Köprülüdür. Attar el-Hâc Hasan Ağa bin Mehmed Ağa’nın mahdûmudur. Hazîne-i hümâyûn kethüdâsı Merzifonî el-Hâc Ebûbekir Efendi’nin pederiyle sohbet-i kadîmesine binâen müşârün-ileyhe intisâb edib İstanbul’da hizmetler ifâ ederek kapıcıbaşı oldu.
Ba’dehû Amasya‘ya ihtisâb ağası olarak gelip ikâmet etdi. 1252 senesi saferinde Amasya mütesellimi olup onbir ay Amasya sancağını idâre eyledi. 1253 senesi muharreminde ma’zûl ve 1254 cumadelûlâsında sâniyen Amasya mütesellimi oldu.
1255 senesi evâilinde birinci Doktor vak’ası zuhûrunda korkusundan kaçıp Köprü’de ihtifâ ve çok geçmeden Sultân Mahmûd-ı sânînin vefâtıyla Sultân Abdulmecid Hân’ın cülûsunda avdet ederek vazîfesi başına geldi.
Fakat tahkikât esnâsında teseyyüb ve ihmâli ve zaf-ı idâresi anlaşıldığından sene-i mezbûre zilka’desinde [88] azledildi. Beş yıl kadar ihtiyâr-ı tekâüd ederek 1260’da vefât etdi. Amasya‘nın meşâhir-i a’yânından olup zî-servet ü sâmân, kerîm bir hânedân idi.
Sultân Bâyezîd Câmi-i şerîfinin şark-ı şimâlisinde Yeşilırmak üzerinde muazzam bir konağı, Çakallar’da yol üzerinde şehre nâzır bir mevkiinde büyük bir bağı meşhûr idi. Kendisi Aşağı Pîrler Mezarlığı’nda medfûndur. Evlâdına Hacı Es’ad Ağazâdeler dendi.
Mahdûmları Abdullah Nuri, Mehmed Vehbi, Hasan, Ali Beylerdir. Abdullah Nuri Bey, askerî kâim-makâmlarından olup 1278’de vefât etdi. Mahdûmu Süheyl Bey’dir. Mehmed Vehbi Bey, Köprü’de kalıp evlâdına Vehbi Beyzâdeler dendi.
Hasan Bey, Yeğenzâde Hasan Bey’in kerîmezâdesi olup Amasya eşrâfından olduğu halde 1296’da vefât etdi. Mahdûmları Mehmed Hamdi, İbrâhim Cemâl, Ahmed Nafiz, Abdülkâdir Kadri Beylerdir. Rütbe-i bâlâ ricâlinden Üsküdar mutasarrıfı Mehmed Hamdi Bey 1327’de vefât eyledi. [89]
El-Hâc Ali Bey de Köprü’de ikâmet edib 1291’de vefât etdi. Mahdûmları el-Hâc Ahmed, Es’ad, Ömer Beylerdir. Hacı Ahmed Bey 1322’da vefât etdi. Oğulları Abdullah, Mehmed Ziya Beylerdir. Abdullah Bey talebeden iken 1326’da merhûm oldu.
El-Hâc Ömer Bey, Köprü eşrâfından Keşrâfzâde el-Hâc Hasan Şükrü Efendi’ye muârız bir meslek tuttuğundan yıllarca birbiriyle uğraşdılar. Şâyân-ı hayretdir ki Hacı Ömer Bey, 1338 senesi şa’bânının on ikinci cumartesi günü, hasmı olan Keşrâfzâde Hacı Şükrü Efendi de on yedi gün sonra şa’bânın yirmi dokuzuncu salı günü vefât etdi.
In Modern English
He was from Köprü. He was the son of Attar Hacı Hasan Ağa; Hasan Ağa was the son of Mehmed Ağa. Because Merzifon-born Hacı Ebûbekir Efendi, steward of the imperial treasury, had an old friendship with his father, he attached himself to Ebûbekir Efendi, performed services in Istanbul and became kapıcıbaşı.
Later he came to Amasya as ihtisâb ağası and settled there. In Safar 1252 [1836-37] he became mütesellim of Amasya and governed the sanjak of Amasya for eleven months. In Muharram 1253 [1837-38] he was dismissed, and in Jumada al-Ula 1254 [1838-39] he became mütesellim of Amasya for the second time.
At the beginning of 1255 [1839-40], when the first Doctor incident broke out, he fled in fear and hid in Köprü; not long after, upon the death of Sultan Mahmud II and the accession of Sultan Abdülmecid Han, he returned and resumed his post.
But because his carelessness, negligence and weak administration became clear during the investigation, he was dismissed in Dhu al-Qa'da of the same year. After about five years of voluntary retirement he died in 1260 [1844-45]. He was among the famous notables of Amasya, and his was a wealthy, prosperous and generous household.
His large mansion on the Yeşilırmak, northeast of the Sultan Bayezid Mosque, and his large vineyard on the road at Çakallar, overlooking the city, were famous. He is buried in the Lower Pîrler Cemetery. His children were called Hacı Es'ad Ağazades.
His sons were Abdullah Nûrî, Mehmed Vehbî, Hasan and Ali Bey. Abdullah Nûrî Bey was one of the military deputy commanders (kaymakam) and died in 1278 [1861-62]. His son is Süheyl Bey. Mehmed Vehbî Bey stayed in Köprü, and his children were called Vehbî Beyzades.
Hasan Bey, the son of the daughter of Yeğenzâde Hasan Bey, was one of the notables of Amasya and died in 1296 [1878-79]. His sons were Mehmed Hamdi, İbrâhim Cemâl, Ahmed Nafiz and Abdülkâdir Kadri Bey. Mehmed Hamdi Bey, governor (mutasarrıf) of Üsküdar, one of the high-ranking statesmen, died in 1327 [1909-10].
Hacı Ali Bey also lived in Köprü and died in 1291 [1874-75]. His sons were Hacı Ahmed, Es'ad and Ömer Bey. Hacı Ahmed Bey died in 1322 [1904-05]. His sons were Abdullah and Mehmed Ziyâ Bey. Abdullah Bey died in 1326 [1908-09] while still a student.
Because Hacı Ömer Bey took a course opposed to Keşrâfzâde Hacı Hasan Şükrü Efendi, one of the notables of Köprü, they struggled with each other for years. It is astonishing that Hacı Ömer Bey died on the twelfth Saturday of Sha'ban 1338 [1919-20], and his adversary Keşrâfzâde Hacı Şükrü Efendi seventeen days later, on the twenty-ninth Tuesday of Sha'ban.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- attar: a tradesman selling spices, medicines and perfumes
- hazîne-i hümâyûn kethüdâsı: the administrator of the sultan's treasury
- kapıcıbaşı: head of the palace gatekeepers; the kapıcıbaşıs of the imperial court also took on important tasks
- ihtisâb ağası: an official who supervised order and morals in the market
- mütesellim: an official who governed a sanjak and collected taxes as deputy of the governor or sanjak bey
- ma'zûl: dismissed from office
- ihtifâ: hiding
- cülûs: the accession of a sultan to the throne
- tahkîkât, teseyyüb: investigation; carelessness and laxity
- zaf-ı idâre: weakness of administration
- tekâüd: retirement
- zî-servet ü sâmân: one possessing wealth and orderly property
- kerîmezâde: daughter's son
- eşrâf: notables
- mutasarrıf: a senior official governing a sanjak
- muârız: opposed, rival
Who the Mütesellim Was
The mütesellim in the Ottoman state was an official who, as deputy of the beylerbey or sanjak bey, took charge in their place when they went on campaign or did not go to their districts, and who collected taxes. The term of office was supposed to be one year, but this rule was almost never observed; some stayed a few months, others served in the same sanjak for years. In some cases kapıcıbaşıs were also given mütesellimships. In the nineteenth century, as complaints of corruption and oppression by mütesellims grew, changes were made in their appointment: through the state's centralizing efforts it became the rule that mütesellims be chosen especially from Istanbul and from among kapıcıbaşıs and other high-ranking officials. Es'ad Ağa's path fits this picture: he served in Istanbul and became a kapıcıbaşı, and then was appointed mütesellim in Amasya. In 1839, when the state was reorganized with the Tanzimat Edict, the institution of the mütesellim was also taken up; since it was judged impossible to reform, it was abolished and replaced by muhassıllıks concerned only with financial affairs.
Es'ad Ağa's first mütesellimship was in 1252-1253 (1836-38); the second lasted from 1254 until Dhu al-Qa'da of 1255. The year 1839, in which the Tanzimat Edict was proclaimed, falls within his second term; but when the mütesellimship actually ended in Amasya could not be determined in the sources read.
The Incident of 1255 and the Change of Sultan
Hüsameddin writes that Es'ad Ağa fled in fear at the "first Doctor incident" at the beginning of 1255 and returned with the death of Mahmud II and the accession of Abdülmecid. Mahmud II died on 1 July 1839; his seventeen-year-old son Abdülmecid succeeded him. This date falls within the year 1255, and the order in the text, first the incident and then the change of sultan, is consistent with it.
What the "Doctor incident" was could not be determined in the searches carried out. This phrase occurs also in other entries of Hüsameddin's book and is mentioned for the years 1261 (1845-46) and 1263 (1846-47) as well; since it is mentioned together with the investigation that led to Es'ad Ağa's removal from the mütesellimship, it may be thought to be an event connected with administration, but no other source was found indicating its nature.
Köprü and the Families of Köprü
The text says "he was from Köprü" and notes that some of his sons stayed in Köprü. It is known that at the end of the nineteenth century the sanjak of Amasya consisted of eight districts, among them Vezirköprü; for this reason it is plausible that "Köprü" means Vezirköprü, but the text says only "Köprü," and the identification is an inference.
Mansion, Vineyard and Grave
Es'ad Ağa's mansion lies on the Yeşilırmak northeast of the Sultan Bayezid Mosque; the mosque and the complex themselves were also built on the riverbank. Whether the mansion is standing today could not be determined. The location of the Lower Pîrler Cemetery also could not be separately verified; Pîrler is a quarter of Amasya in which the Yâkub Paşa Tekke is also located.
No information was found in other sources on Hacı Es'ad Ağa and his descendants. The family-history information, that is, the names of the sons and grandsons and their death dates, rests only on Hüsameddin.
Bibliography