During the first years of the Republic the legions of Rome were grouped under five banners:the eagle, the wolf, the bull, the horse and the boar. In 107 B.C., after the reforms undertaken by General Gaius Marius, the rest were abolished and only the eagle (Aquila remained). ) as a symbol of the entire army. Logically, losing the eagle of a legion was considered the greatest of misfortunes, and for this reason the soldiers protected this banner with their own lives. And if the legionnaires watched over their eagles, the janissaries did so over their cauldrons of soup.
The janissaries (from Turkish Yeniçeri , which means "new troops") were a body of the Ottoman Empire formed by infantry units trained to guard the Sultan and the dependencies of the Royal Palace. This kind of praetorian guard was founded by Murad I in 1330 and was initially made up of young Christians taken prisoner and adolescents that the families of the subjugated peoples had to deliver as tribute to the Sultan. In addition to undergoing harsh physical training and being groomed as professional soldiers (the Janissaries were the first standing Ottoman army), the boys were instructed in the Muslim religion and learned languages, literature and other disciplines, were forbidden to marry, and were owned Sultan's staff.
The life in common since childhood, the iron discipline, the hard training, the absolute submission and the brainwashing through education and religion, were responsible for creating that bond of loyalty before the Sultan, but also for forging a powerful spirit of camaraderie and brotherhood among them. Like any self-respecting elite body, they were perfectly structured and organized, and had their own symbols... curiously related to gastronomy. The Corps of Janissaries (Ocak , home) was divided into several ortas (regiment) and in front of each of them was the tchorbadji bachi (soup delivery man, equivalent to a colonel); below the achtchi bachi (chef cook, the captain) and the sakka bachi (water carrier, the lieutenant). Even your typical bork (cap that simulates a folded sleeve) was adorned with a spoon -later they were changed for feathers, flowers and other objects-, since each of the members of an orta they were the "diners" of his banner... the kazan (a bronze cauldron).
During the march the kazan he was at the head of the regiment and in the camp he stood in front of the tchorbadji bachi tent , indicating the meeting point of the troops. The cauldron was also the protagonist of certain rituals. Except on Fridays, every morning three janissaries, two carrying the cauldron hanging from a long pole and a third with a large ladle on his shoulder, went through the barracks or shops distributing the food among the members of the orta -everyone, regardless of their rank, ate the same and from the same cauldron-. Friday was the day to show submission and loyalty to the Sultan, and the janissaries went with their cauldrons to the Sultan's kitchens where they received their food from what they called the "father who feeds us". But this was not always the case… if they did not show up at the appointed time or refused to fill their cauldron with food, the janissaries were expressing their discontent with some decision of the Sultan and it was a warning that they could riot if the matter in question was not resolved. . In fact, if an orta wanted to force others to participate in a rebellion it was enough to steal their kazan . Logically, the worst humiliation for the janissaries was that their kazan was captured by the enemy . In this case, the officers were expelled from the Ocak with dishonor and to the orta he was forbidden to exhibit in public and parade with the new cauldron. A janissary regiment without kazan on sight it was synonymous with cowardice and incompetence and a reason for contempt.
For at least two centuries, the Janissaries were the most loyal and effective soldiers in the Ottoman Empire. They had a good salary and were exempt from paying taxes, some of them even managed to hold relevant positions. That privileged position caused suspicion and resentment among the Turks themselves, especially when the Janissaries were prisoners or slaves from the conquered peoples. At the end of the 16th century, the Turks demanded to be part of this body… and in 1594 Sultan Ocak authorized the enlistment of Turkish volunteers among the Janissaries. From that moment this previously invincible military force began to lose its effectiveness. These new janissaries were not willing to submit to the harsh discipline, they demanded to be able to marry and live outside the communal barracks or that the status of janissary be hereditary... they wanted to enjoy the privileges of being a janissary, but without being one .
The power of the janissaries reached the point that in the 19th century they tried to depose the Sultan, which led Mahmoud II to decree the dissolution of the body after executing the ringleaders.