Koçi Bey (died 1650) was a high-ranking Ottoman bureaucrat who lived in the first half of the 17th century.

Biography

He was an ethnic

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

, born in

Korçë Korçë (; sq-definite, Korça) is the eighth most populous city of the Republic of Albania and the seat of Korçë County and Korçë Municipality. The total population is 75,994 (2011 census), in a total area of . It stands on a plateau some ...

in eastern

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

. Within the scope of 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 ...

'' system, he studied in the Enderun (palace school) in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

. He was assigned to various posts and became the consultant of two sultans,

Murad IV Murad IV ( ota, مراد رابع, ''Murād-ı Rābiʿ''; tr, IV. Murad, was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1623 to 1640, known both for restoring the authority of the state and for the brutality of his methods. Murad IV was born in Cons ...

(1623–1640) and

Ibrahim Ibrahim ( ar, إبراهيم, links=no ') is the Arabic name for Abraham, a Biblical patriarch and prophet in Islam. For the Islamic view of Ibrahim, see Abraham in Islam. Ibrahim may also refer to: * Ibrahim (name), a name (and list of people ...

(1640–1648). He prepared a series of reports ( Risale) about reforms in the empire. He presented his first report to Murad IV in 1631, and the second to Ibrahim in 1640. Although the literary style of the first was more elaborate than the second, the main points were the same. In his reports he emphasized that the cause of unrest in the empire was the corruption of the

timar A timar was a land grant by the sultans of the Ottoman Empire between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries, with an annual tax revenue of less than 20,000 akçes. The revenues produced from the land acted as compensation for military service. A ...

(fief) system. He suggested a smaller and more disciplined army and a more authoritarian leadership.Metin Kunt: ''Türkiye Tarihi'', Cem yayınevi, İstanbul, 2009, p. 30. Towards the end of Ibrahim's reign he retired and returned to Korçë, his home town for the rest of his life. He was buried in Plamet village.

References

1650 deaths People from Korçë 17th-century people from the Ottoman Empire Year of birth unknown {{Ottoman-bio-stub