Ridwan Pasha
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Riḍwān ibn Muṣṭafā ibn ʿAbd al-Muʿīn Pasha ( Turkish transliteration: ''Ridvan Pasha''; died 2 April 1585) was a 16th-century Ottoman statesman. He served terms as governor of Gaza in the early 1560s and in 1570–1573,
Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...
in 1564/65–1567, Habesh and Jeddah in 1573–1574 and
Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
in 1582/83 until his death. During his term in Yemen, Ottoman authority largely collapsed. Ridwan Pasha was the progenitor of the
Ridwan dynasty The Ridwan dynasty (also spelled ''Radwan''; tr, RizvanZe'evi, 2012, p39/ref>) was the most prominent pasha family in Palestine (region), Palestine, ruling the southwestern districts of the Damascus Eyalet ("Province of Damascus") in the 16th an ...
, which chose Gaza as its family headquarters, and where members of the dynasty ruled almost consecutively until 1690.


Biography


Early career

Ridwan was the son of Kara Şahin Mustafa Pasha, a Bosnian '' kapikulu'' (slave of the
Sublime Porte The Sublime Porte, also known as the Ottoman Porte or High Porte ( ota, باب عالی, Bāb-ı Ālī or ''Babıali'', from ar, باب, bāb, gate and , , ), was a synecdoche for the central government of the Ottoman Empire. History The nam ...
) and later statesman,Watenpaugh 1990, p. 121. who served gubernatorial terms in the ''
eyalet Eyalets ( Ottoman Turkish: ایالت, , English: State), also known as beylerbeyliks or pashaliks, were a primary administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. From 1453 to the beginning of the nineteenth century the Ottoman local government ...
s'' (provinces) of
Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...
(1544–1545), Diyarbakir (1548),
Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...
(1556–1560) and
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
(1562/63–1565/66).Blackburn 1994, p. 521. Early in his career, Ridwan was made ''defterdar'' (treasurer) of Yemen,Ze'evi 1996, p. 40. after gaining the recommendation of Mahmud Pasha. In the following years, he was assigned ''
sanjak-bey ''Sanjak-bey'', ''sanjaq-bey'' or ''-beg'' ( ota, سنجاق بك) () was the title given in the Ottoman Empire to a bey (a high-ranking officer, but usually not a pasha) appointed to the military and administrative command of a district (''sanjak' ...
'' (district governor) of Gaza.


Governor of Yemen

In November 1564, after paying a bribe of 50,000 gold pieces,Nahrawali, ed. Smith 2002, p. 202. he was appointed ''
beylerbey ''Beylerbey'' ( ota, بكلربكی, beylerbeyi, lit=bey of beys, meaning the 'commander of commanders' or 'lord of lords') was a high rank in the western Islamic world in the late Middle Ages and early modern period, from the Anatolian Seljuks ...
'' (governor-general) of Yemen, replacing Mahmud Pasha, who bribed the Sublime Porte to gain the governorship of Egypt.Clark 2010, p. 16. According to historian Clive Smith, the large sum that Ridwan Pasha paid for the governorship was attributed to his expectation of accumulating large wealth as governor of the province. His predecessor Mahmud Pasha had governed Yemen for seven years, during which he and his subordinates ruled corruptly, plundering the province's gold and extorting the local inhabitants. Prior to his dismissal, Mahmud Pasha had succeeded in persuading the Sublime Porte to divide Yemen into two separate provinces:
Sana'a Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Governo ...
, which consisted of the interior highlands, and
Tihama Tihamah or Tihama ( ar, تِهَامَةُ ') refers to the Red Sea coastal plain of the Arabian Peninsula from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Bab el Mandeb. Etymology Tihāmat is the Proto-Semitic language's term for 'sea'. Tiamat (or Tehom, in m ...
, which consisted of the province's central and southern coastal plains. According to the 16th-century Arab chronicler al-Nahrawali al-Makki, Mahmud Pasha's motivation was to leave Ridwan Pasha to govern the restive highlands, while virtually appointing a subordinate of his to Tihama with its lucrative
Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; T ...
ports.Hathaway 2003, p. 83. The Sublime Porte may have agreed to the division out of the belief that a single governor for each of Yemen's two regions would serve to help the Ottomans prevent Portuguese attempts to control Yemeni ports and ensure Ottoman control over the
coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulant, stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. S ...
trade, which was primarily cultivated in the highlands. In 1565, Ridwan Pasha reached a deal with the Sublime Porte in which his trade of Yemeni spices through
Jeddah Jeddah ( ), also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; ar, , Jidda, ), is a city in the Hejaz region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the country's commercial center. Established in the 6th century BC as a fishing village, Jeddah's pro ...
to Egyptian markets would be exempted from taxation in lieu of his annual gubernatorial salary. In this case, "spices" was synonymous with coffee, the trade of which, since the mid-16th century, financed the salaries of the Ottoman garrisons in Yemen. The coffee was grown in areas dominated by the
Ismaili Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (imām) to Ja'far al-Sa ...
(a sect of Shia Muslims) tribes. Ridwan co-opted the chief Ismaili ''
da'i A da'i ( ar, داعي, dāʿī, inviter, caller, ) is generally someone who engages in Dawah, the act of inviting people to Islam. See also * Dawah * Da'i al-Mutlaq, "the absolute (unrestricted) missionary" (Arabic: الداعي المطلق) * ...
'' (missionary), giving him and his family several
tax farm A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...
s.Hathaway 2003, p. 84. As intended by Mahmud Pasha, the division of Yemen highly restricted Ridwan Pasha's personal financial ambitions because his rule was effectively limited to the fortresses of Sana'a and
Saadah Saada ( ar, صَعْدَة, translit=Ṣaʿda), a city and ancient capital in the northwest of Yemen, is the capital and largest city of the province of the same name, and the county seat of the county of the same name. The city is located in the ...
, with no control over the Red Sea ports. He thus sought to renegotiate a deal made by his father, Kara Shahin Mustafa (r. 1556–1560), with the
Zaydi Zaydism (''h'') is a unique branch of Shia Islam that emerged in the eighth century following Zayd ibn Ali‘s unsuccessful rebellion against the Umayyad Caliphate. In contrast to other Shia Muslims of Twelver Shi'ism and Isma'ilism, Zaydis, ...
(a sect of Shia Islam) imam,
al-Mutahhar Al-Mutahhar bin Yahya Sharaf ad-Din (January 3, 1503 – November 9, 1572) was an imam of the Zaidi state of Yemen who ruled from 1547 to 1572. His era marked the temporary end of an autonomous Yemeni polity in the highlands. The coming of th ...
, calling for extending taxation to the Zaidi-dominated northern highlands, where al-Mutahhar ruled virtually autonomously. Al-Mutahhar refused Ridwan Pasha's demands and opened a rebellion against Ottoman authority in 1566. By January 1567, all of Sana'a province with the exception of the fortresses of Sana'a and
Amran Amran may refer to: *'Amran Governorate, Yemen *'Amran (Arabic: عمران) small city in western central Yemen, capital of the 'Amran Governorate * Amran, Gujarat, a village in Jamnagar district, Gujarat, India *Amran District, Yemen People with ...
had been conquered by al-Mutahhar's Zaidi tribesmen. Ridwan Pasha then called for a truce with al-Mutahhar, whose forces blocked all the roads to Sana'a to prevent the intervention of a potential Ottoman relief force. Ridwan Pasha was dismissed from Yemen in April 1567, and was replaced by Hasan Pasha. His dismissal prompted him to head for
Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
, capital of the empire, to argue his case with the Sublime Porte. He was consequently reprimanded and imprisoned. However, his incarceration was relatively short and he was pardoned in November 1567 when it was discovered that Mahmud Pasha had intercepted and concealed letters from Ridwan Pasha to the Sublime Porte, alerting the imperial authorities of the volatile situation in Yemen; Ottoman authority had largely collapsed in Yemen during Ridwan Pasha's governorship. The concealed letters were discovered after Mahmud Pasha was assassinated in Egypt.


Later career and death

In 1570/71, Ridwan Pasha was reappointed ''sanjak-bey'' of Gaza. Ridwan Pasha was then appointed ''beylerbey'' of Habesh and Jeddah, which included parts of
Abyssinia The Ethiopian Empire (), also formerly known by the exonym Abyssinia, or just simply known as Ethiopia (; Amharic and Tigrinya: ኢትዮጵያ , , Oromo: Itoophiyaa, Somali: Itoobiya, Afar: ''Itiyoophiyaa''), was an empire that historica ...
and
Hejaz The Hejaz (, also ; ar, ٱلْحِجَاز, al-Ḥijāz, lit=the Barrier, ) is a region in the west of Saudi Arabia. It includes the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif, and Baljurashi. It is also known as the "Western Provin ...
, in March 1573. He remained in Gaza for a few months after his reassignment to ensure that arrangements he made with the Sublime Porte regarding the transferring of tax revenues or grain harvests from
Qasr Ibrim Qasr Ibrim ( ar, قصر ابريم; Meroitic: ''Pedeme''; Old Nubian: ''Silimi''; Coptic: ⲡⲣⲓⲙ ''Prim''; Latin: ''Primis'') is an archaeological site in Lower Nubia, located in the modern country of Egypt. The site has a long history o ...
and its territories to Habesh Eyalet from Egypt Eyalet were confirmed. He demanded further concessions from the Sublime Porte to redirect grain harvests from Egypt to the coffers of Habesh's treasury in June 1574. He was dismissed from Habesh in July 1574. Sometime following his dismissal from Habesh, he served terms as ''beylerbey'' of Diyarbakir and then
Basra Basra ( ar, ٱلْبَصْرَة, al-Baṣrah) is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab. It had an estimated population of 1.4 million in 2018. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is hand ...
. In 1579, he was a commander in the Ottoman military campaign against the
Safavids Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...
in the
Caucasus Mountains The Caucasus Mountains, : pronounced * hy, Կովկասյան լեռներ, : pronounced * az, Qafqaz dağları, pronounced * rus, Кавка́зские го́ры, Kavkázskiye góry, kɐfˈkasːkʲɪje ˈɡorɨ * tr, Kafkas Dağla ...
. As a reward for his service, the Sublime Porte appointed Ridwan Pasha to the major ''eyalet'' of
Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
in late 1582 or early 1583. He died in office on 2 April 1585. Ridwan Pasha and his brother Bahram Pasha (died 1586), also an Ottoman statesman, were buried in a
mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be consid ...
situated in the garden of a mosque in
Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...
.Watenpaugh 1999, p. 90. The mausoleum was restored in 1924 by Abdullah Bek al-'Ilmi, a descendant of Bahram Pasha. It is unclear why Ridwan Pasha chose to be buried in Aleppo.


Legacy

Ridwan Pasha (or his kinsmen) evidently made Gaza the headquarters of his family, although the reason why is not provided in the biographies of Ridwan Pasha and Kara Shahin Mustafa which were written by their contemporaries. Ridwan Pasha's son, Ahmad Pasha, succeeded him as ''sanjak-bey'' of Gaza, a post he held for roughly 30 years, after which his sons and grandsons virtually inherited the governance of the district. Ridwan Pasha became the progenitor of a dynasty bearing his name, the
Ridwan dynasty The Ridwan dynasty (also spelled ''Radwan''; tr, RizvanZe'evi, 2012, p39/ref>) was the most prominent pasha family in Palestine (region), Palestine, ruling the southwestern districts of the Damascus Eyalet ("Province of Damascus") in the 16th an ...
, whose members governed Gaza almost consecutively between 1570 and 1690.Filiu 2014, p. 28.


Notes


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * {{refend 1585 deaths 16th-century births 16th-century people from the Ottoman Empire Ottoman governors of Gaza Ottoman governors of Yemen People from the Ottoman Empire of Bosnian descent Ridwan dynasty