Ramadanid Emirate

The Ramadanid Emirate (Modern Turkish: Ramazanoğulları Beyliği) was an autonomous administration and a de facto independent emirate that existed from 1352 to 1608 in Cilicia, taking over the rule of the region from the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia. The emirate was a protectorate of the Mamluk Sultanate until the end of 14th century, then it was de facto independent for more than a century, and then, from 1517, a protectorate of the Ottoman Empire. The capital was Adana. The Ramadanid Emirate was the only emirate in Anatolia that was not a successor of the Anatolian Seljuk Sultanate. It is often misclassified as an Anatolian beylik, though it was an entity under the Mamluks. Cilicia was part of the Seljuks for a short time around the turn of the 11th century, and thus was not affected by the Sunni tariqa expansionism of the 13th century. In the late 14th century, the Yüreğir Turks moved to Cilicia and had a distinct culture with influence from Bektashi traditions of shamanic rituals along with Islam. Mongol invasion of Asia forced Oghuz Turks to migrate into Anatolia and Levant in great numbers. A Turkish tribe, from Yüreğir in Transoxiana, settled in the northern regions of Mamluk Sultanate, from Antioch to Gaza with the approval of the Sultan. They were known in the Middle East as Türkmens or Yüreğirli (en:from Yüreğir) The Ilkhanate fell into disarray after the death of Abu Sa'id, thus could not support Armenian Kingdom in guarding Cilicia. In addition, internal conflicts within Armenian Kingdom made Türkmens turn their eyes to unstable Cilicia, and in 1352, Ramazan Beg led Turkmens settled south of Çaldağı and founded their first settlement, Camili. Later that year, Ramazan Beg visited Cairo and was assented by the Sultan to establish the new frontier Turkmen Emirate in Cilicia. Yüreğir Türkmens lived as a small community for 7 years in southeast of Adana, and named their new land, Yüreğir. In 1359, Mamluk Sultanate Army marched into Cilicia and took over Adana and Tarsus, two major cities of the plain, leaving few castles to Armenians.