Circassian devshirme children were valued above darker slave children

Evidence

Historically, Circassian children, sold by their parents to the Ottomans in the system known as devshirme, were raised to become members of the ruling class; hence they were considered to be more valuable, and cost more than darker children, who would be groomed only as slaves or servants. — Eve M. Troutt Powell, A Different Shade of Colonialism_…, 438

Categorization

• XREF: Color hierarchy in the Ottoman-Egyptian army aligns with the reader’s goal of distinguishing how race mattered differently in Egypt vs Sudan.
• DEFINE: Defines devshirme as a military recruiting system where Circassian children were brought up to rule.