Elmas Mehmed Pasha (1661 – 11 September 1697) was an Ottoman statesman who served as

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 1695 to 1697. His epithet ''Elmas'' means "diamond" in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

and refers to his fame as a handsome man.

Early years

He was a Turk from Doğanyurt (formerly Hoşalay), now in

Kastamonu Province Kastamonu Province () is a Provinces of Turkey, province of Turkey, in the Black Sea Region, Turkey, Black Sea region in the north of the country. It is surrounded by Sinop Province, Sinop to the east, Bartın Province, Bartın, Karabük Province ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. His father was a sea captain (). During the reign of

Mehmed IV Mehmed IV (; ; 2 January 1642 – 6 January 1693), nicknamed as Mehmed the Hunter (), was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1648 to 1687. He came to the throne at the age of six after his father was overthrown in a coup. Mehmed went on to b ...

, he began working for the Ottoman palace upon the personal request of the

sultan Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be use ...

. He was one of the few Ottoman statesmen who were fortunate enough to be appointed to high posts while still young. During the reign of

Ahmed II Ahmed II (; ; was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1691 to 1695. Early life Ahmed II was born on 25 February 1643 or 1 August 1642, the son of Sultan Ibrahim and Muazzez Sultan. On 21 October 1649, Ahmed, along with his brothers Mehmed ...

, he was appointed as the

nişancı was a high post in Ottoman Empire, Ottoman bureaucracy. The Turkish word literally means "court calligrapher" or "sealer", as the original duty of the was to seal royal precepts. History Although the post of the court calligrapher was establish ...

in 1688 and a

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 ...

(government minister) in 1689.

As a grand vizier

The Ottoman Empire had been experiencing a period of defeats during the

Great Turkish War The Great Turkish War () or The Last Crusade, also called in Ottoman sources The Disaster Years (), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League (1684), Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lith ...

following the Second Siege of Vienna in 1683. After the execution of

Kara Mustafa Pasha Kara Mustafa Pasha (; ; "Mustafa Pasha the Courageous"; 1634/1635 – 25 December 1683) was an Ottoman nobleman, military figure and Grand Vizier, who was a central character in the Ottoman Empire's last attempts at expansion into both Centr ...

, 11

s had been in the office between 1683 and 1695. Elmas Mehmed Pasha was appointed as the grand vizier on 2 May 1695 by the sultan

Mustafa II Mustafa II (; ''Muṣṭafā-yi sānī''; 6 February 1664 – 29 December 1703) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1695 to 1703. Early life He was born at Edirne Palace on 6 February 1664. He was the son of Sultan Mehmed IV (1648–87 ...

. He was more successful than his immediate predecessors, and together with the sultan, he defeated

Habsburg Empire The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

in two battles, namely the Battle of Lugos and the

Battle of Ulaş The Battle of Olasch (also Ólas, Ulaş, Olaschin) took place after a Habsburg Imperial army led by Saxon Elector General, Augustus II the Strong, laid siege to Turkish held Temesvár. On 26 August 1696, after learning that Sultan Mustafa II ...

. He was not only a military leader. He also tried to reform the treasury. One of the most important problems of the 17th-century Ottoman economy was the devaluated coins. He collected various coins (including European coins) and minted new gold and silver coins in the name of Mustafa II.

Battle of Zenta and death

His luck failed him during the battle of Zenta on 11 September 1697. A subordinate of Elmas Mehmed Pasha was arrested by the Habsburgs prior to the battle.

Prince Eugene of Savoy Prince Eugene Francis of Savoy-Carignano (18 October 1663 – 21 April 1736), better known as Prince Eugene, was a distinguished Generalfeldmarschall, field marshal in the Army of the Holy Roman Empire and of the Austrian Habsburg dynasty durin ...

, the Habsburg commander, learned about the campaign plan of the Ottoman side and the Habsburgs raided the Ottoman army while the army was crossing the bridge over

Tisa The Tisza, Tysa or Tisa (see below) is one of the major rivers of Central and Eastern Europe. It was once called "the most Hungarian river" because it used to flow entirely within the Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it crosses several national bo ...

.Prof. Yaşar Yüce-Prof. Ali Sevim: Türkiye tarihi Cilt III, AKDTYKTTK Yayınları, İstanbul, 1991 p 227 Elmas Mehmed tried to organize an orderly withdrawal and he had to fight against the undisciplined soldiers who were in panic. He was killed by his own soldiers, strangled to death with a bowstring. Two years later the Ottoman Empire had to sign the

Treaty of Karlowitz The Treaty of Karlowitz, concluding the Great Turkish War of 1683–1699, in which the Ottoman Empire was defeated by the Holy League at the Battle of Zenta, was signed in Karlowitz, in the Military Frontier of the Habsburg Monarchy (present-day ...

and had to accept the loss of

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mehmed, Elmas 17th-century grand viziers of the Ottoman Empire 1697 deaths 1661 births Turks from the Ottoman Empire Ottoman military personnel killed in action Pashas Nişancı People from Doğanyurt People executed by ligature strangulation