Amasyalıdır. Mustafa mahdûmudur. İstanbul’da Ayasofya medresesinde ikâmet ve Amasyalı Hâce Ömer Efendi’den tahsîl-i ulûma gayret ederek Ayasofya Câmiinde ibtidâ cüz-hân, ba’dehû ders-i âm oldu. Hâcesi Ayasofya vâizi oldukda tâbii ve muallim-i sultânî olunca mülâzımı olup 1027 senesi [36] şevvâlinde İstanbul müderrisi oldu.
1031 senesi recebinde zuhûr eden hâile-i Osmâniyyeden sonra hocasıyla beraber Bursa’ya gönderildi. 1036’da Şeyhülislâm Yahya Efendi’nin ulüvv-i himmeti sâyesinde avdet edib 1037 senesi rebîülevvelinde Birgi, 1041 senesi recebinde Kütahya, 1046 senesi muharreminde Tire (İzmir) mollası oldu.
1053 senesi muharreminde sâniyen Kütahya mollası olup senesi hitâmında ma’zûlen İstanbul’a geldi. Sene-i mezbûre zilhiccesinde efendisi Yahya Efendi’nin vefâtı üzerine hâmîsiz kaldı. 1055 senesi evâilinde mukaddemen kendisiyle muârefesi olan Celâlî İbrâhim Ağa Dârüssaâde ağası oldukda sene-i mezbûre Rebîülevvel’inde terfîen Bursa mollası oldu.
1055 senesi şa’bânında Şeyhülislâm Hocazâde Ebu Saîd Efendi’nin taassubuyla azl ve tekâüde sevkedilip 1060 senesinde dâr-ı bekâya irtihâl etdi. Âlim, sâlih, hamâme-i mesâcid bir molla idi.
In Modern English
He was from Amasya. He was the son of Mustafa. Staying at the Hagia Sophia Madrasa in Istanbul and striving to learn the sciences from Hâce Ömer Efendi of Amasya, he became first a cüzhan (a functionary who recites the Qur'an section by section) at the Hagia Sophia Mosque, and then a müderris (madrasa professor) giving public lectures. When his teacher became preacher of Hagia Sophia he stayed attached to him; when his teacher became the sultan's teacher, he became his mülâzım (a candidate waiting for a professorship) and in Şevval 1027 [1618] became a müderris of Istanbul.
After the Ottoman calamity that broke out in Receb 1031 [1622] he was sent to Bursa together with his teacher. In 1036 [1626-27], thanks to the lofty support of Şeyhülislam Yahya Efendi, he returned and became kadı (molla) of Birgi in Rebîülevvel 1037, of Kütahya in Receb 1041, and of Tire (İzmir) in Muharrem 1046.
In Muharrem 1053 he became molla of Kütahya for a second time, and at the end of the year he came to Istanbul, having been dismissed. In Zilhicce of the same year, upon the death of his master Yahya Efendi, he was left without a patron. In early 1055, when Celâlî İbrahim Ağa, with whom he had been acquainted earlier, became the Chief Black Eunuch (Darüssaade ağası), he was promoted in Rebîülevvel of the same year and became molla of Bursa.
In Şaban 1055, owing to the rigid stance of Şeyhülislam Hocazâde Ebu Saîd Efendi, he was dismissed and sent into retirement, and he died in 1060 [1650-51]. He was a scholar, a man of good character, a molla who never left the mosques.
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- cüzhan: a functionary who recites the Qur'an section (cüz) by section in a set order
- ders-i âm: a professor who gives public lectures
- muallim-i sultânî: the sultan's teacher
- mülâzım: a candidate attached to a senior scholar, waiting his turn for a professorship
- hâile: terrible event, calamity
- ulüvv-i himmet: lofty effort and support
- molla: a high-ranking kadı
- ma'zûlen: having been dismissed
- hâmî: protector, one who backs another
- muârefe: acquaintance
- taassub: rigid stance, prejudice
- tekâüd: retirement
- dâr-ı bekâya irtihâl: passing away
- hamâme-i mesâcid: "dove of the mosques"; one who never leaves the mosque, devoted to worship
His Teacher Ömer Efendi and the Receb 1031 Event
The person called "Hâce Ömer Efendi" in the text was the teacher of Osman II, also known as Genç Osman ("Osman the Young"), and of his brother Mehmed. When the sultan took the throne he had restricted the powers of Şeyhülislam Esad Efendi and given his teacher Ömer Efendi a say in the appointment of ulema and in other matters. For this reason he became one of the targets of the ulema and the janissaries: when the uprising began on 8 Receb 1031 [19 May 1622], the rebels first demanded the execution of the Chief Black Eunuch (Darüssaade ağası) Süleyman Ağa and Hoca Ömer Efendi. This is the event Hüsameddin refers to as "since he went into hiding" in the entry İdris Efendi-Müderris and as "the Ottoman calamity" (hâile-i Osmâniyye) in this entry. During the same event, on 10 Receb 1031 [21 May 1622], Zekeriyyâzâde Yahya Efendi became şeyhülislam in place of Şeyhülislam Esad Efendi; that is, Yahya Efendi, İdris Efendi's later patron, came to office in the very days when his teacher Ömer Efendi was being targeted.
We could not verify in the sources read the information that he was sent to Bursa together with his teacher. Nor do the pages say anything in detail about Hâce Ömer Efendi's fate after the revolt; Hüsameddin's sentence remains our only basis.
The Şeyhülislam Who Protected Him
Yahya Efendi, who made İdris Efendi's return in 1036 possible, is among the most frequently mentioned Ottoman şeyhülislams. Known both as a poet and as a şeyhülislam, he held this office in three separate periods between 1622 and 1644. His first term lasted from 1622 to 1623, and he was dismissed on 4 October 1623. He became şeyhülislam a second time on 22 May 1625 and remained in office until 10 February 1632. His third term began on 7 January 1634 and lasted until his death. Yahya Efendi died on 18 Zilhicce 1053 [27 February 1644]. Hüsameddin's sentence "in Zilhicce 1053, upon the death of his master Yahya Efendi, he was left without a patron" matches this date exactly. İdris Efendi's return in 1036 [1626-27] also coincides with Yahya Efendi's second term as şeyhülislam.
The name that brought İdris Efendi's career to an end is Hocazâde Ebu Saîd Efendi. Ebûsaid Efendi became şeyhülislam in Zilhicce 1053, after Yahya Efendi's death, and was dismissed on 29 Zilkade 1055 [16 January 1646]. The date Hüsameddin gives, "Şaban 1055," falls within this two-year term. In the sources Ebûsaid Efendi is described as a man of harsh temperament; why Hüsameddin uses the word "taassub" can also be considered together with this character. The incident that led to İdris Efendi's dismissal could not be determined in the sources read.
İbrahim Ağa, the Chief Black Eunuch
The "Celâlî İbrâhim Ağa" in the text is the Darüssaade ağası, the Chief Black Eunuch at the head of the harem section of Topkapı Palace. The eunuch agas who held this office, being close to the sultan and his family, were also influential in the administration of the state in the seventeenth century; some of them had a say in the appointment and dismissal of grand viziers. In the sources Celâlî İbrahim Ağa is counted among the agas who were appointed to this post a second time. According to a study based on archival documents, an İbrahim Ağa held this post around 1639 and soon yielded it to Sünbül Ağa; Sünbül Ağa was dismissed in 1054 [1644]. Hüsameddin's "became Darüssaade ağası in early 1055" fits this sequence and seems to describe İbrahim Ağa's return to office for a second time. However, since the exact date of the second appointment does not appear in the pages read, this identification should not be regarded as certain.
The Title Molla and Appointments
İdris Efendi's being "molla" in Birgi, Kütahya, Tire and Bursa in turn describes high-ranking judgeships in the ilmiye (learned) class. In the Ottoman ilmiye organization, from the last quarter of the sixteenth century the appointment of high-ranking kadıs had come within the sphere of authority of the şeyhülislams; like those of müderrises, the promotions and dismissals of these kadıs were recorded in registers kept by this office. It is therefore fitting that Hüsameddin tells of İdris Efendi's rise and fall through the names of a şeyhülislam and a Chief Black Eunuch: in this milieu a müderris or molla could not build a career on his own, but advanced by attaching himself to a patron.
What Could Not Be Read
No information was found in other sources on İdris Efendi himself, on his father Mustafa, or on Hâce Ömer Efendi's being from Amasya. İdris Efendi's service as cüzhan and müderris at the Hagia Sophia Madrasa is not named in the studies read either.
Bibliography
Primary sources
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 7, p. 274–275. amasya.bel.tr
Academic studies
Books
- Ramazan Hüseyin Biçer, "Darüssaade Ağası Sünbül Ağa'nın Hayatı ve Vakıfları", İçtimaiyat, 10/2, 2026.