Amasya ümerâsından İzzeddîn Gül Bey’in mahdûmu olduğu münâsebetle Ebu’l Berekât Ahmed bin el-Verdî denmişdir. Âmme arasında “Güloğlu” demekle meşhûr idi. Amasya fuzalâsından tahsîl-i ilm ü kemâl ederek ders-i âm ve üstâdı Ziyâ’eddîn Îsâ el-Hakkâri’den sonra beylerbeyi Torumtay’ın yaptırdığı medreseye müderris ve ba’dehû Amasya kadı’l-kudâtı oldu. 759 sâlinden sonra vefât [238] etdi.
Fâzıl, fakîh, gâyet ünlü bir zât idi. Mahdûmu Nâsıreddîn Mehmed Çelebi de ulemâdan olup “Güloğlu” meşhûr idi. Birâderi Mehmed Bey ümerâdandır. Bunun oğulları Ali, Receb Beyler Mısır’a firâr etmişlerdi. Emîr Nâsıreddîn Mehmed bin Receb, vüzerâ-yı Mısriyyedendir.
In Modern English
Because he was the son of İzzeddin Gül Bey, one of the beys of Amasya, he was called Ebu'l-Berekât Ahmed bin el-Verdî. Among the people he was known as "Güloğlu." Having gained learning and maturity from the scholars of Amasya, he began giving public lessons; after his teacher Ziyâeddin Îsâ el-Hakkârî he became professor of the madrasa built by the beylerbeyi Torumtay, and later chief judge of Amasya. He died after 759 [1357-58].
He was a virtuous man, a jurist, very well known. His son Nâsıreddin Mehmed Çelebi was also among the scholars and was likewise known as "Güloğlu." His brother Mehmed Bey was among the beys. Mehmed's sons Ali and Receb Bey had fled to Egypt. Emîr Nâsıreddin Mehmed bin Receb was among the viziers of Egypt.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- münâsebetiyle: on account of, because of
- verd: rose (Arabic); "İbnü'l-Verdî" means son of Gül (Rose)
- âmme: the public
- ders-i âm: a professor who gives lessons open to all, a scholar who has begun to teach
- ba'dehû: after him
- sâl: year
- firâr: flight
- vüzerâ: viziers
Name and Epithet
The nisba "İbnü'l-Verdî" in the heading of the entry arose from the translation of the Turkish name "Gül" into Arabic. In Arabic verd means rose; Ahmed, whose father was İzzeddin Gül Bey, was called İbnü'l-Verdî, in the sense of "son of Gül," in records written in Arabic, and directly Güloğlu among the people.
The Torumtay Madrasa, Today's Gökmedrese Mosque
The madrasa in which Güloğlu was professor is the Gökmedrese Mosque, one of the Seljuk structures of Amasya still standing today. The building was erected by Seyfeddin Torumtay, who was made governor of Amasya in the time of Gıyâseddin Keyhusrev II. Because its inscription was removed from its place and lost, the exact date of construction is not known; but since the waqf deed drawn up by Torumtay himself bears the date 665 (1266-67), the construction is accepted to have been finished by that year at the latest. Torumtay himself lies in his tomb dated 677 (1278-79), separated from the building by a street. The structure, called "Gökmedrese" in the waqf deed, was used in its own time as both a madrasa and a mosque. It takes its name from the fact that the tomb adjoining it was decorated with purple and turquoise tiles and glazed bricks.
Its facade gains a monumental appearance from the cylindrical corner towers on its two sides; the geometric decorations around the entrance iwan and the windows are among the distinguished examples of Seljuk stonework. The old wooden door leaves, made in the relief kündekâri technique, are today in the Amasya Museum. The interior is divided by eight piers into three naves and covered with domes and vaults. In the tomb adjoining the northeast wall of the mosque there are seven sarcophagi, two of them small, whose owners are not known.
In a compilation on the madrasas of Amasya, the professors of this madrasa are given in order: the first professor is Gıyâseddin Mahmud-i Garmînî, followed by Ziyâeddin Îsâ el-Hakkârî and Şemseddin Ahmed-i Verdî. This order agrees exactly with Hüsameddin's entry; Güloğlu took the place of his teacher Hakkârî. According to the same study, the madrasa was also called "Medrese-i Seyfiyye" among the scholars, and the madrasa was rated at the 50-akçe grade.
Relatives Who Went to Egypt
At the end of the entry it is recorded that Güloğlu's nephews Ali and Receb Bey fled to Egypt and that Receb's son Emîr Nâsıreddin Mehmed entered the ranks of the Mamluk viziers. Local records show that the emirate of Amasya changed hands several times in the mid-fourteenth century and that the emirate was at times seized by force; it is possible that the flight was connected with these contests, but this is a conjecture. No information was found in other sources about these two brothers and Emîr Nâsıreddin Mehmed bin Receb.
No record other than Hüsameddin's was found on Güloğlu Ahmed's judgeship and date of death either.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 6, p. 81–81. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
Official sources