Osmanlı’da Emekli Olmak: Selanik’te Devlet Memurlarının Tekâüdlüğü (1880-1912)
Retirement in the Ottoman State: The Retirement of Civil Servants in Salonica (1880-1912)

Summary/Abstract: This study aims to examine the retirement (tekâüd) registers of civil servants in Salonica, one of the most modern and cosmopolitan cities of the Ottoman Empire, to reveal the Muslim and non-Muslim balance within its bureaucratic structure. Despite Salonica’s rich and diverse population, it is particularly striking that the majority of entries in the retirement registers pertain to Muslim officials. Based on this observation, the study evaluates the implementation of the Ottoman principle of “state fidelity in return for service” and the reflection of the Abdulhamid II era’s social welfare approach withing Salonica’s civil service system. It analyzes the functioning of Salonica retirement system during the late 19th and ealry 20th centuries, including occupational distribution, disparities between the highest and lowest-ranking officials, salary differences, age of entry into civil service, and correlations with years of service. Additionally, the study seeks to determine the proportion of non-Muslim officials in the city, inferred from the records predominance of Muslim retirees. The research draws on quantitative and qualitative primary source data, including four volumes from the Bab-ı Asafî Divan-ı Hümayun Sicilleri Tekâüd Registers Catalogue preserved in the Ottoman Archives of the Presidency of the Republic of Turkiye Directorate of State Archives, personnel records from the Council of State (Şûrâ-yı Devlet), and Salonica Provincial Yearbooks (Salnâmes). Employing a mixed-methods research design, these data undergo detailed analytical evaluation.

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