Assyrians, Kurds, and Ottomans: Intercommunal Relations on the Pe ...

Mar Shimun’s trip to the capital was an urgent aim of the Turks. Aali Effendi had prevailed upon Cowley to convince the patriarch to undertake the mission using various pretexts, such as to obtain information regarding Bedr Khan Beg and to explore the best ways to offer services to his people, while Cowley had written to Rassam stating that the aim of summoning the patriarch to Constantinople was to decorate him with the Nishan medal and to provide him with a firman confirming his right to occupy his office.⁴⁰

Rassam wrote back to Ambassador Cowley on the subject of Mar Shimun’s escape and the reasons behind it. He affirmed that ‘Mar Shimun thought it had been cruel to keep him in Mosul so long and that he had spent too many years in exile there, unable to improve his conditions or look after the needs of his people’. The vice-consul acknowledged that he was not encouraged to support the return of the patriarch to his homeland as long as Bedr Khan Beg posed a threat to his safety; however, once Bedr Khan Beg was eliminated, sending the patriarch home would not pose any danger or threat that he would resume his independence and refuse his submission to the sultan. However, at present, the conditions were not ripe.⁴¹