he Ottomans based their state organisation on the system of timars, whereby land was given to soldier-owners of large estates by the sultan in return for military service. Peasants under the jurisdiction of the timar holder could not leave their homes or emigrate without good reason. If they did so, the financial burden had to be shouldered by their fellow-villagers. This institutionalised policy offered the village a certain degree of autonomy since they only had to pay taxes to the timar holder.However, the decline of the Ottoman Empire in the mid-17th century, and the increasing power of the local rulers (who ended up owning and inheriting these large agricultural tracts ortsifliks had negative consequences for the peasants. These estate owners exercised considerable authority over them, constantly demanding unpaid labour and increasing numbers of contributions. These new conditions gradually drove the rural populations to despair, and forced them to settle in the towns to avoid heavy taxation and financial pressure. As a result of this, large numbers of farmers joined the poor on the outskirts of the towns.
