Bayram Pasha (, died 26 August 1638) was an
Ottoman grand vizier
Grand vizier (; ; ) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. It was first held by officials in the later Abbasid Caliphate. It was then held in the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Soko ...
from 1637 to 1638 and the Ottoman
governor of Egypt
Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
from 1626 to 1628.
Life
Bayram, was from
Ladik, near the
Anatolia
Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...
n city of
Amasya
Amasya () is a city in northern Turkey, in the Black Sea Region. It was called Amaseia or Amasia in antiquity."Amasya" in ''Encyclopædia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol ...
. He was of
Georgian origin and was a member of the
Janissary
A janissary (, , ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops. They were the first modern standing army, and perhaps the first infantry force in the world to be equipped with firearms, adopted dur ...
corps, which recruited heavily from Christian families of Greek, Georgian and Armenian origin from different parts of Anatolia. Although the Janissary corps was originally based on the ''
devshirme
Devshirme (, usually translated as "child levy" or "blood tax", , .) was the Ottoman practice of forcibly recruiting soldiers and bureaucrats from among the children of their Balkan Christian subjects and raising them in the religion of Islam ...
'' system, beginning in the reign of
Murad III
Murad III (; ; 4 July 1546 – 16 January 1595) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1574 until his death in 1595. His rule saw battles with the Habsburg monarchy, Habsburgs and exhausting wars with the Safavid Iran, Safavids. The long-inde ...
(1574–1595),
Armenians
Armenians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to the Armenian highlands of West Asia.Robert Hewsen, Hewsen, Robert H. "The Geography of Armenia" in ''The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiq ...
were also admitted into the corps. In 1622, his title was ''turnacıbaşı'' (chief of recruiting teams), and in 1623, the ''
kethüda'' (chamberlain). In 1625, he was appointed to
Egypt
Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
(then an Ottoman territory) as the ''
beylerbey
''Beylerbey'' (, meaning the 'commander of commanders' or 'lord of lords’, sometimes rendered governor-general) was a high rank in the western Islamic world in the late Middle Ages and early modern period, from the Anatolian Seljuks and the I ...
'' (governor-general). In 1628, he was promoted to the rank of
vizier
A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...
. In 1635, Bayram Pasha was the ''
kaymakam
Kaymakam, also known by #Names, many other romanizations, was a title used by various officials of the Ottoman Empire, including acting grand viziers, governors of provincial sanjaks, and administrators of district kazas. The title has been reta ...
'' (a title almost equivalent to modern mayor) of the Ottoman capital,
Constantinople
Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...
. In 1637, during the reign of
Murad IV
Murad IV (, ''Murād-ı Rābiʿ''; , 27 July 1612 – 8 February 1640) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1623 to 1640, known both for restoring the authority of the state and for the brutality of his methods. Murad I ...
(1623–1640), he was promoted to the rank of
grand vizier
Grand vizier (; ; ) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. It was first held by officials in the later Abbasid Caliphate. It was then held in the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Soko ...
, the highest office in the empire next to that of the sultan. Bayram Pasha participated in the
Baghdad
Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...
campaign led by the sultan. He died (of natural causes) near
Urfa
Urfa, officially called Şanlıurfa (), is a city in southeastern Turkey and the capital of Şanlıurfa Province. The city was known as Edessa from Hellenistic period, Hellenistic times and into Christian times. Urfa is situated on a plain abo ...
.
As a groom
Bayram was also a ''
damat'' (groom) of the palace. In Ottoman tradition, the daughters and sisters of the sultans usually married viziers. But Bayram's case was an exception, because Bayram was married to
Hanzade Sultan, the daughter of
Ahmed I
Ahmed I ( '; ; 18 April 1590 – 22 November 1617) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1603 to 1617. Ahmed's reign is noteworthy for marking the first breach in the Ottoman tradition of royal fratricide; henceforth, Ottoman rulers would no ...
(1603–1617) in 1623 while he was still a ''turnacıbaşı''. They had a daughter.
As a governor and a vizier
Bayram Pasha was reputed both in Egypt and in Anatolia for his efforts in construction of public works. He repaired the
city walls
A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications such as curtain walls with to ...
of Constantinople and commissioned a mosque and a ''
külliye
A külliye () is a complex of buildings associated with Turkish architecture centered on a mosque and managed within a single institution, often based on a waqf (charitable foundation) and composed of a madrasa, a Dar al-Shifa (clinic), kitchens ...
'' (religious complex) in the city. Today, the
Istanbul
Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
district of
Bayrampaşa bears his name. He commissioned an irrigation facility and a
caravansarai in
Amasya
Amasya () is a city in northern Turkey, in the Black Sea Region. It was called Amaseia or Amasia in antiquity."Amasya" in ''Encyclopædia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol ...
. Bayram Pasha is also known as the commissioner of various inns in Anatolian towns.
As grand vizier, Bayram Pasha executed two princes by the order of the sultan. He is also known as the name behind the execution of the famous poet
Nef'i for writing satirical poems. Nef'i had earlier promised not to compose any more satire, but when he broke this promise, he was executed at the request of Bayram Pasha.
See also
*
List of Ottoman grand viziers
The grand vizier of the Ottoman Empire ( or ''Sadr-ı Azam'' (''Sadrazam''); Ottoman Turkish language, Ottoman Turkish: or ) was the ''de facto'' prime minister of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, sultan in the Ottoman Empire, with the absolute p ...
*
List of Ottoman governors of Egypt
*
Bayrampaşa District in Istanbul
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bayram Pasha
1638 deaths
Pashas
17th-century grand viziers of the Ottoman Empire
17th-century Ottoman governors of Egypt
Year of birth unknown
People from Lâdik
Ottoman governors of Egypt
Damats
Ottoman people of the Ottoman–Persian Wars