Emîr Mehmed Pasha-Hacı Kasımzâde Delî

In Modern English

He was from Amasya. He was the son of es-Seyyid Mustafa Ağa, one of the well-known seyyids of the Rifâiyye order; Mustafa Ağa was the son of es-Seyyid el-Hâc Kâsım Ağa. Since he is famous in history as "Deli Emîr Mehmed Pasha," his life is mentioned and described in detail below under the heading "Mehmed Paşa, Deli Emîr."

Notes and Research

Old Words in the Text

• meşâhir-i sâdât-ı Rifâîyye: well-known seyyid families belonging to the Rifâiyye order
• mahdûm: son
• tarihen ma'lûm: known in history, mentioned in the sources
• zikir ve tafsîl olunur: is mentioned and described in detail

What the Text Says and Does Not Say

The entry is only a cross-reference. The person's descent is given through three generations: Kâsım Ağa, Mustafa Ağa and Mehmed. In a separate entry in volume 4 of the book, this chain is extended by one more step and linked to the name "es-Seyyid Hasan İzzeddîn." The reason for the nickname "Deli" is not explained anywhere.

Governorship of Amasya

In the Ottoman-period sections of the book, the name of Deli Emîr Mehmed Pasha appears within the yearly events. In 1074 [1663-64] he is not yet a Pasha but is mentioned as Deli Emîr es-Seyyid Mehmed Ağa, one of the palace kapıcıbaşıs. That year the governor of Niğbolu, Kara Kadızâde İbrâhim Pasha of Amasya, his cousin Mehmed Pasha, the governor (mutasarrıf) of Amasya, and several others were executed in the army camp and their property confiscated; the sale of their property in Amasya was carried out through him, and in return the sanjak of Çorum was given to him. In later years he was repeatedly put at the head of Amasya. In 1078 [1667-68] he is mentioned as governor of Amasya; in 1079 [1668-69] he was promoted to beylerbeyi of Şehr-i Zor. In Şevvâl 1082 [1672] he became governor of Amasya for the second time. In 1084 [1673-74] he was appointed to the sanjaks of Amasya and Kayseri together; he himself stayed in Kayseri and ran Amasya through his deputy. Late in 1085 he became beylerbeyi of Maraş. In 1087 [1676-77] he became governor of Amasya for the fourth time and the sanjak of Kayseri was attached to him; at the end of the year he was given the post of inspector of Anatolia and went toward Sivas. In Ramazan 1088 [1678] he again became beylerbeyi of Maraş.

From other entries in the book it can also be seen that he had clerks from Amasya around him. Celâlî Mehmed Çelebi and Fazlızâde Hâfız Hasan Efendi served as his divan clerks and travelled round the provinces with him. Hasan Ağa of Geygelli was also his steward (kethüda).

The Clash Between the Seyyids and the People of Ziyâre

During the Pasha's second tenure in 1083, a great quarrel took place in Amasya. According to Hüsameddin, a seyyid boy from Ziyâre said he had been attacked on the road; the nakîbü'l-eşrâf Abdurrahman Efendi demanded that the culprit be found, and many of the Ziyâre seyyids were arrested. When it became clear that the persons shown to the boy were not the culprits, the kadı Abdülbâkî Efendi released them all; the seyyids then attacked the court and stoned the house where the kadı had taken refuge. Although the governor, being a seyyid, sided with the seyyids, he condemned the treatment of the kadı and set about punishing the attackers. The people divided into two sides; part of the scholars and notables and the sipahis stood with the kadı, the Janissaries with the seyyids. The affair calmed down with the death of a few people, the culprit was not found, and the matter remained resting on the boy's word. Hüsameddin offers no comment in this record on how the governor's identity as a seyyid affected his attitude.

In Other Sources

Searches on the life and governorship of Deli Emîr Mehmed Pasha found no detailed source apart from Hüsameddin's book. The biography of another Ottoman official with the nickname "Deli Emir," Deli Emir Ahmed Agha, who served as governor of Sidon and Aleppo in the 18th century, should not be confused with this person; there is no record that a link between the two has been established.

Bibliography

Primary sources

• Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 7, p. 354–354. amasya.bel.tr
• Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, vol. 4, entries "Mehmed Paşa" (p. 587–588) and "Es-Seyyid Mehmed Paşa" (p. 590–591, 592–594, 594–595, 596).
• Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, vol. 8, entries "Celâlî Mehmed Çelebi-Celâlzâde" (p. 520) and "Hasan Ağa-Geyiklili."

Other sources

• "Deli Emir Ahmed Agha", Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deli_Emir_Ahmed_Agha