The bedel-i askeri (military exemption tax) was a revamped version of the Ottoman poll tax (cizye, Ar. jizya; see Taxation and Dhimma) that was adopted during the Tanzimat period. Until the modernizing reforms of the nineteenth century, non-Muslim subjects of the Ottoman Empire were not allowed to do military service in the army, which was considered to be a Muslim institution, some important exceptions notwithstanding. The Islahat Fermanı (Reform Decree) of 1856, however, provided legal equality to all Ottomans regardless of religion and br…
Bedel-i Askeri(324 words)
Cite this page
İlker Aytürk, “Bedel-i Askeri”, in: Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World, Executive Editor Norman A. Stillman. Consulted online on 02 February 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1878-9781_ejiw_SIM_0003350>
First published online: 2010
▲ Back to top ▲