{"id":2324,"date":"2026-01-18T18:10:29","date_gmt":"2026-01-18T18:10:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/igelek.tatar\/?post_type=publications&p=2324"},"modified":"2026-01-18T18:16:03","modified_gmt":"2026-01-18T18:16:03","slug":"an-ottoman-official-on-the-muslims-of-st-petersburg","status":"publish","type":"publications","link":"https:\/\/igelek.tatar\/en\/publications\/an-ottoman-official-on-the-muslims-of-st-petersburg\/","title":{"rendered":"An Ottoman Official on the Muslims of St. Petersburg"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
The founder of one of the most noble and wealthy aristocratic families of Tsarist Russia\u2014the Yusupovs\u2014was El-Mirza, the son of Yusuf-bey, ruler of the Nogai Horde and father of the Kazan Tsaritsa Suyumbike. The descendants of El-Mirza, who came to Russia after his father’s death in 1554, were baptized and Russified, but always remembered their origins. In particular, the legendary genealogy of Edige (Idegey), founder of the Nogai ruling dynasty, named him a descendant of Caliph Abu Bakr, whose progeny, according to the same shajara, ruled including in Anatolian Antioch. This legendary genealogy was well-known in Desht-i Kipchak and was included as one of the sections in the historical-literary monument “Daftar-i Chingiz-name,” compiled in the 17th century and widespread in many copies in the Volga-Ural region.
All of this remained unknown to the high-ranking Ottoman official \u2014 the fifth secretary of the Chancery of Sultan Abdul Hamid II, Kamil Pasha, who was dispatched to St. Petersburg in 1894 to confer Ottoman imperial honors upon the recently ascended Russian Emperor Nicholas II and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. One of Kamil Pasha\u2019s tasks was to establish contacts with Russian court circles\u2014his report contains a detailed description of the balls and receptions he attended.
During Kamil Pasha\u2019s visit to St. Petersburg, the collection of funds for the construction of the cathedral mosque in the capital of the Russian Empire was ongoing. St. Petersburg ahund Ataulla Bayazitov told Kamil-pasha about this during their meeting. The tact and caution with which the Ottoman official expressed support for Russian Muslims, while avoiding any hint of opposing them to Russian authority, deserve attention.
Kamil Pasha\u2019s report on his trip to St. Petersburg is kept in the Ottoman Archive (Istanbul). Below are excerpts from this document.
\u00a0
Princess Yusupova’s Statement that She Descends from the Muslim Ruling House, from the Dynasty of the First Caliph Abu Bakr the Veracious<\/strong>
\u00a0<\/strong>
During dinner, the aforementioned princess did not drink wine, explaining that she felt aversion to it, and said that she understood why I did not drink wine. After that, she declared, “I am one of you.” I considered her words a gesture of politeness and thanked her for such great sympathy toward the Eternal Ottoman State. “If you pay attention to my surname, you will understand that I belong to a Muslim family. The word Yusupov is a distortion of the name Yusuf,” she added. Looking meaningfully at my face, she understood my astonishment. Her husband, saying, “Yes, the Princess is one of you,” confirmed her words. Then the aforementioned Princess Yusupova said: “Yes, our lineage descends from the rulers of Antioch. In the times of Hulagu, we joined the Tatars and, coming to Kazan, became rulers of Desht-Kipchak and Kazan. The superiority and nobility of our lineage are connected with the fact that it ascends to our master, his presence Abu Bakr the Veracious.” I did not know what to reply and, trying not to draw attention to these words she uttered publicly at an official reception, said, “Very good,” and showed that I was glad and grateful. Without showing either disbelief or agreement with her words, I pretended not to attach much importance to them…
\u00a0<\/strong>
Muslims of St. Petersburg <\/strong>\u200b
\u00a0
As in all of Russia, quite a few Muslims also live in Petersburg itself. Although there are rich ones among them, most are people of middling means. Rich ones among them are very rare. On the day of our departure from Petersburg, the Muslim mufti came to say goodbye to your most humble servant. He reported that the St. Petersburg Muslims are obedient and faithful servants of our lord, the world-holding Padishah\u2014ruler of the faithful and deputy of the Prophet on earth, that they day and night remain in prayers for God’s help to his presence the Padishah, for his well-being and long years in glory and might, and also that they ask that the boundless care of His presence, the deputy of God’s Prophet, not leave them. The mufti also said that the Muslims have collected enough donations for the construction of the cathedral mosque, but for building the minaret they still need about two hundred liras. He also reported that Russian, and especially St. Petersburg, Muslims are glad at our arrival and saddened by our departure, and that they say goodbye, shedding bitter tears\u2014this the mufti Ataullah Effendi reported to your most humble servant in Arabic.
In response, I said: “The offering five times a day of prayers for the abiding on the throne of the Caliphate, for the might, well-being, God’s assistance, glory, and greatness of the august person of the ruler of the faithful and deputy of the Prophet on earth, our sovereign Sultan son of Sultan, Sultan Gazi Abdulhamid Khan\u2014may Allah prolong his reign until the Day of Judgment!\u2014is the obligatory duty of every faithful one.
Entrust yourselves to the Lord and pray to Him for the instilling in the hearts of your rulers of sympathy for the faith of Islam, for their entering the straight path, for their love and inclination to follow the path of true faith. The reward and recompense for the Muslims here is greater than for Muslims living in other countries. Give thanks to the Lord for the countless mercies bestowed upon you here and pray to Him for the awakening in the Russian people of love and inclination toward Islam. The erection of the minaret too, God willing, will be completed by the mercy of the Lord and the care of his Caliphal Majesty, our sovereign. Do not break the bonds connecting you with Allah, and do not turn away from the path of truth, for ‘Salvation is in truth.'” Having said this, I bid him farewell.
Source:<\/strong> Documents on the History of the Volga-Ural Region of the 16th\u201319th Centuries from the Ancient Depositories of Turkey: Collection of Documents \/ Comp. I. A. Mustakimov; under the general editorship of D. I. Ibragimov. \u2013 Kazan: Gasyir, 2008.<\/em>
\u00a0<\/em><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":2325,"template":"","meta":[],"class_list":["post-2324","publications","type-publications","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/igelek.tatar\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publications\/2324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/igelek.tatar\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publications"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/igelek.tatar\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/publications"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/igelek.tatar\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/igelek.tatar\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}