Sultan Mustafa IIIReception ceremony of the Comte de Saint Priest at the Ottoman Porte Antoine de Favray, 1767.
Coin of Mustafa III
Mustafa III (/ˈmʊstəfə/;Ottoman Turkish:مصطفى ثالثMuṣṭafā-yi sālis; 28 January 1717 – 21 January 1774) was thesultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1757 to 1774. He was a son of SultanAhmed III (1703–30), and his consortMihrişah Kadın. He was succeeded by his brotherAbdul Hamid I (1774–89). After years of confinement following his father's deposition, he became sultan in 1757. He promoted justice, economic reform, and modernized infrastructure. AdmiringFrederick the Great, he aligned diplomatically withPrussia. However, his push forwar with Russia in 1768 led to disaster, exposing Ottoman military weakness despite reform efforts. The war ended with major territorial losses.
Mustafa was born at theEdirne Palace on 28 January 1717.[1] His father was SultanAhmed III, and his mother wasMihrişah Kadın.[2] He had a full brother named Şehzade Süleyman. In 1720, a large fifteen day circumcision ceremony took place for Mustafa, and his brothers, princes Süleyman, Mehmed, and Bayezid.[3] In 1730, after thePatrona Halil revolt led to the deposition of his father SultanAhmed III[4] and the succession of his cousin SultanMahmud I, Mustafa, his father, and brothers were imprisoned in theTopkapı Palace. In 1756, after the death of his elder half-brother Mehmed, he became heir to the throne.
Mustafa ascended the throne on 30 October 1757, after the death of his cousinOsman III, the son of SultanMustafa II,[5] marking the first time in Ottoman history that the throne passed down from cousin to cousin.[6]
Soon after his accession to the throne, Mustafa demonstrated a special care for justice. He took a number of measures to increase prosperity in Istanbul. He regulated coinage, built large grain stores, maintained aqueducts, and established a strict fiscal policy.[7] He traveled frequently and checked whether the laws he had enforced were followed.[8]
Mustafa much admiredFrederick the Great's generalship, and in 1761 established a peace treaty with Prussia. Frederick wanted an alliance against the Habsburgs, and Mustafa wanted to modernize his state and army. Mustafa preferred recruiting his officers in Berlin, rather than in Paris and London, to re-organize his army. In 1763, the two countries exchanged their diplomats for the first time.[9]
Koca Ragıp Pasha, who remained grand vizier until 1763, pursued a peace policy towards neighboring countries. But the increasing influence ofRussia over theCaucasus and its intention to control Poland created tension between the Ottomans and Russia. Ragıp Pasha's successor Muhsinzade Mehmed Pasha also preferred to remain at peace, and Mustafa's insistence on war ("I will find some means of humbling those infidels"[10]) with Russia led to his resignation in 1768. The Sultan expected to gain an easy victory over the Russians, but in fact the Ottomans were unprepared for a long war. During the war, military reforms were undertaken, with the assistance of French officerFrançois Baron de Tott. They included the modernization of artillery corps and the foundation of theNaval Engineering School in 1773. The war was disastrous for the Ottoman Empire. The Russian armies occupiedCrimea,Romania and parts ofBulgaria.[11]
Russian forces charge against the Ottomans in theBattle of Kagul, southern Bessarabia, 1770.
The destruction of the Ottoman fleet in theBattle of Chesma, 1770.
Many monumental buildings including theFatih Mosque, which was built byMehmed the Conqueror, were rebuilt from the ground during his reign. In addition, he had builtLaleli Mosque complex, and the shore along the Yenikapı filled to set up a new neighborhood. Apart from these, he undertook other construction projects after theearthquakes of 1766,[7]and 1767.[12]
"Yıkılupdur bu cihan sanma ki bizde düzele Devleti çarh-ı deni verdi kamu müptezele Şimdi erbab-ı saadette gezen hep hazele İşimiz kaldı hemen merhamet-i lem yezele."[14]
(Translation)
"This world has ruined, don't even think with us it recovers, It was the lousy fate that has delivered the power to vulgars, Now the perfidious ones have populated the Imperial Palace, It's now the mercy of the everlasting God that runs our business.
Aynülhayat Kadın (c. 1746 - 1 August 1764). ProbablyBaşKadin (first consort),[20] is sometimes considered Mustafa's legal wife. She was the mother of at least one daughter[21] and had a sister, Emine Hanim, in the harem like her. She built the Katırcıham Mescid Mosque on 1760. She was buried in Laleli.
Hibetullah Sultan (17 March 1759 - 7 June 1762) - with Mihrişah Kadin. Also called Heybetullah Sultan or Heyyibetullah Sultan. Hers was the first imperial birth in 29 years, and was therefore celebrated for ten days and ten nights in an extremely luxurious way. Her nurse was Emine Hanim, sister of Aynülhayat Kadın, and, being Mustafa's mother,Mihrişah Kadin, died, was his sister,Saliha Sultan, wife of the Grand Vizier, who presided over her Cradle Procession. On 2 June 1759, at three months, she was betrothed to Mahir Hamid Hamza Paşah. In the luxurious ceremony, her father gave her the lands of Gümrükçü, but she died of illness at the age of three before being able to celebrate the marriage. She was buried in the Mustafa III mausoleum.
Şah Sultan (21 April 1761 - 11 March 1803) - with Rifat Kadın. Of frail health, she was engaged twice, but both her fiancés were executed before the wedding. She eventually managed to marry and had two biological daughters and an adoptive one.
Reyhan Sultan (1761 -?) - with Fehime Kadın. She died as a child.
Mihrimah Sultan (5 February 1762 - 16 March 1764) - with Aynülhayat Kadın. Her birth was celebrated for five days. She was buried in the Mustafa III mausoleum.
Mihrişah Sultan (9 January 1763 - 21 February 1769) - perhaps with Aynülhayat Kadın. Her birth was celebrated for three days. She was buried in the mausoleum of Mustafa III.
Beyhan Sultan (13 January 1766 - 7 November 1824) - with Adilşah Kadin. She married once and had a daughter.
Hatice Sultan (15 June 1766–1767) - perhaps with Aynülhayat Kadın.
Hatice Sultan (14 June 1768 - 17 July 1822) - with Adilşah Kadin. She married once and had a son.
Fatma Sultan (9 January 1770 - 26 May 1772) - with Mihrişah Kadin. She was buried in the mausoleum of Mustafa III.
Mustafa died of heart attack[29] on Friday,[30] 21 January 1774,[30][31][32] at the Topkapı Palace, and was buried in his own mausoleum located at Laleli Mosque, Istanbul.[33] He was succeeded by his brotherAbdul Hamid I.[34] His death left the empire struggling with economic and administrative problems.[35]
Laleli Mosque tomb Sultan Mustafa III and son Selim III
^Brill, E. J.The Encyclopaedia of Islām: A Dictionary of the Geography, Ethnography and Biography of the Muhammadan Peoples, Volume 3, Part 2. p. 761.
^Faroqhi, Suraiya (29 November 2005).Subjects of the Sultan: Culture and Daily Life in the Ottoman Empire. I. B. Tauris. p. 326.ISBN978-1-850-43760-4.
^Murphy, Rhoads (20 October 2011).Exploring Ottoman Sovereignty: Tradition, Image and Practice in the Ottoman Imperial Household, 1400-1800. A&C Black. p. 182.ISBN978-1-441-10251-5.
^Keskiner, Philippe Bora (2012).Sultan Ahmed III (r.1703-1730) as a Calligrapher and Patron of Calligraphy. p. 58.
^Biographical Encyclopaedia of Islam, Volume 3. Cosmo Publications. 2006. p. 864.ISBN978-8-130-70390-9.
Bernard Lewis,The Emergence of Modern Turkey (Studies in Middle Eastern History), Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 3rd edition (September 6, 2001); Paperback: 568 pages;ISBN0-19-513460-5;ISBN978-0-19-513460-5
^ Beydilli, Kemal (2020). Kitab-ı Hedaya, Studien zum Osmanischen Reichundseinen Nachbargebieten, III. Mustafa (1757–1774): Kaynarca Öncesi Bir Padişah Portresi. Press of the University of Bonn. p. 233 n. 211.
^ Kal'a, Ahmet (1998). Istanbul külliyâtı: Istanbul tarım tarihi, 1 (1743–1757), 2 (1757–1763). Istanbul Araştırmaları Merkezi. p. 218.
^ Haskan, Mehmed Nermi (2008). Eyüp Sultan Tarihi - Volume 2. Eyüp Belediyesi Kültür Yayinları. p. 583. ISBN 978-9-756-08704-6.
^ Sak, Osman; Çalışkan, İrfan (2002). Beşinci Eyüpsultan Sempozyumu. Eyüp Belediyesi Kültür ve Turizm Müdürlüğü. p. 124. ISBN 978-9-759-38441-8.
^ Esad Efendi believed she was the third consort. It is possible that she was demoted in favor of Mihrişah Kadin when she had a son.
^ She was the mother of Mihrimah Sultan, and according to Oztüna also of Hibetullah Sultan, Mihrişah Sultan and Hatice Sultan (the one who died as a newborn). However, the plaque on her grave only identifies her as Mihrimah's mother, and it has been discredited that she was Hibetullah's mother, while her other two daughters remain uncertain
^ab Şemʼdânî-zâde Fındıklılı, Süleyman Efendi (1976). Aktepe, M.Münir (ed.). Şemʼdânî-zâde Fındıklılı Süleyman Efendi târihi Mürʼiʼt-tevârih-Volume II A. Edebiyat Fakültesi Matbaası. pp. 32, 50, 65, 95.
^ Şemʼdânî-zâde Fındıklılı, Süleyman Efendi (1976). Aktepe, M.Münir (ed.). Şemʼdânî-zâde Fındıklılı Süleyman Efendi târihi Mürʼiʼt-tevârih-Volume II B. Edebiyat Fakültesi Matbaası. pp. 24, 89, 90.
^ İyianlar, Arzu (1992). Vâlide Sultanlar'ın İmar Faaliyetleri. İstanbul Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü. pp. 167–8, 170–71.
^ Dominic, Paulina D .; Roszak, Stanisław (2017). The Istanbul Memories in Salomea Pilsztynowa's Diary "Echo of the Journey and Adventures of My Life" (1760). pp. 52 n. 41.
^Palmer, Alan (19 May 2011).The Decline and Fall of the Ottoman Empire. Faber & Faber.ISBN978-0-571-27908-1.