The Trial of Bosnian Governor Mehmet Vecihi Pasha

Abstract

A series of improvements have been performed with the announcement of Tanzimat. Previous studies have evaluated the effects of Tanzimat on the public. However, in this study, bureaucrats who are affected from the Tanzimat as much as public, if not more, are referred. After the edict was published, tens of bureaucrats have been punished because of not fulfilling the requirements of Tanzimat. The apprehension of not being able to fulfill the requirements of the Edict of Tanzimat has been a nightmare for lots of officers. In fact, it was an explicit message for all officers that even Hüsrev Pasha, who was the Grand Vizier when Tanzimat was announced, has been banished to Tekfurdağı with the very same reason. In this paper, the process of the trial for one of the officers, Mehmet Vecihi Pasha, has been examined. This paper aims to reveal the restraints of the trial on a Tanzimat bureaucrat and how the trial is conducted by a thorough inspection of the inception of the trial, the crimes attributed to Pasha, defence of Pasha and the results. In his defence, Mehmet Vecihi Pasha was obliged to frequently mention that the accusations were due before Tanzimat, with the apprehension of being accused. The timid conducts of the officers, who were afraid of being accused or forced to resign, have caused a severe frailty on public safety leading to riots against the government all over the country. This study aims to point out the relations between Tanzimat and issues such as Bureaucracy.