Sinanuddin Yusuf Pasha or in short Sinan Pasha ( or ''Sinan-paša''; died 21 December 1553) was an Ottoman Grand Admiral (

Kapudan Pasha The Kapudan Pasha (, modern Turkish: ), also known as the (, modern: , "Captain of the Sea") was the grand admiral of the Ottoman Navy. Typically, he was based at Galata and Gallipoli during the winter and charged with annual sailings durin ...

), who served in the

Ottoman Navy The Ottoman Navy () or the Imperial Navy (), also known as the Ottoman Fleet, was the naval warfare arm of the Ottoman Empire. It was established after the Ottomans first reached the sea in 1323 by capturing Praenetos (later called Karamürsel ...

for nearly four years between 1550 and the end of 1553, during the reign of

Suleiman the Magnificent Suleiman I (; , ; 6 November 14946 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the Western world and as Suleiman the Lawgiver () in his own realm, was the List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman sultan between 1520 a ...

. He was of

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

n descent,Uzunçarşılı, İsmail Hakkı, (1954) Osmanlı Tarihi III. Cilt, 2. Kısım , XVI. Yüzyıl Ortalarından XVII. Yüzyıl Sonuna kadar), Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu (Altıncı Baskı 2011 ) say.363-365 the predecessor of

Piali Pasha Piali Pasha (; ) (–1578) was an Ottoman Grand Admiral (Kapudan Pasha) between 1553 and 1567, and a Vizier (minister) after 1568. He is also known as Piale Pasha in English. Early life His exact place of birth is unknown, though he was probab ...

in this rank and the brother 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 ...

Rustem Pasha Rustem is a masculine name. Given name * Rustem Adagamov (born 1961), Russian blogger * Rustem Akhmetzyanov (born 1978), Russian footballer * Rustem Bulatov (1974-2008), Russian footballer * Rustem Hayroudinoff, Russian concert pianist * Ruste ...

, who in turn was married to

Mihrimah Sultan Mihrimah Sultan may refer to: * Mihrimah Sultan (daughter of Suleiman I) (1522–1578), Ottoman princess * Mihrimah Sultan (1547–1602), Ottoman princess, daughters of Şehzade Bayezid and granddaughter of Suleiman I * Mihrimah Sultan (daughter ...

, a daughter of Suleiman the Magnificent and

Hurrem Sultan Hürrem Sultan (; , "''the joyful one''"; 1505– 15 April 1558), also known as Roxelana (), was the chief consort, the first Haseki Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and the legal wife of the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, and the mother ...

Military campaigns

Sinan Pasha and

Dragut Dragut (; 1485 – 23 June 1565) was an Ottoman corsair, naval commander, governor, and noble. Under his command, the Ottoman Empire's maritime power was extended across North Africa. Recognized for his military genius, and as being among "the ...

collaborated on several naval expeditions in the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

, particularly on the coasts of

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

. Sinan was not an expert on naval issues as much as Turgut Reis, who was a more popular commander among the admirals and captains of the navy, and this often caused conflict between the two. In an incident following the Ottoman conquest of Tripoli in 1551, the entire Ottoman fleet left Sinan Pasha on the shore and followed Turgut Reis into the

Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (, ; or ) , , , , is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenians, Tyrrhenian people identified with the Etruscans of Italy. Geography The sea is bounded by the islands of C ...

, declaring that they would accept only Turgut as their commander. Turgut Reis, however, considered this to be mutiny and treason and ordered them to return to take Sinan Pasha with them. Sinan through his career was symbolized as a good and smart naval strategist, not as powerful as Turgut Reis still he was one of Sultan Suleiman's favorite military strategist and good friend, as Sultan Suleiman had a very favorable view of the

Bosnian Muslims The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who share a common ancestry, culture, history and the ...

. Disturbed by this conflict, but favouring the talent of Turgut Reis, Sultan Suleiman ordered Sinan Pasha to ''"do whatever Turgut says."'' Most Ottoman seamen of that time, however, believed that Turgut Reis deserved the rank of Sinan Pasha.

Characteristics

There are conflicting descriptions about Sinan Pasha's character, the majority say that he was tall and smart with a long beard and a cold gaze. The Ottoman historian Peçevî wrote that ''"Sinan Pasha was a proud and megalomaniac man who would not listen to the opinions and complaints of others. He had a cold gaze."'' However, Spanish historians of that period wrote that ''"Sinan Pasha was a tall and strong man with a truly handsome face and a gallant heart. He was also very kind."''

Death

Sinan Pasha died on 21 December 1553 in his palace which was located at the present

Sultanahmet Square The Hippodrome of Constantinople (; ; ) was a circus that was the sporting and social centre of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire. Today it is a square in Istanbul, Turkey, known as Sultanahmet Square (). The word ''hippodrome'' ...

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 ...

, and was later buried at the garden of Mihrimah Sultan Mosque in

Üsküdar Üsküdar () is a municipality and district of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 35 km2, and its population is 524,452 (2022). It is a large and densely populated district on the Anatolian (Asian) shore of the Bosphorus. It is border ...

, which was designed by the great Ottoman architect

Mimar Sinan Mimar Sinan (; , ; – 17 July 1588) also known as Koca Mi'mâr Sinân Âğâ, ("Sinan Agha (title), Agha the Grand Architect" or "Grand Sinan") was the chief Ottoman Empire, Ottoman architect, engineer and mathematician for sultans Suleiman ...

. Sinan Pasha had ordered the construction of a grand mosque with his name in the

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...

district and wanted to be buried there, but the mosque could not be completed in time. Even though he had two daughters and a son, he left his entire fortune to Mihrimah Sultan (Sultana Mihrimah), the daughter of Sultan Suleiman and wife of his brother, Grand Vizier Rüstem Pasha.

References

External links

Turgut Reis and Sinan Pasha - archived from the Wayback Machine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sinanuddin Yusuf Pasha 1553 deaths Kapudan Pashas People from the Ottoman Empire of Croatian descent Converts to Islam from Christianity Ottoman Empire admirals 16th-century Ottoman military personnel Slavs from the Ottoman Empire Year of birth unknown