Eslem Şâh Hatun (Bayrâmzâde)

In Modern English

She was the daughter of Süleyman Bey son of Bayram Bey, bey of Balıkesir, one of the beys (ümerâ) of Amasya. While her father was bey of Balıkesir he came to own a good deal of property and land, and in 847 [1443-44] he endowed these to the charitable works he had built there, and died afterwards. She is thought to have been the wife of İsa Bey, son of Bayezid Pasha.

Notes and Research

Old Words in the Text

• ümerâ: beys, emirs
• kerîme: daughter
• emlâk ve âkâr: properties and real estate
• hayrât: works built for the public benefit
• vakfetmek: to set aside property permanently for a charitable purpose
• ba'dehu: after that
• zevc: spouse, husband
• zann olunur: it is thought, it is supposed

The Bey of Balıkesir and the Sanjak of Karesi

Süleyman Bey, called "bey of Balıkesir" in the entry, is the sanjak bey of Balıkesir, which was the center of the Karesi sanjak at that time. After the death of Bayezid the Thunderbolt, during the struggle among the brothers, Balıkesir remained for a while in the hands of İsa Çelebi; then Çelebi Mehmed took the city and made it the center of the Karesi sanjak. The Karesi sanjak remained attached to the province of Anatolia for centuries, and its borders roughly matched those of today's Balıkesir province. For a sanjak bey to acquire extensive property there, build charitable works and attach waqfs to them was normal practice for the ruling class of that period. The sources we read contain no information on Süleyman Bey's works or his waqf deed.

Süleyman Bey's Balıkesir

The waqf date, 847 (1443-44), falls in a period when Balıkesir was a small city. According to the survey of 1530, the city had twenty-one Muslim quarters and one Jewish quarter, and its population was estimated at between four thousand five hundred and five thousand. The oldest known building in the city is the Yıldırım Mosque built by Bayezid the Thunderbolt; the Tahtalı Mosque dates to 1452 and the Zağanos Mehmed Pasha Mosque to 1460. It is therefore possible that the charitable works Süleyman Bey built contributed to the development of a city rising at about the same time as these buildings; but since the names of the works do not appear in the sources, this is a guess.

Bayezid Pashazade İsa Bey

"Bayezid Paşazâde" means a son of Bayezid Pasha; the text does not say which Bayezid Pasha is meant. Bayezid Pasha, who was born in Amasya and served as grand vizier from 1413 to 1421, is the first name that comes to mind, but this is a guess. This pasha was at Çelebi Mehmed's side during his governorship of the Amasya sanjak and stayed loyal to him in the Interregnum; the waqf deeds of the mosque, soup kitchen and madrasa he had built in Amasya are dated 820 (1418), 821 (1418) and 823 (1420). He was killed in 1421 on the campaign sent against Düzmece Mustafa. No information on İsa Bey was found in other sources. He should not be confused with İsa Çelebi, son of Bayezid the Thunderbolt; that prince ruled for a while in Balıkesir and Bursa in the turmoil after the Battle of Ankara, and then lost these cities in his struggle with Çelebi Mehmed.

Connection of Time and Place

The waqf date in the text, 847 (1443-44), falls about twenty-two years after Bayezid Pasha's death. Hüsameddin's phrase "it is thought" shows that the marriage does not rest on a firm document. There is a quarter in Amasya bearing Bayezid Pasha's name; the Kumacık Bath, built in 1495 for the Ayas Ağa waqf, is in this quarter. There is no information that the quarter has any connection with this lady.

What Could Not Be Verified

No information was found in other sources on Eslem Şâh Hâtun (Bayrâmzâde), her father Süleyman Bey or her grandfather Bayram Bey. The information in the text rests on Hüsameddin's record.

Bibliography

• Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 7, p. 298. amasya.bel.tr
• "Amasya Kumacık Hamamının İlk İnşasındaki Planına Dair Bir Değerlendirme", Vakıflar Dergisi, https://dx.doi.org/10.16971/vakiflar.687583