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| The Grand Turk |
| The 'paidomazoma' (child-gathering, known in Turkish as devÅŸirme) was yet another tax imposed by the Muslim Turks on Christians |
| 2025-12-17 |
Text: The "paidomazoma" (child-gathering, known in Turkish as devÅŸirme) was yet another tax imposed by the Muslim Turks on Christians and especially Greeks. The sultan decided where and when the recruitment of boys would take place for the needs of the army and administration. The Turkish envoy would appear in the villages and demand that all fathers present themselves before him with their sons. From these, he selected the best-built and strongest to become Janissaries. Initially, the Turks took children aged 6-7 years, and only one child per family. Later, however, recruitment extended to ages 8-10, and gradually the number of children per family increased, until it was possible for all male children to be taken. More at the link |
| Posted by:badanov |