Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsameddîn, özellikle yazmış olduğu şahısların türbe ve mezarlarına giderek mezar taşlarında veya kitâbelerde bulunan yazıları okuyarak birinci elden kaynakları mütalaa ederek eserine dahil etmiş ve ayrıntılı açıklamalarda bulunarak zaman zaman bu konuda İsmail Hakkı Bey ile tartışmıştır. Eserin üçüncü cildindeki şu örnek onun bu hassasiyetinin ve ne kadar meşakkatli bir çalışma yürüttüğünün en önemli kanıtlarından biri olarak değerlendirilebilir.
“Muharrir-i fakîr, Niksar kadısı iken Togan Şâh'ın kabrini çok aradım. Niksâr'ın cenûb tarafında Dânişmend Gâzî Türbesi'ne giden yol üzerinde yek-diğerine mu'ârız, yanyana bulunan iki türbeyi tedkîk edip cebhesi şimâle nâzır olan türbenin içini tathîr etdirdim, topraklarını kazdırdım. Toprağın altından çıkardığım bir mezâr taşının şimâl cebhesinde şu kitâbeyi kemâl-i müşkilât ile okuyabildim: "Hâzâ kabrü'l-emîri'l-isfehsâlâri'l-ecelli'l-kebîr el-melikü'l-muzaffer el-mücâhidü'l-murâbıt ... âce'd-dîn Togan Şâh Alp bin Savcı ... rahmetullâh – ...ın ve erba'în ve seb'i-mi'e"”
Bu kitâbe toprağın altında uzun bir müddet kalmış olduğundan yazı olduğu belirsiz bir hâlde bulundu. Kiremid parçaları sürülerek yazı olduğu anlaşıldı. "âc" kelimesi "Tâc" yâhud "Sirâc" olabilir. Okuyamadığım yerleri noktaladım. Birincisi "intekale ilâ" olmalıdır. İkincisi "Seb'a" , "tis'a" okunabilir. Fakat "seb'a" olması pek muhtemeldir. Bu kabrin yanındaki cephesi garba nâzır olan türbe de birâderi Nûreddîn Alp Arslan'ın olduğu anlaşıldı.”¹¹⁹
Müellif ayrıca bu bölümde bir dipnot düşerek “Bu havâlîde kâ'in kitâbeleri cem' eden ma'ârif müfettişlerinden İsmâ'il Hakkı Bey birâderimiz Niksâr'a gitdiği hâlde ma'a'lesef ne bu türbeleri ne de bu kitâbeleri görememişdir.” ifadesini kullanmıştır.
In Modern English
Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsameddîn went in particular to the tombs and graves of the people he wrote about and read the writing on the gravestones or inscriptions, thus examining first-hand sources and including them in his work. He gave detailed explanations on this subject and from time to time argued with İsmail Hakkı Bey. The following example from the third volume of the work can be regarded as one of the most important proofs of his meticulousness and of how laborious a study he carried out.
"When this poor author was kadı of Niksar, I searched long for the grave of Togan Şah. On the south side of Niksar, on the road leading to the Tomb of Dânişmend Gâzî, I examined two tombs standing side by side, facing each other, had the inside of the tomb facing north cleaned, and had its earth dug up. On the north face of a gravestone I brought out from under the earth I was able, with great difficulty, to read the following inscription: "This is the grave of the great, exalted emir, commander of the army, victorious melik, mujahid, frontier warrior ... Âce'd-dîn Togan Şah Alp son of Savcı. May God have mercy on him ... seven hundred and forty ... (hijri)""
Since this inscription had remained under the earth for a long time, it was found in a state in which it was not apparent that it was writing. When pieces of tile were rubbed over it, it became clear that there was writing. The word "Âc" may be "Tâc" or "Sirâc". I marked the places I could not read with dots. The first should be "passed away". The second can be read as "seven" or "nine". But it is very likely to be "seven". It was understood that the tomb next to this grave, facing west, also belonged to his brother Nûreddîn Alp Arslan.
The author also added a footnote in this section, using the following words: "Our brother İsmail Hakkı Bey, one of the education inspectors who collected the inscriptions in this region, went to Niksar but unfortunately was able to see neither these tombs nor these inscriptions."
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- kitâbe: writing on stone
- muharrir-i fakîr: "the poor author"; the humble phrase the author uses for himself
- cebhe: face, front
- tathîr: cleaning
- emîr, isfehsâlâr: commander, commander-in-chief of the army
- mücâhid, murâbıt: a ghazi, a frontier guard
- erba'în, seb'i-mi'e: "forty", "seven hundred"; the date wording in the inscription, that is, the forties of the hijri year 7xx
- intikâl: death, migration to the hereafter
What the Inscription Read Is Called Today
The structure Hüsameddin was looking for is the tomb at the entrance of the Melikgazi Cemetery in Niksar, to the north of the road leading to the Tomb of Melik Danişmend Gazi. In present-day sources its name is the Tomb of Taceddin Doğan Şah Alp. Since it has no inscription, the date of construction of the building is not known; however, from the two-line writing on the gravestone it was understood to belong to Doğan Şah Alp, the father of Taceddin Bey. Doğan Şah Alp is the founder of the Taceddinoğulları Principality; in the sources he also appears as Doğancık Bey. The Taceddinoğulları Principality was founded in 1335 after the Mongol-Ilkhanid period, and its capital was Niksar.
The current source attributes the first entry of the building into the records to Hüseyin Hüsameddin: it entered the records with the gravestone brought out from under the earth in the 1920s, but did not receive the attention it deserved in those years. In a study he prepared in 1988, Halit Çal brought the gravestone out from under the earth again, noted that the western end of the inscription was broken and worn, and said that the building belonged to Siracüddin Doğan Şah Alp. Considering that Hüsameddin noted a word in the inscription that could be "Tâc" or "Sirâc", this reading shows that of his doubts "Sirâc" proved correct. Hüsameddin writes the name Togan Şah Alp, while the present-day source writes Doğan Şah Alp. Since the words "seven hundred" and "forty" can be made out in the date in the inscription, if the units digit Hüsameddin read is "seven" the date would be 747 in the hijri calendar, and if "nine", 749; he himself finds "seven" more likely. This calculation is derived from the wording in the text; the current source does not give the date of the inscription.
The building was registered in 1981. It was used as a depot for many years; during the repair carried out by the General Directorate of Foundations in 2008 its name was changed to the Tomb of Taceddin Doğan Şah Alp, and the repair was completed in 2010. Today the building is used as the Turkish-Islamic Cemetery Gravestones Museum. In the Melikgazi Cemetery there are four more tombs with four iwans; the two south of the road are largely standing, while of the two to its north only wall remains survive. No information was found in other sources about the building Hüsameddin mentions as the tomb of the brother Nûreddîn Alp Arslan.
Hüsameddin's Method
The example given in the text clearly shows the author's method: he had the gravestone dug up and read it himself, marked with dots the places he could not read, wrote out the possible readings separately and indicated the most likely one. The entry in the Türkiye Diyanet Foundation Encyclopedia of Islam also notes that Hüsameddin turned to primary sources such as manuscripts, court registers, waqf deeds, inscriptions and gravestones, but mostly did not give his sources. In this example, because he does cite his source, it is all the more valuable.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, Introduction, p. 67; also vol. 3, p. 30-31. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
Books