Concerning Maán Oghlí
Maán Oghlí Fekhr-ud-dín governed the whole of the country along the shores of Syria as far as the confines of Sefd. He had stipulated, as before observed, to send annually a certain portion of the productions of that country to Constantinople, which stipulation he generally fulfilled. It happened, however, that in consequence of some misunderstanding which had taken place between him and the grand vezír, Nesúh Páshá, at some former period, in order to vex and perplex the vezír, he absolutely declined granting the stipulated tribute. The vezír on this account, and with the view of utterly destroying him, ordered the válí of Syria, Vezír Háfiz Páshá, who had been six years governor in that province, to march against him with the troops of his own province, those of Anatolia, of Caramania, and of Diárbeker. This hostile movement against Maán Oghlí commenced in 1022, and was repeated this year also. But Maán Oghlí’s castles were all situate among rocks and mountains, and garrisoned by the heretics of the country; he had besides a great armed body of many thousands of the detestable Durzís,26 whom he kept as his guards. His principal fortresses were Shátuf, Paneiyas, Dair al kamar, and some others of a similar description, all which were filled with armed men. Yet when any of these places were threatened by the Osmánlís, and any of Maán Oghlí’s segbáns showed themselves, their heads were made to roll on the ground. Owing, however, to the inaccessible position of his castles, and to their being well supplied with every warlike apparatus, the Osmánlí general, Háfiz Páshá, found it imperative to use every exertion to press Maán Oghlí, especially as the winter coming on, would make it necessary for him and his army to retire into winter-quarters. The result was, that these mountaineers began to feel the want of provisions, and Maán Oghlí, perceiving the determined vigour with which the Osmánlí general carried on his operations, to save his own life became a French proselyte, or at least ingratiated himself into the favour of the French, promising he would assist a French army in acquiring a conquest in the environs of Jerusalem. He accordingly set sail in a French vessel from the nearest port and arrived in Europe, whence he wrote to his followers an account of the esteem and favour he had met in Europe. Amongst other falsehoods, he told them, in order to encourage them to continue their resistance and keep possession of their strong-holds, that he was on the point of returning to them with a victorious army in French ships provided by European princes: he also promised his segbáns their wages.
Vezír Háfiz Páshá, in the meantime, continued to press the strong-holds of Maán Oghlí; and having been strengthened by an augmentation of new forces, he was enabled to lay siege to them. He was, moreover, supplied with artillery from Constantinople, which he applied so effectually against the strong-holds of the enemy, that he succeeded in reducing some of them, whilst others submitted of their own accord. He sent an encouraging message to Maán Oghlí’s segbáns, and two thousand of them joined the Osmánlí army. The castles which were in the most elevated and inaccessible situations stood out for a while, but they also offered to capitulate on terms which they deemed necessary for their own safety. At this moment, however, five light ships, conveying a number of troops and cannon for Maán Oghlí’s garrisons, arrived. The infamous wretch, Maán Oghlí’s deputy, came out to receive these cannon, and was in the act of having them conveyed into his strong-hold, when Háfiz Páshá, who had received a hint of what was going on, sent a pretty strong party with the view of seizing the cannon. The mountaineers no sooner saw the Osmánlís advancing upon them than they fled back into their fastnesses, and the French or Europeans ran to their ships, leaving every thing behind them a prey to the royalists, who were commanded by Hasan Páshá. These mountaineers still trusted, however, that Maán Oghlí himself would, some time during the winter, arrive to their aid with his auxiliary army from Europe. This story gained ground. The Durzís, to the amount of ten thousand, fortified the strong places in the mountains, and secured, moreover, some narrow passes belonging to Shuf (in Syria). The Moslems, however, never ceased to carry on their operations. These Durzís went in a body to a place called Aien-rahela; and whilst Háfiz Páshá was engaged in laying siege to some of their strong-holds, Hasan Páshá joined him with his body of troops. A most tremendous battle now ensued between a body of these Durzís and the Moslem or royal army, in which two hundred of the former lost their heads; the rest fled to the mountains, and their dwellings were all burned to the ground. Again, on the same day, those of the same race who had assembled in the neighbourhood of Kufra-nahm (Capernaum) were scattered, and at Ebn Maherin three hundred more of them were deprived of their heads: one of their chiefs, called Izz-ud-dín, was among the slain. A division of the Moslem troops was also sent to Dair al kamar, where about three hundred more of these Durzís perished. Násir-ud-dín, chief of this fortress, came to the pavilion of the commanding-general, and implored him to spare his life, which he granted him.
At the taking of Dair al kamar, the Osmánlís experienced great difficulties, before they gained the victory which crowned their arduous efforts; and which was chiefly owing to their having changed their mode of assault for that of the springing of mines. One thousand five hundred of the Segbáns that had joined the Moslems were sent to meet Hasan Páshá son of Seif, governor of Tripoli, in Syria, who was marching to reduce a place called Múrj Pásin, the chief of which, a relative of Maán Oghlí, called Násir-ud-dín, with more than a thousand of his followers advanced to meet the son of Seif, when a most desperate encounter ensued; in which the rebel-chief was not only made a prisoner, but several hundred of the Durzís lost their lives. Múrj Pásin itself escaped at this time, but it was afterwards visited when all the Durzís in it were scattered, and their chiefs obliged to flee. Four thousand of these mercenaries, under the command of one, Sheríf-ud-dín, were afterwards defeated in one of the defiles in the mountains called Rúm, where they lost five hundred men. In a short time, seven hundred more of these Durzís were numbered among their slain. In the above-mentioned defile, called Rúm, Sheríf-ud-dín himself, and above one thousand Durzís perished in a battle which was fought there. The Osmánlís were every where victorious against these detestable heretics, and burned their dwellings. Some short time afterwards they learned that Emír Yúnus, the brother of Maán Oghlí, had posted himself with four thousand armed men below the fortress of Banias. They were, however, soon dispersed, and the Osmánlí army now found time to carry on, with more leisure, the sieges of the various other strong-holds which had hitherto stood out. Fekhr-ud-dín Maán Oghlí’s first appearance of insubordination and rebellion took place in 1021, and he continued to manifest it more or less for a considerable time: sometimes he broke out in acts of hostile rebellion; sometimes again he sued for peace: and thus he continued till the reign of Sultán Ahmed Khán, when he was overcome by Kúchuk Ahmed Páshá, and was afterwards conducted to the At Maidán, in Constantinople, where he met with the punishment due to his crimes, as we shall afterwards see.