Özdemiroğlu Osman Pasha (; ; 1526 – 29 October 1585) was an Ottoman statesman and military commander who also held the office of

grand vizier Grand vizier (; ; ) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. It was first held by officials in the later Abbasid Caliphate. It was then held in the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Soko ...

for one year.

Origin

Osman's father, Özdemir, was a Turk from

Dagestan Dagestan ( ; ; ), officially the Republic of Dagestan, is a republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, along the Caspian Sea. It is located north of the Greater Caucasus, and is a part of the North Caucasian Fede ...

. After the

Ottoman conquest of Egypt Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire 1299–1922 ** Ottoman dynasty, ruling family of the Ottoman Em ...

in 1517, the former

Mamluk Mamluk or Mamaluk (; (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural); translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave") were non-Arab, ethnically diverse (mostly Turkic, Caucasian, Eastern and Southeastern European) enslaved mercenaries, slave-so ...

soldier had accepted the Ottoman dominance and became part of Ottoman bureaucracy and military. After the

Ottoman naval expeditions in the Indian Ocean Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire 1299–1922 ** Ottoman dynasty, ruling family of the Ottoman Em ...

, he was appointed as the

beylerbey ''Beylerbey'' (, meaning the 'commander of commanders' or 'lord of lords’, sometimes rendered governor-general) was a high rank in the western Islamic world in the late Middle Ages and early modern period, from the Anatolian Seljuks and the I ...

(governor-general) of

Habesh Eyalet Habesh Eyalet (; ) was an Ottoman eyalet. It was also known as the Eyalet of Jeddah and Habesh, as Jeddah was its chief town, and Habesh and Hejaz. It extended on the areas of coastal Hejaz and Northeast Africa of Eritrea that border the Red Se ...

(the coastal strip of

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

and

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

). Osman was born in 1526 in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

, a part of

Egypt Eyalet Ottoman Egypt was an administrative division of the Ottoman Empire after the Ottoman–Mamluk War (1516–1517), conquest of Mamluk Egypt by the Ottomans in 1517. The Ottomans administered Egypt as a Eyalet, province (''eyalet'') of their empir ...

(province) of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

Early years

Osman was appointed to various posts in Egypt by the porte. After his father's death in 1561, Osman continued as the governor of

for 7 years. In 1569, he was appointed as the governor of

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

and in 1573, as the governor of

Diyarbekir Eyalet The Eyalet of Diyarbekir (; ) was an eyalet of the Ottoman Empire. Its reported area in the 19th century was , slightly larger than the original Abbasid province in Upper Mesopotamia. In 1846 it was succeeded by the Kurdistan Eyalet. Government ...

(modern

Diyarbakır Diyarbakır is the largest Kurdish-majority city in Turkey. It is the administrative center of Diyarbakır Province. Situated around a high plateau by the banks of the Tigris river on which stands the historic Diyarbakır Fortress, it is ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Battles

While in Diyarbekir, he was assigned to join the army during the

Ottoman–Safavid War (1578–1590) The Ottoman–Safavid War of 1578–1590 was one of the many wars between the neighboring arch rivals of Safavid Empire and the Ottoman Empire. Starting with several years prior to the war and up to including most of the war itself, the Safavi ...

. His troops fought well and contributed much to the victory during the Battle of Çıldır. After the battle, he was assigned to organize the newly conquered territories in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

. While establishing an effective Ottoman administration, he also had to fight against

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

ns who were trying to regain their losses. In 1583, he fought against a Persian army in Baştepe a location in North Caucasus (modern

Republic of

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

) in a three-day clash named Battle of Torches, (named so because the battle continued into the night). He defeated the Persian army and secured Ottoman presence in the

. His next mission was dethroning the Crimean khan

Mehmed II Giray Mehmed II Giray, the Fat Crimean Tatar, Ottoman Turkish and (1532–1584, reigned 1577–1584) was khan of the Crimean Khanate. During his reign he made at least three campaigns against Persia in the service of the Ottomans. He was overthrown by ...

, who was an unreliable vassal, and enthroning a new khan, in which he was also successful. Then, from

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

he sailed to

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, the capital, where he was praised by the Ottoman Sultan

Murad III Murad III (; ; 4 July 1546 – 16 January 1595) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1574 until his death in 1595. His rule saw battles with the Habsburg monarchy, Habsburgs and exhausting wars with the Safavid Iran, Safavids. The long-inde ...

.Joseph von Hammer: ''Osmanlı Tarihi Vol II'' (condensation: Abdülkadir Karahan), Milliyet yayınları, İstanbul. p 100-101. ?Hammar-Purgstall's works date from 1840 and 1856. More modern sources say his attempt failed and that Mehmed was overthrown after Osman left.

Last years

On 28 July 1584, he was promoted to be the

, also keeping the title of high commander of the army (). Next year, he was again at the battle front. He conquered Tebriz, West Iran. However, a few weeks later on 29 October 1585, he fell ill and died. He was buried in Diyarbekir.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osman, Ozdemiroglu 16th-century grand viziers of the Ottoman Empire Pashas Turks from the Ottoman Empire 1526 births 1585 deaths Ottoman governors of Yemen Ottoman people of the Ottoman–Persian Wars Ottoman governors of Diyarbekir

Origin

Early years

Battles

Last years

See also

References