Mahmud Nedim Pasha () was an Ottoman conservative statesman of ethnic Georgian background,Buṭrus Abū Mannah (2001), ''Studies on Islam and the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century, 1826-1876'', p. 163. Isis Press, who served as

Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire 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 ...

between 1871–1872 and 1875–1876.

Biography

He was the son of Mehmed Najib Pasha, a governor-general of

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 ...

. After occupying various subordinate posts at the Porte, he became under-secretary of state for foreign affairs, governor-general of

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

and

İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...

(Smyrna), minister of commerce, and governor-general of Tripoli. He was also successively Minister of Justice and Minister of the Navy in 1869, and ultimately

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 ...

(identical to a

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

at this point in the Empire) twice from 1871 to 1872 and from 1875 to 1876. He was high in favour with Sultan Abdul Aziz and fell much under the influence of General Nicholas Pavlovich Ignatiev, the forceful

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

n ambassador before the

Russo-Turkish War (1877–78) The Russo-Turkish wars ( ), or the Russo-Ottoman wars (), began in 1568 and continued intermittently until 1918. They consisted of twelve conflicts in total, making them one of the longest series of wars in the history of Europe. All but four of ...

, his perceived subservience to Russia earning him the nickname of "Nedimoff". His administration was mostly unsuccessful from every point of view, and he was largely responsible for the issue of the decree suspending the interest on the Ottoman Empire's funds. He was

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 ...

and

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

from 1879 to late 1882.

Notes

References

* 1810s births 1883 deaths Government ministers of the Ottoman Empire 19th-century grand viziers of the Ottoman Empire Georgians from the Ottoman Empire Ottoman governors of Damascus Ottoman governors of Aidin Ottoman governors of Sidon Ministers of foreign affairs of the Ottoman Empire {{Ottoman-bio-stub