Befehlsschreiben des Sultans; Istanbul, 24. November

147 Ber-vech-i arpalıḳ İlbaṣan (Elbasan) sancaġı mutaṣarrıfına ve Drāc ḳāḍīsına ḥüküm ki: Ḳıdvetü ümerāʾi’l-milleti’l-mesīḥiyye Romā imperāṭorı ṭarafından büyükilçilik ile gelen Cenerāl Ġrūf de Virmond ḫutimet ʿavāḳibühū bi-l-ḫayr südde-i saʿādetüme ʿarż-ı ḥāl gönderüb Devlet-i ʿAliyyem ile Romā imperāṭorı beyninde ʿaḳd-ı musālaḥa ve musāleme ile ṭarafeynden aḫẕ ve iʿṭā olunan ʿahdnāmelerde tüccār ṭāʾifesi ṭarafeynüñ memālikinde selefde virilen ʿahdnāmeler mūcebince emnen ve sālimen gendü ḥāllerinde ticāret ideler müşārün ileyh Romā imperāṭorına tābiʿ vilāyetlerüñ tüccār ve reʿāyāları ḳanġı milletden olursa olsunlar berren ve baḥren bu ḫuṣūṣa meʾmūr olan vekīller beyninde ḳarār virildügi vech üzere Romā imperāṭorınuñ bayraġı ve paṭentasıyla memālik-i maḥrūseye gendü ḥāllerinde gidüb gelüb alış viriş idüb lāzım gelen gümrükleri virdüklerinden ṣoñra rencīde olunmayub ḥimāyet ve ṣiyānet olunalar diyü mesṭūr ve muḳayyed olmaġla daḫl olunmaḳ īcāb itmez iken ḥālā müşārün ileyh Romā imperāṭorınuñ bayraġıyla tüccār ve reʿāyālarından baʿżıları ticāret ile iki ḳıṭʿā sefīneleriyle Anabolıdan (Ναύπλιον/Náfplio) Çeçeliye (Sicily) giderler iken esnā-yı rāhde Tūnus sefīnesine müṣādif olduḳlarında ẕikr olunan Tūnus ricāli sālifü’ẕ-ẕikr iki ḳıṭʿā sefīneyi ḫilāf-ı ʿahdnāme-i hümāyūn aḫẕ ve içinde olan emvāl ve eşyāsını alub ve tüccār ve reʿāyāların daḫī istirḳāḳ idüb ẕikri mürūr iden Tūnus sefīnesi Drāc limanında olduḳların bildürüb ẕikr olunan iki ḳıṭʿā sefīneleri ve derūnında aḫẕ olunan emvāl ve eşyā ve istirḳāḳ olunan tüccār ve reʿāyāları ʿahdnāme-i hümāyūn şürūṭı mūcebince müşārün ileyh Romā imparaṭorınuñ Drācda olan ādamlarına bi-t-temām redd ve teslīm itdürilmek bābında emr-i şerīfüm ricā itmeġin vech-i meşrūḥ üzere ʿamel olunmaḳ bābında fermān-ı ʿālī-şānum ṣādır olmışdur. Buyurdum ki vuṣūl bulduḳda bu bābda ṣādır olan fermān-ı celīlü’l-ḳadrüm mūcebince ʿamel idüb daḫī vech-i meşrūḥ üzere müşārün ileyh Romā imperāṭorınuñ tüccār ve reʿāyālarından ḫilāf-ı ʿahdnāme-i hümāyūn aḫz olunan sālifü’ẕ-ẕikr iki ḳıṭʿā sefīnesini derūnında olan emvāl ve eşyā ve istirḳāḳ olunan tüccār ve reʿāyālarıyla girü ve müşārün ileyhüñ Drācda olan ādamlarına redd ve teslīm idüb min baʿd ʿahdnāme-i hümāyūn ve emr-i hümāyūnuma muḫālif taʿallül ve tereddüd itdürmeyesin şöyle bilesin. fī evāsıṭ-ı Muḥarrem sene 1132

Decree to the person who is the governor of the Elbasan district as 'fodder money' (arpalıḳ) and to the judge of Durrës (Drač): General [Damian Hugo] Count of Virmont —may God end his days propitiously—who came as grand ambassador from the Roman emperor, the paragon of the great commanders of the community of Messiah, sent a petition to my threshold of felicity [about the following matter]: In the letters of agreement that have been exchanged as a result of the mutual signing of peace and reconciliation between my eternal sublime state and the Roman emperor, it is written and recorded that the merchant class shall quietly, safely, and soundly trade on the lands of both sides as per the letters of agreement previously exchanged; that the merchants and subjects of the lands under the suzerainty of the aforesaid Roman emperor, regardless of whichever nation they come from, shall quietly come and go over land and sea to the well-protected domains under the flag and patent of the Roman emperor and trade in accordance with how it was concluded among the delegations charged with this matter. Once they pay the required customs duty, they shall be guarded and protected and not be injured. Thus, interfering with [them] was not necessary. However, as some of the merchants and subjects of the Roman emperor were on their way from Ναύπλιον/Náfplio (Anabolu) to Sicily (Çeçele) with their two ships, during the journey they came across a Tunisian ship. The Tunisians, in violation of the imperial letter of agreement (ʿahdnāme-i hümayun), have captured the two ships mentioned earlier and have taken the properties and goods on the ship. They enslaved the merchants and subjects. The ambassador reported that the aforesaid Tunisian ship is at the Durrës port. (The ambassador) requested my imperial decree that the aforesaid two ships, all of the captured properties and goods, and the enslaved merchants and subjects shall be returned and delivered, as per the conditions of the imperial letter of agreement, to the men of the aforementioned Roman emperor located at Durrës. My illustrious decree has been issued for [all] to act in the described way. I order that, when [my decree] arrives, you shall act in accordance with my edict of glorious worth that has been issued about this matter. In the described way, you shall return and deliver the aforesaid ships, the properties and goods on them that have been captured from the merchants and subjects of the aforesaid Roman emperor in violation of the imperial letter of agreement, the enslaved merchants themselves, and their subjects back to the men [of the Roman emperor] who are located in Durrës. From now on, you shall [allow no one] to make excuses in violation of my imperial letter of agreement and my imperial edict, nor [shall you allow anyone] hesitate my orders. So shall you know! November 14 to November 23, 1719