Building Loyalty: The Role of Education in Ottoman Provincial Policy - The Case of Mardin

This article examines the transformation of educational institutions in the Ottoman district of Mardin during the 19th century and early 20th century, with a particular focus on the Tanzimat and Hamidian periods. Drawing upon archival records, provincial yearbooks, and surviving architectural examples, the study explores how education became a strategic tool in the Ottoman Empire’s effort to centralise authority and cultivate loyalty among its diverse provincial populations. The establishment of modern state schools such as ibtidâî, rüşdiye, and idâdî, alongside teacher training colleges, reflected the central government’s intention to standardise education and produce a new class of civil servants. At the same time, traditional institutions such as madrasas and sıbyan mektebs continued to operate, illustrating a layered educational landscape where classical Islamic learning coexisted with modern bureaucratic goals. The article also considers the role of minority and missionary schools, particularly those of the Armenian, Chaldean and Syriac communities, as well as the Capuchin Catholic and American Protestant missionaries, and their interactions with state policy. The article highlights how education functioned as both a political instrument and a contested cultural field in the late Ottoman Empire through the lens of Mardin.