Amasya‘da mahallesi olan Uzun Mustafa Çelebi evlâdından Pîr Mustafa Çelebi bin el-Hâc Hasan Çelebi el-Hâc Muhyiddîn Mehmed Çelebi bin Uzun Mustafa Çelebi mahdûmudur. Amasya’da tahsîl-i maârif ederek beytü’l-mâl emânet kâtibi oldu.
Ba’dehû cizye muhassılı, Amasya sancağı dîvan kâtibi olup l038 vak’asında İstanbul’a gönderildi. Orada [244] Bayram Paşa’ya intisâb edib Dîvân-ı Hümayûn kâtiblerinden olup müşârün-ileyhin sadâretinde harâç muhâsebecisi oldu.
1049’da ma’zûlen Amasya’ya gönderildi. 105l’de vefât etdi. Kâtib, şâir, maârif-âşinâ, hat ve tab’ı latîf idi. “Tezkîre-i Abdî Efendi”de terceme ve eşârı vardı. Eş’ârı tezkire ile beraber yandı. Mahdûmları Mustafa, Ahmed Beylerdir. Bunlara “Usûlîzâde” ve avâm dilinde “Usûl Oğulları” dendi.
In Modern English
He descends from Uzun Mustafa Çelebi, after whom a neighborhood in Amasya is named. He is the son of Pîr Mustafa Çelebi, son of Hacı Hasan Çelebi, son of Hacı Muhyiddin Mehmed Çelebi, son of Uzun Mustafa Çelebi. He studied in Amasya and became the scribe of trusts in the public treasury.
Later he was collector of the cizye tax and scribe of the sanjak divan of Amasya, and in the events of 1038 [1628-29] he was sent to Istanbul. There he attached himself to Bayram Pasha, became one of the scribes of the Imperial Council, and during that man's grand vizierate became accountant of the haraç tax.
In 1049 [1639-40] he was dismissed and sent back to Amasya. He died in 1051 [1641-42]. He was a scribe and a poet, devoted to learning; his handwriting and character were fine. His biography and poems were in "Abdî Efendi's Tezkire." His poems burned together with the tezkire. His sons are Mustafa and Ahmed Beys. They were called "Usûlîzâde" and, in the speech of the common people, "Usûl Oğulları."
Notes and Research
Old Words in the Text
- tahsîl-i maârif: studying, acquiring education
- beytü'l-mâl emânet kâtibi: the scribe who recorded the trusts held by the state treasury
- cizye muhassılı: collector of the cizye tax levied on non-Muslims
- dîvân kâtibi: the scribe in charge of the written business of a sanjak divan
- vak'a: event
- intisâb: attaching oneself to someone, entering a patron's protection
- harâç muhâsebecisi: the official who kept the accounts of the haraç tax
- ma'zûlen: having been dismissed from office
- maârif-âşinâ: devoted to learning and culture
- hat ve tab': handwriting and character
- eşâr: poems
- avâm: the common people
The Line of Descent
In the text the word "bin," meaning "son of," is missing between Hacı Hasan Çelebi and Hacı Muhyiddin Mehmed Çelebi. In the rendering above the sequence has been read as a line of descent; this is an inference. It appears that Usûlî came four generations after Uzun Mustafa Çelebi. That a neighborhood of Amasya bears the name Uzun Mustafa Çelebi suggests that the family had long been known in the city. Apart from what Hüsameddin gives, no record of this family was found in the sources read.
Bayram Pasha and Amasya
Bayram Pasha, to whom Usûlî attached himself, was originally from Ladik and was born in Istanbul; he rose through the Janissary Corps. In 1625 he was appointed governor of Egypt, in 1628 he was called to Istanbul as a vizier of the dome, in 1633 he became beylerbeyi of Rumelia, and in February 1636 he was made grand vizier. The year Hüsameddin calls "the events of 1038" [1628-29] coincides with the year Bayram Pasha returned from Egypt and served as vizier of the dome. It may be thought that Usûlî was sent to Istanbul at this time; this too is an inference.
The sources mention Amasya as Bayram Pasha's hometown. While gathering the army for the Persian campaign he spent the winter in Amasya. Learning that the city suffered from a shortage of water, he spent 20,000 kuruş from his own purse, had water brought to the city and fountains built; he also had a Mevlevi lodge built in Amasya and set aside 70 akçe a day for its sheikh and enough endowment income for its expenses. The Pasha died suddenly at Cüllâb, near Urfa, during Murad IV's Baghdad campaign. According to the Baghdad Campaign Itinerary, the date of death is 16 Rebîülâhir 1048 [27 August 1638]. The year 1049 [1639-40], which Hüsameddin gives for Usûlî's dismissal, falls one year after the Pasha's death. It may be thought that Usûlî's dismissal was connected with the loss of his patron; the source does not say so.
A Poet of the Same Name
The Gülşenî dervish poet who wrote under the pen name Usûlî, was born in Yenice-i Vardar and died there in 945 [1538-39], must not be confused with the man of this entry. According to Hüsameddin, the poems of Usûlî Mehmed Çelebi burned together with the tezkire. No information was found in other sources on "Abdî Efendi's Tezkire" or on Usûlî Mehmed Çelebi.
Bibliography
- Abdîzâde Hüseyin Hüsâmeddîn Yasar, Amasya Tarihi, Amasya Belediyesi Kültür Yayınları, 2022, vol. 7, p. 338–338. amasya.bel.tr