The Ottoman Empire existed for more than 6 centuries. Its history begins in 1299 and ends in the 23rd year of the 20th century. The Ottomans descended from the Central Asian Kayi tribe. This people lived in the region of Balkh. Part of the Kayi tribe, fleeing the Mongol-Tatar horde, headed west. Their leader Ertogrul entered the service of Khorezmshah Jalal ud-Din. After some time, he led his people to Anatolia - to the possessions of Sultan Kei-Kubad I, and he granted the leader of the keyi uj Sogyut. Thus was given the beginning of the Great Ottoman Empire. Sultan Mustafa the First, which will be discussed in this article, is its 15th ruler. He went down in history as the mad ruler of the Ottomans, although some of his subjects considered him not insane, but a saint. Nevertheless, he twice, albeit briefly, became the head of the Ottoman Empire. He was also called the caliph of Islam, the ruler of the faithful and the keeper of the two shrines.
Mustafa Sultan: biography, life story
He was born in 1591 in the city of Manis. His father was the 13th ruler of the Ottoman Empire, Mahmud the Third, and his mother was Halime, the Sultan's concubine. He spent the first 14 years of his life in a harem, in the so-calledthe cage where he was imprisoned by his brother Ahmed the First. Whether the future Sultan Mustafa was weak-minded from birth or whether he was affected by a life spent in captivity, no one knows. However, stories have come down to us that as a teenager he liked to feed the fish in the Bosphorus Bay, and not with bread or anything else from food, but with gold coins. Over the years, his illness progressed. He was afraid of women, shunned them, resisted if they wanted to bring a concubine to his harem.
About father
As already noted, Mustafa 1 is the son of the concubine Halime and Sultan Mehmed 3rd. So what does the story say about his father? Mehmed III came to the throne 4 years after the birth of Mustafa. Immediately after that, he executed all his brothers, and he had 19 of them. He was afraid of a conspiracy and was afraid for his life. He also introduced a pernicious custom, according to which the princes were not allowed to take part in the government of the country during the life of their father. They had to be kept locked up in a harem, in the so-called "cage" pavilion. During the reign of Mehmed III, the Russian ambassador Danila Isleniev was detained in Constantinople, and then he disappeared without a trace. The Ottoman Empire was then at war with the Austrians. The latter made great strides and had a great advantage over the Ottomans. This caused discontent among the people, in particular the Janissaries, which led to an uprising in Constantinople. In order to regain the confidence of the people, Mehmed III decided to make a trip to Hungary. In the Battle of Kerestet, he won a victory over the Hungarians, but he did not go further than this, because the comfortable palace lifebeckoned him, and he hurried back to Constantinople. At the same time, unrest began in the territories captured from the Persians. It is said that it was from the beginning of the reign of Mehmed that the magnificent Ottoman Empire began to decline. In history, Mehmed the Third is listed as an incredibly bloodthirsty and depraved ruler, although he worships art, especially literature and poetry. And he was considered an ardent persecutor of Christians. Before Mehmed ascended the throne, he was governor in the city of Manisa for 12 years. It was here that his son was born - the future Sultan Mustafa 1 - and his three brothers - Selim (in 1596 he was executed by order of his own father), Mahmud (he and his mother were executed by the sultan-father in 1603) and Ahmet. Two more sons were born after he became Sultan, but they died in infancy. He also had 7 daughters. After the death of Mehmed, Ahmet ascended the throne, but he did not execute, according to custom, his brother Mustafa, because he was imbecile. Nevertheless, he twice tried to strangle him personally, but something prevented him from carrying out this atrocity.
About mother
The story of Sultan Mustafa, of course, begins with how the concubine Halime, a very wise woman, gave birth to the Third son from Mehmed. She was an Abkhazian by birth and as a very young girl got into the harem of the governor Manis Mehmed, the future 13th ruler of the Ottoman Empire. Mustafa was not her only child. The first son of the concubine Halime was named Mahmud, as already noted, he was executed by his father. Except twosons, she also had a daughter, whose name is unknown. However, the story says that she later became the wife of the Grand Vizier, who was involved in the murder of Sultan Osman II. After Mehmed the Third ascended the Sultan's throne, Halime went with him to the Topkapi Palace. Here, the sole mistress was Valide Sultan, Ahmed's mother Safiye, who was the main instigator of the execution of her grandson, Mahmud. The story goes that Valide managed to intercept a letter from a certain seer, which said that within six months Mehmed III would die, and Mahmud, his eldest son, would ascend the throne.
How Mustafa stayed alive
When Şehzade's father, Sultan Mahmed the Third, died in 1603, his thirteen-year-old son Ahmed ascended the throne of the Ottoman Empire. And then the concubine Halime faced the question of the life of her surviving son, Mustafa, who, as you remember, was demented. This is what helped him avoid death, because, being blessed, he could not claim the throne, which means he would not organize conspiracies against the newly minted Sultan Ahmed. That is why he wished to spare the life of his half-brother. It is said that his favorite concubine Kyosem also had a great influence on this decision. She was afraid that if Ahmed suddenly died, then his son Osman, born of her rival Mahfiruz, would ascend the throne, and her sons would be executed.
Imprisonment
During the reign of Ahmed, Prince Mustafa, the son of Halime Sultan, was imprisoned in a harem, in a small pavilion “keshke”, which is located ongrounds of the Sultan's palace. He led a secluded life, was under constant supervision. Sometimes the eunuchs wanted to bring concubines to his chambers, but he raised a tantrum, and soon this issue was closed. As already noted, he liked to be on the terrace hanging over the Bosphorus and feed the fish with gold coins. Mustafa I lived in such a “rhythm” until 1617. It was at that time that his brother, Sultan Ahmed, died of typhus. He was then 28 years old.
Reign of Sultan Mustafa
The death of Ahmed I caused a dilemma: which of the shehzadehs will inherit the throne? In view of this, the court was divided into two factions. The first - led by Sofu Pasha, who replaced the Grand Vizier, and Sheikh-ul-Islam Khojasadettin, wanted to enthrone the half-witted Mustafa. Another faction, led by the head of the black eunuchs, saw on the throne the son of Ahmet the First - Osman. The former said that Osman was too young to rule the empire, while the latter insisted that a madman could not be a sultan. Nevertheless, Sultan Mustafa was placed on the throne. From that day on, a new succession law appeared in the country, according to which, after the death of the Sultan, he was replaced as the lord of the empire by the eldest in the Shehzade family. By the way, Mustafa in the entire history of the empire was the first to ascend the throne after his brother, not his father.
The Crazy Sultan's Antics
The court doctors believed that after Mustava was released from imprisonment in the “cage”, he would be able to recover, since the cause of the disease was his isolationfrom society. However, even after 2-3 months no improvement in the patient's condition was observed. He behaved eccentrically and allowed himself to do things that no one had done before. For example, he could screech at the viziers in the sofa, tear off their turbans and pull their beards, or crow like a rooster while solving important issues. Having become a sultan, he continued to do his favorite thing, namely, he fed birds and fish with gold coins. If his other actions were not always noticed by the people and the courtiers, or were considered by them to be the “holiness” of their master, then this feature of the Sultan aroused indignation in people. He also appointed two of his favorite young concubines as governors of Damascus and Cairo. And one of the most important posts in country gave to some farmer who treated him to delicious wine during the hunt.
Removal of Mustafa from the throne
Despite all these antics, the courtiers of the first camp benefited from the rule of the feeble-minded sultan. After all, he was nothing more than a pawn in their capable hands. By the way, his mother Halime, after his accession to the throne, became a valid sultan. Throughout his short reign, Mustafa I was just a pawn in the hands of the courtiers. And the empire was actually ruled by Khalil Pasha - the Grand Vizier. However, Mustafa's reign was short-lived. A few months later, in 1618, he was overthrown, and Osman II was elevated to the throne. Poor Mustafa was imprisoned again in the “cage”.
Second reign
Sultan Mustafa ascended the throne for the second time in 1622. And it was the first time in historyempire. The Janissaries rebelled and overthrew Osman II from the throne. He was then strangled in his chambers. According to rumors, after that, his nose and one ear were cut off and were delivered to Halime Sultan. Once on the throne, Mustafa began to behave even worse: his illness progressed. Sometimes he had flashes of consciousness, and then he plaintively admitted that he did not want to be the ruler of the empire and be left alone. The mad sultan thought that Osman was alive, he wandered around the palace in search of his nephew, knocked on locked doors and asked to be relieved of his heavy burden. But since his accession was in the hands of his brother-in-law, Davud Pasha (by the way, he is suspected of the death of Osman II), he was not going to be removed from power yet.
Rebellion
After the death of Osman, the Janissaries rebelled and demanded revenge for the death of Sultan Osman II. To put down the rebellion, Halime Sultan ordered the execution of her son-in-law, Davud Pasha. However, even after that, the Janissaries did not calm down and laid siege to Ankara. One after another, different courtiers appeared in the post of Grand Vizier, and finally Kemankesh Kara Ali Pasha came to power. Together with the clergy, he persuaded Halime Sultan to remove Mustafa from the throne. She had to agree, but only on the condition that her son's life be spared. Soon, 11-year-old Shehzade Murad IV, the son of the concubine Kyosem and Sultan Ahmed I, was elevated to the throne, and Mustafa was again sent to Kafes - to his “cage”, where he lived until his death. The death of Sultan Mustafa did not change anything incountry. Nobody cared before him. He died in 1639. He was buried in the former baptistery of Hagia Sophia.
