[308] Amasyalıdır. “Menâzırü’l-Avâlim” kitâbının sonlarında musarrah olduğu üzere Amasya‘da mahallesi olan Ahî Sâbıkuddîn evlâdından Amasyalı eş-Şeyh Kemâleddîn Ahmed el-Halvetîzâde Mahmûd Çelebi mahdûmudur.
Pederi Mahmûd Çelebi 974’de Amasya vâlisi olan Sultân Murâd-ı Sâlise intisâb eylediğinden Enderûn-ı Hümâyûna alındı. Orada terbiye görüp 982 ramâzanında Sultân Murâd-ı Sâlisin cülûsunda tefeyyüz ederek Dîvân-ı Hümâyûn küttâbına iltihâk etdi.
991’de Rûmeli muhâsebecisi, 1002 saferinde Sultân Bâyezîd evkâfı mütevellîsi, 1004 senesi recebinin evâhirinde Şâm defterdârı oldu. Dört seneden ziyâde Şâm’ın umûr-ı mâliyesini hüsn-i idâre ve ıslâh eylediğinden 1008 senesi şevvâlinde Şâm Beylerbeyi oldu.
Bade’l-azl 1014’de Adana ve 1018’de Halep vâlisi olduğu halde 1020’de orada vefât etdi. Ricâl-i meşhûreden âlim, muktedîr, muhâsib, hâdim-i din ve devlet bir zât idi. Mahdûmu Mehmed Bey’dir. [309]
In Modern English
He was a native of Amasya. As stated near the end of the book "Menâzırü'l-Avâlim", he was the son of Mahmud Çelebi, son of the Amasya-born eş-Şeyh Kemâleddîn Ahmed el-Halvetîzâde, of the line of Ahî Sâbıkuddîn, after whom a quarter in Amasya is named.
His father Mahmud Çelebi, having attached himself to Murad III, who became governor of Amasya in 974 [1566-67], was taken into the Enderûn-ı Hümâyûn. Educated there, he rose when Murad III ascended the throne in Ramazan 982 [1574] and joined the scribes of the Dîvân-ı Hümâyûn.
In 991 [1583-84] he became Rumeli accountant, in Safer 1002 [1593-94] trustee of the waqfs of Sultan Bayezid, and at the end of Receb 1004 [1596] defterdar of Damascus. Because for more than four years he managed and improved the financial affairs of Damascus, he became beylerbeyi of Damascus in Şevval 1008 [1600].
After his dismissal he became governor of Adana in 1014 [1605-06] and of Aleppo in 1018 [1609-10], and he died there in 1020 [1611-12]. He was one of the well-known statesmen, a scholar, capable, skilled in accounting, a servant of religion and state. His son is Mehmed Bey.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- mahdûm: son
- musarrah: stated openly, specified
- intisâb: attaching oneself to
- Enderûn-ı Hümâyûn: the inner service and training section of the palace
- cülûs: accession to the throne
- tefeyyüz: rising, being favoured
- Dîvân-ı Hümâyûn küttâbı: the scribes of the imperial council
- muhâsebeci: the official responsible for the accounts and records of a region
- mütevellî: administrator of a waqf
- defterdâr: the official responsible for the financial affairs of a province
- umûr-ı mâliyye: financial affairs
- ma'zûl: dismissed
- muhsib: skilled in accounting
Menâzırü'l-Avâlim
The "Menâzırü'l-Avâlim" on which Hüsameddin relies is Âşık Mehmed's geographical, cosmographical and topographical work. Âşık Mehmed was born in Trabzon around 964 [1556-57], travelled for some twenty-five years, finally settled in Damascus and died there; he is known to have written the work toward the end of his life, and his death falls after 1006 [1598]. That the text's information on the defterdarlık of Damascus (1004 [1596]) and the beylerbeyilik (1008 [1600]) comes near the end of this book does not conflict with the years the author lived in Damascus (inference). However, the statement at the end of the book could not be read, so the information Hüsameddin reports could not be verified from this source.
Whose Offices Are Listed
The text does not state plainly to whom the offices listed from 991 onwards belong. The narrative continues with the same subject after his father Mahmud Çelebi joined the scribes of the Divan in 982; these offices may therefore belong to Mahmud Çelebi, since the son of a man taken into the Enderûn in 974 would not be expected to be an accountant in 991 (inference). The heading of the entry, however, is Mehmed Pasha. The translation keeps the text's unmarked flow as it is.
Murad III and Amasya
Hüsameddin writes that Mahmud Çelebi attached himself to Murad III, governor of Amasya in 974 [1566-67], and was taken into the Enderûn. The entry on Murad III, however, says that the prince was sent to the sanjak of Saruhan in 969 [1562] and administered it for twelve years until he became sultan, living in Manisa; a governorship of Amasya is not mentioned. Hüsameddin's "governor of Amasya" therefore does not agree with the source read and could not be verified. The accession date, Ramazan 982 [1574], on the other hand, fits the year Murad III became sultan.
Mehmed Pasha Himself and His Family
The offices listed in the text, Rumeli accountant, trustee of the Bayezid waqfs, defterdar and beylerbeyi of Damascus, governor of Adana and of Aleppo, and the death in 1020, were not found in the sources read. No information was found on the Ahî Sâbıkuddîn quarter, on Mahmud Çelebi or on his son Mehmed Bey either. None of the dates Hüsameddin gives could therefore be verified in another source.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 7, p. 357–358. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies