Asia Minor Studies

Abstract

The Portrait of a Sultan
in the Eyes of the Periphery; Yıldırım Bayezid

Abstract: Sultan Bayezid I (Yıldırım Bayezid) was one of the most influential
sultans, who shaped the state administration in every respect. His practises
and decisions mapped out the route for the ways in which state would be
governed. His reign was a period of many firsts in terms of militaristic and
political developments. Despite his great achievements in Europe and Anatolia,
and his decisions, which strengthened the state structure, the way the sources
mentioned him is mind blowing. He, his wife and the people around him were all
harshly criticized. No other Ottoman Sultan was criticized like him. As the
first sultan of the transition process from beylik to statehood, how was Sultan
Bayezid I seen in the eyes of nomadic Turks (‘Konar-göçer’) and neighboring
Turkish beys? Was he someone who paid a heavy price for founding a state, or
was he a bad ruler who deserved everything happened to him? This study is especially
based on the unofficial records about him. Through these sources, it will be
possible to see how the bodies constituted the periphery viewed the Sultan Bayezid
I and their reasons.