All the evidence shows that Abdulhamit II was a master carpenter who, had he not been a sultan, could have become extremely rich from plying his trade. It would be no exaggeration to say that his designs were unrivaled. For proof of this, one can go and examine examples of his craftsmanship still on display in Istanbul: some cabinets he made, which today are used to store court records at the office of the Provincial Director of Religious Affairs for Istanbul; some tables in Topkapi; a bookcase in Istanbul University; and some items in a certain section of the Yildiz Palace which can be regarded as the first step in the development of a city museum.
ref: Ortayli, Ilber (2009). Discovering the Ottomans. pub: Kube Publishing Ltd. Leicestershire
Every Friday the sultan would attend Friday prayers in one of the mosques of Istanbul, a tradition known as selamlik. The alkish (literally, ‘applause’) that is mentioned in descriptions of this ceremony does not actually mean hand-clapping but refers to the activity of those who saw the sultan passing by: they would call out, ‘My sultan, do not be proud, as Allah is greater than you.’ The pageantry surrounding selamlik was of great importance. As was mentioned earlier, in the classical age of Ottoman rule some complaints from members of the public were written down and placed in a pouch attached to the stirrup of the sultan. These petitions in Turkish and other languages, which are among the most valuable documents to be found in the Ottoman archives, would be collected by an official and were dealt with seriously. Sometimes very interesting petitions emerged from the pouches, which were handed over to the Rikab-i Humqyun
ref: Ortayli, Ilber (2009). Discovering the Ottomans. pub: Kube Publishing Ltd. Leicestershire
CARAVANS OF ROYAL GIFTS (SURRE ALAYI)
The word surre means the gifts and precious goods that were donated by the Sultan and citizens of the Ottoman Empire every year and which were sent to Mecca and Medina during the pilgrimage season.
The Surre caravan was sent along with the pilgrims on the 12 of Rajab, the first of the three blessed months, so that it could arrive in Mecca in time for the pilgrimage. The caravan spent the holy month of Ramadan in Damascus, and then distributed the gifts in Mecca. After performing the pilgrimage, the hajj, the caravan would depart for its return journey.
The first caravan ever was sent by Sultan Celebi Mehmed (d. 1421) with 14,000 gold coins by ship by Captain Kemal Reis; this tradition continued with higher quantities being sent by other sultans. After the Hijaz region was annexed by Selim I, the Surre caravans were more systematically organ-ized. It is reported in Mir’at al-Haramayn that the gifts and goods donated to the caravan were distributed to scholars and people who spent all their time worshipping in the Grand Mosque, and whose names had been determined beforehand.
The foundation deeds belonging to Sultan Mahmud II and Abdulhamid II reveal that the money sent with the Surre caravans were to be distributed to the teachers at the Hamidiye Madrasa, some righteous poor, and mosque attendants (Sabri, 1887, vol. 2, p. 687).
Click to Enlarge
The covers of the Kabbah were
sent with the Surre Alayi
Spectacular ceremonies were staged before the departure of the Surre caravans. Each ceremony was held according to a detailed plan organized by the protocol officer. The list of participants, ceremonial positions, costumes, and other issues were recorded in ceremony books. Esad Efendi’s Teshrifat-i Kadime [Ancient Protocol], for instance, describes the gifts, costumes, and money donated to the caravans in detail.
The program started a few days before the departure. 50 or more appointed officers visited every neighborhood and collect donations from the public. This way, many Muslims who could not afford to go on pilgrimage would be consoled by sending charity to the holy lands.
The sultan, accompanied by high-ranking state officials, sent off the caravan from the palace. Following a feast, the Surre purses were brought to the tents set up opposite the Kubbealti (the parliament building) and donations were counted in the presence of the sultan. The Surre Records and purses were sealed with the sultan’s seal and given to the Surre Officer with a letter addressed to the governor of Mecca. Accompanied by Qur’anic recitations, and praise and poems for the Prophet, gifts were loaded on the Surre camels and the procession continued until it reached the gates of Topkapi Palace.
Donations that were sent with the Surre caravans were usually spent on the renovations of the holy sites in Mecca and Medina and for facilities to be used during pilgrimage services. A significant portion of the donations were allocated for the poor living in the region. Some gifts were sent to the governor of Mecca and celebrated figures in the Haramayn. The caravan usually called at more than sixty different locations en route to Mecca and the caravanserai where the caravan stopped were well-maintained and kept under good care.
Surre caravans were sent on land until 1864. After this date sea steamers were used until 1908 when the Hijaz Railway began to operate. The caravan continued to be sent with the pilgrims until 1915. Despite the insurgence ot the Governor of Mecca and numerous hardships, a caravan was sent to Medina in 1916. During the horrendous times of World War I, the caravans could only go as far as Damascus in 1917 and 1918. No more caravans could be sent after 1919, with the exception of some charity that was sent by Sultan Mehmet VI (Vahdeddin) in 1919 and 1920 to be distributed to the poor of the Haramayn. The last caliph, Abdulmecid Efendi, who did not hold the title of sultan, officially put an end to this tradition in 1923-24.
During World War I, it was decided to evacuate the Haramayn. To prevent likely plunder and loss, some of the gifts that had been sent to Mecca and Medina centuries before were transferred to Istanbul along with the Sacred Relics. These items are now kept in the Treasury Section of the Topkapi Palace Museum in Istanbul.
ref: Doduncu, Mehmet (2006). Yildiz Albums of Sultan Abdul Hamid II Mecca-Medina. Pub: The Light Inc. New Jersey)
T.E. Laurence “Laurence of Arabia” – His report of January 1916:
“Husayn’s activity seems beneficial to us, because it marches with our immediate aims, the break-up of the Islamic bloc and the defeat and disruption of the Ottoman Empire… The Arabs are even less stabled than the Turks. If properly handled they would remain in a state of political mosaic, a tissue of small jealous principalities incapable of political cohesion. – (ref: Finlayson, Contemporary Political Thought (2003). NYU Press)
The Arab Revolt began in June 1916, when an Arab army of around 70,000 men moved against Ottoman forces. They captured Aqabah and cut the Hejaz railway, a vital strategic link through the Arab peninsula which ran from Damascus to Medina. This enabled the Egyptian Expeditionary Force under the command of General Allenby to advance into the Ottoman territories of Palestine and Syria.
–
Commentary:
Some have heard of ‘Laurence of Arabia’, but few Muslims know exactly what he did or what his impact was, and how directly he schemed to tear apart Muslim unity. One of the key steps to the Formation of Palestine was the Arab Revolt of 1916, where Muslims rose up against the Calipha looking for ‘independence’ and separate states.
This is so correct, it seems to deserve the term ‘prophetic’.
To the Right Hon. A J Balfour, O.M, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
1. Sir – Referring to our memorial of Jan 1 respecting Constantinople, Thrace and the homeland of the Turkish nation, we beg to observe that we refrained from expressing our opinion with regard to the other parts of the Turkish Empire, reserving it for a further representation to his Majesty’s Government, as we were not acquainted at that time with the suggestions before the Peace Conference for their ultimate disposition.2. We now learn from the Press that it is proposed to form them into self governing States, under the protectorate of one or other of the Allied and Associated Powers. As there is no Mohammedan representative on the Conference to place before it the opinions of his Majesty’s Mussulman subjects concerning the vast problems affecting the whole Islamic world which form the subject of consideration by the Conference, we venture to take the only constitutional course left to us for acquainting his Majesty’s Government and the Allied and Associated Powers with our views – viz., to submit those views in this memorial.
3. We welcome the proposal to create self-governing institutions in the occupied Provinces of Turkey and in Armenia under the guarantee of the League of Nations, but we most strongly deprecate the suggestion to sever them absolutely from the Turkish Empire. Our reasons for this submission are not sentimental; they are founded on grounds of expediency and policy which we respectively venture to think deserve the serious consideration of his Majesty’s Government and the Allied and Associated Powers. The evidence as to the depth of feeling, not only among the vast Mussulman population of India, but also among the Afghans and the frontier tribes (who form the bulk of the Mussulman element in the Indian Army) against the dismemberment of Turkey, and in favour of the preservation of her prestige, is accumulating day by day.
4. We hope that, with the disappearance of the two Empires that had hitherto exploited Asiatic unrest and misgovernment to their own advantage with a view to final political or economic absorption, the new peace would assure the pacific development of Western and Middle Asia on durable lines. We have no hesitation in expressing our conviction that Turkey, under a Government such as she has now been fortunate enough to obtain, with her prestige among Mussulmans of the world, would be an immense source of strength to England and the Allied Powers who rule over large masses of Moslems.
5. We fear, however, that the complete and absolute severance from the Turkish Empire of the provinces whose future status is under consideration will give rise to a rankling sense of injustice.
6. In any event, we venture strongly to urge that these proposed new autonomous States should not be withdrawn from the spiritual suzerainty of the Ottoman sovereign as Caliph. Our reasons for making this submission are based, firstly, on our desire for the peaceable development of Western Asia; and secondly, on the necessity, in our opinion, of an endeavor on the part of his Majesty’s Government to meet, so far as possible, the wishes and legitimate feelings of the Mussulmans, who form fully one-fourth of the population of the Empire.
7. Under the Sunni system of jurisprudence, the investiture of a new ruler by the Caliph, the Chief Pontiff, regularizes his status in the eyes of his people and makes any rising against him illegal ; it gives him prestige in the Mussulman world, and places him in an unimpugnable position. This was the reason that led the Mussulman sovereigns of India, before the rise of the Shiah Empire, which divided them from the Western Sunnis, to apply and obtain investiture from the Chief Pontiff. In our opinion, therefore, if the Peace Conference were to leave the Ottoman Sovereign or Caliph with the prestige of conferring on the rulers of these propose autonomous States on their accession to their respective thrones the usual investiture, it would not only conciliate Mussulman feeling, but would add to the guarantees of peace and pacific development among the people of those countries. To sever them altogether, both secularly and religiously, from the Ottoman State would, in our opinion, lead to constant trouble, and leave behind, as we have already ventured to submit, a legacy of bitterness which we humbly think might be avoided.
8. With regard to the suggested creation of a Jewish State in Palestine, we desire to observe that if the Peace Conference were to decide to create that province into a self-governing State, the entire Mussulman world would resent its being placed under any but a Mussulman ruler, whatever other form the Government may take. Not only is Jerusalem intimately associated with the Mussulman religion and Mussulman religious traditions, but in the long course of fourteen centuries the land has become covered with the memorials of the Mussulman faith. To convert it into a Jewish State or to place it under a Jewish ruler would be most repugnant to Mussulman feelings, especially as only one-seventh of the population of Palestine is Jewish. History proves that the Jews can live in the closest amity with their Mussulman fellow-subjects under Moslem rulers, and enjoy exceptional privileges not conceded to them even now by many European nations.
9. Finally we venture to appeal once more to his Majesty’s Government and the Peace Conference that, in devising the new form of government for Armenia, the rights and interests, together with the religious institutions and places of worship, of the large Mussulman population inhabiting that province (who in many districts form the majority) should be safe-guarded and that they should be protected from persecution, and that they should be placed on an equal footing with the non-Moslem population in the enjoyment of all civil rights and privileges – We have the honour to be, sir, your most obedient and humble servants.
Shaikh MH Kidwai of Gadian
Khwaja Kamalud Din
Marmaduke Pickthall
S H Kidwai of Rampure
Ibrahim S Haji
Aga Khan
Ameer Ali
AA Baig
MH Ispahani
AA Mirza
A S M Anik
(Twenty other signatures)(ref: Samuel Marinus Zwemer, “The Moslem World” (1919), Harrisburg, Pa)
the truth on 
m.a.kidwai,CME/IND.RLY.(retd.) on 