Kazasker

The two kazaskers in a 17th-century illustration

A kazasker ,qadi 'asker, kadi 'asker or kadi-ul asker ("judge of the army") was a chief judge in the Ottoman Empire, so named originally because his jurisdiction extended to the cases of soldiers, who were later tried only by their own officers. Two qadi 'askers were appointed, called Rumeli Qadi'askeri and Anadolu Qadi'askeri, having their jurisdiction respectively over the European and the Asiatic part of the Empire. They were subordinated to the Sheikh ul-Islam, and had no jurisdiction over the city of Istanbul. Moreover, they attended the meetings at the Divan.

See also

• Qadi

Sources

• Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 
• Mantran, Robert (1998) (in Italian). La vita quotidiana a Constantinopoli ai tempi di Solimano il Magnifico e dei suoi successori (XVI e XVII secolo) (3 ed.). Milan: Rizzoli.