Mahmud I

Mahmud I
Ottoman Caliph Amir al-Mu'minin Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Sultan of the two lands, Khagan of the two seas
Portrait byJean Baptiste Vanmour
Sultan of the Ottoman Empire(Padishah)
Reign	1 October 1730 –13 December 1754
Predecessor	Ahmed III
Successor	Osman III
Born	2 August 1696 Edirne Palace,Edirne,Ottoman Empire
Died	13 December 1754(1754-12-13)(aged 58) Topkapı Palace,Constantinople,Ottoman Empire
Burial	Tomb of Turhan Sultan,New Mosque,Istanbul, Turkey
Consorts	Ayşe Kadın Hatem Kadın Alicenab Kadın Verdinaz Kadın Hatice Rami Kadın Tiryal Kadın Raziye Kadın Meyyase Hanim Fehmi Hanim Sirri Hanim Habbabe Hanim
Names Mahmud bin Mustafa
Dynasty	Ottoman
Father	Mustafa II
Mother	Saliha Sultan
Religion	Sunni Islam
Tughra

Mahmud I(Ottoman Turkish:محمود اول,Turkish:I. Mahmud;2 August 1696 – 13 December 1754), known asMahmud the Hunchback,was thesultan of the Ottoman Empirefrom 1730 to 1754. He took over the throne after the quelling of thePatrona Halil rebellion.His reign was marked by wars in Persia andconflicts in Europe.He delegated government affairs to his viziers and devoted time to writing poetry.Nader Shah'sdevastating campaignweakened the Mughal Empire and created the opportunity for Mahmud I toinitiate warwith cooperation fromMuhammad Shah.The alliance ended with the latter's death, leading to tensions between the Afsharids and the Ottomans. In 1748, he outlawedFreemasonrywithin theOttoman Empire.

Early life

He was born atEdirne Palaceon 2 August 1696, the son ofMustafa II(1664–1703); his mother wasSalihaValide sultan.Mahmud I was the older half-brother ofOsman III(1754–57). He developed ahumped back.

His father Mustafa II mostly lived in Edirne. Mahmud passed his childhood in Edirne. On 18 May 1702 he started his education in Edirne. When his father deposed himself from the throne he was brought to Istanbul and locked up inKafeswhere he spent 27 years of his life.

It is not known what kind of culture he acquired during this time, since he continued to play chess, write poetry, and deal with music. In addition for childhood and youth, there were dangers,especially for the Kafes life.

Reign

Accession

On 28 September 1730,Patrona Halilwith a small group of fellowJanissariesaroused some of the citizens ofConstantinoplewho opposed the reforms ofAhmed III.Sweeping up more soldiers Halil led the riot to theTopkapı Palaceand demanded the death of the grand vizer,Nevşehirli Damat İbrahim Pashaand the abdication of Ahmed III. Ahmed III acceded to the demands, had İbrahim Pasha strangled, and agreed to his nephew, Mahmud, becoming sultan.

Mahmud's real reign began on 25 November 1730, after this incident. First of all,Istanbulwas taken under strict control. Measures were taken. About two thousand suspicious people were captured, some were executed, some were exiled.

Mahmud's rule

Mahmud I was recognized as sultan by the mutineers as well as by court officials but for some weeks after his accession the empire was in the hands of the insurgents. Halil rode with the new sultan to theMosque of Eyübwhere the ceremony of girding Mahmud I with theSword of Osmanwas performed; many of the chief officers were deposed and successors to them appointed at the dictation of the bold rebel who had served in the ranks of the Janissaries and who appeared before the sultan bare-legged and in his old uniform of a common soldier. A Greek butcher, named Yanaki, had formerly given credit to Halil and had lent him money during the three days of the insurrection. Halil showed his gratitude by compelling the Divan to make YanakiHospodarof Moldavia. However, Yanaki never took charge of this office.

The Khan of the Crimea assisted theGrand Vizier,theMuftiand theAgaof the Janissaries in putting down the rebellion. On 24 November 1731, Halil was strangled by the sultan's orderand in his presence, after a Divan in which Halil had dictated that war be declared against Russia. His Greek friend, Yanaki, and 7,000 of those who had supported him were also put to death.The jealousy which the officers of the Janissaries felt towards Halil, and their readiness to aid in his destruction, facilitated the exertions of Mahmud I's supporters in putting an end to the rebellion after it had lasted over a year.

The Austrian ambassador, who came toIstanbulin August 1740, was given adinnerin Davudpaşa. Çavuşbaşı took the ambassador and took him to his mansion prepared in Beyoğlu. On the day of the Ulufe Court, he presented his name to the Sultan. Various demonstrations were held in places where welcome and farewell ceremonies were held for the ambassador from Yeniköy Pier.

The rest of Mahmud I's reign was dominated by wars inPersia,with thecollapsing Safavid dynastyand theascendance ofNader Shah. Mahmud also faced a notable war in Europe—theAustro-Russian-Turkish War (1735–1739).

After the condemnation of Freemasonry byPope Clement XIIin 1738, he followed suit outlawing the organization and since that time Freemasonry was equated withatheismin theOttoman Empireand the broader Islamic world.

Mahmud I entrusted government to hisviziersand spent much of his time composing poetry.

Fires of 1750

The fire that started at the Ayazma gate in January 1750 lasted for 19 hours. Numerous shops, houses, and mansions burned until the fire reachedVefadistrict. The sultan dismissed Boynueğri Abdullah Pasha and appointed Divitdar Mehmed Emin Pasha on 9 January 1750. In the second fire that broke out on 31 March 1750, Bitpazan, Abacılar, Yorgancılar, Yağlıkcılar, Haffaflar were completely burned. The fire spread to Fingerkapi and Tatlikuyu. The sultan, with the help of thetreasury,repaired the burned down areas.

Architecture

Mahmud I started construction of the Cağaloğlu Bath, called Yeni Hamam, in the spring of 1740 on the site of Cağaloğlu Palace, which covers a large area. Foundation houses were built on the remaining empty lands and a neighborhood was established. The sultan opened the one in the courtyard of theHagia Sophia Mosque,the first of the three libraries it established in Istanbul, with a ceremony and made 4,000 volumes. In the library, Sahih-i Buharf reading of ten inhabitants every day was one of the conditions of the foundation. Mahmud also came to the Rosary Gate of Hagia Sophia several times, sat in the library and listened to the commentary oftafsir.The famine, which appeared due to the heavy winter, became increasingly heavier at the end of spring.

Relations with the Mughal Empire

Nader Shah's devastating campaign against theMughal Empire,created a void in the western frontiers ofPersia,which was effectively exploited by theOttomanSultanMahmud I, who initiated theOttoman–Persian War (1743–46),in which theMughal EmperorMuhammad Shahclosely cooperated with the Ottomans and their ambassador Haji Yusuf Agha, these relations between the two empires continued until Muhammad Shah's death in 1748.

Relations with Safavid Empire

In March 1741, the ambassador of Nadir Shah from Iran government, Hacı Han, came to Istanbul with 3,000 people and his guards unit to prolong the peace between them. Among his gifts were fabrics embroidered with jewels, ten elephants, and valuable weapons. Hacı Han was given a banquet in Fener Bahçesin. It was also a problem to pass the elephants brought by hand to Istanbul, and wide shakes were laid on the barges, so wooden curtains were laid around them so that elephants could not be scared.

The relations between theAfsharid EmpireandOttoman Empirebecame increasingly tense, reached a new dimension in February 1743, and Shah Safi, who was one of Shah Hussein's princes and held hostage onChios Island,was condemned and led to Nader Shah's inability to complete. He was sent to the Afsharid border with the troops that joined him.

Death

Mahmud I who was disturbed byfistulaand during the harsh winter his health declined day by day. On Friday, 13 December 1754 he went for attending the Friday prayer. After attending the prayer he went back to his palace but in the journey he collapsed on his horse and died on the same day and was buried in his great-grandmotherTurhan Sultan Mausoleumin New Mosque, at Eminönü, in Istanbul, Turkey.

Family

There are eleven known consorts of Mahmud I, but he had no children by any of them (just as his heir, his younger half-brotherOsman III,who also remained childless), despite a reign of twenty-four years. This is why Sakaoğlu, a Turkish historian, speculates that Mahmud may have been castrated during his years of imprisonment inKafes.

The known consorts of Mahmud I are:

• Hace Ayşe Kadın.BaşKadin(first consort) until her death.She built a school in Çörekçikapısı, near theFatih Mosque.The nameHaceindicated that she had made the pilgrimage toMeccaby proxy. She died in 1746.
• Hatem Kadın. BaşKadin from the death of Ayşe Kadın in 1746 until the death of Mahmud I in 1754.She died in 1769 and was buried in theAyazma mosqueinÜsküdar.
• Hace Alicenab Kadın.She built schools and fountains in the Fatih neighborhood. The nameHaceindicated that she had made the pilgrimage to Mecca by proxy. She died in 1775 and was buried inYeni Cami.
• Hace Verdinaz Kadın. She built a school and a fountain in Murâdpaşa and another fountain in Galata. The nameHaceindicated that she had made the pilgrimage to Mecca by proxy. She died on December 16, 1804, and was buried in Şehzâdebaşı. Her late death date suggests that she was one of the youngest consorts.
• Hatice Rami Kadın. She built a school and a fountain in Beşiktaş. A year after Mahmud I's death in 1755, she married Inspector Haremeyn Mustafapaşazade İbrahim Bey. She died on January 16, 1780.
• Tiryal Kadın, who died between 1785 and 1789.
• Raziye Kadın
• Meyyase Hanim
• Fehmi Hanim
• Sirri Hanim
• Habbabe Hanim

References

Sources

• Incorporates text fromHistory of Ottoman Turks(1878)
• Peirce, Leslie P. (1993).The Imperial Harem: Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire.Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-195-08677-5.
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• Şapolyo, Enver Behnan (1961).Osmanlı sultanları tarihi.R. Zaimler Yayınevi.
• Necepoğlu, Gülrü (1 January 2002).Muqarnas: An Annual on the Visual Culture of the Islamic World, Volume 19.BRILL.ISBN978-9-004-12593-3.
• Sakaoğlu, Necdet (2008).Bu mülkün kadın sultanları: Vâlide sultanlar, hâtunlar, hasekiler, kadınefendiler, sultanefendiler.Oğlak Yayıncılık.ISBN978-9-753-29623-6.
• Uluçay, Mustafa Çağatay (2011).Padişahların kadınları ve kızları.Ankara, Ötüken.
• Sakaoğlu, Necdet (2015).Bu Mülkün Sultanları.Alfa Yayıncılık.ISBN978-6-051-71080-8.