The Martyrs of Ajloun District in the Wars of the Balkans and Greece 1914-1918: A Study on Ajlun Sharia Court Records
Ahmad M. Al-Jawarneh and Omar S. Al-omari, History Department, Yarmouk University, Irbid, Jordan.
Abstract
This study aims to shed some light on an important aspect of the history of modern Jordan, represented by the participation of the people of Jabal Ajloun in the wars of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans and Greece (1914-1918) through the law, "taking Askar [soldiers]" which imposed compulsory military service in the Ottoman army. This has been embodied in the cases brought to the Shariah Court in Ajloun and Irbid, which showed the nature of the claims and demands for inheritance for those who died and did not return to their home countries. In fact, this paper is interested in studying the names of the martyrs who died in the wars of the Ottoman Empire, and witnesses, wives, sisters, and brothers of the martyrs the documents and records of Sharia court revealed about them. The study is not interested in dealing with administrative, social and economic aspects as these need an independent and thorough study. Among approximately three thousand cases carreted in ten records, only twenty documents contain the names of the martyrs of Jabal Ajloun.