The Barber of Damascus: A Window into 18th-Century Ottoman Syria

The Humble Chronicler of Damascus

In the bustling streets of mid-18th century Damascus, barbers served as unlikely historians. Among them, Ahmad al-Budayri stood out not for his haircutting skills but for his remarkable diary that documented daily life under Ottoman rule from 1741 to 1762. As a literate artisan in a predominantly oral society, Budayri represented a rare voice from the common people – a barber who doubled as a social commentator.

Budayri’s shop functioned as an information hub where patrons from all walks of life shared news and gossip. His writings reveal a keen observer who rarely spoke of himself but recorded everything from political scandals to rising bread prices, from military unrest to moral decay. Though deeply devout and loyal to the Ottoman sultan, Budayri didn’t shy from criticizing local administrators whose corruption he believed undermined the empire’s stability.

The Ottoman “Circle of Justice” in Crisis

Budayri’s Damascus existed within the Ottoman framework of the “circle of equity” – a political philosophy balancing four elements: a strong military requiring substantial wealth, collected through fair taxation, which depended on prosperous subjects who needed just governance. By Budayri’s time, this system showed alarming cracks.

The barber particularly blamed the Azm family, Damascus’s ruling dynasty from 1724-1783. Originally landowners from Hama, the Azms had risen to govern not just Damascus but other Syrian provinces. While theoretically Ottoman appointees, they prioritized family interests over imperial ones. Budayri admired some Azm governors like As’ad Pasha (r. 1743-1757) while condemning their greed – especially when they allegedly hoarded grain during famines or confiscated building materials for personal palaces.

Military Anarchy and Moral Decline

The breakdown of order manifested most visibly in Damascus’s military forces. The city’s Janissaries had devolved into rival factions – imperial troops from Istanbul versus local recruits, supplemented by Kurdish, Turkmen, and North African irregulars. Budayri documented their violent clashes, including the 1756 burning of the Amara quarter after residents supported the wrong faction.

This military disintegration coincided with what Budayri saw as moral collapse. He particularly lamented the visibility of prostitutes – unveiled, drunken women carousing with soldiers in public. When authorities tried banning prostitution, the women simply paid taxes to continue operating. The popularity of a courtesan named Salmun, whose name became synonymous with fashion, symbolized this social transformation for the conservative barber.

Cotton, Conflict and Regional Challengers

Beyond Damascus, broader forces threatened Ottoman control. In northern Palestine, Zahir al-Umar (c.1690-1775) built a cotton-based mini-empire. Controlling Galilee’s lucrative cotton trade to European markets gave Zahir wealth to raise armies and challenge Damascus governors. His 1742 standoff against Ottoman forces at Tiberias marked a turning point in regional autonomy.

Meanwhile in Egypt, Ali Bey al-Kabir (1728-1773) nearly recreated the Mamluk Empire through military brilliance and political maneuvering. His 1770-1771 campaign with Zahir against Damascus represented the most serious Arab challenge to Ottoman rule in centuries. Yet both movements ultimately failed when their commanders balked at outright rebellion against the sultan’s religious legitimacy.

The Wahhabi Challenge and Religious Legitimacy

The most enduring threat emerged from Arabia, where Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab (1703-1792) partnered with the Saud family in 1744 to launch a puritanical reform movement. By 1803, Wahhabi forces controlled Mecca and Medina, banning Ottoman pilgrims and rejecting the sultan’s religious authority. Their destruction of shrines, including the tomb of Husayn in Karbala (1802), shocked the Muslim world and forced the Ottomans to confront this ideological and military challenge.

Legacy of an Unlikely Historian

Budayri’s diary survives as a unique perspective on Ottoman Syria’s transformation. His accounts of Azm governance, military disintegration, and social change illuminate how provincial elites gradually eroded central authority while still operating within the Ottoman framework. The challenges from Zahir, Ali Bey, and the Wahhabis demonstrated both the empire’s vulnerabilities and its resilience in maintaining legitimacy even as regional powers grew stronger.

Through the barber’s eyes, we witness ordinary Damascenes navigating an era of economic hardship, political corruption, and social change – concerns that resonate across centuries while remaining firmly rooted in their 18th-century Ottoman context. Budayri’s chronicle reminds us that history isn’t just made by sultans and generals, but also recorded by observant artisans in barbershops.