Konya'da meşâhîr-i ümerâdan bir zât idi. 637'de Amasya vâlîsi ve ser-askeri olup ma'iyyet-i mevcûdesiyle Konya'dan hareket [378] ve kemâl-i sür'atle Kayseriyye'ye muvâsalat ederek Baba İshâk'ın harekâtını tahkîk ediyordu. Yalancı peygamber Amasya'dan hareketle Bozok livâsını geçip Kırşehir ovasına girdiği esnâda galebe edeceğini ümîd eylediği Trabzon kralı Yani Komennus harben maktûl ve Rûmlar perîşân olarak Trabzon'a kaçdıklarını haber aldıkda ileri hareketin muhâtaralı olduğunu anlayıp orada Armağanşâh ile harb eylediyse de kendisi de mağlûb ve Amasya'ya avdetle tahassun etmeğe mecbûr olmuşdur.
Emîrü's-sevâhil Alîşîr Bey, maktûl Yani yerine Trabzon kralı olan Manu'el Komennus ile akd-i sulh ve Erzurum vâlîsi Yâkût Bey dahi Gürciler'le hudûdu te'mîn ederek Amasya üzerine hareket ve Şerefeddîn İnac ve Tekûr Sinan Beyler'in teşkîl etdikleri müdâfa'a taburu çete muhârebesiyle Baba'îler'i iz'âc ediyorlardı. Her tarafdan muhât olduğunu idrâk eden yalancı peygamber, kuvve-i ma'neviyyesi kırılmış, ümmet-i câhilesi yorulmuş bir hâlde bin müşkilât ile Amasya'ya cân atıp tahassun etmişdir.
Yalancı peygamberi ta'kîb eden Amasya vâlîsi Hacı Armağanşâh kemâl-i sür'atle Amasya'yı muhâsara ederek Hurşîd, İnâc, Tekûr Sinan Beyler'in fedâkârâne hücûmlarına Baba'îler'in mukâvemeti kesildi. Hacı Armağanşâh cebren Amasya'ya girdikde "câ'e'l-hakku ve zehaka'l-bâtıl"³⁸⁴ hükmü zâhir olup sihr ü nîrencâtın te'sîri zâ'il olmuş idi.
Binâ'en-aleyh Hacı Armağanşâh, çobanlıkdan evliyâlığa, evliyâlıkdan da [379] yalancı peygamberliğe kadar irtikâ eden Baba İshâk nâmındaki Rûm İsâk'ı ve meşâhîr-i avenesini tutup 637 yâhud 638 senesi receb evâ'ilinde her birini köpekler gibi asdırmış, bu sûretle şu vak'a-i garîbeyi basdırmışdı. Fakat bir hafta sonra bir gece Baba'îler'den bir cemm-i gafîr, buldukları fırsatdan bi'l-istifâde emîr-i müşârün-ileyhin hânesine hücûm ederek Hacı Armağanşâh'ı hademesiyle beraber şehîd ve Rûm İsâk'ın kokmuş olan cesed-i maslûbunu darağacından aldıkdan sonra ihtifâ etmişlerdir.
Bu vak'ayı müte'âkib Erzurum vâlîsi Yâkût ve sevâhil muhâfızı Alîşîr Beyler Amasya'ya gelip buldukları Baba'îler'i i'dâm ve yalancı peygamberin ümmet-i câhilesinden memâlik-i Selçûkiyye'yi tathîr etdikden sonra Konya hükümdârı Sultân Gıyâseddîn Keyhusrev dahi Cezîre-i Kubâd³⁸⁵ üzerinden Çat Bükü'ne geçip Baba İlyâs'ı savma'asında bulmuş idi. Baba İlyâs, Baba İshâk'dan müteneffir, diyânet ve i'tikâdı enzâr-ı ulemâda müsellem olduğu münâsebetle afv edib çiftliğinde ikâmete me'mûr etmiş ve Çat Bükü mu'ahharan İlyâs Köyü demekle meşhûr olmuşdur.
Baba İshâk, Anadolu'da Türkler'in ahlâk-ı sâfiyesini, efkâr-ı dîniyyesini [380] ifsâd eden Babalar'ın birincilerinden ma'dûd olup kendisi dünyâdan gideli sekiz yüz yıl olduğu hâlde bırakdığı zehirli efkârın âsâr-ı meş'ûmesi bâkî olarak hâlâ görülmekdedir. Baba İshâk'ın Amasya'da kabri hakkındaki tedkîkât ve taharriyât, Mukaddime'de "Anbarlı Evliyâ Türbesi" zeylinde mezkûrdur. İşte Amasya'da yalancı peygamber vak'a-i târîhiyyesinin tevârîh ve tetebbu'ât ve istidlâlâta müstenid olan tafsîlâtı bundan ibâretdir.
Sultân Gıyâseddîn Keyhusrev, Amasya'ya geldikden sonra Sinâneddîn Yâkût Bey'i Erzurum'a i'âde edib münhal olan Simre (Amasya) vâlîliğine emîrü's-sevâhil olan Alâ'eddîn Alîşîr Bey'i ve sevâhil emâretine ya'nî muhâfazasına Halifet Gâzizâde Şücâ'eddîn Tekûr Sinan Bey'i ta'yîn ve Amasya kadılığına meşâhîr-i fuzalâdan müderris-i Halîfe Fahreddîn Alî bin Muhammed el-Buhârî'yi nasb etmiş ve Simre vilâyeti istîfâsına (defter-dârlığına) Sa'deddîn Yûnus el-Gümüşî me'mûr olmuşdur.
In Modern English
He was one of the famous emirs in Konya. In 637 [1239-40], as governor of Amasya and commander-in-chief, he set out from Konya with the force available, reached Kayseri at great speed and was investigating the movements of Baba İshak. When the false prophet, setting out from Amasya, passed the sanjak of Bozok and entered the plain of Kırşehir, he learned that Yani Komennus, king of Trebizond, on whose victory he had counted, had been killed in battle and that the Greeks had scattered and fled to Trebizond. Understanding that advancing was dangerous, he fought Armağanşah there, but was himself defeated and had to return to Amasya and take refuge.
Alîşîr Bey, the emir of the coast, made peace with Manu'el Komennus, who had become king of Trebizond in place of the slain Yani. Yâkût Bey, governor of Erzurum, secured the frontier with the Georgians and marched on Amasya. The defence battalion formed by Şerefeddîn İnâc and Tekûr Sinan Bey harassed the Babaîs with guerrilla warfare. Understanding that he was surrounded on every side, the false prophet, his spiritual power broken and his ignorant following exhausted, took refuge in Amasya with great difficulty.
Hacı Armağanşah, governor of Amasya, who was following the false prophet, besieged Amasya very quickly. In the face of the self-sacrificing attacks of Hurşîd, İnâc and Tekûr Sinan Bey, the Babaîs' resistance ceased. When Hacı Armağanşah entered Amasya by force, the ruling of the verse meaning "Truth has come and falsehood has vanished" (İsrâ, 17/81) had become manifest, and the effect of sorcery and conjuring had disappeared.
Thereupon Hacı Armağanşah seized the Greek Isaac, named Baba İshak, who had risen from shepherding to sainthood and from sainthood to false prophethood, and his famous supporters, and in the early days of Receb of the year 637 or 638 [1240 or 1241] had each of them hanged like dogs, thus suppressing this strange affair. But a week later, one night, a large crowd of Babaîs took the opportunity to attack the said emir's house; they martyred Hacı Armağanşah together with his servants, and took the Greek Isaac's rotten, hanging corpse from the gallows and hid it.
After this event Yâkût, governor of Erzurum, and Alîşîr, the coast guard, came to Amasya, executed the Babaîs they found, and cleansed the Seljuk country of the false prophet's ignorant following. Then Sultan Gıyâseddîn Keyhusrev, ruler of Konya, also crossed by way of Kubad Island (Cezîre-i Kubâd) to Çat Bükü and found Baba İlyas in his hermitage cell. Baba İlyas loathed Baba İshak; since his piety and faith had been accepted by the scholars, the sultan pardoned him and charged him to live on his farm. Çat Bükü later came to be called İlyas Köyü.
Baba İshak is counted among the first of the Babas who corrupted the pure morals and religious thought of the Turks in Anatolia. Although eight hundred years have passed since he left the world, the ominous traces of the poisonous ideas he left behind are still permanently seen. Studies and research on Baba İshak's grave in Amasya are written in the Introduction in the appendix on the "Anbarlı Evliya Türbesi". The details of the affair of the false prophet in Amasya, based on history books, studies and inferences, are just this much.
After coming to Amasya, Sultan Gıyâseddîn Keyhusrev sent Sinâneddîn Yâkût Bey back to Erzurum. To the vacated governorship of Simre (Amasya) he appointed Alâeddîn Alîşîr Bey, the emir of the coast, and to the emirate of the coast, that is, the protection of the shore, Halifet Gazizâde Şücâeddîn Tekûr Sinan Bey. To the judgeship of Amasya he brought Fahreddîn Alî bin Muhammed el-Buhârî, professor of the Halife Madrasa and one of the famous scholars; for the financial affairs (defterdarlık) of the province of Simre, Sa'deddîn Yûnus el-Gümüşî was assigned.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- ser-asker: commander-in-chief
- tahassun: taking refuge in a fortress or safe place
- muhât: surrounded, besieged
- cebren: by force
- câ'e'l-hakku ve zehaka'l-bâtıl: Qur'anic phrase meaning "Truth has come and falsehood has vanished"
- cemm-i gafîr: a large crowd
- hademe: servants
- ihtifâ: hiding
- maslûb: hanged
- savma'a: a cell withdrawn to for worship, a hermitage
- mu'ahharan: later
- müteneffir: loathing, one who feels hatred
- istîfâ: the accounting of taxes and revenues
- fuzalâ: scholars, learned men
Where Did Baba İshak Die
The end that Hüsameddin relates differs markedly from that given in present-day research. According to Hüsameddin, Armağanşah retook Amasya, had Baba İshak seized and hanged, and a week later the Babaîs raided the city and killed Armağanşah. In what has been written on Baba İshak, however, Baba İshak dies not in Amasya but on the Malya Plain near Kırşehir. This last battle of the revolt took place at the beginning of November 1240. The commander of the Seljuk army, Emir Necmeddin, attacked with steel-armoured mercenary Frankish soldiers in front; the Babaîs' arrows and spears were ineffective against these armours, and Baba İshak was killed. Except for women and children the Babaîs were put to the sword. As for Armağanşah's fate, according to one of the articles consulted, when the Babaîs under Baba İshak reached Amasya they learned from Armağanşah that Baba İlyas had been killed; refusing to accept the absence of their sheikh, whom they believed immortal, they attacked and defeated and killed Armağanşah in this clash. In short, Armağanşah's death at the hands of the Babaîs agrees with Hüsameddin; but the sequence and Baba İshak's fate are different.
Was Baba İlyas Pardoned
According to Hüsameddin, Sultan Keyhusrev found Baba İlyas at Çat Bükü and pardoned him. In his footnote he notes that some histories write that Keyhusrev raided him in his hermitage cell and killed him, but that he appears alive in old documents of 656 [1258]. Other sources on Baba İlyas, however, relate quite a different end. İbn Bîbî writes that he was executed in Amasya Castle and dangled from the walls. Abu'l-Faraj notes that Seljuk soldiers ambushed him and killed him by strangling. In the legend of his grandson Elvan Çelebi he is shut in a dungeon in the castle, stays forty days with a monk, and mounting a horse rises to heaven and vanishes. According to one article, Hüsameddin adopted another account in the first volume (p. 182); in this account Baba İlyas's corpse remained hanging on the wall, Armağanşah had it torn apart, his disciples took it down at night and buried it, and the grave was later called the Ambarlı Evliya Türbesi. The detail of the account in the first volume has not been checked here. That the present name of the village of Çat is İlyas Köyü is confirmed by the sources.
The Komnenoi and Trebizond
In the succession of rulers of Trebizond, Manuel I is seen to come to the throne in 1238 after John I. This order agrees with Hüsameddin's account of "Manu'el after Yani". But no source was found that Yani was killed in war with the Seljuks and that this was connected with Baba İshak's rout. It is known that Manuel developed good relations with the Mongols and that Trebizond became a Mongol vassal in 1243.
After Babaîism
Hüsameddin's expression "poisonous ideas" reflects the view in the historiography of the period. Present-day studies treat the movement within the framework of the hardship of the nomadic Turkmens pouring into Anatolia under Mongol pressure, the practices of the Seljuk administration, and the early Turkmen understanding of Islam. It is said that the movement begun by Baba İlyas spread in Central and Western Anatolia after his death through his son Muhlis Pasha and his other successors, gave rise in the founding period of the Ottomans to the abdalân-ı Rum movement and then to Bektashism, and laid the ground for the formation of the groups called Kızılbaş or Râfizî in sixteenth-century documents.
Armağanşah
Hacı Mübârizeddin Armağanşah, in Köpek's time, was sent to Borgulu Castle to have Kılıcarslan and Rükneddin of the Seljuk dynasty killed, but returned without killing them and concealed the matter from the sultan and from Köpek. This man, whom Hüsameddin calls "one of the famous emirs in Konya", also appears in the Seljuk sources as a well-known commander.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 2, p. 349–350. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
- Ahmet Yaşar Ocak, "Baba İlyas", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, vol. 4, 1991. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/baba-ilyas
- Ahmet Yaşar Ocak, "Baba İshak", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, vol. 4, 1991, p. 368-369. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/baba-ishak
- "Sâdeddin Köpek", TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/sadeddin-kopek
- Bahattin Keleş, "Baba İshak İsyanı'nın Anadolu Selçuklu Tarihindeki Yeri ve Önemi", F.Ü. İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi, 23/1 (2018), p. 73-91. https://makale.isam.org.tr/server/api/core/bitstreams/2983bee2-0716-49d5-8286-d827a2631923/content
Other sources