Kasım Pasha or Kasem Pasha ( tr, Kasım Paşa; 1442–43) was an Albanian Ottoman general and governor, the ''

beylerbey ''Beylerbey'' ( ota, بكلربكی, beylerbeyi, lit=bey of beys, meaning the 'commander of commanders' or 'lord of lords') was a high rank in the western Islamic world in the late Middle Ages and early modern period, from the Anatolian Seljuks ...

'' of

Rumelia Rumelia ( ota, روم ايلى, Rum İli; tr, Rumeli; el, Ρωμυλία), etymologically "Land of the Names of the Greeks#Romans (Ῥωμαῖοι), Romans", at the time meaning Eastern Orthodox Christians and more specifically Christians f ...

and one of the commanders of the Ottoman forces during the

Crusade of Varna The Crusade of Varna was an unsuccessful military campaign mounted by several European leaders to check the expansion of the Ottoman Empire into Central Europe, specifically the Balkans between 1443 and 1444. It was called by Pope Eugene IV on ...

(1443–44). When Rumelian beylerbey and vizier Hadım Şehabeddin was defeated by

John Hunyadi John Hunyadi (, , , ; 1406 – 11 August 1456) was a leading Hungarian military and political figure in Central and Southeastern Europe during the 15th century. According to most contemporary sources, he was the member of a noble family of ...

in 1442, he was replaced by Kasım Pasha at both positions.

Crusade of Varna

At the beginning of the Crusade of Varna

crossed the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

and rushed south along the river Morava to attack forces of Kasım Pasha before he could mobilize his complete army. The cavalry forces of 12,000 commanded by Kasım Pasha were defeated near

Aleksinac Aleksinac ( sr-Cyrl, Алексинац) is a town and municipality located in the Nišava District of southern Serbia. According to 2011 census, the town has a population of 17,978 inhabitants, while the municipality has 51,863 inhabitants. His ...

during the Battle of Niš in 1443. After an Ottoman defeat, the retreating forces of Kasım Pasha and

Turakhan Bey Turahan Bey or Turakhan Beg ( tr, Turahan Bey/Beğ; sq, Turhan Bej; el, Τουραχάνης, Τουραχάν μπέης or Τουραχάμπεης;PLP 29165 died in 1456) was a prominent Ottoman military commander and governor of Thessaly ...

burned all villages between Niš and

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...

. Turakhan Bey and Kasım Pasha met each other again in Sofia from where Kasım sent the messenger to

Edirne Edirne (, ), formerly known as Adrianople or Hadrianopolis (Greek: Άδριανούπολις), is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, ...

to alert Sultan. Kasım Pasha commanded Ottoman forces that chased Christian army after the Battle of Zlatica held at the end of 1443. His army was defeated on 24 December 1444 on Melštica near Sofija and many Ottoman officers were captured by Christian army. There was a big mutual animosity between Kasım and Turahan and some Ottoman sources blame Turahan for Kasım's defeat at Melštica claiming that Serbian Despot Branković bribed Turahan not to participate in the battle which ended with the defeat of his rival, Kasım. When the Sultan banished

Turahan Bey Turahan Bey or Turakhan Beg ( tr, Turahan Bey/Beğ; sq, Turhan Bej; el, Τουραχάνης, Τουραχάν μπέης or Τουραχάμπεης;PLP 29165 died in 1456) was a prominent Ottoman military commander and governor of Thessaly ...

to a prison, Kasım allegedly complained to

Çandarlı Halil Pasha Çandarlı is a coastal township with own municipality within the district of Dikili in western Turkey's İzmir Province. It is a well-developed town and an important tourist resort. It is a fishing village, were a lot of daily life revolves aro ...

that Turahan's subordinated officers should be banished too. When his complaint was refused, Kasım resigned from the position of Rumelia beylerbey.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kasim Pasha Military personnel of the Ottoman Empire Muslims of the Crusade of Varna 14th-century people from the Ottoman Empire 15th-century people from the Ottoman Empire 14th-century births 15th-century deaths Year of death unknown Viziers Ottoman governors of Rumelia