Right - The 1876 Aiguillette for Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan - was a unique item of rank insignia, Not only used in its conventional sense, as a working symbol of a staff-officer’s authority, it was also granted as an honour to various officers. The Annuaire oriental du commerce, de l'industrie, de l'administration et de la magistrature (Constantinople 1891) held at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, annually published the full index of the Imperial Ottoman Government and this actually listed, not only the Feriks (or Generals of Division), whom were entitled Aides-de-Camp Honraires, to the Sultan. In the Ottoman Turkish empire the aide-de-camp was considered to be a title of honour; The Annuaire oriental du commerce, (Constantinople 1891), included in this list all the Lieutenants, Captains etc who were also entitled ‘Aides-de-Camp Honraires’.
Among the Aides-de-Camp Honraires, to the Sultan there are some notable foreign officers, such as:
There was a high level of importance associated with the role. It appears as well, that the title raised the status of these officers. Ottoman Turkish military ranks carried a corresponding aristocratic title. In the case of a Lieutenant’s rank this was normally “EFFENDI”. However, in the Annuaire, the named Lieutenants, who are entitled ‘Aides-de-Camp Honraires’, end their names with the aristocratic title of “BEY”, which was normally intended for the MAJOR rank and above.
Above - Various 'Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan' Uniform Insignia:
A: Gold Cuff Star: In the personnel service of the Sultan (see G-H).
B: Gold Cuff Star and Crescent: Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
C: The Hamidiye Corps Commander, a Divisional General as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan; as well, the Chief of the Bashi-Bazouk, as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
D: Army officers up to, and including the rank of Miralai (Colonel), as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
E: Birinji-Ferik (General), Ferik (Army Lieutenant-General or Navy Vice-Admiral), or Liva (Major-General or Rear-Admiral), as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
F: Soldier, 1st Albanian Regiment of the Imperial Guard (1890-1908), as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
G: Soldier, from the Sultan's Palace Guard (1900-1908), as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
H: Officer, from the Sultan's Palace Guard (1900-1908), as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
I: Imperial Navy Liva (Rear-Admiral), as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
J: Imperial Navy Ferik (Vice-Admiral), as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
Above/Right - K: Three Gold Cuff Stars and Crescents: Higher Military Supervisory Commission: The Office of the Khedive of Egypt, as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
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[1] Oded Peri. Ottoman Symbolism in British-Occupied Egypt, 1882-1909. Middle Eastern Studies. Vol. 41, No. 1 (Jan., 2005), pp. 103-120.
Right - A Portrait of Prince Abdurrahim Efendi, Son of Sultan Abdulhamid II, 1900, by Fausto Zonaro (this is the same boy, who was seven years old at the time, photographed with the rest of his brothers - pictured above).
Above - Each of the sultan's sons in this photograph wears a complete version of the following uniforms:
Prince Abdurrahim Efendi (next to his eldest brother): He wears a 1876 Field Artillery tunic, and has the rank of onbasi (corporal), which is the red chevron on this left arm. Like his older brothers he is also wearing the 1900/1909 Army officers’ lamb wool kalpak
.Above - The two older princes wear the 1876 Aiguillette for Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
Right - The distinctive Paraderabatte (red button-on chest lapels, with embroidered star-burst) [1].
Each soldier in the regiment had a gold star badge on their cuff, identifying them as Aides-De-Camp to the Sultan.
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[1] A photograph of the 1893 flag for the Hejaz Division (which were the troops occupying the Hajaz province, belonging to the 16th (Hejaz) division of the Turkish army) appears to have a similar star burst to that represented in this picture from Askeri Muze ve Kultur Sitesti Komutanligi. (1986) Osmanli askeri teskilat ve kiyafetleri: 1876-1908 [Ottoman military organization and uniforms] Yayinlari.
Right - The special uniform (from an 1895 French magazine illustration) of the Imperial Courts' Halberdiers.
The function of this guard unit, was that "form a route called the 'holy corridor' for the Sultan to visit the Mosque" [1].
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[1] Jack Cassin-Scott, John Fabb, 1973 Ceremonial Uniforms of the World, Hippocrene Books: Plate 44 description.