Uthman Dey or Kara Osman Dey (died in September 1610) was

Dey of Tunis Dey (Arabic: داي), from the Turkish honorific title ''dayı'', literally meaning uncle, was the title given to the rulers of the Regency of Algiers (Algeria), Tripoli,Bertarelli (1929), p. 203. and Tunis under the Ottoman Empire from 1671 on ...

from 1593 until his death.Yvette Katan Bensamoun, Rama Chalak et Jacques-Robert Katan, ''Le Maghreb : de l'empire ottoman à la fin de la colonisation française'', éd. Belin, Paris, 2007, p. 35

Biography

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

soldier of Anatolian origin, where he had worked as a cobbler, he arrived with the forces of Koca Sinan Pasha which took Tunis from Spain in 1574. In 1593 he was elected as

Dey Dey (Arabic: داي), from the Turkish honorific title ''dayı'', literally meaning uncle, was the title given to the rulers of the Ottoman Algeria, Regency of Algiers (Algeria), Tripoli, Libya, Tripoli,Bertarelli (1929), p. 203. and Ottoman Tu ...

of the Turkish militia of Tunis; he thereby became the military commander of Tunis. Then in 1598 he truly took power by restricting the Pasha to a purely honorific role. Tunis entered a new era under his rule, with the pacification of the hinterland, the creation of a powerful fleet and a network of forts (''borj'') intended to guard the coast. It was in practice him who welcomed (around 1609) the major communities of refugees expelled from Castile and Aragon.Lionel Lévy, ''La nation juive portugaise : Livourne, Amsterdam, Tunis. 1591-1951'', éd. L'Harmattan, Paris, 1999, p. 59 It is estimated that between 60,000 and 80,000 of these arrived in Tunisia in this period. He settled some at Tunis and also allowed further families to settle in

Zaghouan Zaghouan (or Zaghwan; ar, زغوان '' ; ber, ⵣⴻⵖⵡⴰⵏ / Zeɣwan)'' is a town in the northern half of Tunisia. Situated on a low ridge of the Dorsale Mountains, the town has a mild climate and presents a green aspect. Cold water ...

Testour Testour ( ar, تستور ') is a small town located in the north of Tunisia. The town is perched on the hills of Medjerda Valley, south-west of Medjez-el-Bab, the crossroads between Tunis, Béja, and the north of Tunisia. It was known during th ...

Soliman Soliman an alternative to Suleiman may refer to: People Given name * Soliman Kenawy, Egyptian journalist Surname * Soliman (surname) Places * Soliman, Tunisia, located in the Nabeul Governorate See also * Sulaiman Mountains * Sulaiman ...

Turki Chagatai (چغتای, ''Čaġatāy''), also known as ''Turki'', Eastern Turkic, or Chagatai Turkic (''Čaġatāy türkīsi''), is an extinct Turkic literary language that was once widely spoken across Central Asia and remained the shared literar ...

Grombalia Grombalia is a Tunisian city located in the Nabeul Governorate. Its population was 24,336 (2014 Census), while the population of the municipality was 67,475. It is the birthplace of former president Moncef Marzouki Mohamed Moncef Marzouki ( ar ...

Medjez el-Bab Majaz al Bab ( ar, مجاز الباب), also known as Medjez el Bab, or as Membressa under the Roman Empire, is a town in northern Tunisia. It is located at the intersection of roads GP5 and GP6, in the ''Plaine de la Medjerda''. Commonwealth wa ...

and

Tebourba Tebourba ( aeb, طبربة ') is a town in Tunisia, located about 20 miles (30 km) from the capital Tunis, former ancient city (Thuburbo Minus) and bishopric, now a Latin Catholic titular see. Thuburbo Minus Historically Thuburbo Minus wa ...

. These settlers brought a new way of life and new crafts (like the making of the chachia) with them, which contributed to the prosperity of the territory. In his old age he became nervous about leaving the capital and the troublesome militia, so he create the position of Bey to commander the armed expeditions sent out into the countryside to collect taxes and maintain order. He conferred the office on a

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

janissary named Ramdhan. Uthman also had a palace built in the centre of the Medina of Tunis, to serve as his residence, which is known as the

Dar Othman Dar Othman is one of the palaces of the medina of Tunis. The residence is located in the south of the medina, 16 El Mebazaâ Street. History Dar Othman was built in the end of the sixteenth century (around 1595) by Othman, dey of Tunis, who rei ...

(dating to the end of the 16th century) - he was the only Dey to live in the medina, as the others preferred the greater security of the kasbah. He also built several barracks and forts, as well as walls of several cities, which had been destroyed during the war against Spain, as at

Bizerte Bizerte or Bizerta ( ar, بنزرت, translit=Binzart , it, Biserta, french: link=no, Bizérte) the classical Hippo, is a city of Bizerte Governorate in Tunisia. It is the northernmost city in Africa, located 65 km (40mil) north of the cap ...

. He married his daughter to his lieutenant and eventual successor, Yusuf Dey.Pierre-Robert Baduel, ''Chantiers et défis de la recherche sur le Maghreb contemporain'', éd. Karthala, Paris, 2009, p. 81
/ref> Uthman Dey was also the grandfather of princess Aziza Uthmana. At his death he was buried in what is now the tourba Aziza Uthmana in the kasbah, where his descendants were also interred.

Bibliography

*Alphonse Rousseau, ''Annales tunisiennes ou aperçu historique sur la régence de Tunis'', éd. Bastide, Alger, 1864.

References

{{reflist Deys of Tunis 1610 deaths