Ministry of
Interior functions as an umbrella institution that receives the petitions submitted
by Zaptiye and Matbuat. The Ministry of Education and Şehremaneti (City
Municipality) institutions appear as the institutions responsible for the execution of
the order in the mid-19th century. From the late Hamidian period on, the Press
Directorate submitted petitions in case delinquency is detected. Ministry of Security
was responsible for the execution of the order. The communication between the two
was not direct: both sides sent their petitions to the Ministry of Interior, and the
Ministry of Interior forwarded these petitions to each institution. An interesting point
to note here is that the officers in Press Directorate were holding significant power in
the maintenance of order, especially in the domain of the performing arts. The Press
93 Özbek, “Policing the Countryside: Gendarmes of The Late 19th-Century Ottoman Empire (1876–
1908),” 52.
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Directorate submitted many petitions to the Ministry of Interior to ensure that the
Ministry of Security was executing the necessary order. In some cases, Press
Directorate complained to the Ministry of Interior about the lack of effectiveness of
the Ministry of Security officers.
Conceivably, the police officers were occupied with dealing with more severe
crimes such as theft or violence. Therefore, requests by the Press Directorate were
not of preeminent importance to the Ministry of Security, and there is a chance that
this was why the Press Directorate considered the efforts of the Ministry of Security
to be not enough. After all, as argued in previous paragraphs, “Zaptiye” as an
institution was evolved from the military itself. Therefore, such an institution can be
expected to focus more on more solid crimes rather than vague accusations as
“inappropriateness.”
Figure 7. Kel Hasan Efendi, derived from Şerban, A & Chan, K. K. Y. (2020). Operetta in Turkey A
case study of Gün's translation of Strauss's Die Fledermaus. In Opera in Translation: Unity and
diversity. John Benjamins Publishing Company.
4 2
4.6 Protagonists of censorship
The documents revealed particular officials involved in the control of the social
order.94 An important figure behind the restrictions on performances at coffeehouses
and theaters was, for instance, the head of the Press Directorate, Hıfzı Bey. Hıfzı Bey
was a son of an Ottoman bureaucrat named Hüseyin Efendi. His name started
appearing at annual state records (devlet salnameleri) from 1889 on. He became the
chief censor in the Press Directorate in 1891. Abdullah Macit Bey, Pertev Bey,
Mehmet Şevki Efendi, Ahmet Arifi Bey served as head of Press Departments during
The Hamidian period. Yusuf Behçet Bey took this position in 1892 after a rather
misfortunate mistake in the Takvim-i Vakayi newspaper and caused Ahmet Arif Bey
to resign. Censorship became harsher when İbrahim Hıfzı Bey replaced him in 1901.
It is understood that İbrahim Hıfzı did not delegate his control to anybody and
pursued each case independently. Nevertheless, he died at a young age in 1905,
leaving his place to Ebu Mükbil Kemal Bey, who was exiled after the Young Turk
revolution in 1908. The prominent role of the Head of the Press Directorate (Matbuat
Müdürlüğü) was indeed to be an intermediary agency between the Palace and the
permit applications from the press.95
94 Here I should state that “social order” is not a “given. The administrative authorities could define
“social order” as it suited their interest. Members of the subject population usually consent to these
definitions, and censorship aims to marginalize those who disagree or demonstrate skepticism. After
all, as Marx argued, public opinion is the opinion of the governing class. For a comprehensive
explanation of the subject, see Sallach, “Class Domination and Ideological Hegemony,” 38-50.
95 See Kardeş, Basın Yayın Genel Müdürlüğü 60 Yılın Hikayesi; İmre, Anadolu Basınının (Orta
Karadenı̇z Bölgesı̇ Yerel Basınının) Sorunları ve Çözümler.
4 3
Figure 8. İbrahim Hıfzı Bey. Derived from “Operetta in Turkey A case study of Gün's translation of
Strauss's Die Fledermaus”.
4.7 Conclusion
This chapter provided a brief overview of the documents issued during the Hamidian
period, pertaining to the systematic control issued over the domain of performing
arts. This section aimed to hand over how the three institutions, the Press Directorate,
the Ministry of Security, and the Ministry of Interior, related to each other on this
particular matter. While the Press Directorate issued the backbone of censorship, the
Ministry of Security worked upon the directives given by the Directorate. At least
regarding the documents provided for this research, the Ministry of Interior
functioned as an intermediary institution. It did not interfere in the matters of
censorship directly but rather forwarded the petitions of the Press Directorate and the
Ministry of Security to each other. The next chapter, Chapter 5, will introduce case
studies and evaluate each incident covered by the primary source covered. These
cases will exemplify the proposed arguments in this chapter.
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CHAPTER 5
CRIMINALIZATION OF PERFORMING ARTS:
DIVERSITY OF CASE STUDIES
5.1 Introduction
The Ottoman Archives Directorate offers a diverse range of primary sources
regarding the pressure and constraints of entertainment. Following a series of
keywords, one could reach the essential elements of the entertainment domains in
late 19th century Istanbul. In fact, as a researcher on rebetiko, my archival research
first focused on the sites of performances where rebetiko could have been performed.
The terms “kahvehane” (coffeehouse) and “kafe-şantan” (café-chantant) were the
first entries I searched in the database of the Ottoman Archives. The search offered a
long list of findings consisting of that included these keywords. These documents
directed me to other sites of performances like the “meyhanes” (winehouses),
“birahanes” (beer houses), and “gazinos” (places where people played card games
and consumed alcohol). One other category emerged as “çalgılı kahve” (coffee house
with music)—most of these documents referred to these performative venues in
association with criminalized activities. Nevertheless, the documented crimes were
not often as severe as theft, violence, or murder, but they were often associated with
inappropriate or immoral behavior. The ambiguity of the terminology evoked many
questions regarding the legitimacy of the criminalization of entertainment in general.
The terminology of the archived documents also revealed how the state developed a
criminalizing approach towards performance venues, genres, and their social players
by the end of the 19th century. This terminology included such keywords like
“münasebetsizlik” (inappropriateness), “ahlaksızlık” (immorality), “muzır”
4 5
(naughty), “gayr-i musaddak” (disapproved) or “adaba mugayirlik” (ill mannerism)
or “başıbozuk” (gadabout). The term “gayr-i musaddak” was of particular
importance, as it oriented me towards persevering how the mechanism of “approval”
(tasdik) functioned.
Indeed, these words were empty signifiers, meaning that they did not
correspond to a specific crime. However, one could contextualize each incident
separately to understand why the action was perceived as a criminal act. While each
document displayed a case, which had a particular criminal significance, the
comprehensive exploration of all these documents revealed a general scene and the
essential elements of the entertainment domains of late 19th century Istanbul.96
These documents informed us about the names of entertainment places and those of
the managers and owners of theaters. They also revealed the range of performance
genres, names of the performers, and the plays' titles.
Nevertheless, their most important aspect consisted of how the state
positioned itself vis-à-vis public entertainment and how it regulated the domain of
entertainment. As mentioned previously in Chapter 4, the documents showed
different departments and officials of the state who were engaged in social control,
mainly through censorship, but they also lay out diverse cases where entertainment
and criminalization were associated. Therefore, this chapter will try to delineate these
documents based on the primary sources reached from the Ottoman Archives
Directorate.
96 The justifications of criminalization are listed as a chart in the Appendix B.
4 6
5.2 On the sites of entertainment, and their owners and managers
The names of these performance sites and their owners provide a map of the late
19th-century world of entertainment in Istanbul. Documents from the Ottoman
Archives related to the criminalization of various performances mentioned a variety
of sites of entertainment. Firstly, they point out where entertainment activities
concentrated in late 19th century Istanbul as districts and neighborhoods. Some
cases, for instance, took place on the Anatolian side in Kadıköy or Küçük Çamlıca,
some others in Şişli, Beyoğlu and Galata neighborhoods of the old city. Certain cases
mentioned particular streets or avenues like Kılburnu in Fener, or Kuşdili in
Kadıköy, referring to particular sites of entertainment. Some of these sites were the
well-known, established theater halls like Concordia, Odeon and Kristal Theaters in
the central Beyoğlu area, or the well-populated Kuşdili Theater in Kadıköy. Some
were places just to drink and watch musical performances. There is mention of a
series of “gazinos,” meaning in Turkish a site of entertainment where musical
performances could be watched while eating and drinking. A certain Jardin du Clos,
for instance, was a known site in Şişli. Documents also mention Komers Çalgılı
Gazinosu, Kardiyal Çalgılı Gazinosu, Fener Kılburnu Gazinosu, Küçük Çamlıca
Gazinosu and Aptalikos Gazinosu. Other such places were Panyolaki's baloz in
Galata or the Sosyete Opera, which was located next to the hat store of Baltazar.
Documents pointed out also some other musical coffeehouses, winehouses, or
brothels.
We see that many of these sites and names are mentioned in other sources as
well. Kılburnu Gazinosu was mentioned, for instance, in Ahmet Rasim Fuhş-i Atik as
well as in Osman Cemal Kaygılı’s Köşe Bucak İstanbul. Both authors acclaim this
site as the biggest gazino of the Golden Horn area, where Istanbul's most prominent
4 7
singers and musicians performed.97 Ahmet Rasim also mentions entertainment sites
like Concordia Theater and Komers Çalgılı Gazinosu in the Beyoğlu area. These
documents give us a general view of the performance frames of these sites,
mentioning not only famous performers but also the profile of the audiences, the
transporters, and the serving women waitresses. Nevertheless, the criminal
documents from the Ottoman Archives Directorate zoom us into a historicalethnographic
moment, which displays “a trespassing” or a possibility or discontent
about it.
Figure 9. Kristal Tiyatrosu, derived from Şerban, A & Chan, K. K. Y. (2020). Operetta in Turkey A
case study of Gün's translation of Strauss's Die Fledermaus. In Opera in Translation: Unity and
diversity. John Benjamins Publishing Company.
97 Ahmet Rasim recalls the famous violin players Kör Sabuh and Serçe Tevfik performing in Kılburnu
gazino. Similarly, Osman Cemal Kaygılı particularly mentions the kemençe player Anastas. See
Ahmet Rasim, Fuhş-i Atik (Eski fuhuş hayatı) Avrupa Yakası; Kaygılı, Köşe Bucak İstanbul, Selis
Kitaplar, İstanbul, 333; also cited in Canatak, Osman Cemal Kaygılı’nın Gezi Yazılarında Eski
İstanbul’un Eğlence Mekanları, 611-630.
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Some of these sites were cited through the names of their managers or
owners. For instance, we learn from these documents that Atıf and Fevzi Efendis
managed a comedy company. When they were punished, names of theater owners
usually surfaced, like Hasan Efendi and Şevki Efendi, along with the coffeehouse
owner Yorgi. In some cases, documents referred to foreign performers. For example,
a document informs us that a music group of 13 people from Pandopoulo's company
would be coming from Greece and performing at Odeon, December 27, 1903.98
Another such document belonged to the coffeehouse owner Yorgi.99 There is also
reference to the Palamari Printing House, which most probably printed many of the
performance events that made their way into criminal records.100
5.3 On the genres of performances and their performers
The documents from the Ottoman Archives Directorate also offer essential
information relating to the genres of performances in late 19th century Istanbul. The
main genres included canto, polka, song, theatrical play, or pantomime. Documents
reveal other performative events like improvisational plays, reading aloud practices,
painting women, cinematic performances, or hanging advertisements. These genres
were performed in several languages. Documents showed that besides Turkish, songs
or theater pieces were performed in Arabic, Italian, French, and German. Certain
documents revealed exciting details, including the titles of the plays and the names of
the performers. Some of these criminal documents give us information on theater
pieces overlooked in mainstream theater history of the late Ottoman world. It seems
that plays like “Kayseriye Yolcuları” and “Aşıklar” were performed in Istanbul,
98 COA, DH.MKT 792.74
99 COA, ZB.601.127
100 COA, DH.MKT 827.11
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and “Red Magician” in Salonica. “Aşıklar” can be traced today either to a particular
playwright Ahmed, who wrote a play named “Bedbaht Aşıklar” (1886)101 or to a
translation of Gl'innamorati, a comedy written by Venetian playwright Carlo Goldoni
in 1759.102 Such examples show how chasing criminal documents in a broader
context can reveal a much more extensive repertoire of play names.
The documents found in the Ottoman Archives Directorate offer several
names of notable performers as well. They also hint that there existed clusters of
performers who were active during the late Ottoman era. One document, for instance,
mentioned a theater group, La Bruna Kumpanyası,103 while another mentions the
aforementioned Greek music group of 13 people accompanying Pandopoulo's
company.
Some of these criminal documents detail the artistic genres of the performers.
There is, for instance, a mention of a nameless “canto singer” in Küçük Çamlıca
casino, the “çalgıcı” (musical instrument player) Mösyö Silvi, the “singer” Marika
Anglize or a comedian by the name of Hasan Efendi. Indeed, we understand from the
documents that there were two famous performers named Hasan, distinguished as
“Kel Hasan Efendi” and “Komik Hasan Efendi.” Documents also reveal a series of
other performers like Şevki Efendi, Atıf Efendi, Fevzi Efendi, as mentioned
previously, along with Tudori, Pavli, and Yorgaki Efendis.
5.4 Maintaining order in the domain of performances: Censorship and its challenges
The collected documents on the state's criminal approach towards performing arts
during 1890-1908 in Istanbul lay out a historical ethnography of the bureaucratic
101 Aytaş, Türk Tiyatro Eserleri 1.
102 Guidotti, “Carlo Goldoni,” 865-870.
103 COA, DH.MKT 969.8
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practices involving inspectors, censors, police stations, and officers. We learn, for
example, of "Hayri Bey" or "Corci Efendi" reporting on censorship to their
superiors, or of Galib and Refiki Mahmud Efendis, who oversaw Aziziye Police
Station surveillance. In his book A History of Theatre and Popular Entertainment in
Turkey, Metin And points out that the officers assigned for censorship were often
appointed from among the least competent people. The example of Yasefaçi, a
censor of Jewish origin, was a case in point, as the appointed man knew almost
nothing about theater, and had forbidden the performances of La Fille du Tambour,
Major Bébé, La grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein, Otello, Le Roi S'Amuse among
some others.104 Metin And also reminds us that in some parts of the play, this
censor's intention was actually to remove certain words such as “conspire” or
“conspirator.” One must understand today that he probably did change them, which
explains why researchers find out about the censored documents but cannot chase the
forbidden terminology in them.
Censorship had several dimensions, but it mainly concerned the “approval” of
performances which included “gayr-ı caiz” (illicit) actions or a “münasebetsiz”
(inappropriate) case. In this manner, the lyrics of songs and cantos were needed to be
approved by the Press Directorate. The Directorate also controlled whether
performances' announcements were issued with a proper permit. In this regard, script
regulations were mainly concerned with "inappropriate expressions" in songs, plays,
and cantos. In her book Ordre et Désordres Dans L'Istanbul Ottoman (1879 - 1909),
Noémi Lévy draws our attention to a consistent vocabulary used in documents
regarding censorship during the late Hamidian period, most conspicuous ones being
“münasebetsizlik” (impertinence), “uygunsuzluk” (inappropriateness), “ahlaksızlık”
104 And, A history of theatre and popular entertainment in Turkey, 71-72.
5 1
(immorality) and “adaba mugayirlik” (ill mannerism).105 In his before-mentioned
book, Metin And also provides information regarding the state of theater
performances at the turn of the 19th century. He underscores how rigid censorship
has been the most critical barrier to any theater company or playwright's success.
Censorship was established during the reign of Abdülaziz and was reinforced
and extended during Abdülhamid II's time. Although And sees this epoch as a period
that emitted any contribution to the Ottoman theatricality, historians may disagree as
the rigidity of this censorship allows them to see what took place on theatrical
grounds at the end of the 19th century. In his review of this epoch, Metin And
delineates the process of censorship as follows:
During the Hamidian rule, censorship worked in three different ways. First,
every manuscript was submitted to the censor. In the beginning, this was to
the Ministry of Interior. In later years, works were submitted to the Ministry
of Education and the Ministry of Police for their approval. Besides this, in
every performance, an official was attending as a controlling force. The other
kind of censorship was conditional; that which was found to be objectionable
could be made regular with slight changes, suppressing inopportune passages,
specific names of people, and localities. Alternatively, sometimes when a
play to be performed was found objectionable, it would be reported to the
authorities, who would demand prohibitory action. Nonetheless,
performances that would have otherwise been lost in time were documented
and later discovered by researchers thanks to censorship.106
5.5 Inappropriateness: An elusive ground for criminalization
As it was portrayed in sub-chapter 5.1, the terminology used in most of the
criminalization documents did not correspond to a specific crime. For example, one
of the documents stated that in the play of the comedian Hasan Efendi, one of the
actors had gone on stage in a “weird way and weird clothing” (acayib hal ve kıyafet).
The same actor also expressed some “malapropos sayings” (tefevvühat-ı bi-
105 Lévy, Ordre et désordres dans l’Istanbul Ottoman (1879 - 1909). The justifications for
criminalization are also listed as a chart in the Appendix B.
106 And, A History of Theatre and Popular Entertainment in Turkey, 21.
5 2
edebane), triggering the audience to respond.107 In some cases, there were warnings
about theatrical performances, which included speeches that were not in the initially
approved script of the play.108 In some other cases, the Press Directorate strongly
forbade to hang “handwritten pamphlets,” as these were non-approved
announcements put on public display. During the performance of “Aşıklar,” for
instance, pamphlets in different colors, shapes, and handwriting were posted “here
and there” (öteye beriye) by the theater company.109 There were also warnings
concerning actors' improvisation, which were considered as deviations from the
approved script. The Press Directorate also targeted police officers, telling them to
pay more attention to protect the prohibitions and avert any conversations outside the
script. It also asked them to be careful about malapropos situations and actions that
may take place during the performance.110
A document sent from the Ministry of Interior to the Ministry of Security on
March 2, 1902, mentioned two comedians, Hasan Efendi and pantomimist Tudori.
Apparently, the Press Directorate had not approved their performance at Concordia
theater and other musical performances at Commerce and Cardial musical
coffeehouses. According to the Press Directorate, stated the Ministry of Interior,
these performances included illicit actions, expressed as “gayr-ı caiz.” Therefore, the
Press Directorate requested that the Beyoğlu Municipality should warn the managers
and owners of theaters and musical coffeehouses.111
107 COA, DH.MKT 868.58
108 COA, DH.MKT 969.8
109 COA, DH.MKT 868.58
110 COA, DH.MKT 868.58
111 COA, DH.MKT 2594.122
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5.6 The power of the Press Directorate
As the head of the Press Directorate, Hıfzı Bey sent a document dated July 1, 1902,
to the Ministry of Interior, informing them about an “inappropriate” case. His
inspectors […]112 Bey and Hayri Bey reported that songs in Turkish and other
languages were performed at Kılburnu Gazinosu. The document stated that the
establishment's owner should be reminded that the “canto notebooks should be
approved”113 by the Press Directorate first. If they refused to abide, it asked the
Ministry of Security “to be informed and sent to duty.”114 These documents show
that the Press Directorate had developed an internal power within the state
bureaucracy. We should note here that the Press Directorate was able to send
requests and orders to the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Security in a
roundabout way.
The Ministry of Interior issued another document on June 30, 1903, to the
Ministry of Security. The document revealed that some plays staged at Beyoğlu
Concordia Theater were performed in Italian, “without considering the implemented
changes.” According to the Ministry of Interior, the statement was initially made
regarding reports provided by the Press Directorate inspectors. The Ministry states
that the Press Directorate asked the responsible people to be “warned recurrently” to
prevent such events. However, when we look at the previously issued document - the
one supposedly issued by the Press Directorate - we encounter the report issued back
on June 27, 1903, by the Head of Press Directorate Hıfzı Bey to the Ministry of
Interior. This document relates to the same issue: Hıfzı Bey requesting an order to be
made for the Ministry of Security. Here, we learn that the Press Directorate did not
112 I could not decipher the officer’s name.
113 Meaning the lyrics and the notes of the songs that would be performed.
114 COA, DH.MKT, 2594.122
5 4
cease their effort of control with the script regulations, and they followed up these
changes on stage via informers to make sure they are implemented.115
Another document pointed out a poster that was issued without a proper permit. The
document was sent from the Ministry of Interior to the Ministry of Justice on March
7, 1904. It stated that the poster of a play performed at the Concordia Theater was
printed at Palamari Printing House “without a license.” The Press Directorate had
issued a petition which asked the Ministry of Justice to take the necessary legal
action. Indeed, two days before this petition, the Head of the Press Directorate Hıfzı
Bey had asked the Ministry of Interior to warn, particularly the Ministry of Justice,
about this issue. The circulation of these documents informs us that the scope of
censorship also included posters published in printing houses. Moreover, in a similar
way as the previous document, the Head of the Press Directorate Hıfzı Bey, seemed
to be in a position of authority to ask the Ministry of Interior to take any action and
give directions to the Ministry of Justice.
5.7 Criminalization of venues: Alcohol as an alibi
The fact that alcohol consumption coexisted with performance did not slip past the
notice of the Ottoman Administration. The Ottoman State had quite an interesting
relationship with the regulation of alcoholic beverages. The state experimented with
banning alcohol during the rule of Selim III, but that turned out to fail seriously.116
Although alcoholic beverages were banned in Muslim-ran coffeehouses, Rum and
Armenian coffeehouses served wine or rakı with coffee. Therefore, alcohol could be
115 COA, DH.MKT, 731.13
116 For a detailed survey on the control of alcohol consumption during the time of Selim III, see
Başaran, Selim III, Social Control and Policing in Istanbul at the End of the Eighteenth Century.
5 5
consumed at both coffeehouses and winehouses, blurring the difference between
these two venues.117
In accordance with the discussions in Chapter 3 regarding the increasing
number of performative venues, in the 19th century, we see that alcohol companies,
beerhouses, and winehouses that had already existed for a long time became much
more popularized, especially with the entry of foreign capital to the Ottoman
economy. However, in many instances, consumption of alcohol was reported in
criminal documents as immoral behavior. For instance, according to a report issued
on March 10, 1902, by the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Security officers
detected that “Muslim people were publicly drinking.”118
An interesting incident occurred on 1893, May 11. In a report that was sent
from the Aziziye Police Office to the Yıldız Palace, two people, Murtaza from
“Tüfengi-i hazret-i şehriyari bölüğü”119 and “mabeyn-i hümayun ketebesi”120
Mehmed Efendi and “Saray-ı Hümayun sandalcısı”121 Salim Efendi were seen
drinking and singing at night, around 3 o’clock at Panyolaki’s baloz (a place where
people drink and dance) in Galata.122 Two actions were stated as crimes in this
incident. The first is drinking with girls, singing with them, and being an anonymous
“undisciplined person” (başıbozuk).123 The second crime was, although the soldiers
were told that this was forbidden, they did not seem to hear the warning and opposed
117 Georgeon, F. “Osmanlı İmparatorluğu’nun son döneminde İstanbul kahvehaneleri,” 57.
118 “ahali-i müslümanın alenen müskirat istimal etmemeleri” COA, BEO.2299.172385
119 The armed section of the palace.
120 Officer of the Palace secretary.
121 Boatman at the Palace.
122 COA, Y.PRK.ASK.90.40
123 Başıbozuk can also be defined as an irregular soldier. “Although evident throughout the century,
the unevenness of this system manifested distinctive characteristics at various moments and in various
parts of the Empire. During the mid-19th century, for example, Ottoman authorities frequently
employed regular army units, the gendarmerie, or irregular units of armed men (başıbozuk) to ensure
provincial security.” Özbek, “Policing the Countryside: Gendarmes of The Late 19th-Century
Ottoman Empire (1876–1908),” 52.
5 6
the police by saying, “I do not know/recognize you” (“sizi tanımam”) when he was
being taken from there. As the story went on, later that night, Murtaza, Mehmed
Efendi and Salih Efendi were taken to Aziziye Police Station under the surveillance
of Galib and Refiki Mahmud Efendi. They were then given to a police officer to be
taken to the navy. It is worth noting that although singing and drinking were not
considered criminal actions themselves, just like in other examples, the state saw
them as alibis of criminal activities. What is important here, regarding the issue that
this research is tackling, is that the main problem pointed out is the consumption of
alcohol and singing with women in a baloz: soldiers and Palace officials spending
time in this venue is problematized.
Finally, we should be paying attention to a document issued by the Lieutenant
of Beyoğlu, Mehmed, who most certainly problematized drinking venues. In a
document he issued to the Ministry of Security, he stated the following:
Winehouses are being left open until the morning, and many shameful
situations are happening [there and] at the brothels. Inappropriate women
from the brothels are constantly singing at coffeehouses, casinos, and
winehouses and gallivanting on the street with men in a malapropos manner.
Because of this, there turns out to be all sorts of unacceptable behavior, and
warning alone is not helping such behavior to vanish. [...] Similarly, the
sound of the drunk [people], caused by keeping the casinos and winehouses at
Beşiktaş and Boğaziçi open until the morning, intervenes the resting of the
public. The Beşiktaş Commissary reported that the residents of the area want
to ban this.124
5.8 Non-Muslims as potential criminals
In many cases, we see that the problem of “disorderliness” is attributed to the non-
Muslim populations. For example, in one document, it was reported that the
inspectors of the Press Directorate spotted inappropriate behavior among some of the
124 COA, ZB 74.31
5 7
spectators during a cinematographic display at Beyoğlu Concordia Theater.
However, it is worth marking that what was defined as inappropriateness was the
action of whistling during the demonstration of German Emperor Wilhelm II's
photographs. Moreover, it was emphasized that such inopportune behaviors were not
endemic to the Ottoman State,125 at least not to the Muslim citizens of the Empire,
and it was therefore argued that this should have been the work of “some non-
Muslims.”
To understand why whistling could have been considered a criminal act, we
must look at the historical context. The early 1900s was a significant period for
political amitié between Sultan Abdülhamid II and Kaiser Wilhelm II. From the
initiated Ottoman assistance to the suppression of the Boxer Rebellion, from creating
Berlin-Baghdad Railway to the Keiser Wilhelm II's visits, the alliance was garnished
with the emphasis of Kaiser's support and admiration for the Islamic brotherhood and
the policies of the Sultan in that direction.126 Ottoman State was so cautious not to let
any event that would jeopardize this relationship happen that a critical action towards
the German Emperor was calumniated on the non-Muslim community without a
second thought. The ambiguity created by using an empty signifier as a legal binder
here is one of many cases via which the state aimed to ensure the survival of a
scheduled political atmosphere.
125 ”...Memleketimizde şimdiye kadar tiyatrolarca bu gibi münasebetsizlik vukuu müşahid
olmamasıyla bunun huzzar meyanında bulunan bazı eşhas-ı gayrımüslime tarafından vukua getirilmiş
olup...” COA, DH.MKT 801.60
126 See “Keiser Wilhelm II and the political economy of personal diplomacy” in Yorulmaz, “Arming
the Sultan,” 133-176; Soy, “II. Wilhelm, Weltpolitik ve II. Abdülhamid,” 25-33.
5 8
Figure 10. Depiction of a theater in the 19th century, from SALT Online Archive.
We encounter a similar attitude in a document issued back on December 10,
1890. There, the document not only criminalized the performance of the famous
play Richelieu, but it also required a Rum officer, Yorgaki Efendi, to be expelled
from his position at the representative commission of Beyoğlu Municipality and his
position as an officer at the Ministry of Education, for granting license to the play.
While the reason for the criminalization is not officially disclosed, Yorgaki Efendi
was accused, bearing in mind his proficiency in Rum language.127 The document
argued that Richelieu, a play that should not have been licensed, was licensed and
performed. According to the officers, since the play was nonetheless performed in
Rum language, it could have only been Yorgaki Efendi from the License
Commission. One can frankly see here that Yorgaki Efendi's identity (thus, ability to
speak the language) as a Rum was the excuse provided by Sadaret,128 and this
situation required his expulsion from his positions. Following this, the document
called upon the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Interior to hire another
linguistically proficient officer for the same task. However, this time, they required
127 The document uses the phrase Rumca (Rum language) instead of Yunanca (Greek), which is why I
decided to use this term.
128 The office of the Grand Vizier.
5 9
that this person should be of the people of Islam.129 The document's discourse
indicates the assumed incapability of a Rum person to make the desired judgments to
decide what should be and what should not be performed. The urge to implement the
action without warning the officer summons us to recognize an intense aspiration to
promote Muslimhood as the desired quality for the officers working on performing
arts, and more importantly, working on disciplining it.
One could see a parallel between this incident and another document issued
by the First Secretary to the Palace (Serkatib-i Şehriyari), Tahsin Pasha. He stated
that it was reported to him that “some harmful plays” were being performed at
Aptalikos Gazinosu in Beyoğlu, Taksim. Therefore, censorship should be carried in a
way that does not let such inappropriateness happen. To secure it, if the censors are
not enough, “a few more moral men should be added to the office.”130 When we
ponder on the issue, we can understand that Tahsin Pasha was trying to delegitimize
the positions of Press Directorate officers who do not work in cooperation with the
Palace by calling them “immoral men” in a roundabout way, just like the Ministry of
Education implied that Yorgaki Efendi was incapable of making moral decisions.
Tahsin Pasha appears in another interesting case. In a document from July 14,
1889, a warning by the office stated that there would be a feast in celebration of the
founding of the French Republic by the France Trade Association (probably Union
Française) at Concordia Theater. Furthermore, it was reported that La Marseillaise
would be sung, “republican plays” performed, and orations would be made. Upon
this, a petition was issued in Zilkade 16, 1306 (the same day). It was then reported
that the Mayor of Beyoğlu, Monsieur Blacque, was called to “the palace” (Mabeyn-i
129 ”...işbu komisyon azalığına Maarif nezaretince Rumca bilur ve evsaf-ı matlubeye haiz ehl-i
islamdan birinin tayini...” COA, A}MKT.MHM, 501.44
130 I.HUS, 107.4
6 0
Hümayun) but remained absent. It was thought that he could not give a lawful
answer to his questioning due to him being the one who issued the permit, so he was
“faking being sick” (temaruz etmek). Therefore, Artin Paşa would orally inform the
necessary people in order to carry the following at the venue mentioned above:
Eliminating parts of to-be-performed performances that would suggest republican
ideas to the public, banning the demonstration of the image at the end of the play,
and a collective singing of La Marseillaise by forty-fifty actresses and banning if
anything is done that would approve or support these ideas or more.131
5.9 Gatherings, spreading news, and European connections
A document dating to October 17, 1896, sent from the Ministry of Education to the
Ministry of Interior, informed the latter of a dangerous act: Reading newspapers
aloud coming from Europe out loud in coffeehouses. A second document followed
up this request on November 21, 1896, sent from the Ministry of Interior to the
Ministry of Education, which ensured that the Ministry of Security was warned and
informed about the issue.132 The reading of newspapers aloud in coffeehouses was
also seen as a dangerous act. If one wonders why this action was criminalized, it
should be kept in mind that the literacy rate was not that high at the time. The
performance may look very mundane, but reading journals or newspapers coming
from Europe could spread certain news whose content might concern the Palace.133
131 COA, İ.HR 338-21909
132 COA, MF.MKT, 339.47
133 In Ottomans and the Kodak Galaxy: Archiving Everyday Life and Historical Space in Ottoman
Illustrated Journals, Ersoy argues that “overall exposure to printed material must have been wider due
to the survival of oral and collective reading practices in the family and in the public realm – many
reading rooms (kıra’athanes) in larger Ottoman towns, Serafim’s kıra’athane being the most popular
in Istanbul, carried copies of major newspapers and journals” due to the low literacy rate at the time.
See Ersoy, Ottomans and the Kodak Galaxy: Archiving Everyday Life and Historical Space in
Ottoman Illustrated Journals, 337.
6 1
Therefore, it is not surprising that the Ottoman administration tried to control
the flow of information pertaining to the “West.” In this manner, certain criminal
documents were related to the office of Foreign Affairs, where the performers
belonged to other nationalities. For example, documents mention Mr. Silvi and Pavli
of Italian citizenship, along with Mösyö Gilles Vaille, who lived at the hotel in
Beyoğlu Grande Rue de Péra Street (Cadde-i Kebir). In this document, which was
issued in 1893, September 4, we see that the state wanted to control musical
gatherings. For instance, it “was inquired that a (musical) society was formed under
the management of Pavli of Italian citizenship and their teacher (also of the same
citizenship) Mösyö Gilles Vaille” and that “people gathered on August 5, Thursday
night at the place called Sosyete Opera, which is located next to the hat store of
Baltazar”. According to the document, Mr. Silvi, Pavli, and 14 other people who
formed the community rented the main salon of Sosyete Opera, met there at night,
and “collected money for the rent.” The document reminded that “such communities
should not be formed without a license.”134
In this regard, one could argue that the state wanted to control the musical
societies because they were places where communication among different people
happened. This position could be evaluated in parallel with previous examples of
circumventing the communication among visitors, such as the criminalization of
European magazines being read aloud.
Some of the documents related to foreigners consist of their complaints. An
intriguing document is issued by a singer named Marika Anglize on two occasions.
First, on September 12, 1903, she stated as follows:
Although I earned a living as a musician without problem for many years in
nearby provinces, the Kozani commissaire objects [my work] regardless of a
134 COA, DH.MKT 126.1
6 2
reason. Because I am in [such] miserable condition, I am wailing and
pleading for the embassy to issue an order.135
On April 4, 1904, she sent a petition to the public office of Salonica:136
It is legally permitted to perform [art] in the Empire. Being coffeehouse
singers is the source of income for my company of 7 people. Even though
nothing has happened, we are banned from performing arts. In this regard, I
kindly ask coffee singer[ship] to be allowed in this “great” country.137
Here we see that the singer wants an embassy to intervene. Even though the
telegraph is in French, we must keep in mind that the lingua franca of the time was
French. Therefore, Marika could be of any nationality. Perhaps she was asking for an
order from the embassy because she was not an Ottoman subject.138
5.10 On the visibility of women in performative venues
We encountered one other case of a work prohibition of a woman back on April 8,
1890. In a document that was sent from the Ministry of Interior to the Ministry of
Security, it was claimed that Amelia, who was working as a waitress at a musical bar
(çalgılı gazino) in Galata, was be prohibited from working by Beyoğlu Municipality
(Mutasarrıflık) police council and this affected her income negatively. Amelia herself
stated this ban, and the Ministry of Interior wanted the Ministry of Security to “take
the necessary action about her petition.”139
Here it is pretty interesting to see once again, as it was in the case of Marika
Anglize, that the intervention of the police disabled non-Muslim women from venues
of entertainment as waitresses or singers. In both cases, women filed complaints and
provided reasons for compensation. This situation shows us that the field of
135 COA, TFR.I.ŞKT 19.1835
136 Selanik Rum İli Müfettişi
137 Memalik-i mahrusa-i şahane
138 It is possible that this could be Marika Papagika.
139 COA, DH.MKT 1715.62
6 3
entertainment also functioned as a business venue for some people. Especially
women, who often faced difficulties in employment, could join the economic system
through the performing arts domain. The ban persisted, nevertheless. In 1908, the
Ministry of Security sent a document to the Municipality of Beyoğlu. This document
stated that coffeehouse owner Yorgi (whose establishment was located in Galata
Topçu Avenue no.119) should not keep server girls and singers in his establishment.
A case regarding a woman going on stage and sketching on site appears
among the issues reported to the Ministry of Interior by the Press Directorate.140 A
woman went on stage at Beyoğlu Concordia Theater and drew the images of some
random people “who were there, prepared” (huzzar).141 It was stated that “the people
who were chosen were not previously identified” and that there might be a
“possibility that an inappropriate (hilaf-ı marazi) event occurred.” This event was
regarded as “wrong” (gayr-i caiz) and “worth surveilling” by the Press Directorate.
5.11 The image of the Sultan and the Empire
An accusation of inappropriateness appears within a document issued in February
1904. It was depicted in the document that during a performance in one of the
theaters at Beyoğlu Haleb Market, two comedians discussed where each other came
from.142 One comedian replied as “(we are) coming from Istanbul” and added, “don't
you see our medals?” while displaying his ragged clothes and pieces of tin.
Seemingly, this action has infuriated then head of the Press Directorate, İbrahim
Hıfzı Efendi, and he filed a complaint about the Ministry of Security implying that
the institution lacked the ability to prevent such events from happening, despite
140 COA, DH.MKT 907.31
141 This could also mean “the audience”.
142 COA, DH.MKT 827.40
6 4
multiple remarks made by the Directorate and called upon the Ministry of Interior to
warn Ministry of Security officials more strictly.
This act of the comedians disturbed Press Directorate officials to such an
extent that the Press Directorate, Ministry of Interior, and the Ministry of Security
were urged to intervene. This intervention doubtlessly signifies that the concern went
beyond the slippery and ambiguous grounds of so-called inappropriateness. The
reason for the criminalization and demoralization of the action was to prevent the
public from ridiculing the Sultan. As argued by Sohrabi, Abdülhamid II was granting
scads of medals and ranks during various celebrations at that time.143 Therefore,
portraying someone worthy of Abdülhamid's medal with “ragged clothes” was most
likely seen as an attempt to humiliate the Sultan. In Ottomans and the Kodak Galaxy:
Archiving Everyday Life and Historical Space in Ottoman Illustrated Journals,
Ahmet Ersoy discusses the importance of imagery and image management to Sultan
Abdülhamid II and the Ottoman State. According to Ersoy, Sultan Abdülhamid saw
visual imagery as a powerful political tool, and he “surrounded himself with a
multimedia environment for collecting and archiving information.”144 In The
Invention of Tradition as Public Image in the Late Ottoman Empire, 1808 to 1908,
Selim Deringil explores the symbolism and its uses during the Hamidian rule. The
author argues that symbols such as heraldry and the fez could be seen as imperial
symbols being planted to everyday life, and Sultan Abdülhamid's depictions were
being used in many state offices. Commemorative iconography also became
prominent, particularly with the use of the state almanacs.145 In a parallel fashion, in
143 Sohrabi, Revolution and constitutionalism in the Ottoman Empire and Iran, 65.
144 Ersoy, Ottomans and the kodak galaxy: Archiving everyday life and historical space in Ottoman
illustrated journals, 339.
145 Deringil, “The Invention of Tradition as Public Image in the Late Ottoman Empire, 1808 to 1908,”
10. Moreover, the author underscores the endeavor of the Hamidian regime to embed the imperial
language into people's vocabulary. He draws a parallel to Anderson's example of Russification, where
6 5
primary source documents we see the terms morality and opportuneness were used to
maintain the desired political power.
The reputation of the Empire was also important. Efforts to protect the image
of the ruler and the state proceed in the Second Constitutional Era. Although there
was relative softening of censorship during the Second Constitutional Era after the
Committee of Union and Progress takeover, performing arts was still seriously under
surveillance. A document that was sent from Beyoğlu Precinct to the Directorate of
General Security in 1909 stated, “When Hasan and Şevki('s companies) perform
plays around Beyoğlu, a lot of miserable people gather” and the author resembles the
theater to “a gathering of bugs.”146 He argued that “Many of these come for bellydancing
neck-bending canto singers. Indeed, with these canto singers, these theaters
turn into a cafe-chantant.” Here we see that the author saw cafe-chantant as
disgraceful places. He finally asked for canto musicians to be banned from
performing in theaters: “In order to scatter these bugs to some extent and to threaten
the disgrace of these theaters that show “Ottomanness” in an ugly manner, canto
musicians must definitely be banned in Ottoman theaters.” Once again, we see that
how the performance is perceived is more crucial than what the content is.
5.12 Resistance to censorship
All these criminal documents also show how resistance to censorship was also in the
picture. The increasing tone of the Press Directorate confirmed that there were
deviances from the enforced rules and regulations. In a document, we see that Hıfzı
Bey asked the Ministry of Interior that the Ministry of Security “should be told” that
Russia utilized standardization policies and uniforming attempts in the education system to reach this
goal. Ibid, 5. And Anderson, Imagined Communities, 82-103.
146 COA, DH.EUM.THR 93.62
6 6
the police officers should be paying close attention to implement such prohibitions
well and “to issue punishment for theater owners” who do not follow the warnings.
The correspondence between these offices showed how theater companies acted in
such opposing manners and performing plays that were not approved. It could be
possible that most theater managers took the risk of trespassing the boundaries to
attract more audiences and making sure that they enjoyed the content of their
performances. By the time they got caught, they might have acquired enough income
and acclaim.147
A document reveals a case in point in Salonica, where Asır, a newspaper,
mentions a play that the theater company would perform under the management of
Şevki Efendi. However, İbrahim Hıfzı, who realized that no such play was among
the record of plays approved by the Press Directorate, stated that its performance
should be banned. He particularly warned the Salonica City Council “to be ordered
to send every necessary play to be inspected and approved.”148 This document shows
how Şevki Efendi took the risk of launching his repertoire despite the pressure on
them.
5.13 Conclusion
This chapter canvassed certain documents from the Ottoman State Archives
regarding the criminalization of the domain of performing arts. The actors, singers,
or company managers were penalized for different performances, yet they were
147 We see a similar case in the memoir of Ubeydullah Efendi, who escaped Hamidian Istanbul and
went as far as the Chicago World Fair in 1893. There, he met Hakkı Paşa and Bustani Efendi who
were both in charge of the Ottoman Pavillion. Ubeydullah Efendi volunteers to be a reporter for
Musavver Şikago Sergisi, the Ottoman Newsletter for the Exhibition. The concern about his
oppositional stance to Sultan Abdülhamid was quickly overlooked, when Hakkı Paşa said that by the
time he asks the approval from the Palace, and got a reply, the Exhibition would end. See Alkan,
(der.) 1989 Sıradısı Bir Jön Türk Ubeydullah Efendi'nin Amerika Hatıraları, İletişim Yayınları, s.152;
174-175; Varlık, “Musavver Şikago Sergisi (1893),” 35-42.
148 COA, DH.MKT 466.2
6 7
considered inappropriate, ill-mannered, or harmful on account of similar crimes. The
fact that different actions lead to similar consequences orients us towards questioning
the political connotations behind criminalization because the petitions lack a solid,
coherent definition of what the associated crimes were. The lack of license is an issue
where there can be consensus; there was consistent regulation on the control of the
printed material and what could be censored.149 Nevertheless, other terms, such
as gayr-i caiz or münasebetsiz, function as empty signifiers here. As a matter of fact,
what is interesting, is that they are legally binding despite their subjective nature.
Because these legally binding words are empty signifiers, not the words, but
criminalized actions can tell us about the political concerns of the time. Thus, the
documents also presented us the historical ethnography and the mentality of the
Ottoman State vis-à-vis the domain of performing arts.
149 Boyar, “The Press and the Palace: The Two-Way Relationship Between Abdülhamid II and he
Press, 1876–1908,” 417-432.
6 8
CHAPTER 6
CONCLUSION
Research on the history of performing arts in the Ottoman world has been a growing
domain, where new perspectives arise in terms of content, methodology, and
comparative analyses. There is a clear difference between medieval and early
modern performances and the new theatrical space that developed during the
modernization process of the 19th century. With Istanbul's encounter with
urbanization as the imperial capital city had its particularities, everyday life
performances varied alongside theatrical events.
This thesis examined the realm of entertainment in late 19th century Istanbul,
using criminal documents, which have, in fact, combined two domains of Ottoman
historiography. These domains are namely performing arts and social control. The
research benefitted primarily from documents of the Ottoman State Archives, which
reported interventions in performance-related sites like theaters, coffeehouses, and
other urban gathering spaces, including winehouses or beerhouses. When my
research interest in the history of performing arts in 19th century Istanbul started
with my pursuit of rebetiko, I expected that the archival documents would disclose
information on the different aspects of this particular genre and its performers and
performance contexts. Given that many performers migrated to Greece, Europe, and
even the United States for job opportunities, I was also hoping to reach documents on
their migration. Although my search for such inquiries ended in disappointment, oral
history accounts highlighted another aspect of rebetiko performance milieus:
trespassing some social and legal codes. Many of the rebetiko performers were often
6 9
involved in drugs or wrote protest lyrics, offering a domain of criminalization that
enabled the researcher to look at performances from another perspective.
Figure 11. Inside of a Turkish coffeehouse by Bergrenn, from SALT Online Archives.
This starting point led me to research criminal charges and censorship
imposed on sites where rebetiko was performed. The criminal records that I collected
from the Ottoman State Archives displayed a variety of criminalization cases, whose
subtexts included glimpses of genres, sites, and performers of many other musical
and theatrical performances. Bringing us to the actual places where performative
events took place, documents also provided us with a historical ethnography of the
late Ottoman scene of performing arts. Documents also revealed two types of
performativity: cultural performances of music, dance, or drama, and the everyday
life performance of state authorities. In his analysis of performance, Richard
7 0
Schechner approaches this issue by distinguishing between “is performance” and “as
performance.” He calls attention to the interwoven nature of different forms of
performativities. “As” performance refers to all human activities where “social roles
are enacted,” while “is” performance involves more definite events enacted in their
traditional context. He states, “Any behavior, event, action, or thing, can be studied
“as” performance,” whereas “is” performance refers to more definite, bounded
events marked by context, convention, usage, and tradition.”150 The documents from
the Ottoman Archives were informative in both domains. While informing us about
the sites, genres, and performances of late 19th century Istanbul, they also took us to
the historical ethnography of bureaucracy, where state control was executed.
The correspondence among state officials presented the codes of enacting
social control in between different administrative departments. Be it “as”
performance, or “is” performance, Beverly Stoeltje, and Richard Bauman remind us
how performances are “public enactments in which a culture is encapsulated,
enacted, placed on display for itself and outsiders.” 151 In that sense, the criminal
records related to the late Ottoman performances encapsulated the culture of
bureaucracy and entertainment, thus showing the late Ottoman society's political,
social, and cultural features.
In addition to this, the documents also provide materials to work with from
the aspect of archival ethnography. Archival ethnography is a historical research
method that examines the institution of “archive” as a domain of fieldwork. By
taking the context of the archive in the center, archival ethnography involves an
ethnographic sensibility. “Just like an ethnographer”, the researcher observes details
of the ordinary functioning of the archive, trying to deduce beyond what meets the
150 See Schechner, Performance Studies: An Introduction, 40-49.
151 See Stoeltje & Bauman, “The Semiotics of Cultural Performance,” 585-599.
7 1
eye. 152 To begin with, the people who put the archives together and the ones who
use them later on – which Ritter calls “the own inheritors” of a community – are
significant in this manner. Moreover, she adds:
Like an anthropologist, an archival ethnographer works with what is
available, and in doing so not only represents the history of the people and
places (and events) narrated within these archives, but also shapes a past
community in order to revoice its legacy, and materialize its beliefs and
values. Consequently, the archival ethnographer also assumes the values and
position of the original archivist, knowing only what remains, never what was
lost.153
An example of this idea can be seen in Sinem Erdoğan-İşkorkutan's article,
Chasing Documents at the Ottoman Archive: An Imperial Circumcision Festival
Under Scrutiny. In her research, the author focuses on personal ties, preferences, and
the backgrounds of people who were involved in the documentation process. She
reminds that there was a shift towards an expansion in documentation starting from
the late 16th century Ottoman Empire.154
It is crucial to keep in mind that different factors determine the
documentation process and the “final product” as well. As Ferreira-Buckley argues,
because it is molded by different perspectives, theories, and positions, the historical
account “is subject to challenge and hence to revision, small and large”.155 On the
other hand, from a methodological viewpoint, searching for performing arts history
through criminal records provided us with a new prospect. These primary sources
presented a historical ethnography of the sites, performers, and performances of the
152 For a comprehensive study on archival ethnography, on which this description is based, see Decker
& McKinlay, “Archival ethnography.”
153 Ritter, Archival Research in Composition Studies: Re-Imagining the Historian's Role, 474.
154 This shift was a direct outcome of the sociopolitical and institutional transformations. In this
situation, the government offices like the Grand Vizier became more influential in state affairs. At this
time, the scribal community attached to the Grand Vizier and the Imperial Chancery grew
significantly. Because these offices separated from the palace physically and institutionally, recordkeeping
increased during the 1700s and 1800s. Scribal services also became essential as a
consequence of progressing bureaucratization in international relations. See Erdoğan-İşkorkutan,
“Chasing Documents at the Ottoman Archive,” 161-162.
155 Buckley et al., “Rhetorical Historiography and the Octalogs,” 247.
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late Ottoman scene of performing arts. They also showed how criminalization
generates a research tool for social historians. However, one should remember that
many details lacked regarding the restrained performances, alongside performances
that authorities intervened but did not issue any report. Future research can also
benefit from a more in-depth exploration of the European primary sources like
newspapers, pamphlets, and biographies of visiting performers. In most cases, for
instance, we do not know what happened to the criminalized performers. Considering
that many were European citizens, it is highly possible that many returned to Europe
and performed in venues where there was much less censorship. Therefore, this
thesis is an early attempt to discover some of the unfound performances in the
Ottoman archives, which hopes to contribute to the growing literature on the history
of Ottoman performing arts.
Research on the history of performing arts will develop further, focusing on
the study of performance in everyday life and entertainment and seasonal festivities
in the provinces. Given the differences between urban and non-urban performances,
new research on the history of Ottoman performing arts and social control should
take localities and temporalities into consideration. This study limited itself to the
urban Istanbul context, focusing mainly on Beyoğlu and Kadıköy neighborhoods. It
also confines itself to the inter-constitutional era.
The thesis began by providing an insight into the existing literature on
performing arts and social order in Ottoman Istanbul, focusing on the late 19th and
early 20th centuries. The significance of the primary sources is discussed at the
beginning of the introduction. The reflexivity of the researcher is also canvassed,
given the fact that the researcher is undoubtedly biased and that this had an impact on
the outcome of the research. Such a stance could be evaluated in parallel with the
7 3
researcher's awareness and concerns in archival ethnography. Just as we should
approach the archives as “real institutions,” being self-conscious in historical
research explains why the author presents specific research outcomes. 156 In this
regard, Hayden White's argument regarding historiography's relation to the current
social system bears utmost relevance: “The more historically self-conscious the
writer of any form of historiography, the more the question of the social system and
the law which sustains it, the authority of this law and its justification, and threats to
the law occupy his attention.” 157 As stated before, acknowledging this possibility
enables future researchers to take the matter on a different path, analyzing from a
different perspective, enriching the existing literature on Ottoman history.
Although difficulties arose due to the language barrier in the archives and
founded materials being relatively raw, this research provided an in-depth analysis of
the documents with a careful contextualization. It also provided an insight into
different aspects of the society in Ottoman Istanbul between 1878 and 1908. First of
all, the venues where performances took place – coffeehouses, theaters, or unions,
for instance - contributed to community-making. Considering the communicative
nature of performing arts and its venues, one could argue that they had the capacity
to bring people from different cultures and different backgrounds together. It should
be kept in mind that most of these were owned by either non-Muslims or European
foreigners. It could be argued that the authorities feared the possibility of Ottoman
subjects being influenced by “Western” plays, challenge the existing status quo, and
form alliances with some non-Muslims, who were occasionally seen as perpetrators
of immoral actions. Such cases could have been seen in the cases of Yorgaki Efendi
156 See Ritter, “Archival Research in Composition Studies: Re-Imagining the Historian's Role,” 461-
478; Schwartz & Cook, “Archives, Records, and Power: The Making of Modern Memory,” 1-19.
157 White, “The Value of Narrativity,” 17.
7 4
and the criminalization of whistling against Keiser Wilhelm II. Authorities could
have also feared that these venues would gather people of the same ethnic and
linguistic identities, creating an ethnic-nationalist awareness. This claim would not
be far-fetched, keeping in mind that many of the post-Ottoman nation-states were
formed and recognized as independent states in the 19th century: Greece in 1830,
Romania, Serbia, and Montenegro in 1878, and Bulgaria in 1908. Indeed, it was not a
coincidence that the famous nationalist play of Namık Kemal, Vatan Yahut Silistre,
was published in 1878. These venues were eligible for disseminating ideas not just at
a local level but also on an international level. Indeed, that is most likely why we see
reading the newspapers coming from Europe out loud was forbidden if the Press
Directorate did not approve them.158
Enabling people from different backgrounds to gather could also have
challenged the existing status quo in terms of social codes, such as class awareness
and gender. In Eğlenirken Modernleşmek: Meyhaneden Baloza, İmparatorluk’tan
Cumhuriyet’e İstanbul, Kabagöz argues the following:
It does not matter if the venues are named as baloz, cafes, casinos, bars, or
pubs. All sorts of entertainment are available [everywhere]. One can listen to
a non-Muslim woman's canto performance, dance, watch acrobatics, chat
with the waitresses and satisfy the need for a woman to talk and flirt with, and
even get prostitution services in rooms, the first examples of which can be
found in old taverns. This polyphonic structure of these new spaces also
manifests itself in their orchestras. Orchestras with alaturca and alafranga
instruments could play the waltz or polka and switch to ney or oud pieces. In
other words, these new entertainment places are the manifestations of
Beyoğlu bonmarches in entertainment that contains all kinds of irrelevant
products. All kinds of entertainment services are provided here [at the
entertainment venues] at the same time. These features make these spots of
entertainment “unidentified.” In other words, it is possible to talk about a
baloz as a bar or a casino as a pub. [This is] because there is no definite
158 The M.A. Thesis of Seren Akyoldaş submitted to Boğaziçi University, Department of History,
explores the influence of music as a medium that demonstrates the political context of its era,
particulary focusing on the German Club Teutonia, which was also mentioned in Chapter 3. See
Akyoldaş, Instrumentalization of Music in the Late Ottoman Empire: The case of the Teutonia.
7 5
difference between them. On the other hand, this indefinability, this lack of
identity, gives these spaces a “multi-identity”.159
The venues were most likely seen as disorderly and disorganized, making it difficult
for the authorities to keep the consumed content under control. Moreover, one could
argue that this sort of ambiguity among the audience was the very factor that enabled
people from different classes (and therefore bearing diverse social codes) to spend
time together, threatening rigid categorizations of the social structure. Such an
attitude could also be found in the early years of Ottoman coffeehouses by Mustafa
Ali, a renowned Ottoman bureaucrat from the 16th century. In Tables of Delicacies
Concerning the Rules of Social Gatherings, the author discussed why coffeehouses
were inappropriate and why the state should surveil them.160
Finally, this research pointed out the discussions on the visibility of women in
public, pertaining to the venues of performance. Be it a singer, a waitress, a canto
dancer, or simply a woman going on stage, the presence of women caused
interventions on the part of the state. The criminalization presented in documents was
never as straightforward as “a woman went on stage” or “they performed.” These
actions were only represented as alibis of other crimes. The crimes were presented
within the slippery, vague, flu categorization of “inappropriateness”. In one of the
documents, we see that gallivanting in the street until the morning, working at a
brothel or a coffeehouse, turned women into “immoral women.”
In some cases, certain women who were new in these practices were
presented as “deceived by immoral women.” However, these reactions were nothing
but foreseeable. Before the 19th century, the public space was not as urban, and it
159 Kabagöz, Eğlenirken Modernleşmek: Meyhaneden Baloza, İmparatorluk’tan Cumhuriyet’e
İstanbul, 218.
160 Brookes, Tables of delicacies concerning the rules of social gatherings: An annotated translation
of gelibolulu Mustafa Âli's mevâ'idü'n- nefâ'is fi kavâ'idi'l-mecâlis.
7 6
was usually pre-defined for women and men separately. The emergence of
alternative public places in these performative venues, a new framework where
people could gather to spend time regardless of their gender or social class, where
women and men could go together, caused a profound societal changeIn this regard,
it can be argued that a part of the Ottoman modernization process is reflected in the
domain of entertainment. In fact, the domain of entertainment was and still is a
“rehearsal” for the quotidian life. 161 Women, who were less visible than men in other
aspects of life, started becoming visible in the field of entertainment. Singers,
waitresses, and other performers normalized women's visibility outside the domestic
sphere and women's participation in the labor force. This process enabled women to
become active participants of society, eventually paving the way for the installation
of gender equality. Although these women and other criminalized performers were
outcasted, as can be evidently observed in the documents from the Ottoman
Archives, they were the vanguards of the Ottoman society. After all, people who fail
or refuse to abide by the restrictions imposed by political authorities are usually
ostracized. However, once the vanguards proceed living so regardless of these
restrictions, end up as pioneers of societal change.
161 Kabagöz, Eğlenirken Modernleşmek: Meyhaneden Baloza, İmparatorluk’tan Cumhuriyet’e
İstanbul, 222.
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Figure 12. “The most artistic woman of our stage: Madam Eliza Binemeciyan”. From SALT Online
Archive.
7 8
APPENDIX A
LIST OF DOCUMENTS
Documents From the Ottoman State Archives
(T.C. Cumhurbaşkanlığı Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı Osmanlı Arşivleri)
1. DH.MKT 1592.111 (1889, February 10)
2. DH.MKT.1748.107 (1890, August 6)
3. A.MKT.MHM, 501.44 (1890, December 10)
4. Y.PRK.ASK.90.40_001 (1893, May 10)
5. Y.PRK.ASK.90.40_002 (1893, May 11)
6. DH.MKT 126.11_001 (1893, September 4)
7. DH.MKT 126.11_002 (1893, August 29)
8. MF.MKT, 339.47_001 (1896, October 17)
9. MF.MKT, 339.47_002 (1896, November 21)
10. İ.HUS 88.49 (1901, April 22)
11. DH.MKT, 2594.122 (1902, March 2)
12. DH.MKT 466.2 (1902, April 1)
13. DH.MKT 486.63_001 (1902, April 24)
14. DH.MKT 486.63_002 (1902, February 27)
15. DH.MKT 486.63_003 (1902, April 11)
16. DH.MKT 486.63_004 (Date unidentified)
17. DH.MKT 532.26_001 (1902, June 24)
18. DH.MKT 532.26_002 - (1902, June 30)
19. DH.MKT, 731.13_001 (1903, June 27)
7 9
20. DH.MKT, 731.13_002 (1903, June 30)
21. I.HUS, 107.4 (1903, June 29)
22. TFR.I.ŞKT, 19.1835 (1903, September 12)
23. DH.MKT 792.74_001 (1903, November 2)
24. DH.MKT 792.74_002 (1903, November 2)
25. DH.MKT 792.74_003 (1903, December 13)
26. DH.MKT 792.74_004 (1903, December 27)
27. DH.MKT 801.60 (1903, November 18)
28. DH.MKT 827.40_001 (1904, February 24)
29. DH.MKT 827.40_002 (1904, February 24)
30. DH.MKT 827.11_001 (1904, March 7)
31. DH.MKT 827.11_002 (1904, March 7)
32. TFR.I.SKT 35.3492 (1904, April 4)
33. DH.MKT 868.58 (1904, July 4)
34. DH.MKT 868.58_002 (1904, July 6)
35. DH. MKT. 868.58_001_001 (August 10, 1904)
36. DH.MKT 907.31 (1904, November 1)
37. DH.MKT 969.8 (1905, June 11)
38. ZB 385.11 (1906, March 19)
39. DH.MKT 1131.67_001 (1906, November 26)
40. DH.MKT 1131.67_002 (1906, December 1)
41. DH.MKT 1259.91 (1908, June 9)
42. ZB 74.31 (1908, August 18)
43. DH.EUM.THR 93.62 (1909, December 29)
8 0
APPENDIX B
TERMINOLOGY OF REASONS FOR CRIMINALIZATION
Document Reason/Excuse
A}MKT.MHM.501.44 (December 10,
1890)
DH.MKT.126.11 (September 4, 1893)
DH.MKT.2594.122 (March 2, 1902)
gayr-i caiz (inpermissable)
MF.MKT.339.47 (October 17, 1896)
I.HUS.107.4 (June 29, 1903)
mazarat (harmfulness)
DH.MKT.466.2 (April 1, 1902)
DH.MKT.532.26 (June 24, 1902)
DH.MKT.792.74 (December 27, 1903)
DH.MKT.827.11 (March 7, 1904)
DH.MKT.868.58 (July 4, 1904)
DH.MKT.868.58 (July 6, 1904)
gayr-i musaddak & ruhsatsız (inapproved
content)
DH.MKT.731.13 (June 27, 1903)
DH.MKT 969.8 (June 11, 1905)
tayy ü tashihatın dikkate alınmaması
(disregarding of the corrections)
DH.MKT.792.74 (November 2, 1903)
DH.MKT 1131.67 (November 26,
1906)
adab-ı umumiyeye muhalif usul
(action against the common manners)
I.HUS.107.4 (June 29, 1903)
DH.MKT.801 (November 18, 1903)
DH.MKT.827.40 (February 24, 1904)
DH.MKT.868.58 (July 4, 1904)
DH.MKT.868.58 (July 6, 1904)
münasebetsizlik (inopportuneness)
DH.MKT.868.58 (July 4, 1904) acayib kıyafet (weird clothing)
DH.MKT.868.58 (July 4, 1904)
DH.MKT.792.74 (November 2, 1903)
tefevvühat-ı bi-edebane (mannerless speech)
DH.MKT.126.11 (September 4, 1893)
DH.MKT 907.31 (November 1, 1904)
hilaf-ı marazi (morbid opposition)
8 1
APPENDIX C
DOCUMENT TRANSCRIPTIONS
1. Adliye Nezaret-i Celilesine,
Kazahat-ı lisaniyeye ictisar etmesinden dolayı maznunen firarda bulunan çalgıcı
Leonidi oğlu Lamb[e]ro hakkında Urla Bidayet Mahkemesi İcra Dairesince gıyaben
icra kılınan tahkikat-ı hafiyeyi mutazammin (olup Vilayet-i Bidayet Mahkemesi
mu[…] umumi muavenetinden alelusul tevdi edilen) evrakın gönderildiğine dair
abdiyet-i vilayetinden varid olan tahrirat evrak-ı mezkure ile beraber su[…]aid irsal
kılınmış icra-yı icabına himmem-i aliyye-i nezaretpenahinin m[…] buyurulmak
babında.
2. Fi 20 Zilhicce 307 ve Fi 5 Temmuz 306
Zabtiye Nezaret-i Aliyesine,
Makam-ı alilerinden muharrer işbu cevab müverra-yı malum-ı acizisi olup, mezkur
gazino ve kahvehaneler - berüce işyar - şimdiye kadar nasıl açılıp kapatılıyor ise yine
o yolda ve şuray-ı devlet kararı dairesinde devam-ı muamelelerine müsaade olunması
ve karar-ı mezkurun muhafaza-i ahkamına itina buyurulması muvafık(-ı) maslahat
olarak melfuz-ı mezkur leffen iade kılınmış olmakla ona göre iktizasının ifasına
himmem-i aliyeleri derkar buyurulmak babında.
3. Beyoğlundaki tiyatrolarda oynanacak piyeslerde oynatılmazdan evvel teftiş ve
muayenesiyle hazır olmayanların oynatılmasına ruhsat itası hakkında Maarif
Nezaret-i Celileleriyle Beyoğlu mutasarrıflığından dahi birer memur bulunmak üzere
altıncı daire belediye müdürü atuvfetlu Macid Bey Efendi hazretlerinin taht-ı
seniyyede mahsusen teşekkül eden komisyonda Rum lisanına aşina olarak nezaret-i
müşarünileyha nezaret-i celilelerin memurininden olup mezkur komisyon azalığında
8 2
bulunan Yorgaki efendiden mada kimse olmayacağından Rumca piyesler onun
ruhsatıyla mevki-i temaşaaya vaz edilmekte olduğu ve halbuki bu defa mumaileyhin
ruhsatıyla Rum tiyatrosunda Rumca olarak oynatılan “Richelieu” nam piyesin
mazaratı cihhetiyle mevki-i temaşaaya vaz-ı kat caiz olmayan oyunlardan idüğü
tahkik kılınmış ve bunun mesuliyeti bittabii mumaileyh Yorgaki efendiye ait
bulunmuş olmasına mebni kendisinin hem Maarif Dairesindeki memuriyetinden hem
de komisyon azalığından azliyle işbu komisyon azalığına Maarif nezaretince Rumca
bilur ve evsaf-ı matlubeye haiz ehl-i islamdan birinin tayini hususuna irae-i seniyye
Hazret-i padişahi şerefsanım olduğu mabeyn-i hümayuna baş kitabet-i celilesinden
29 Rebiyyülaher 308 tarihli tezkire hususuiye ile tebliğ kılınmış ve keyfiyete maruz
dahiliye nezaret-i celilesine dahi bildrilmiş olmakla ber-mantuk-ı emr ü ferman-ı
himmem Nezaret-i Celilelerince de iktiza-i halin icrasına himmet buyrulması
siyakında tezkire.
4. Yıldız Sarayı hümayununda sandalcı olduğunu beyan eden bahriye mülazım-ı
evvellerinden Salih Efendi. Bilasefir olduğu, Balada muharrer mumaileyh işbu gece
saat üç raddelerinde Galata’da doğru yolda Panyolaki’nin balozunda isimleri
badettahkik anlaşılan tüfengi-i hazret-i şehriyari bölüğünden Murtaza ve mabeyn
ketebelerinden Mehmed Efendiler birlikte kızlar ile işret ve daha ismi mechul bir
başıbozuğa şarkı söyleyip ahenk etmekte oldukları haber alınıp gidilerek suret-i
memnuiyet tebliğ olunmuş ise de işaa etmemiş ve müehheren bitttahrib balozdan
aşağı indirildikte sizi tanımam diyerek ve zabıtalarımıza karşı muhalefette bulunması
dahi her ne kadar kıyam edilmiş olduğu halde o esnada vürüd eden bahriye
kanunlarından Galib ve Refiki Mahmud Efendilerin muavenetiyle aziziye
karakolhanesine götürülüp sekri tasdik ettirilirek canib-i bahriyeye gönderilmek
8 3
üzere [...] zabıtına teslim edildiği maruzdur. Ol babda emr ü ferman hazret-i
menlehülemrindir.
Fi 28 Nisan 309
[...] Mahmud Bey
Kanun-ı Bahriye [...]
Kanun-ı kolhane Mehmed Lütfi
Kanun-ı kolhane Muhammed Hilmi
Efendi-i mumaileyhanın sekr-i hal olduğu taraf arz etmeden tasdik kılındı.
Fi 21 Nisan 309
Aziziye Karakolhanesinde
ledelhavale
Muh[...] Mehmed Bey
5. Liman Kumandanlığı Kalemi, Aded 744,
Ser-i kimlari-i Hazret-i Şehriyari Cenab-ı Alisine,
Atuvfetlü Efendim Hazretleri,
Tüfengi-i hazret-i şehriyari bölüğünden Murtaza ve mabeyn-i hümayun ketebesinden
Mehmed Efendiler ile Saray-ı Hümayun sandalcılarından mülazım Salim Efendi[nin]
dün gece Galata’da Panyolaki’nin balozunda işret ve ahenk etmekte oldukları
görülerek kaldırılmış olduğuna dair Tophane ve Bahriye kanunları tarafından
müştereken verilen jurnal manzur-ı alileri buyurulmak üzere leffen ve mülazım
mumaileyh dahi memur-ı mahsusa terfiken irsal kılınmış olmakla muktazasının ifası
babında emr ü irade hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 29 Nisan 309
Liman Kumandanı Vekili
Hulusi
8 4
6. Fi 22 Safer 311 ve Fi 23 Ağustos 309, Şehremaneti Celilesine,
Beyoğlu’nda Büyük Cadde’de Sosyete Opera denilen mahalde İtalyalı çalgıcı Mösyö
Silvi ile tebaa-i merkureden Pavli vesaire tarafından bir musiki cemiyeti teşkil
olunarak ictima olunmakta ve levazım-ı tedarike için [...] bin akçe toplanmakta
olduğu tahkik ettirildiğine ve ruhsat-ı resmiye istihsal olunmaksızın cemiyet akdi
gayr-ı caiz bulunduğuna binaen [...] nazar-ı dikkate alınması altıncı altıncı daire
belediye müdüriyetine tebliğ olduğu ve [...] havi [...] 17 Eylül/Ağustos 319 tarihli
tezkire-i aliyye-i asafaneleri [...]kedar [...]oldu. Filhakika ruhsat-ı resmiye istihsal
olunmayarak böyle cemiyetler akdi caiz olamayacağı cihhetle takayyüdat ve icraat-ı
aliyye-i daveraneleri muvafık hal ve maslahat olduğundan emsali hakkında cari
muameleye tevfiken icrarının ifasıyla beraber programının dahi bilmütalaa gerek
anda ve gerek ... vakıada hilaf-ı marazi bir şey görüldüğü halde keyfiyetin işar ve
itası hususuna himmem-i aliyye-i asafaneleri derkar buyurulmak babında.
[...]
7. Şehremaneti Mektubi kalemi, Aded 407,
Dahiliye Nezaret-i Celilesi Cenab-ı Alisine,
Devletlü efendim hazretleri,
Beyoğlu’nda Cadde-i Kebirde Latin Sokak’ta Sosyete Opera denilen mahalde
Şapkacı Baltazar’ın yanında serkeş/sakin İtalya tebaasından Pavli ile bunlara hocalık
eden şapkacının üzerindeki otelde bulunan tebaa-i merkureden Mösyö Gilles Vaille
nam kimsenin taht-ı idaresinde hafiyyen bir kulüp guşad edildiği ve ağustosun
beşinci perşembe gecesi bazı kimselerin içtima ettiği istihbar kılınması üzerine sabk
eden istilam-ı altıncı daire-i belediye müdiriyetinden alınan cevapta hass ü halbi icra
ettirilen tahkikattan mestyan olduğuna göre dersaadet’te serkeş/sakin Almanyalılar
8 5
ile sair tebaa-yı ecnebiyeden bazılarının kendilerine mahsus birer musiki cemiyetleri
olduğu gibi İtalyalılara mahsus olmak üzere dahi böyle bir cemiyetin tesis ve teşkili
zımnında icra-yı [...]giran eylemek için tebaa-yı merkumeden çalgıcı Mösyö
Silvi’nin taht-ı riyasetinde olarak merkum Pavli ile daha on on dört kişiden merkeb
bir cemiyet teşkil ederek şehri iki bira bedel icar ile mezkur operaya İtalyano nam
cemiyet-i Hayriye merkezi salonu isticar kılınarak leylen merkume de orada içtima
eyledikleri ve mezkur iki bira bedel icarın tesviyesiyle tedarik edecekleri edevat-ı
musikiye levazımat-ı saireye harf/sarf olmak üzere biletlerinde şehri birer miktar
akçe toplamakta bulundukları anlaşıldığı gösterilmiş ve bu mukavele tesisatın ruhsatı
resmiyeye [...] ettikten sonra icra-yı lazımeden bulunmuş olmasına ve böyle ruhsatı
resmiye istihsal edilmeksizin bir takım cemiyetler in’ikad-ı gayri caiz bulunmasına
mebni maslahatın daire-i ailesince nazar-ı dikkate alınması lüzumu bedihi bulunmuş
dam’-ı mafiye altıncı daire müdüriyetine ifa-yı tebligat kılınmış olmakla istizan-ı
muameleye müsabirat kılındı. Ol babda emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 16 Safer 311 ve Fi 17 Ağustos 309
Sehremniyeti Hıfzı
8. Fi 10 Cemaziyülevvel 314 ve Fi 5 Teşrin-i Evvel 312
Dahiliye Nezaretine,
Avrupa’dan vürud eden gazetelerle musavver ve gayrı musavver resail-i mevkute-i
muzuranın Beyoğlu ve Galata cihhetlerinde bilcümle kahvehane ve gazino ve
birahanelerde alenen mutalağa olundukları teftiş esnasında görüldüğü müfettiş
tarafından batezkire ifade olunmuş, ve bu babda tedabir-i lazımenin ittihazı nezaret-i
celile-i daveranelerine ait bulunmuş bulunmağla ol babda.
9. Bab-ı Ali Daire-i Umur-ı Dahiliye Mektubi Kalemi, Aded 293
8 6
Maarif Nezaret-i Celilesine,
Devletlü Efendim Hazretleri,
Avrupa’dan vürud eden gazetelerle musavver ve gayrı musavver resail-i mevkute-i
muzuranın Beyoğlu ve Galata cihhetlerinde bilcümle kahvehane ve gazino ve
birahanelerde alenen mutalağa olunduğu tevazil eden 5 Teşrin-i Evvel 312 tarihli
tezkire-i aliyye-i asafanelerinde izbar olunmaktan naşi bu babda takayyüdat icrasıyla
badezin muzur ve memnu olan şeylerin idhal ve intişarına meydan verilmemesi
esbabının istikmali zabıta nezaretine tebliğ ve tavsiye edilmişti. Tebaa-ı devlet-i
aliyyeden olan mevzuatlarla gazino ve birahanecilerde bulunan evrak-ı muzırre
toplattırılmakta olup maarif memurları bu gibi evrak-ı muzureyi gördükleri ve
bilmüracaa zabıtaya ihbar ettikleri halde maksad bir kat daha temin ve teshil edilmiş
olacağı, ve ecnebi postalarına gelen ve ecnebi dükkanlarında furuhat edilen matbuat-ı
muzurenin elde edilmesi hususunda müşkülata tesadüf edilmekte bulunduğundan bu
babda bir tedbir-i müessir ittihazını. nezaret-i müşarünileyha makamından cevaben
alınan 18 Teşrin-i Evvel 312 tarihli tezkirede işar ve icab-ı hal huzur-ı sami-i
sadaretpenahiye izbar edilmiş olduğundan nezaret-i celilelerince iktizasının ifasına
himmem-i aliyye-i daverileri derkar buyurulmak babında emr-ü ferman hazret-i
menlehülemrindir.
Fi 15 Cemaziyülahir 314 ve Fi 9 Teşrin-i Sani 312
Nazır-ı Umur-ı Dahiliye
Mehmed
10. Yıldız Saray-ı Hümayun Baş Kitabet Dairesi,
Saye-i füyuzatvaye-i hazret-i mülkdaride şu’bat-ı hükümetin cümlesinde icra olunan
ıslahattan idare-i zabıta dahi hissemend-i tekemmül olmuş ise de, ahiren şimendifer
vesaire gibi vesaitin ve Avrupa ile ihtilatın tekessürü sebebiyle zabıtaca evvelce
8 7
lüzum ve ihtiyac mess etmemek hasebiyle henüz mevki-i icraya konulamamış şeyler
olabileceğine, ve bu cümleden olarak mesela Büyükdere’den başlayarak Boğaziçi ve
Bilad-ı Selase dahi dahil olmak üzere İstanbul’un her cihetinde bulunan otel ve
kiralık hanelerle meyhane ve birahane ve kahvehaneler vesaire gibi umumi
mahallerin ve ecnebi hastahanelerinin mevki ve nümerolarını ve tabiyetlerini ve
sahipleri esamesini mübeyyin ve mükemmel bir defter tanzim olunması, ve mesakini
mezkûre ashabından kefalet alınmakla beraber hane ve otellerine şüpheli eşhas
gelecek olur ise, derhal zabıtaya haber vermeleri lazım geleceğinin, ve aksi takdirde
kendilerine eşhas-ı merkumenin şeriki nazarıyla bakılarak haklarında ona göre
muamele-i şedide icra edileceğinin, ashab-ı emlake tenbih ve takdim kılınması ve
otellerde ikamet edenlerin otel defterlerine nam ve şöhret ve mahal-i vürudlarını
behemehal kaydetmelerinin usul ittihaz ettirilmesi ve bu usule riayet olunup
olunmadığı anlaşılmak ve oteller teftiş olunarak otellerde bulunanlar hakkında her
zaman malumat alınabilmek için zabıtaca memurlar tayin edilmesi gibi tedabire
müracaat lazımeden bulunduğuna binaen Beyoğlu ve Üsküdar mutasarrıflarıyla
Zabtiye Nezareti rüesası memurininin münasiblerinden olmak ve bazen müdde-i
umumi Celal Bey Efendi hazretleri de bulunmak üzere Zabtiye Nezareti’nin taht-ı
riyasetinde bir komisyon teşkil olunarak tertibat-ı mukteziyenin teemmül ile bir
layiha kaleme alınması ve muahedat-ı atika ahkamının otellere şümulü olamayacağı
ve binaenaleyh bu hususta zabıtaca ittihaz olunacak tedabire ecanib tarafından itiraz
edilemeyeceği derkâr ise de, ol babda müşkülat ihdasına kıyam edilecek olur ise
Hariciye Nezaret-i Celilesi’nce teşebbüsat-ı mukteziye ifa olunmak üzere itirazat ve
müşkülat-ı vakiye karşı ne yapılmak lazım geleceğinin de kaleme alınacak layihaya
derc olunması ve vasıl-ı sem’-i taaccüb-i âli olduğuna göre zabıtaca mübaayası emr ü
ferman buyrulmuş olan istimbotlar henüz tedarik edilmemiş ve sevahilin pek açık
8 8
olması hasebiyle suret-i kaviyede tarassud ve nezaret altında bulundurulması
lazımeden olmakla beraber Dersaadet'e gelmek isteyen eşhas-ı muzırranın nail-i emel
olmak için her türlü desais ve vesaite müracaat edecekleri ve hatta Tekfurdağı'na
çıkarak oradan berren İstanbul'a gelebilecekleri derkâr bulunmuş olmakla marüzzikr
istimbotlar bir an evvel tedarik olunup tezyid-i takayyüdat edilmesi ve diğer tezkire
ile tebliğ olunduğu üzere idare-i Zabtiyece derdest edilen veya ahvali dai-i şübhe
görünen eşhas-ı muzırranın fotoğraflarının ahzi usulüne Avrupa'da pek çok istifade
edilmekte olarak ez cümle Fransa'da külli mikdarda anarşist bulunduğu halde polis
idaresince bunların fotoğrafları ahz ü hıfz ve hal ü şanları hakkında malumat-ı lazıme
zabt ve kayd olunup bu muamele sebebiyle kendileri haricde hiç bir şeye muvaffak
olamayarak inzibat ü asayiş mükemmelen temin edilmekte olduğundan zabıta-i
Osmaniyece dahi maznunin ve mücrimin fotoğraflarının ahz ü hıfzı usulünün dahi
tamamıyla tesisine ait suretin ilave-i müzakerat edilmesi şerefsudur buyurulan irade-i
seniyye-i cenab-ı hilafetpenahi icab-ı alisinden olmağa ol babda emr ü ferman hazreti
veliyyülemrindir.
Fi 3 Muharrem 319 ve Fi 10 Nisan 317
Ser katib-i hazret-i Şehriyarı
Tahsin
11. Fi 22 Zilkade 319 ve Fi 18 Şubat 317
Beyoğlu’nda Concordia tiyatrosunda icra-yı lubyiat eden Hasan Efendi’nin birer
perdelik komedyalarının bazısı ile pandomimacı Tudori’nin iki perdelik
komedyalarının ve mezkur Concordia tiyatrosuyla yine mahal-i mezkurda mezburda
Komers ve Kardiyal ve misillü çalgılı kahvelerde taganni olunan kantoların li-acle’ltedkik
matbuat-ı dahiliye-i idaresine götürülmemekte olduğu tiyatrolar ser-i müfettiş
tarafından verilen melzuf raporda beyan ve ihbar edilmiş ve şu halde devamı ile
8 9
gayr-ı caiz görülmüş görülmüş olmağla […] olduğundan zikr olunan tiyatro ve çalgılı
kahve müdir ve sahiplerine Beyoğlu mutasarrıflığı maarifetiyle tenbihat-ı lazıme
icrasıyla kendilerinin ba irade-i seniyye-i hazret-i padişahi-i müttehiz olunan usule
riayete mecbur edilmeleri lüzumu matbuat-ı dahiliye müdiriyet-i behiyyesinden
gelen tezkerede arasından ifade kılınmağla kılınmıştır. Muktazasının resimen ifasına
himmem-i aliyye-i asfaneleri derkar buyurulmak babında.
12. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 702
Tiyatrocu Şevki Efendinin idaresinde olup Selanik’te icra-yı lubiyyat etmekte olan
tiyatro kumpanyası tarafından “Kızıl Sihirbaz” namında bir piyesin mevki’-i
temaaşaya konulacağu “Asır” gazetesinde münderic bir ilandan ve idare-i acizice
musaddak piyesler meyanında böyle bir piyes olmadığı kuyuddan anlaşılmış ve
musaddak olmayan piyeslerin oynatılması gayr-i caiz bulunmuş olduğundan
teşhisinin men’iyle istenildiği halde muayene ve tasdik edilmek üzere her piyesinin
irsali lüzumunun Selanik vilayet-i aliyyesine emr ü işar buyurulması babında emr ü
ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 3 Zilhicce 319 ve Fi 28 Şubat 317
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdürü
Hıfzı
13. Huzur-ı Maalimevfur Cenab-ı Vilayetpenahiye, Maruz-ı Çakerleridir,
Padişah-ı maarifperver ve şehinşah maalikester veliyyünnimet-i mibinnetimiz
efendimiz hazretlerinin eser-i hümayunlarına iktiza-yı derece-i lüzum ve ehemmiyeti
müstağni-i arz ü beyan bulunan maarifin terakkisi için sarf-ı nakdine-i vücud ederek
her türlü gayret ve fedakarlıktan geri durmamakta isem de, her matlabın husulü
bittabii paraya tevakkuf ettiğinden kasabada bulunan millet-i sadıka-i acizanemizin
9 0
kısm-ı küllisi ihtiyacat ruzmerresini tedarikten aciz ve mektebe ianeye gayr-i
muktedir kesandan ibaret bulunması hasebiyle zir-i idare-i naçizanemde bulunan
şakirdan kullarını matlub olan derece-i terakkisi ve tekamüle isal etmek suretiyle
da’vat-i hayriye isticlabına muvaffak olmak için şakirdan tarafından icra edilmek ve
hasılatı mektebimize aid olmak üzere bir tiyatro tertib edilerek alelusül mütalaa ve
tedkik ile icrasına müsaade buyurulması kasaba hükümetinden istida kılınmış ve
cevaben vilayet-i celile maarif müdüriyetinden istizan edileceği beyan edilmiş idi.
Maarif müdüriyetinden bu kere cevaben vürud eden tahriratta keyfiyetin makam-ı
celil-i vilayetpenahilerine arz beyan edilmiş ve gönderdiğimiz tiyatro piyesleri iade
kılınmış olduğundan manzur-ı ali-i cenab-ı hıdiv-i azamileri buyurulmak üzere
mezkur piyesleri arz ve takdime ictisar eyledim . Bunlardan “İskanarel, Ester, [...] ”
Nam üç kıtası İzmir ile bilad-ı saire-i şahanede defaatle sahne-i temaşaya vaz
olunmuş ve “Namus ve Zaruret” ise Dersaadet’te neşr olunan “Çocuklara Mahsus
Gazete”nin fi 5 Kanunuevvel 312 tarihli ve (31) nümerolu nüshasına aynen ve
harfiyen istinsah edilmiş bulunulduğundan icrasına lütfen müsaade edilmesi
zımnında lazım gelenlere irade ve ferman buyurmak suretiyle millet-i acizanemizin
ihya (diriltilmesi) edilmesi babında emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 6 Şubat 317
Kasaba Musevi Mektebi Alyans Mektebi Müdürü Baruk Amil
14. Aydın Vilayeti Mektubi Kalemi Aded 321
Dahiliye Nezaret-i Celilesi’ne,
Devletlü efendim hazretleri,
Hasılatı taht-ı idaresinde bulunan mektebe iade olmak üzere tertip ettirdiği dört kıta
tiyatro piyesinin badelmuayene şakirdan tarafından mevki-i temaşaya vazına ruhsat
itası istidasına dair Kasaba Alyans İzrailiyet mektebi müdiri Bahur Amil imzasıyla
9 1
verilen arzuhal mezkur piyeslerle beraber leffen irsal olunmakla iktizasının ifa ve
enba buyurulması babında emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 20 Zilkade 1319 ve Fi 14 Şubat 1317
Vali-i Vilayet Eden
Bin […] Mahmud Kamil
15. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 70
Kasaba Musevi mektebi menfaatine olarak mevki’-i temaşaaya vaz edilmek üzere
ruhsat atası istida olunan dört kıta piyesin muayene ve tasdiki zımnında leffen
gönderildiği Aydın vilayet-i celilesinin idare-i aciziye suale buyurulan melzuf
tahriratında işar olunmuş ise de beş kıta piyes gönderilmiş ve ledelmuayene Türkçe
Zor Tabib ve İspanyolca İskanarel nam piyeslerin teşhisinde mahzur görülmekle
idare-i acizide hıfz edilerek diğer üç kıtanın teşhisinde bes görülemediğinden
biltasdik leffen takdim kılınmış olmakla bunların vilayet-i müşarünileyhaya irsaliyle
beraber tayy ü tashif olduğu vechile oynatılmasına itina edilmesinin iktiza edenlere
emr ü tenbih lüzumunun cevaben işar buyurulması babında emr ü ferman hazret-i
menlehülemrindir.
Fi 2 Muharrem 320 ve Fi 28 Mart 318
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Hıfzı
16. 14 Şubat 317 tarihli dört yüz altmış bir nümerolu tahrirat-ı aliye-i daver [...]mileri
cevabıdır.
Kasaba musevi mektebi menfaatine olarak mevki-i temaşaya vaz edilmek üzere
ruhsat itası istida olunan ve liacleltasdik irsal kılınan piyeslerin Türkçe Zor Tabib ve
İspanyolca Eskanarel namındakilerin teşhisinde mahzur görülme[...] hıfz olarak diğer
9 2
üç kıtası [...]dık leffen takdim olduğundan bunların tayt ü tashih edildiği vechile
oynatılmasına itmina olunmasının lazım gelenlere emr ü işar buyurulması hususunun
matbuat-ı dahiliye idaresi ifadesiyle arz ü beyana mübaşeret/müşaberet kılınması
babında.
17. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matubat, Aded 321
Fener’de Kılburnu Gazinosu’nda bulunan şantözler tarafından idare-i acizice tasdik
edilmemiş Türkçe ve sair lisanlarda bir takım kantolar taganni edilmekte olduğu
idare-i çakeri muavinlerinden tiyatrolar ser müfettişi saadetlü ve hacı bey efendi ile
müfettiş inayetlu Hayri Bey tarafından müştereken verilen raporda ifade ve ihbar
kılınmış olmakla mezkur kanto defterlerinin emsali vechile idare-i aciziye irae ve
tasdik ettirilmesi hususunun gazino sahibine tenbihi ve ısga eylemediği takdirde
men-i lüzumunun Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesi’ne emr ü işar buyurulması babında emr
ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 18 Rebiyülevvel 320 ve fi 11 Haziran 318
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Hıfzı
18. Fi 24 Rebiyülevvel 320 ve Fi 17 Haziran 318
Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesine,
Fener’de Kılburnu gazinosundaki şantözler tarafından memurin-i idare-i matbuatça
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye-i acizice gayr-i musaddak Türkçe ve sair lisanlarda bir takım
kantolar taganni edilmekte bulunduğu tiyatrolar ser-i müfettişliğinden barapor verilip
ihbar kılınmış olduğundan anlaşılmakla mezkur kanto defterlerinin emsali vechile
matbuata irae ve tasdik ettirilmesinin gazino sahibine tenbihi ve ısga etmediği halde
9 3
men’i lüzumunun matbuat-ı dahiliye idare-i mezkure ifadesiyle beyan-ı itidar
kılınmakla ol babda.
19. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 228
İdare-i acizi tiyatrolar müfettişleri tarafından verilen raporda Beyoğlu’nda Concordia
Tiyatrosu’nda İtalyanca olarak oynatılan piyeslerde alessual icra edilmiş olan tayy ü
tashihatın nazar-ı dikkate alınmayarak söylenmekte olduğu ifade ve ihbar kılınmış
olmakla tekerrürüne meydan verilmemesi hususunun lazım gelenlere suret-i
müessirede tenbihatı zımnında keyfiyetin Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesine emr ü işar
buyurulması babında emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 1 Rebiyülahir 321 ve Fi 14 Haziran 319
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Hıfzı
20. Fi 4 Rebiyülahir 321 ve Fi 17 Haziran 319
Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesine,
Beyoğlu’nda Concordia Tiyatrosu’nda İtalyanca olarak oynatılan piyeslerde alessual
icra edilmiş olan tayy ü tashihatın nazar-ı dikkate alınmayarak söylenmekte olduğu
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye müfettişleri tarafından verilen raporda ifade edildiğinden
tekerrürüne meydan verilmemesi zımnında hususunda icab edenlere suret-i
müessirede tenbihat icrası lüzumunun Matbuat-ı Dahiliye İdaresi ifadesiyle beyan
olunur ibtidar kılındı. Ol babda.
21. Yıldız Saray-ı Hümayun Baş Kitabet Dairesi, 2324
Beyoğlu’nda Taksim’de kain Aptalikos nam gazinoda ruhsatsız kuşad edilen
tiyatroda muzır bir takım oyunlar oynanmakta olduğu arz ü ihbar kılındığından
sansür usulünün bu gibi münasebetsizliklere meydan vermeyecek surette taht-ı
9 4
temine alınması ve sansür memurları kafi derecede değilse namuslu bir kaç adamın
daha tayin ve ilave edilmesi şerefsudur buyurulan irade-i seniyye-i cenab-ı padişahi
icab-ı celilinden olmakla ol babda emr ü ferman hazret-i veliyyülemrindir.
Fi 3 Rebiyülahir 321 ve Fi 16 Haziran 319
Şehriyari
Ser Katib-i Hazret
Tahsin
22. Ha[…] Umumilik Memurin-i Celilesine,
Senelerce civar kazalarda bila-vukuat çalgıcılıkla kesb-i maaşiyet edilmiş iken
Kozana komiseri mahzur olmadığı halde muhalefettedir. Buyur eden tayin hakkında
aile-yi sefalette bulunduğumdan sefaret emrinin ita buyurulması ağlayarak
istirhamdayım. Fransa.
Şantöz Cariyeleri Marika
Hıfzı
23. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 701
Yunanistan’dan gelip Beyoğlu’nda Odeon Tiyatrosu’nda her sene mevsim-i şitada
icra-yı lubiyat etmekte olan Pandopulo idaresindeki tiyatro kumpanyasının bu sene
dahi vürud eylediği ve bunlarla beraber Yunan havanında ve sazendelerinden
mürekkeb on üç kişilik bir saz takımının dahi icra-yı ahenk edeceği istihbar kılındığı
idare-i acizi tiyatro müfettişleri tarafından verilen raporda ifade kılınmış olmakla
okunacak şarkı ve kantolar tedkik edilmek üzere mecmualarının İdare-i Matbuat’a
gönderilmesi ve icra-yı lubiyat ve ahenk ediliği sırada adab-ı umumiyeye muhalif
tefevvühata meydan verilmemesine memurin-i aidesi tarafından dikkat ve itina
olunması hakkında Beyoğlu mutasarrıfiyet-i aliyesine icra-yı tebligat edilmesi
9 5
hususunun Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesine emr ü işar buyurulması babında emr ü
ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
24. Yunanistan’dan gelip Beyoğlu’nda Odeon tiyatrosunda her sene mevsim-i şitada
icra-yı lubiyat etmekte olan Pandopoulou’nun idaresindeki tiyatro kumpanyasının bu
sene dahi geldiği ve bunlarla beraber Yunan havanında ve sazendelerinden mürekkeb
on üç kişilik bir saz takımının dahi icra-yı ahenk edeceği istihbar kılındığı tiyatro
müfettişleri tarafından barapor bildirildiği beyanıyla okunacak şarkı ve kantolar
tedkik edilmek üzere mecmualarının idareye gönderimlesi ve icra-yı lubuyyat ve
ahenk edildiği sırada adab-ı umumiyeye muhalif evza ve tefevvühaat meydan
verilmemesine memuirin-i aidesi tarafndan dikkat olunması zımnında Beyoğlu
mutasarrıflığına tebligat-ı icra-yı lüzumenin matbuat-ı dahiliye idaresi ifadesiyle
beyanına müsayet kılınmışır. Ol babda.
Fi 11 Şaban 321 ve Fi 19 Teşrin-i Evvel 319
25. Dahiliye Nezaret-i Celilesine,
Devletlü Efendim Hazretleri,
Yunanistan’dan gelip Beyoğlu’nda Odeon tiyatrosunda her sene mevsim-i şitada
icra-yı lubiyat etmekte olan Pandopoulou’nun idaresindeki tiyatro kumpanyasının bu
sene dahi geldiği ve bunlarla beraber yunan havanende ve sazendelerinden mürekkeb
on üç kişilik bir saz takımının dahi icra-yı ahenk edeceği ve okunacak şarkı ve
kantolar tedkik edilmek üzere mecmualarının idareye gönderilmesi ve icra-yı lubiyat
ve ahenk edildiği sırada adab-ı umumiyeye muhalif evza ve tefevvühata meydan
verilmemesinin Beyoğlu Mutasarrıflığı’na tebliği reside-i dest-i tekrim olan 28
Teşrin-i Evvel 319 tarihli ve bin yüz seksen nümerolu tezkire-i aliyye-i
nezaretpenahilerinde işar ve keyfiyet mutasarrıfiyet-i müşarünileyhaya tebliğ ve
9 6
izbar kılınmış idi. Bu kere cevaben alınan tezkirede bu babda icab edenlere tebligat-ı
lazıme bilicra zikr olunan şarkı ve kanto mecmuaları nezaret-i acizi tiyatro
sansörlerinden Corci Efendi tarafından tedkik edilmiş, ve memurin zabıta tarafından
tiyatrolarca umur-ı inzibatiyeye dikkatten geri durulmamakta bulunmuş olup ancak
ücra olunacak lubiyat ve okunacak şarkı ve kanto gibi şeylerin evvelce tedkik ve
tasdik edilmiş olması lazım gelen piyes ve mecmualarına muvaffak olup olmadığına
ve bunların haricinde ve adab-ı umumiyeye ve marzi-i hükumete mugayir surette
ahval ve tefevvühat vukua gelip gelmediğine dikkat etmek üzere sansür memurlarına
tebligat icrası izbar olunmuş ve memurin-i mumaileyhime tenbihat icra edilmiş
olmakla ol babda emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 23 Ramazan 321 ve Fi 30 Teşrin-i Sani 319
Zabtiye Nazırı Şefik
26. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 871,
Yunanistan’dan gelerek Beyoğlu’nda Odeon Tiyatrosunda icra-yı lubiyat etmekte
olan Pandopoulou’nun idaresindeki kumpanyanın on üç kişilik saz takımı tarafından
okunan şarkı ve kantoların tedkiki ve esna-yı lubuyyatta adab-ı umumiyeye muhalif
evza ve harekat ve tefevvühata meydan verilmemesi lüzumunun da beyoğlu
mutasarrıfiyet-i aliyesine izbarı hakkında takdim kılınan müzekkere-i acizanem ve
sebk eden işar-ı ali-i nezaretpenahileri üzerine zabtiye nezaret-i celilesinden cevaben
varid olup havale buyurulan melfuf tezkirede bu babda mezkur mutasarrıflığa
tebligat-ı mukteziye ledelifa alınan tezkire-i cevabiyede zikr olunan şerkı ve kanto
mecmualarının zabtiye tiyatro sansörlerinden Corci Efendi tarafından tedkik edildiği
gibi piyes ve mecmualar haricinde mugayir-i adab-ı usule mahal bırakılmaması
zımnında memuriyet-i aidesine tenbihat-ı mukteziyede bulunulduğu bildirildiği inba
edilmiş ise de, bilumum tiyatro piyeslerinin idare-i acizi tarafından dahi tedkik ve
9 7
muayenesi irade-i senyye-i hazret-i padişahi iktiza-yı alisinden olmakla badema
yalnız zabıta memurlarının mutalağa ve tasdikiyle bu misillü piyes ve şarkı ve
kantoların teşhis ve icrasına katiyyen meydan verilmemesi lüzumunun iktiza
edenlere ekiden tenbihi hususunun ve bir de bu kere idare-i acizi tiyatrolar
müfettişleri tarafından verilen raporda beyoğlu’nda Concordia ve Kristal
tiyatrolarında ve Şişli’de Jardin Du Clos gazinosunda söylenmekde olan Fransızca ve
Almanca ve İtalyanca şarkıların dahi idare-i acizice muayene edilmemiş şeylerden
olduğu ve tiyatrocuların bunları tenbihat-ı mükerrere hilafında olarak sansür için
idareye getirmemekte oldukları beyan ve ifade kılınmış olmakla bunların dahi berayı
tedkik idare-i çakeriye irsal edilmesi için ashabının mecbur edilmesi lüzumunun
nezaret-i müşarünileyhaya cevaben emr ü işar buyurulması babında emr ü ferman
hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 7 Şevval 321 ve fi 14 Kanun-ı Evvel 319
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Hıfzı
27. Fi 27 Şaban 321 ve Fi 4 Kanun-ı Evvel 319
Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesine,
Evvelki akşam Beyoğlu’nda Concordia Tiyatrosu’nda irae olunan sinematograf
tabloların meyanında haşmetli Almanya imparatoru hazretlerinin resimleri teşhis
ediliği sırada huzzardan bazıları tarafından ıslık çalındığı tiyatro müfettişleri
tarafından haber verilmiş ve bu gibi münasebetsizliklerin tiyatrolarda vukuu
fevkalade calib-i dikkat ahvalde bulunmuş olmakla adem-i tekerrürüne dikkat
edilmesi ve tiyatro müsteciri ve saire hakkında (lazım gelen) icab eden muamelenin
icrası hususunun savb-ı ali-i daverilerine tebliği matbuat-ı dahiliye idaresinden
bamüzekkere ifade olunmuştur. Memleketimizde şimdiye kadar tiyatrolarca bu gibi
9 8
münasebetsizlik vukuu müşahid olmamasıyla bunun huzzar meyanında bulunan bazı
iştirak gayrımüslime tarafından vukua getirilmiş olup bu gibi şu yolda çirkin
hareketlere meydan bırakılması bilahere su-i netaice sebep verebileceği cihhetle
gayr-i caiz bulunduğunda ita göre[...] iktiza-yı halin seriyyen ifa ve keyfiyetin inbası
husuna himmem-i aliye-i düsturileri derkar buyurulmak babında.
28. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 1097
Beyoğlu’nda Haleb Çarşısı’ndaki tiyatroda evvelki gün icra-yı lubiyat olunduğu
sırada sahneye çıkan iki komikin diger bir komik tarafından “nereden geliyorsunuz”
suali irad olunması üzerine “İstanbul’dan geliyoruz” cevabını irad ve arkalarındaki
köhne elbiseleriyle bir takım teneke parçalarını irae ederek “nişanlarımızı da
görmüyor musunuz” gibi gayet münasebetsiz evza’ ve akvalde bulundukları idare-i
acizi müfettişleri tarafından verilen raporda ifade kılınmış olduğu gibi mezkur
tiyatroda geçende sinematograf ile irae edilen ve men’i hususunun Zabtiye Nezaret-i
Celilesi’ne emr ü işarı 2 Şubat 1319 tarihli ve bin yetmiş nümerolu müzekkere-i
acizanem ile arz edilen manzara ve resimlerin irae ve teşhirinde devam edilmekte
olduğu da ihbar edilmiş bulunmasına mebni’ men’-i tekerrür ve devamı zımnında
memuriyet-i aidesine tenbihat-ı ekide ve müessire ifası lüzumunun nezaret-i
müşarünileyhaya tekiden emr ü işar buyurulması babında emr ü ferman hazret-i
menlehülemrindir.
29. Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesine,
Beyoğlu’nda Haleb çarşısındaki tiyatroda şubatın yedinci günü icra-yı lubiyat
olunduğu sırada sahneye çıkan iki komikin diğer bir komik tarafından azad
olunamadan “Nereden geliyorsunuz?” sualine karşı “İstanbul’dan geliyoruz”
cevabını verdikleri ve arkalarındaki köhne elbiseleriyle bir takım teneke parçalarını
9 9
irae ederek “nişanlarımızı da görüyor musun” gibi gayet münasebetsiz evza ve
ahvalde bulundukları müfettişler tarafından bildirildiği ve mezkur tiyatroda geçen de
sinematoğraf ile irae edildip men’i 3 Şubat 319 tarihli tezkire-i acizi ile [...] manzara
ve resimlerin irae ve teşhirinde devam edildikte ol[...] izbar kılındığı beyanıyla
bunların men’i tekrar ve devamı zımnında memurin-i maidesinin tenbihat-ı ekide ve
müessire ifası hususunun savb-ı ali-i desturilerine tebliği matbuat-ı dahiliye
idaresinden ba müzekkere ifade kılınmıştır. Ona göre iktizasının ifası hususuna
himmem-i aliye-i daverileri derkar buyurulmak babında.
Fi 5 Zilhicce 1321 ve Fi 9 Şubat 319
30. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 1119
İdare-i acizi müfettişleri tarafından elde edilip leffen takdim-i pişgah-ı ali-i cenab-ı
nezaretpenahileri kılınan varaka-i ilaniye Galata’da Palamari Matbaası’nda ruhsatsız
olarak tab ü neşr edilmiş olduğundan tabı hakkında muamele-i mukteziye-i
kanuniyenin ifası için keyfiyetin Adliye Nezaret-i Celilesi’ne işar buyurulması
babında emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 17 Zilhicce 321 ve Fi 21 Şubat 319
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Hıfzı
31. Fi 19 Zilhicce 321 ve Fi 23 Şubat 319
Adliye Nezaret-i Celilesi Canib-i Alisine,
Concordia Tiyatrosu’nda icra edilmiş lubiyata dair neşr edilmiş olup bir nüshası elde
edilmiş varaka-yı ilaniyenin Galata’da Palamari Matbaası’nda ruhsatsız olarak tab ü
neşr edilmiş oldukları anlaşıldığından tabı hakkında muamele-i mukteziye-i
kanuniyenin ifası hususunun savb-ı ali-i destur-ı ekremilerine işarı Matbuat-ı
10 0
Dahiliye idaresinden bamüzekkere ifade kılınmış ve mezkur varaka-i ilaniye leffen
takdim olunmuş olmakla iktizasının ifası hususuna müsaade-i aliye-i daver-i
ekremiye şayan buyurulmak babında.
32. Date du dépot: 22 Mart 320
Selanik’te Rum ili Müfettiş-i Umumiliği huzur-ı samiine,
Saye-i hrbt ve vaiye-i hazret-i cihanında icra-yı san’at etmek kanuni bir müsaadedir.
Yedi candan ibaret bulunan kumpanyamın medar-ı taayyüşü kahve şantözlüğe
menuttur. Bir guna vukuat olmadığı halde icra-yı san’attan men’ olunmaklığımızın
esbabı nezd-i hakayık-ı cevabanelerince müslimdir. Bu babda memalik-i mahrusa-i
şahanenin her birinde icra edilen kahve şantöze müsaade buyurulması müsterhamdır.
Ferman.
Marika Anglize
Hıfzı
33. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 374
İdare-i acizi tiyatro müfettişleri tarafından verilen iki kıta raporda Küçük Çamlıca’da
bir şantöz tarafından Arapça ve Türkçe olarak taganni edilen kantolar meyanında
bazı münasebetsiz tabirat bulunduğu ve bunların defteri idare-i aciziye irae ve tasdik
ettirildiği ve komik Hasan Efendi idaresindeki oyunda dahi oyunculardan biri acayip
bir şekil ve kıyafette sahneye çıkıp gerek merkum gerek diğer oyuncular tarafından
piyes haricinde olarak tefevvühat-ı bi-edebanede bulunduğu gibi mezkur tiyatroda
icra edilen Aşıklar oyununda dahi piyes haricinde idare-i lisan edildiği gibi
kumpanyalar tarafından türlü renk ve şekilde ve el yazısıyla oyun mahallerine ve
öteye beriye bir takım ilanat tayin etmekte olduğu beyan ve ifade kılınmıştır. Bu
babda evvel ve ahir takdim olunan müzekkerelerde arz ve işar olunduğu vechile her
10 1
nevi kanto mecmuaları ile tiyatro piyeslerinin idare-i aciziye irae ve tasdik edilmesi
lazım geleceğinden mezkur mecmua ve piyeslerin idare-i matbuata gönderilmiş
oyuncuların icbar eylemesi ve el yazısıyla öteye beriye ilan yapıştırılması katiyyen
memnu bulunduğundan işbu memnuiyet hükümetin muhafazasına ve musaddak
piyeslerin hin-i icrasında dahi böyle piyes haricinde tefevvühat ile bi-edebane evza
ve harekata meydan verilmemesine memurin-i zabtiye tarafından dikkat olunması
hususunun Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesi’ne emr ü işar buyurulması babında emr ü
ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 20 Rebiyülahir 322 ve fi 21 Haziran 32
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Hıfzı
34. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 389
Dünkü gün Kadıköyü’nde Kuşdili’nde vaki tiyatroda Şevki Efendi’nin idaresindeki
kumpanya tarafından teşhis edilmek istenilen kumpanyanın ruhsatlı olmadığı ve
münasebetsiz bir oyun olduğu hissedilerek derhal tiyatro sahibine ihtar-ı keyfiyetle
men edildiği ve gelecek cuma günü yine mezkur tiyatroda Hasan Efendi’nin
kumpanyası tarafından icra edilecek oyun hakkında perdenin üzerine talik edilen
varaka-i ilaniyedeki piyesin evvelce idare-i aciziye irae ve tasdik ettirilen oyundan
başka olduğu ve mezkur varakanın usul-ı müttehize ve tenbihat-ı mükerrere hilafında
olmak üzere el yazısıyla müretteb bulunduğu görülmesi üzerine bunun da suret-i
münasebede perdeden kaldırıldığı tiyatrolar müfettişleri tarafından verilen raporda
bildirilmiş olmakla tiyatro kumpanyalarının bu gibi muhalif usul harekatına ve gayr-i
musaddak oyunları teşhis etmelerine meydan bırakılmaması ve bahusus evvel ve
aher takdim kılınan tezkirelerde arz edildiği vechile öteye beriye bu misillü el
yazmasıyla ilanat yapıştırılması katiyyen memnu olmasıyla memnuiyet-i m...nın
10 2
muhafaza-yı hükmüne begayet itina eylemesi için memurin-i zabıta tarafından
dikkat-i mütemadiyede bulunulması ve tenbihat-ı vakayı ısga etmeyen tiyatrocular
hakkında bir ceza tertib ve icrası hususunun Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesi’ne emr ü işar
buyrulması babında emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 22 Rebiyülaher 322 ve fi 23 Haziran 320
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Hıfzı
35. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 508
Atıf ve Fevzi efendilerin idaresinde olarak icra-yı lubiyat eden komedi kumpanyası
tarafından dünki çarşamba günü Kadıköyü’nde idare-i aciziyece gayr-i musaddak
bulunan Kayseriye Yolcuları nam piyesin teşhis edilmiş olduğu idare-i acizi
tiyatrolar müfettişleri tarafından verilen raporda beyan ve ifade kılınmış, ve mezkur
kumpanya yeddinde musaddak olarak açık bir iki piyes mevcud olduğu halde
mahhal-i muhtelifede lubiyatta bulunması icra ettiği oyunlardan ekserisinin ruhsatsız
olduğunu göstermekte olduğundan 23 Haziran 320 tarihli ve üç yüz seksen dokuz
nümerolu tezkire-i acizanemde arz edildiği vechile gayr-i musaddak piyeslerin teşhis
ve icrasına memuriyet-i zabıtaca katiyyen meydan verilmemesinin ve tenbihat ve
vakıayn etmeyen tiyatrocular hakkında bir ceza tertib ve icrasıyla neticesinin ihbası
hususunun Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesine tekeyyüden emr ü işar buyrulması babında
emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 28 Cemaziyülevvel 322 ve Fi 29 Temmuz 320
Matubat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Hıfzı
36. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 786
10 3
Beyoğlu’nda Concordia Tiyatrosu’nda sahneye çıkan bir kadının huzzar tarafından
keyfe ma ittafak intihab ü tayin olunan eşhasın resimlerini teressüm eylediği ve
intihab edilmiş eşhasın kimler olduğu evvelce bilinemediğinden hilaf-ı marazi bir
halde vuku-yı muhtemel bulunduğu idare-i acizi tiyatrolar müfettişleri tarafndan
verilen raporda ifade olunmuş ve bu hal ise mahzurdan gayr-ı salim ve nazar-ı
dikkati calib bulunmuş olmakla ol babda emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 22 Şaban 322 ve Fi 18 Teşrin-i Evvel 320
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Hıfzı
37. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 239
Bu sene için henüz idare-i çakerince tetkik edilerek ruhsat-ı ita kılınmamış olan
Rigoletto “Le Roi S’Amuse” piyesinin dün akşam Beyoğlu Concordia tiyatrosundan
La Bruna kumpanyası tarafından sahne-i temaaşaya vaz’ edildiği idare-i acizi
tiyatrolar müfettişi tarafından verilen raporda bildirilmiştir. Zikr olunan Rigoletto
piyesi her ne kadar iki sene mukaddem idare-i matbuattan tasdik edilmiş ise de
yeniden tedkik ve imza edilmesi lazım geleceği dün idare-i aciziye müracaat eden
mezkur kumpanya direktörüne katiyyen tefhim edilmiş ve kendisi tarafından dahi
oynatılmayacağına dair kaviyyen söz verilmiş olduğu halde oynatılması zikr olunan
kumpanyanın teşhisine cevaz verilemeyeceği akva-yı ihtimalatden bulunan bir takım
piyeslerin bu suretle oynaılmasına devam edeceğini işrab eylemekte bulunmuş ve
zaten Rigoletto piyesinin ilanı dahi idare-i matbuata irae ve tasdik ettirilmemiş
olduğundan mezkur kumpanyanın menajeri hakkında emsaline ibret-i müessire
olacak surette muamele-i nizamiye icrasıyla beraber badema bu defa görülerek tasdik
edilmiş olan piyeslerin oynatılmaması ve bu yolda ruhsatsız lubiyatın icrasına
katiyyen meydan verilememesi esbabının istikmali hususunun Zabtiye Nezaret-i
10 4
Celilesine müsaraaten emr ü işar buyurulması babında emr ü ferman hazret-i
menlehülemrindir.
Fi 7 Rebiyülahir 323 ve Fi 29 Mayıs 321
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdürü
Kemal
38. Beyoğlu Mutasarrıf-ı Aliyyesine,
Fi 6 Mart 322 / 26 / Beyoğlu mutasarrıf-ı aliyyesine / tezkire ve buyurulmak / 6 Mart
322 tarihli tebligat
Galata’da Topçular Caddesi’nde altmış dört nümerolu arsa üzerine inşa edilen
mağaza ile fevkindeki salonu çalgılı gazino yapılmak üzere icara verdiğinden bahisle
ruhsat itası Hasan Ziya mührüyle verilen arzuhalde istida edildiği beyanıyla zikr
olunan mahalin ol vechile istikalinde zabıtaca mahzur olup olmadığı şehir emanet-i
celilesine batezkire istifsar edilmiş olmakla keyfiyeten tahkik ve işarı hususuna
himmem.
[...] cevaben varid olan 59 nümerolu tezkire ile bir şeye işar.
39. Bab-ı Ali Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye, İdare-i Matbuat, Aded 741
Tiyatrolarda icra-yı terennüm etmekte olan kantocu aktrislerin tenbihat-ı mükerrere
ve katiyyeyi ısga etmeyerek sahne-i temaşada adab-ı umumiyeye mugayir etvar ve
evza iraesinde devam edegeldikleri idare-i acizi tiyatro müfettişleri tarafından beyan
ve ihbar edilmiş olmakla bunların badema edeb ve terbiye dahilinde icra-yı sanat
edeceklerine dair kendilerinden teminat-ı kuvviye alınması ve netice-i halin inba
kılınması lüzumunun Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesine ehemmiyetle emr ü işar
buyurulması babında emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 10 Şevval 324 ve Fi 13 Teşrin-i Sani 322
10 5
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdiri
Kemal
40. Zabtiye Nezaret-i Celilesi’ne
Tiyatrolarda icra-yı terennümat etmekte olan aktrislerin [...]fat-ı mükerrere ve
katiyyeyi ısga etmeyerek sahne-i temaşada adab-ı umumiyeye mugayir etvar ve evza
iraesinde devam edegeldikleri Matbuat-ı Dahiliye idaresi müfettişleri tarafından
beyan ve ihbar edilmiş olduğundan bahisle badema bunların edeb ve terbiye
dahilinde icra-yı sanat edeceklerine dair kendilerinden teminat-ı kuvviye alınması
lüzumunun Matbuat-ı Dahiliye İdare-i Aliyye ifadesiyle beyanına mübaderet kılındı.
Ol babda.
41. Bab-ı Ali
Nezaret-i Celile-i Dahiliye
İdare-i Matbuat
Aded
173
Muhteviyatı adab-ı umumiyeye muhalif olan melfuf kanto mecmuasının köprü
üzerinde bir takım kesan tarafından satılmakta olduğu görülerek bir nüshası elde
edildiği ve işbu mecmua kimin tarafından ve hangi matbaada tab ettirildiği Boğaziçi
vapurları iskelesinde gazete mevzii İsmail Efendi’den sual olunmakta mukaddema
nezdinde bulunan Trabzonlu İsmail namında biri tarafından tab ettirildiğini ve nerede
basıldığını bilemediğini ifade ettiğini idare-i acizi müfettişlerinden Rıfatlı Hüsnü
Efendi tarafından verilen raporda beyan edilmiş ve böyle hilaf-ı adab-ı asarın abadi-i
nasında tedavülü gayr-i caiz bulunmuş olduğundan mevcudlarının hemen
toplattırılmasıyla beraber kimin tarafından ve hangi matbaada bastırıldığının
10 6
tahkikiyle mütecasirleri hakkında muamele-i kanuniye ifası zımnında keyfiyetin
cihhet-i adliyeye tevdii hususunun Zaptiye Nezaret-i Celilesi’ne emr ü işar
buyurulması babında emr ü ferman hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Matbuat-ı Dahiliye Müdürü
[…]
Fi 5 Cemaziyülevvel 326 ve Fi 22 Mayıs 324
42. Beyoğlu Mutasarrıflığı, Aded 537
Zabtiye Nezaret-i Aliyyesine,
Atuvfetlü Efendim Hazretleri,
Leylen Miyad-ı Nizamnaiyesinde kapatılmayan meyhane sahipleriyle adab ve ahlak-ı
umumiyeye mugayir ahval ve harekatta bulunan umumhanecilerden ve o gibi
yerlerdeki kadınlardan icabına ve iktidarına göre öteden beri kanuna tevfiken meclis
kararıyla ikişer beşlikten beşer beşliğe kadar ceza-yı nakdi ahz ü istifa olagelmekte
iken yirmi beş günden beri heyecana sebebiyet verilmemek üzere bu babda imaz-ı
ayn edilmekte ise de Beyoğlu’nun hemen ekser taraflarında, meyhaneciler
umumhaneciler kendilerini her bir cezadan muaf addederek men’ine teşebbüs
olundukça hürriyet var diyerek meyhaneler sabahlara kadar açık tutulmakta ve
umumhanelerde dahi bir çok ahval-i rezaletkarane vuku’ gelmekte olmakla beraber
umumhanelerde bulunan uygunsuz kadınlar kahve ve gazino ve meyhanelere devam
ile işret ederek ve sokaklarda erkeklerle beraber bi-edebane bir surette gezerek bu
yüzden her türlü harekat-ı gayr-ı merziye eksik olmamakta ve yalnız tenbihat ile o
gibi hallerin men’i kabil olamamakta bulunduğu gibi bu kabileden olarak Beşiktaş ve
Boğaziçi taraflarında gazino ve meyhaneler sabahlara kadar açık bulundurularak
saika-i sekr ile istirahat-ı umumiyeyi salib-i ahval vuku bulmasından naşi ahali-i
10 7
mahalliye bunun men’ini istirham eylemekte bulundukları, Beşiktaş Komiserliği’nin
ve öteden beri bir takım uygunsuz eşhasın devamgahı olan Galata cihhetinde dahi
evvelce ittihaz ve icra kılınan tedabir-i inzibatiyeden olarak ikiye indirilmiş ve baloz
denilen rezalet mahallerinde bu kere üç daha küşad olunup gerek oralar ve gerek
rıhtım boyunda çalgılı gazinolar ve umumhaneler sabahlara kadar açık tutulmasından
ve mahhal-i mezkurede hanende sıfatıyla bir takım alufteler bulundurulmasından
dolayı mugayir-i adab ve inzibat-ı ahval eksik olmamakta ve oralara devam eden bir
takım sadedilan iğfal edilerek nukud-u mevcudeleri ahz edilmekte bulunduğu Galata
Komiserliğinden alınan jurnallerde ifade olunmuştur. Ahval-i mezkurenin vuku’ ve
devamı inzibata ne derece tesir ettiği muhtac-ı arz ü izah olmamasıyla men’i ehemm
ve elzem olarak çünkü o misillüler hakkında öteden beri muttehiz ve cari olan
tedabir-i inzibatiye cümlesinden olduğu üzere kendilerinin haber alındırılmamaları
bu yüzden iş büsbütün çığırından çıkarak her tarafta inzibat emr-i ehemmi sektedar
olmak gayr-ı müstebid olmasıyla o gibilerin kemakan ceza-yı nakdi ile tecrim
edilmeleri hususunu arz ü istizan ve emr-i cevabisine intizar ile beraber baloz ve
gazino gibi mahallerin de kavaid-i inzibatiyeye muvafık bir surette açılıp işletilmesi
hususunun şehremanet-i celilesiyle bilmuhabere bir kaide-i salime ve mazbutaya rabt
edilerek neticenin emr ü izbarının müsaide-i aleyhin nezaretpenahilerinden istirham
eylerim. Ol babda emr ü irade-i hazret-i menlehülemrindir.
Fi 20 Receb 326 ve Fi 4 Ağustos 324
Beyoğlu Mutasarrıf Vekili,
Mahmud
43. Beyoğlu Mutasarrıflığı, Aded 1251
Emniyet-i Umumiye Müdiriyeti Vekalet-i Aliyesine,
Saadetlü Efendim Hazretleri,
10 8
Beyoğlu cihhetinde Hasanlar Şevkiler oyun verdikleri zaman bir çok da esafildan
toplanıyor ve bu tiyatrolar adeta biraz müstesnasıyla cem-i haşarat oluyor. Dikkat
ettim. Bunların çoğu göbek atan gerdan kıran kantocular için gelir. Zaten bu
kantocularla bu tiyatrolar birer kafe şantan şeklini alıyor. Bu haşaratı kısmen
dağıtmak ve Osmanlılığı Beyoğlu’nda ve Galata’da pek çirkin surette gösteren bu
nevi tiyatroların rezailini tehdit etmek için Osmanlı tiyatrolarında kantoculuğu
katiyyen men etmek lazım gelir. Tedbir-i umumi olmak üzere ehemmiyetle arz-ı
keyfiyet edilir. Ol babda emr ü irade efendim hazretlerinindir.
Fi 12 Zilhicce 327 ve fi 12 Kanunuevvel 325
Beyoğlu Mutasarrıfı
Mehmed
10 9
APPENDIX D
ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS
11 0
11 1
11 2
11 3
11 4
11 5
11 6
11 7
11 8
11 9
12 0
12 1
12 2
12 3
12 4
12 5
12 6
12 7
12 8
12 9
13 0
13 1
13 2
13 3
13 4
13 5
13 6
13 7
13 8
13 9
14 0
14 1
14 2
14 3
14 4
14 5
14 6
14 7
14 8
14 9
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