Conventional Long Name: | Sanjak of Nicopolis Niğbolu Sancağı Никополски санджак |
Common Name: | Nicopolis |
Subdivision: | sanjak |
Nation: | the Ottoman Empire |
Title Leader: | Sanjakbey |
P1: | Tsardom of Vidin |
Flag P1: | Coat of Arms of the Emperor of Bulgaria (by Conrad Grünenberg).png |
S1: | Principality of Bulgaria |
Flag S1: | Flag of Bulgaria.svg |
Year Start: | 1396 |
Event Start: | Battle of Nicopolis |
Year End: | 1878 |
Capital: | Nikopol in modern day Bulgaria |
Today: | Bulgaria |
The Sanjak of Nicopolis (Bulgarian: Никополски санджак|links=no Nikopolski sandzhak, Turkish: Niğbolu Sancağı|links=no) was a sanjak in the Ottoman Empire, with Nikopol in modern Bulgaria as its administrative centre. It was established out of the territories of the Tsardom of Vidin, after the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396.
The earliest defter of the Sanjak of Nicopolis is composed in the mid-15th century. One group of scholars dated this defter to 1430 while another group of scholars dated it to 1479/1480.[1] This was the first Ottoman defter which mentioned the Romani people, who lived in 431 households, or 3.5 percent of households in this sanjak.[2]
In the collected notes of Evliya Çelebi (mid-17th century) the Sanjak of Nicopolis with 20 ziamets and 244 timars and income of 40,000 aspres was mentioned as one of 24 Ottoman sanjaks in Rumelia.[3] In the mid-19th century it had 15 kadiluks.[4]
Bulgarian historian Rusi Stojkov believed that Skanderbeg was mentioned in 1430 Ottoman defter as a sanjak-bey of the Sanjak of Nicopolis.[5] According to this view he was appointed to this position shortly after being chosen for the position of sanjak-bey of the Sanjak of Dibra. Halil İnalcık explained that for Skanderbeg, "this was a big promotion as Nikopol was one of the largest sanjaks of European Turkey".[6] Strashimir Dimitrov dated this defter to 1479–80 and believed that the Iskander Bey mentioned in it was not Skanderbeg but some other person who was mirliva of Nicopolis.[7]
During the reign of Sultan Murad II the sanjak-bey was Mehmed Bey, a son of Firuz Bey.[8]
In March 1834 Husseyn Pasha was appointed as sanjak-bey of the Sanjak of Nicopolis and Sanjak of Vidin.[9]
The Sanjak of Nicopolis was one of six Ottoman sanjaks with most developed shipbuilding (besides sanjaks of Smederevo, Vidin, Požega, Zvornik and Mohač).[10]
. Elena Marushiakova. Gypsies in the Ottoman Empire: A Contribution to the History of the Balkans. 2001. Univ of Hertfordshire Press. 978-1-902806-02-0. 27. The first mention of Gypsies in the tax documentation of the Ottoman Empire dates from 1430 and is found in the Register of Timars for the Nikopol sanjak or region, in which 431 Gypsy households are registered, 3.5% of the total listed..
. Bernard Lewis. Islam, from the Prophet Muhammad to the Capture of Constantinople: Politics and war. 1974. Harper & Row. 142. The bey of the Sanjak of Nicopolis, Mehmed Bey, the son of Firuz Bey, ....