Osman II, whose years of life was 1604-1622, was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire, he ruled it from 1618 to 1622. Osman fought with Poland and lost the battle of Khotyn, although control over Moldova remained with him. Under him, the signing of the Khotyn peace treaty.
The sultan accused the Janissaries of his defeat, he planned the implementation of military reform and replaced the Janissaries corps with other formations consisting of residents of Anatolia. As a result, Osman was overthrown by the rebellious Janissaries and became the first Turkish sultan to be killed by his own subjects. Next, a biography of Osman II will be presented.
early years
Osman was the son of Sultan Ahmed I, born of one of his concubines named Mahfiruz. Since he was the firstborn of Ahmed, he was named after Osman Gazi, the founder of the Osman dynasty. At his birth, magnificent festivities were organized, which lasted for a week.
The second son of Ahmed I from another concubine, Kesem Sultan, was born 4 months after Osman. He was called Mehmed. Both brothers grew up and raised together. From some sources it is known that Osman began to read early, received a good education and, in addition to Oriental languages, also knew Greek, Latin, Italian. However, a number of modern historians doubt this.
From childhood, the boy tried to establish good relations with Kesem Sultan. He treated his stepmother very respectfully and even revered her.
Ascension to the throne
Despite the fact that he was the rightful heir, due to his infancy after the death of his father, the last-minded brother of the latter, Mustafa, ascended the throne. This was an unprecedented case, since usually power passed in a straight line - from father to son. However, Mustafa reigned very briefly, only three months. During this period, his behavior was very strange. So, at a meeting of the sofa, he could rip off the turban from the vizier or pull his beard. To fish and birds he threw coins.
Osman II ascended the throne in February 1618, when he was 14 years old. The period of his reign fell on the onset of adverse climatic conditions. These years were the coldest in the small ice age.
Then periodically there were bad omens and disasters that followed. In one of the districts of Istanbul, a flood occurred, which has never happened before.
In winter and summer, people fell ill with plague. The Bosphorus Strait was frozen, and since supplies and provisions could not be delivered by sea, hunger and terrible high prices reigned in the city.
Killing brother
Before leading the army in the Khotyn war, Osman II decided to deal with his 15-year-old brother Mehmed. After all, in his absence, he could declare himself a sultan. To carry out this legally, it was necessary to obtain fatwa (permission) from one of the Qadis. Osman II, after the refusal of Sheikh al-Islam, turned to Kadiasker Rumelia (military and religious judge) Tashopriuzade Kemaleddin Mehmed-effendi and received it. And in January 1621, shehzade Mehmed was executed.
Discontent in the army and the people
After the military defeats of Sultan Osman II, his reputation in the country was greatly shaken. Another event that exacerbated his position was the marriage to a Turkish woman. After all, the sultans were supposed to create families only with foreigners, while not having Turkish origin.
The first wife of Osman II, Aisha-Khatun, was born in Istanbul, she is the granddaughter of the vizier of Pertev Pasha after her father. His second wife was a girl named Akile. She was the daughter of Sheikh Haji Mehmed Essadulahh and the great-granddaughter of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent.
In addition, Osman had several concubines, from whom he had children, but they all died at an early age.
Riot of the Janissary
In May 1622, Osman II wanted to leave Istanbul for Anatolia in May, announcing his intention to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. He intended to take the treasury with him. But the Janissaries learned about this and rebelled. They gathered together with the Sipahs at the hippodrome. Sheikh al-Islam came to the sultan and demanded the execution of six close rulers, to whom he gave the fatwa, perhaps, by force.
But the sultan tore the fatwa, threatening the rebels with violence. In response, the rioters invaded the home of Omer Effendi, staging a pogrom there. Then the crowd moved to Mustafa, who was locked in the Old Palace, freed him and declared him a sultan.
Very frightened, Osman ordered the delivery of Delaware Pasha to the rebels. He was found, taken out of the gate, where he was immediately chopped into pieces. The Sultan said that he would not go to Asia, however, he did not fully understand the seriousness of the situation. He refused to remove Suleiman-aga and Omer-effendi, as the Janissaries demanded.
Meanwhile, they broke into the courtyard of the Topkapi palace complex. At the same time, the chief eunuch and the great vizier, who tried to block their path, were torn to pieces. Osman hid in a hiding place, but he was spotted and, wearing rags, dragged across the whole city in a nag, accompanying this trick with ridicule and mockery.
The murder of the Sultan
Osman, turning to the Janissaries, prayed for mercy, asked not to take his life. In response, he heard that they did not want his blood. But at the same time they tried to kill him. According to the recollections of one of the eyewitnesses, the head of the gunsmiths threw a rope around his neck to strangle him, but at the same time two other Janissaries prevented him.
There is evidence that in the mosque of Orta-Jami, where Osman was taken, Davut Pasha appeared, in whose hands was a noose. But the former sultan reminded the rebels around him that he several times forgave Davut Pasha for the crimes committed by that. And then the military did not allow the captive to be killed in the mosque.
The ousted ruler was moved to the Istanbul fortress of Edikule. There the next day, which was May 20, 1622, he was killed. Mentally unhealthy Mustafa I turned out to be the sultan for the second time, and Dawood Pasha took the place of the great vizier.