Amasya’da Sultân Bâyezîd İmâmı Hâfız es-Seyyid Ahmed Efendi bin es-Seyyid Hâfız Mehmed Efendi’nin mahdûmudur. Hıfz-ı Kur’ân ve tahsîl-i ulûm etdikten sonra pederinin 1241’de irtihâli üzerine Sultân Bâyezîd Câmiine imâm-ı sânî ve 1248’de emîr İmâmzâde es-Seyyid Mustafa Efendi’nin yerine imâm-ı evvel ve ders-i âm ve ba’dehû meclis-i de’âvâ a’zâsı olduğu halde 1277’de vefât etdi. Memî Dedeönü Mezârlığında medfûndur.
Savt ü edâsı güzel, kârî, âlîm, nâfizü’l-kelim bir imâm idi. Mahdûmu Nablus Sancağı mutasarrıflığından mütekâ’iden İstanbul’da 1310’da vefât etdi. Bunun mahdûmu şehbenderlikten mütekâ’iden ber-hayat olan Ahmed Nâ’il Bey’dir. Kâtibzâde Ahmed Sâlim Bey’in akrabasındandır.
In Modern English
He was the son of Hâfız Seyyid Ahmed Efendi, imam of the Mosque of Sultan Bayezid in Amasya; Ahmed Efendi was the son of Hâfız Seyyid Mehmed Efendi. After memorising the Quran and studying the sciences, on his father's death in 1241 [1825-26] he became second imam of the Mosque of Sultan Bayezid. In 1248 [1832-33] he took the place of the emir İmamzâde Seyyid Mustafa Efendi as first imam and as professor giving public lectures, and he later became a member of the council of lawsuits. He died in 1277 [1860-61]. He lies buried in the Memî Dedeönü cemetery.
He was an imam with a fine voice and delivery, a Quran reciter, a learned man whose word carried weight. His son retired from the post of mutasarrıf of the Sanjak of Nablus and died in Istanbul in 1310 [1892-93]. The son of this man is Ahmed Nâil Bey, who retired from the post of şehbender (consul) and is living. He is a relative of Kâtibzâde Ahmed Sâlim Bey.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- imâm-ı sânî, imâm-ı evvel: second imam, first (chief) imam
- ders-i âm: a professor authorised to give public lectures
- meclis-i de'âvâ a'zâsı: member of the council of lawsuits
- irtihâl: death
- savt ü edâ: voice and manner of recitation
- kârî: Quran reciter
- nâfizü'l-kelim: one whose word carries weight and is heeded
- mutasarrıflık: governorship of a sanjak
- mütekâ'it: retired
- şehbender: a consul representing the state in foreign countries
- medfûn: buried
The Mosque of Sultan Bayezid
The building Hüsameddin calls the Mosque of Sultan Bayezid is the Bayezid II Mosque at the centre of the largest complex in Amasya. According to its inscriptions, the mosque was completed in Receb 891 (July 1486). The complex is a group of buildings with the mosque in the middle, the madrasa to its right, and the soup kitchen-hospice and guesthouse to its left. Standing in the middle of a wide courtyard on the bank of the Yeşilırmak, the building was, according to Hüsameddin's findings, heavily damaged in the earthquakes of 1590 and 1668-69 and repaired each time. The mosque was damaged again in the earthquake of 1939 and was repaired in the 1960s. The timekeeper's house in the courtyard was built in 1256 [1840-41] by Hacı Hüseyin Zeki Efendi; that is, it was added to the mosque in the years when Ahmed Efendi was first imam, by a contemporary Amasyan. Whether this Hüseyin Zeki Efendi is the same man as the brother named in the entry on Kapancızâde Ahmed Efendi, and whether there was any link between this work and Ahmed Efendi, could not be verified.
Imams and Mosque Staff
Ahmed Efendi's life shows the ladder of duty and status that an imamate followed: the father dies as imam, the son becomes second imam, then moves up to first imam. Most imams of the nineteenth century served in mosques and small mosques attached to waqfs and drew their salaries from waqf revenues. In 1826 the Ministry of Waqfs (Evkâf Nezareti) was founded, and with the financial reform of 1838 it was decided that salaries would be paid from the state treasury. The effect of this change on the imams' income has been studied: salaries stayed low, payments were late, and imams turned to additional duties such as müezzin and caretaker. The salary of imams in large mosques was clearly higher than that of imams of small mosques. That Ahmed Efendi taught in addition to being imam and sat on the council of lawsuits is understandable in this context. Hüsameddin gives no information about his salary.
Son and Grandson
The son who served as mutasarrıf of the Sanjak of Nablus and the grandson who retired from the post of consul show how a family of imams in Amasya turned to state service over three generations. No information was found in other sources on these men or on Ahmed Efendi himself. The present location of the Memî Dedeönü cemetery could not be verified either.
Bibliography