Manuscripts from early periods of the Ottoman Era found in a Greek monastery
In the Pantokrator monastery in Mount Athos, documents from the Ottoman period, the oldest of which dates back to 1371, have come to light. It is seen in the documents that the Devlet-i Aliyye (The Great State) approached Greece with tolerance.
In Pantokrator, which is one of the many monasteries in the Mount Athos of Greece and affiliated to the Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Istanbul, studies are carried out to shed light on the past.
THOUSANDS OF MANUSCRIPTS FOUND FROM THE OTTOMAN PERIOD
Researchers working in a monastery in Mount Athos, which has had an autonomous administration since 883, where approximately 20 monasteries are located and where women are not allowed to enter, are examining an archive of thousands of Ottoman period manuscripts.
Libraries on the peninsula hold hundreds of years old documents in several languages, including Greek, Russian and Romanian. It is seen that these documents, most of which have been researched, have not been studied much until now, while the Ottoman ones have not been studied much.
DOCUMENTS DATING BACK TO THE 14TH CENTURY
Experts state that it is not possible to understand the economy and society the Mount Athos in the Ottoman period without these documents. Documents dating back to the 14th century are among the oldest documents from the Ottoman period.
THE DOCUMENTS SHOW THE EXACT CORRECT OF THE 'PURPOSE' APPROACH TO THE OTTOMAN
Documents, including sultan's edicts, title deeds and court decisions, reveal that contrary to the "predatory" understanding of the Ottoman Empire in Greece, the Ottoman administration protected the society here from foreign interventions by taking it under its wing and preserving its autonomy.
According to the news of AA, experts researching the documents state that one of the first actions of Murat II, who conquered Thessaloniki, the closest city to Mount Athos, was to issue a legal document to protect the Mount Athos community in 1430.
THE OTTOMAN STATE DID NOT IMPLEMENT THE RELIGION
Experts point out that the Ottomans did not try to impose Islam for almost 2 centuries after conquering these lands, and they state that the documents shed light on the principles of coexistence within the framework of human rights, respect, and democracy.
