Settlement, Uprising and Change:Kadirli in the Second Half of the XIXth Century

The foundations of today’s city of Kadirli, to large extent, was laid in the second half of XIXth century. A number of fundamental changes took place in many areas including urbanisation, economic activities, social structure, the establishment of state authority and the relationship between State and people. The fundamental determinant of the change took place in Kadirli and its vicinity was the arrival of Islahiyye Party to the region in 1865. Islahiyye Party, led by Derviş and Ahmet Cevdet Pashas, did not only reestablished the state autrohity in the region but also tried to resolve many social issues by actively interfering with them. The existence of the State authority was felt more siginificantly during the period. However, influencial families was exercing significant power against the society and the state by the last quarter of XIXth century. This power emerged more explicitly by the uprising of Kozanoğlu Ahmet Pasha in 1878. The uprising was supported actively by Müftüoğlu Mehmet and his brother Mr. Hazım, both belong to Kadirli gentry. People of Kadirli were, on the one hand, struggling with the problems of making a transition to settled life. On the other hand, they were feeling the existence of the State authority more closely. Kadirli went into a new period with the introduction of new justice system and development of agricultural activities. For these reasons it would not be wrong to argue that the change and transformations started in 1860s have played important role in shaping today’s Kadirli. The issue is examined based on archival documents.