Karataş|85were stripped of any benefit or control over their shares. The six shares given
to Karamani’s daughter, Hatice Hatun, were endowed for the expenses of the
mosque and school in Istanbul. The other six shares, inherited by his sister, were
endowed for Karamani’s son Muhyiddin. Lastly, the dower of Rukiyye Hatun,
Karamani’s bride and the daughter of İskilibi, which amounted to twenty-three
shares and almost half the tax revenues, was endowed for the Koran reciters on
her behalf. Karamani appointed himself, and upon his death the most righteous
of his sons, as the regent and administrator of the endowment. Although the
benefits were inheritable through the male line, Karamani clearly made the con-
dition that this endowment could not be dissolved by the beneficiaries, even by
mutual accord. Through a circuitous strategy, Karamani put his male progeny in
control and prevented dissolution of his property through inheritance or divorce.
Karamani’s wife was preadolescent at the time of their marriage. In the case
of Karamani’s death or their divorce, the guardianship of his wife would pass
on to İskilibi, which would give him a direct control over almost half of Kara-
mani’s properties. In the event of Karamani’s death, İskilibi would also inherit
the leadership of the order, taking over control of the property endowed for the
lodge and becoming the sole heir of everything Karamani had. In fact, this was
possibly the agreement between the two shaykhs when they established an al-
liance. Karamani was more than twenty years senior to İskilibi, and it seemed
like a workable arrangement for both. But Karamani seems to have violated the
agreement by putting his sons in control of all of the property and caused a crack
in their alliance. The final blow to their alliance came when Karamani made a
controversial political decision.
The Winter of : Bayezid’s Ordeal
The political situation in Anatolia was escalating toward crisis at the end of 1480
because of the rivalry between the Bayezid and Cem factions. Then Bayezid re-
ceived news that his father, Mehmed II, had asked his governor-generals to meet
him in Konya, Cem’s base. This news was received with shock and despair in
Amasya, especially in the prince’s inner circle. A secret letter written by a spy for
the sultan in Amasya reveals the level of panic in Bayezid’s court:
When he [Bayezid] asked about the details of this matter, I told him that the
Sultan is crossing over to Anatolia and will gather the governor-generals. He
became troubled and agonized. I continued to relate that the governor-gen-
erals had long been trying to prevent my fortunate Sultan from appearing in
the Anatolian provinces. When the pages brought the news of the imperial
orders for governor-generals to go to the other side and other governors to
come together for a campaign to this direction, each one of them [members
of Bayezid’s faction] was shocked, and they all despaired.... Since the call for