Conscription in the Ottoman Empire

Conscription in the Ottoman Empire examined by close reference to what period ("Classic Army (1451–1606)," "Reform Period (1826–1858)" or "Modern Army (1861-1922)") or a complex set of rules which included a poll-tax (in the very early times named cizye on non-Muslims, later it was Bedl-i askeri, an exemption tax, which applied to everyone), which was theoretically a substitute for military service. The introduction of western style conscription was closely linked to the introduction of a European-style army, Modern Army (1861-1922), but it did not coincide with it.

No universal military conscription existed during this period. Recruitment to the Ottoman imperial army was achieved through forced enlistment of Christian children every 5 years.

In 1839, a system of conscription was introduced through the Gulhane proclamation. In times of need every town, quarter, and village should present a fully equipped conscript at the recruiting office. In 1848, detailed regulations on the draft were published. It stated that Muslim millet was required to serve.

Draft for Non-muslims was introduced in 1856 but the exemption tax in lieu of it was not forbidding, unlike a similar payment available for Muslims. As the poll tax (jizya / cizye) for Non-Muslims had been abolished, the authorities were not encouraging military service for them, preferring the revenue. Nevertheless, some Non-Muslims did enter the military though in support functions. The head of the guard of Abdülhamid II was Greek, with the rank of brigadier.

The system of exemptions through the bedel-i nakdī and the bedel-i askerī meant that the burden never fell equally on all Ottoman subjects. The riches evaded the military burdens. The socio-economic distribution of the Ottoman Empire was not even, the non-Muslim members of the Ottoman Society had the highest income level. Even at the end, the Ottoman army remained an army of Anatolian Muslim peasants.

Service in the regular army (that is Nefer, equals to private) gradually being shortened with the modern army. In 1908, it was three years.

With the Young Turk Revolution a new military conscription law was prepared by the Ministry of War in October 1908. According to the draft, all subjects between ages of twenty and forty five were to fulfill a mandatory military service.

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