Amasyalıdır. Esbak Top-hâne Nâzırı Ahmed Efendi’nin [715] birâderi el-Hâc Mehmed Ağa bin Hüseyin Efendi bin Yeniceli el-Hâc Hâfız Mehmed Efendi’nin mahdûmudur. Enderûn-ı Hümâyûnda terbiye görüp tefeyyüz ederek Sultân Selîm Hân-ı Sâlisin çuhâdârı oldu. Ba’dehû kapıcıbaşılıkla taşra çıktı. Devr-i hidemât ederek Sultân Mahmûd Hân-ı Sânî cülûsundan sonra cebecibaşı oldu.
1225’de azledilip müte’âkiben Amasya’ya gönderildi. Vusûlünde Hüseyin Ağa vakfı mütevellîsi olduğu halde 1227 senesinde vefât etdi. Ricâlden idi. Mahdûmu Mustafa Ağa da, Hüseyin Ağa vakfına mütevellî olup Amasya’da kaldı. Bunun da vefâtında mahdûmu Halid Ağa Hüseyin ve Firûz Ağalar vakfına mütevellî olup Çırağan Sarayı bekçisi olarak 1264 senesi cumâdelâhiresinde vefât etdi.
In Modern English
He was from Amasya. He was the son of Hacı Mehmed Ağa, the brother of Ahmed Efendi, the former Superintendent of the Foundry (Tophane Nâzırı); Mehmed Ağa was the son of Hüseyin Efendi, who was the son of Hacı Hâfız Mehmed Efendi of Yenice. He was trained and matured in the Enderun-ı Hümâyun (the palace school) and became çuhadar (palace attendant) to Selim III. He then went out to the provinces as a kapıcıbaşı. After serving in various posts, he became cebecibaşı following the accession of Mahmud II.
In 1225 [1810] he was dismissed and immediately afterward sent to Amasya. On arriving there he served as trustee of the waqf of Hüseyin Ağa and died in 1227 [1812]. He was one of the men of state. His son Mustafa Ağa also became trustee of the Hüseyin Ağa waqf and stayed in Amasya. On his death his son Halid Ağa became trustee of the waqf of Hüseyin and Firuz Ağas, and died as a guard of the Çırağan Palace in Jumada al-Akhira 1264 [1848].
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- mahdûm: son
- esbak: former, previous
- tefeyyüz: maturing, being educated
- çuhadar: a palace attendant in the sultan's service
- devr-i hidemât: moving from post to post
- cülûs: accession to the throne
- müte'âkiben: immediately afterward
- vusûl: arrival
- mütevellî: administrator of a waqf
- ricâl: men of state, notables
The Office of Kapıcıbaşı
The kapıcıs served at the Ottoman palace on gate duty, as palace guards, and in ceremonial tasks; the kapıcıbaşıs were the officers who handled their appointments and promotions. In the time of Mehmed the Conqueror there was a single kapıcıbaşı, but the number grew over time and rose as high as 150 by the end of the eighteenth century. Kapıcıbaşıs were also sent to the provinces for tasks such as collecting taxes, delivering provisions and money to the army, inspection, and bailiff duties; the phrase "went out to the provinces" in the text fits this practice. In later centuries the title kapıcıbaşı also began to be granted as a rank or honorary grade, and was even bestowed on some notables (âyan). After the abolition of the Janissary Corps in 1826, only thirty kapıcıbaşıs were retained in the capital and the provinces. Hüsameddin does not say in which of these posts Ahmed Ağa served or for how long.
A Palace Family in Amasya
What stands out in the entry is that an official trained in the Enderun was sent back to his hometown after dismissal and ended his life there as a waqf trustee. That his son took over the same waqf, and that his grandson served as guard of the Çırağan Palace in Istanbul, shows a family tied both to waqf affairs in Amasya and to the palace circle in the capital. No source other than Hüsameddin could be found for the Hüseyin Ağa waqf, the Firuz Ağa waqf, or the guardship of the Çırağan Palace; this information rests solely on his book.
Bibliography
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 6, p. 222–222. amasya.bel.tr