Tax Farmers in Tulcha Sandzhak in the 70s of the 19th C

The present article aims to review the problem with tax farming in the Ottoman empire in the 70's of XIX century. Recently in the Bulgarian historiography the interest in tax farming and mainly the participation of Bulgarians in these economic operations found a serious place in the researches of Sv. Yaneva and Evgeniya Davidova. The current research's target is to complete the overall picture of functioning of this type of fiscal practices on the territory of the Tulcha Sandzhak, which covers the whole Northern Dobrudzha. The article is based on unpublished Ottoman defter for tax farming of the tithe in Tulcha Sandzhak for the fiscal 1289/1290. (1872/1873), kept in the Oriental department of the National Library. The overall number of tax farmers totals 110 people divided in religious indication as follows: Muslims - 75, non-Muslims - 35, of which a Jew and four. The total amount of the tithe is 6 129 554, 5 grosh. The researched defter outlines a significant range of representatives of the local business elite. They are mainly persons with a considerable financial abilities, often occupying or occupied administrative positions. The accumulated funds from the tax farmers allows them to better integrate in the Ottoman managerial system. Often they become in intermediaries between the local society and the government or even take part in the local managerial bodies. What is notable in the present document is that a significant part of the kefils in specific periods are members of the created after the vilayet reform local administrative councils and judiciaries. Commitment is observed between the authorities and the financial abilities of the tax farmers and their guarantors. The researched document indicates one local variation of the practical functioning of the system for tax farming and demonstrates a sampling of the local business elite.