Author(s): Selahattin Bayram*
This article argues that the incident which occurred in Salonika on May 5–6, 1876, known as the "Salonika Affair," had a negative impact on conversion movements. The study is based on archival sources. A Bulgarian girl named Istefana from the kaza of Avrethisar went to Salonika to register her conversion at the Salonika Court. Non-Muslims, claiming she had been "abducted," took the girl from the station and first brought her to the American Consulate, then to the French Consulate. In the ensuing commotion, the French Consul Jules Moulin and the German Consul Henry Abbott were killed. The incident quickly turned into an international crisis. France and Germany issued a note to the Ottoman Empire, while England and Russia also intervened. To ease Western pressure, the Ottoman Empire established an extraordinary court and executed six of those held responsible. The Salonika Affair further reinforced this pressure. In order to measure the impact of the Salonika Affair on conversions, conversion events that occurred during the 36 years prior to 1876 were compared to those that occurred from the Salonika Affair until 1912. While 89 conversions occurred in the 36 years before the Salonika Affair, only 67 conversions occurred in the 36 years following the same incident. Non-Muslims continually tried to obstruct conversion movements. Western countries increased their pressure on the Ottoman Empire. To balance this pressure, the Ottomans made the conversion process more difficult. As a result, the Salonika Affair negatively affected conversions.
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