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22-593: In war their main role was to act as advance troops on the front lines and demoralise the marching opposing army by using guerrilla tactics, and to put them in a state of confusion and shock. They could be likened to a scythe in a wheat field. They would basically hit the enemy with arrows . When attacked in melee , they would retreat while still shooting backwards. They could easily outrun heavy cavalry because they were lightly armed and their horses were bred for speed as opposed to strength. Akinji forces carried swords, lances, shields, battle axes and maces as well, so that in

44-719: A field of combat, they could face the enemy first and fight melee. In some Ottoman campaigns, such as the Battle of Krbava field , Akinji forces were the only units utilized without any need for Ottoman heavy cavalry or infantry. Because of their mobility akinji were also used for reconnaissance and as a vanguard force to terrorize the local population before the advance of the main Ottoman forces. Since they were irregular militia, they were not bound by peace treaties, so they could raid border villages and attack enemy garrisons, fortresses and border posts during peacetime, constantly harassing

66-510: A popular subject in Ottoman folk literature and music . Serhad Türküleri (Border Folk Songs) is a subcategory of Ottoman folk music dealing mostly with akinji raids and battles or love affairs of akinji warriors, sometimes odes to fallen warriors. Alişimin Kaşları Kara (My Little Ali Has Black Eyebrows), and Estergon Kalesi (Castle of Esztergom) are some of the most popular examples. In

88-498: A wooden core (maple was most desirable), animal horn on the belly (the side facing the archer), and sinew on the front, with the layers secured together with animal glue . However, several features of the Turkish bow are distinct. The curvature tends to be more extreme when the bow is unstrung, with the limbs curling forward into the shape of the letter "C". With some bows, the rigid tips of the limbs ("kasan") even touch. The grip area

110-538: Is not recessed like other Asianic bows and is fairly flat on the belly, while the front of the grip bulges outwards. The dramatic curvature of the bows makes stringing them very different from straighter bows found in Europe. There is an old saying in Turkey that there are "120 ways to string a bow," though the most common methods involve sitting on ground with one's feet pressed against the grip. Heavier bows usually require

132-459: Is relatively short, usually under the chin or by the cheek, compared to archery styles in China or Japan where the nock is pulled past the head. When the arrow is released, the draw arm is kept relatively steady rather than allowing the arm to swing backwards. Turkish archers developed several unique techniques to aid in combat. One was the practice of holding several arrows in between the fingers of

154-749: The Representative list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO in 2019. From the decline of military archery after the Battle of Lepanto , mainly flight archery was practiced, and Turkish bowyers specialized in weapons which were particularly good for imparting high velocity to very light arrows. The sport of archery declined gradually until

176-537: The 14th to 16th centuries, it began to decline after the 16th century. Starting with 16th-17th century nomadic Tatar and Nogay cavalry from the Crimean Khanate also served as akinjis for the Ottoman Empire. After the Ottoman advance in Europe stopped, akinji warriors became unnecessary and without the economy of booty this warrior class slowly faded away. After the modernization of the Ottoman army,

198-459: The Danube, was apparently gradually replaced by new irregular corps, such as the "deli" and "bashi-bozouk". The Akinji have migrated across the world, and created the surname "Akunjee", which you may find little to no people with this surname. Most of the small group of Akunjees have moved to parts of Asia. Akinji's lifestyle with battles was a romantic fantasy for the public. Therefore, akinjis were

220-407: The enemy and checking the weak spots on the rival country's defences. They would also attack trading routes to cut enemy's supply and transportation. Akinji forces were led by certain families. Well-known akinji families were Malkoçoğlu , Turhanlı , Ömerli , Evrenosoğlu , and Mihalli . These akinji clans were mainly composed of Turkmen tribal warriors with a leading dynasty which descended from

242-512: The enemy to pick up and shoot back, or if it was a way to reuse bolts fired by Chinese crossbowmen. In modern times they are primarily used in Flight Archery to shoot shorter arrows to cut down on weight. Like many other Eastern archery styles, Turkish archery uses a " thumb draw ", employing a type of grip called "mandal". This grip prevents the arrow from moving if the archer is on a horse and/or firing at an unusual angle. The draw itself

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264-503: The excellence of Turkish bows could be seen from historical records. In 1910 an archery contest was held on the beach at Le Touquet , France, where Ingo Simon was able to shoot an arrow 434 m using an old Turkish composite bow requiring a force of 440N or 99 lb. The Turkish bow is a recurved composite bow used in the Ottoman Empire . The construction is similar to that of other classic Asiatic composite bows , with

286-412: The kasan) and resin, and with some being entirely resin. Zihgir is the Turkish word for the thumb ring used to draw the bow in the Ottoman Empire. Turkish thumb rings were made of wood, metal, ivory, bone, horn or leather. These rings signified that the person wearing them was a warrior. In time they became a symbol of prestige in Ottoman society, and some later examples have so much ornamentation on

308-521: The last few officially recognized akinji clans were abolished. Still, last remnants of akinji system existed till late 19th century in the Balkan provinces as the bashi-bozouk (irregular) warriors. Although the terminology differentiating between similar types of Ottoman cavalry corps is not fully clarified, the akinji, once decimated in the battle of Giurgiu in October 1595 as they were retreating over

330-438: The maximum amount of force behind the arrow. They are most commonly used for Flight Archery, to achieve the greatest distance. The Majra is a thin piece of wood with a channel cut in it and small loop for the archer's draw hand. The device allows the archer to pull back arrows that are much shorter than were intended for the bow. There is some debate among historians if this device was designed to shoot arrows that were too short for

352-530: The modern period, romantic-revivalist Turkish writers also wrote poems about akinjis. Yahya Kemal 's Akıncılar is one of the most well-known example on this subject. Turkish archery Turkish archery ( Turkish : Türk okçuluğu ) is a tradition of archery which became highly developed in the Ottoman Empire , although its origins date back to the Eurasian Steppe in the second millennium BC. Traditional Turkish archery has been inscribed on

374-417: The reign of Mahmud II who made great efforts to revive it. He also ordered his archery student, Mustafa Kani, to write a book about the history, construction, and use of these bows, from which comes most of what is now known of Turkish bowyery. In 1794, in a field outside London , the Turkish ambassador’s secretary used a Turkish bow and arrow to shoot 415 yards, partially against the wind, and 482 yards with

396-474: The soup-kitchen waqf of the Sultan in Üsküdar . Since akinjis were seen as irregular militia, they did not have regular salaries as kapikulu soldiers, or fiefs like timarli soldiers; their only income was the booty that they captured. The Akinji system had an important role at the establishment of the empire and fast expansion of Ottoman territories in Europe. Though the akinji system worked excellently from

418-485: The surface from which the bowstring slides that they could not be used to shoot with. Surviving examples are often made of precious metals and richly decorated. Some are carved from precious stones. The siper and majra are devices used to draw arrows past the bow's front limb where the arrow would normally rest. The siper is a type of shelf strapped to the archer's bow hand, which allows the archer to use arrows several inches shorter (and therefore lighter) in order to get

440-457: The use of a long, looped strap to pull the limbs back and hold them while the string is seated. In the modern world, the Turkish bow is now predominantly used for sporting purposes. Authentic horn and sinew bows are still made but are both extremely costly and difficult to store outside certain environments and climates. For this reason, the majority of historically-styled bows of this type are made with some combination of fiberglass, hardwood (for

462-668: The warrior ghazis of the first Ottoman ruler Osman I . Adventurers, soldiers of fortune, mercenaries, warrior dervishes, and civilians looking for fortune and adventure would also join the ranks of akinji gangs. Akindjis were gathered from mostly the Muslim population just as Devshirme was from the Christian population. However, there were exemptions for villages that were waqf lands. For example, in 1573, some villages in Filibe were exempted from giving akındjıs, since they were owned by

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484-464: The wind. He said on a plain near Constantinople pillars were located that commemorate distances of 800 yards achieved with Turkish bows and arrows in ancient times. After the death of Mahmud II in 1839, archery resumed its decline. The living art of Turkish bowyery was lost in the 1930s with the death of the last bowyer and famous calligrapher, Neçmeddin Okyay; it has since been revived. For many years

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