Ayas Mehmed Pasha (1483–1539) was an Ottoman statesman and grand vizier of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

from 1536 to 1539.İsmail Hâmi Danişmend, Osmanlı Devlet Erkânı, Türkiye Yayınevi, İstanbul, 1971, p. 15. (Turkish) He was an Albanian born in

Delvinë Delvinë ( or , ); is a town and a municipality in Vlorë County, southern Albania, northeast of Saranda. It was formed in the 2015 local government reform by the merger of the former municipalities Delvinë and Vergo, which became municipal unit ...

(

Sanjak of Avlona The Sanjak of Avlona ( tr, Avlonya Sancağı, al, Sanxhaku i Vlorës; sometimes referred to as the Sanjak of Berat because of its county town) was one of the sanjaks of the Ottoman Empire which county town was Berat in Albania. It was establish ...

). His father was from the city of Shkodra, in the north of Albania, and his mother was from

Vlorë Vlorë ( , ; sq-definite, Vlora) is the third most populous city of the Republic of Albania and seat of Vlorë County and Vlorë Municipality. Located in southwestern Albania, Vlorë sprawls on the Bay of Vlorë and is surrounded by the foo ...

, in the south of Albania.Gjergj Zheji "Folklori shqiptar" He went to

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

while his father was living there, and following his orders entered Ottoman service under the

Devshirme Devshirme ( ota, دوشیرمه, devşirme, collecting, usually translated as "child levy"; hy, Մանկահավաք, Mankahavak′. or "blood tax"; hbs-Latn-Cyrl, Danak u krvi, Данак у крви, mk, Данок во крв, Danok vo krv ...

practice (as he was born Christian) and eventually became

Agha of the Janissaries The Agha of the Janissaries or Janissary Agha () was a top Ottoman military official and courtier, and the commander of the Janissary corps. Apart from the commander-general of the entire corps, the title of "Agha of the Janissaries" was also bor ...

. He participated in the

Battle of Chaldiran The Battle of Chaldiran ( fa, جنگ چالدران; tr, Çaldıran Savaşı) took place on 23 August 1514 and ended with a decisive victory for the Ottoman Empire over the Safavid Empire. As a result, the Ottomans annexed Eastern Anatolia and ...

(1514) and the

Ottoman–Mamluk War (1516–17) Ottoman–Mamluk War may refer to: * Ottoman–Mamluk War (1485–91) * Ottoman–Mamluk War (1516–17) {{disambiguation ...

. During 1520–1521 he was '' beylerbey'' of Anatolia Eyalet and governor of Damascus. During the reign of

Suleiman the Magnificent Suleiman I ( ota, سليمان اول, Süleyman-ı Evvel; tr, I. Süleyman; 6 November 14946 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the West and Suleiman the Lawgiver ( ota, قانونى سلطان سليمان, Ḳ ...

, he served as ''beylerbey'' of

Rumelia Eyalet The Eyalet of Rumeli, or Eyalet of Rumelia ( ota, ایالت روم ایلی, ), known as the Beylerbeylik of Rumeli until 1591, was a first-level province ('' beylerbeylik'' or ''eyalet'') of the Ottoman Empire encompassing most of the Balkans (" ...

and was made a

vizier A vizier (; ar, وزير, wazīr; fa, وزیر, vazīr), or wazir, is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the near east. The Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called '' katib'' (secretary), who was ...

after the Ottoman conquest of

Rhodes Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the S ...

in 1522. He also participated in the

Battle of Mohács The Battle of Mohács (; hu, mohácsi csata, tr, Mohaç Muharebesi or Mohaç Savaşı) was fought on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, Kingdom of Hungary, between the forces of the Kingdom of Hungary and its allies, led by Louis II, and thos ...

, Siege of Vienna, and the war in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

(1534–1535). He became grand vizier in 1536 after the execution of

Pargalı Ibrahim Pasha Pargalı Ibrahim Pasha ("Ibrahim Pasha of Parga"; c. 1495 – 15 March 1536), also known as Frenk Ibrahim Pasha ("the Westerner"), Makbul Ibrahim Pasha ("the Favorite"), which later changed to Maktul Ibrahim Pasha ("the Executed") after his ex ...

and kept this position until his death in 1539. Under his administration, the Ottomans undertook the Corfu campaign (1537) and waged war against the Habsburgs in Vienna (1537–1540). Additionally, his native Vlorë region was put under full Ottoman control, and the

Sanjak of Delvina The Sanjak of Delvina ( tr, Delvine Sancağı, al, Sanxhaku i Delvinës) was one of the sanjaks of the Ottoman Empire which county town was Delvinë but during the 18th century became Gjirokastër, Albania. It was created in the mid-16th centu ...

was created. He died of

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pe ...

in Istanbul and was buried in the

Eyüp Sultan Mosque The Eyüp Sultan Mosque ( tr, Eyüp Sultan Camii) is in the Eyüp district of Istanbul, outside the city walls and near the Golden Horn. On a much older site, the present building dates from the beginning of the 19th century. The mosque complex in ...

Depictions in literature and popular culture

In the TV series ''

Muhteşem Yüzyıl ''Muhteşem Yüzyıl'' (, ) is a Turkish historical fiction television series. Written by Meral Okay and Yılmaz Şahin, it is based on the life of Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, the longest-reigning Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, and his ...

'', Ayas Mehmed Pasha is played by Turkish actor Fehmi Karaarslan.

References

16th-century Grand Viziers of the Ottoman Empire 16th-century Albanian people Albanian Grand Viziers of the Ottoman Empire Year of death unknown Devshirme Grand Viziers of Suleiman the Magnificent Albanians from the Ottoman Empire Year of birth unknown 1483 births 1539 deaths People from Himara Ottoman governors of Damascus {{Albania-bio-stub

Depictions in literature and popular culture

See also

References