| − | The Janissaries were new troops formed by boys taken from Christian families in order to protect the Ottoman Sultan's household as part of the human taxation known as the [[devshirme]]. The Janissaries began in the 14th century, and were massacred and abolished by Sultan Mahmud II in 1826. | + | The '''Janissaries''' were new troops formed by boys taken from Christian families in order to protect the [[Ottoman]] Sultan's household as part of the human taxation known as the [[devshirme]]. The Janissaries began in the 14th century, and were massacred and abolished by [[Sultan Mahmud II]] in 1826. |