Ayasofya mahzen evrâkında bulunan saray-ı hümâyûn defterlerinde İbrâhim Ali Amasîyye diye mezkûr olduğu üzere Amasyalı Ali Ağa’nın mahdûmudur. Sarây-ı hümâyûna girip hüsn-i terbiye gördü orada tefeyyüz ederek rikâb ağalarından oldu. [165]
Sonra kapıcıbaşılıkla taşra çıkıp İrân muharebâtında mübâya’acı olarak Amasya’ya geldi. Amasya a’yânından ve helvâ-hâne-i hâssadan muhrec Helvâcı el-Hâc İsmâil Ağa’nın kerîmesini aldı. Bir müddet Amasya’da kaldı.
Ba’dehû İstanbul’a gidip devr-i hidemât ederek ma’den emîni, silahdâr ağası, arpa emîni, 1171’de hisâr ağası oldu. 1176 zilhiccesinde ba’zı hayrâtına emlâkini vakfedib orada vefât etdi. Mahdûmları Ali, Mehmed Râsih, İsmâil Efendilerdir.
Hattât-ı meşhûr Mehmed Râsih Efendi 1181’de vefât edib mahdûmu İbrâhim Efendi ricâldendir. Defterdâr-ı devlet el-Hâc İsmâil Efendi 1203’de vefât etdi. Mahdûmları el-Hâc İbrâhim, Mehmed Efendilerdir. Bunlara “Amasyalızâdeler” dendiği Eshâm Defterlerinde görüldü.
In Modern English
As he appears in the palace registers found among the papers of the Hagia Sophia vault as "İbrahim Ali Amasîyye", he is the son of Ali Ağa of Amasya. He entered the palace and was well trained; rising there, he became one of the rikâb ağas.
Then he went out to the provinces as kapıcıbaşı and, during the Iranian wars, came to Amasya as mübayaacı (official making purchases for the army). He married the daughter of Helvacı el-Hâc İsmail Ağa, one of the Amasya ayan and from the sultan's helvahane. He stayed in Amasya for a time.
Later he went to Istanbul and, serving in the offices in turn, became maden emini, silahdar ağası, arpa emini and, in 1171 [1757-58], hisar ağası. In Dhu al-Hijja 1176 [1763] he endowed his properties to certain charitable works and died there. His sons are Ali, Mehmed Râsih and İsmail Efendis.
The famous calligrapher Mehmed Râsih Efendi passed away in 1181 [1767-68]; his son İbrahim Efendi is among the statesmen. The state treasurer (defterdar) el-Hâc İsmail Efendi died in 1203 [1788-89]. His sons are el-Hâc İbrahim and Mehmed Efendis. It was seen in the Eshâm Registers that they were called "Amasyalızades".
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- mahzen evrâkı: documents kept in a storehouse
- rikâb ağası: a palace ağa who served the padishah when he mounted
- mübâya'acı: the official who made purchases for the army or the palace
- helvâ-hâne-i hâssa: the sultan's helvahane
- muhrec: a person sent out of palace service
- ma'den emîni, arpa emîni: the official in charge of the state's mining and barley affairs
- hisâr ağası: fortress commander
- ricâl: statesmen
- Eshâm Defterleri: registers of the state's revenue shares
From the Palace to the Provinces, from the Provinces to the Palace
The path of İbrahim Ağa, son of Ali Ağa of Amasya, shows a pattern frequently met in this volume: a youth from Amasya who enters Enderun rises through palace training, goes out to the provinces with the rank of kapıcıbaşı, calls at his hometown again on an assignment there and marries, then returns to Istanbul and moves through central posts. According to the encyclopedia entry, in the 18th century the kapıcıbaşı title also began to be granted as a rank or distinction, and when kapıcıbaşıs went out into outside service they were appointed as sanjak beys, governors and even viziers. İbrahim Ağa's coming to Amasya falls within this framework, as a supply duty during the Iranian wars.
In Hüsameddin's entry on Râsih Mehmed Efendi under the letter "R", the calligrapher's father is called "Amasyalı el-Hâc İbrahim Ağa, kethüda of the halberdiers", and it is written that Râsih came to the post of hisar ağası upon his father's death, was born in Amasya and entered Enderun. This entry and that one describe the same family; the kethüda-ship of the halberdiers does not appear in this entry. From the same entry it is also confirmed that İsmail Efendi was Mehmed Râsih's brother and a defterdar.
The Papers of the Hagia Sophia Vault
Hüsameddin's source in this entry is the palace registers found in the Hagia Sophia vault. Other entries in the book (for example Kapu Ağası İbrahim Ağa, entry 188) also rest on the same vault papers. No information could be found in the sources about the present condition of these documents or where they are kept.
No information was found in other sources on the charitable works İbrahim Ağa endowed or on family members other than his sons.
Bibliography
Primary sources
Academic studies