Crime of Rape in the Ottoman Law

Committing rape has always been considered as the severest of sexual offences and perpetrator have been punished accordingly throughout history. As an act that damages the moral and family foundation of a society, rape was considered as a crime against the general public. In the Ottoman Empire, rape was punished according to Islamic law in the context of fornication up to the Tanzimat era, but sometimes additional punishments were accorded in the Sultan’s lawbook. After the Tanzimat, perpetrators were sentenced to imprisonment or penal servitude sentences under the code of law of 1858.