Murad Bey (; died 1631)Ibn Abi Dhiaf, ''Présent des hommes de notre temps. Chroniques des rois de Tunis et du pacte fondamental'', vol. II, éd. Maison tunisienne de l'édition, Tunis, 1990, p. 41 was the first hereditary

bey Bey, also spelled as Baig, Bayg, Beigh, Beig, Bek, Baeg, Begh, or Beg, is a Turkic title for a chieftain, and a royal, aristocratic title traditionally applied to people with special lineages to the leaders or rulers of variously sized areas in ...

Tunis Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...

, founder of the Muradid dynasty. He reigned from 1613 until his death. Originally from

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

and named Giacomo Senti, he was captured by the Tunisian corsairs at the age of nine and bought by the first bey of Tunis, the old mameluke Ramadhan. He was promoted by the bey, who made him his lieutenant (''kahia'') in 1613, and participated in missions to pacify the hinterland and collect taxes at the head of armed battalions called ''mhalla''. He allied himself to Yusuf Dey and received his old master's position after his death in 1613. He was enriched by the corsairs and subsequently obtained the title of

pasha Pasha (; ; ) was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitary, dignitaries, and others. ''Pasha'' was also one of the highest titles in the 20th-century Kingdom of ...

of Tunis from the Ottoman government, along with the right of his son and heir

Hamuda Bey Hammuda Pasha Bey (), died April 13, 1666Ibn Abi Dhiaf, ''Présent des hommes de notre temps. Chroniques des rois de Tunis et du pacte fondamental'', vol. II, éd. Maison tunisienne de l'édition, Tunis, 1990, p. 47 was the second Bey of the Tuni ...

to inherit the title of Bey, with the agreement of Yusuf Dey. Thus he became the founder of a dynasty of Beys who came to enjoy a controlling role in the government of Tunisia. Murad Bey enjoyed the respect of the Ottoman sultan, but also wide administrative autonomy and a unique degree of political independence, without doubt a result of his geographic distance from

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 ...

and of the

jihad ''Jihad'' (; ) is an Arabic word that means "exerting", "striving", or "struggling", particularly with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it encompasses almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with God in Islam, God ...

which the Tunisian corsairs carried on against

Christendom The terms Christendom or Christian world commonly refer to the global Christian community, Christian states, Christian-majority countries or countries in which Christianity is dominant or prevails.SeMerriam-Webster.com : dictionary, "Christen ...

. In fact, the government of Tunis (the

dey Dey (, from ) was the title given to the rulers of the regencies of Algiers, Tripolitania,Bertarelli (1929), p. 203. and Tunis under the Ottoman Empire from 1671 onwards. Twenty-nine ''deys'' held office from the establishment of the deylicate ...

, the bey, and the

divan A divan or diwan (, ''dīvān''; from Sumerian ''dub'', clay tablet) was a high government ministry in various Islamic states, or its chief official (see ''dewan''). Etymology The word, recorded in English since 1586, meaning "Oriental cou ...

) were able to conclude peace treaties and commercial agreements with the rulers of the major states of Europe independently of the Sultan. He contented himself with appointing a pasha, theoretically the supreme representative of the Ottoman government in Tunis, every three years and with receiving the traditional tribute in kind from the diwan on these occasions. The men in power in Tunis demanded from the cities and tribes of the interior only the minimal level of deference necessary to maintain order and security. The bey did not, legally speaking, exact taxes but only a sort of annual tribute and so long as this was paid he left them to live according to their norms and customs. Under the first Muradid beys, Tunis acquired a real prosperity through commercial activity, piracy, and the regular collection of tribute. In the domain of art, the

Great Mosque of Kairouan The Great Mosque of Kairouan (), also known as the Mosque of Uqba (), is a mosque situated in the UNESCO World Heritage town of Kairouan, Tunisia and is one of the largest Islamic monuments in North Africa. Established by the Arab general U ...

received some restoration work in the reign of Murad Bey who wished to leave his mark on the ancient monument, mostly some painted ceilings in the prayer hall. This work is dated to 1028 AH (= 1618).Georges Marçais, ''Coupole et plafonds de la Grande Mosquée de Kairouan'', éd. Tournier, Paris, 1925, p. 59

References

Bibliography

Arthur Pellegrin Arthur is a masculine given name of uncertain etymology. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. A common spelling variant used in many Slavic, Romance, and Germanic languages is Artur. In Spanish and Ital ...

, ''Histoire illustrée de Tunis et de sa banlieue''. éd. Saliba, Tunis, 1955 {{S-end Muradid dynasty People from Corsica 1631 deaths Converts to Sunni Islam from Christianity