The Grand Vezír, Nesúh Páshá, Murdered — The Seals Are Conferred on Mohammed Páshá
Nesúh Páshá was by birth a plebeian, and of one of the villages of Gomlajena. On his being brought into the imperial palace, he was attached to the hatchet-bearers in the old palace, and served under Mahmúd Aghá, the emperor’s favourite. He left this situation with the rank of chávush, and acted for some time as the voivoda of Zula. In 1007 he was advanced to the rank of ketkhodá of the household troops; was afterwards made under-master of the horse, and after enjoying this situation for some time, he was raised to the rank and dignity of governor of Aleppo, where he continued till Jeghala Zádeh gave the government of that city to Jánbúlát Oghlí. Once or twice he was employed against the rebels, but was defeated. Having been created válí of Baghdád, he waged war against the militia of that district. He was for a considerable time válí of Diárbeker, and formed a permanent friendship with the Kurds, by marrying the daughter of the mírsheríf of Kúrdistán. During the time he held these situations, particularly those of Aleppo and Diárbeker, he accumulated immense wealth. When the celebrated Murád Páshá fell sick at Diárbeker, Nesúh became his deputy, and after Murád’s death succeeded him in the premiership, as well as in the chief command of the army of the east. After negotiations had been entered into with the sháh of Persia, and when that prince had agreed to the articles proposed by the Ottoman government, Nesúh Páshá returned to Constantinople in 1021, and became son-in-law to the emperor; but the princess was only three years old when the marriage contract was made.
Although Nesúh was a man of unequalled strength and bravery, yet in battle he was seldom successful. After the death of Murád Páshá it was expected (especially when the splendid apparatus his predecessor had provided against the Persians was considered) that he would have employed his resources against that people and utterly ruin them; but instead of this, he heedlessly agreed to make peace with them. By his power of address, and the servility of manner which he was capable of showing, he acquired such an ascendency over the emperor that he acted with despotic sway. His pride and haughtiness knew no bounds; nor would he allow any one, if he could prevent it, to share his master’s favours. By his influence vezírs were turned out of their vezírships, and others of them were exposed to the greatest insults. Some of the most faithful servants around his majesty’s person he supplanted by creatures of his own stamp. His being at enmity with the reverend mufti, Mohammed Effendí, led him to manifest contempt for the whole body of the ulemá, and caused him to make himself friends of worthless and ignorant men. In every assembly he and his vile associates showed the most marked disrespect for that august and venerable dignitary of the mosque; and every person, whoever he was, if he only suspected him of having any share in the emperor’s favour, was sure to meet with reproach and persecution. His conduct at last, however, was seen through by his majesty, and produced in the monarch’s mind a complete change towards his vezír.
Sím Zádeh, a native of Bosnia, states that Nesúh united great magnanimity of mind with a competent share of knowledge and science, and possessed many other excellent qualities; but that he wanted rectitude and was thoughtless. He says, moreover, that Nesúh Páshá maintained no intercourse with persons who were of a wrathful and furious disposition. His enmity against the reverend mufti wholly arose from his pride, ambition, and haughtiness. One day when the mufti was sitting in the Yalí gardens along with some of his friends, the conversation happened to turn upon the evil conduct and bad administration of the grand vezír. Suddenly, at this time, a six-oared boat approached the Yalí gardens, when it was announced that the grand vezír had arrived. The mufti hastened to meet him as he disembarked. The vezír had on his head a small turban, appeared very much perplexed, and his features became changed. On his meeting the reverend prelate, he saluted him, and hardly giving him time to return the salutation, he stepped into his boat again and sailed away. The reverend mufti, and those about him, were very much surprised at the strange conduct and appearance of the premier; but they did not know the mystery of the case. They took an opportunity, however, to ask him whether he had been at the emperor’s council, but he answered that he had not gone, though he had been invited to attend; and added some other things which seemed to intimate that matters were not right with him.
It would be endless to recount the evils which Nesúh was guilty of, both before and after he was made grand vezír. His cruelty and shedding of innocent blood, his avarice, his tyranny and oppression, were enormous. The emperor not unfrequently remonstrated with him, both in the language of kindness and of threatening, but it had no good effect upon him. Khezer Effendí, who had been raised to the chancellorship for having told him the truth, he contrived to have sent to Anatolia on business; and afterwards despatched a man after him to murder him, which deed he perpetrated. When speaking to his friends of the fate of the unfortunate Effendí, he used to say, he had helped him out of this vain world to a crown of martyrdom in the next. He was destitute of religion; and his exalted station was his ruin. Even his own domestics united at last against him, and deemed him worthy of death. It seemed as if every thing conspired to render it imperative that a judicial sentence should go forth against him. The mufti, Mohammed Effendí, the ághá of the palace, Mustafa Aghá, and those about the emperor’s person, apprehensive of their own safety from the snares and stratagems of the grand vezír, were incessant in preferring complaints against him for his villany and shocking perversities, which at last had the effect of rousing the emperor’s displeasure to such a degree, that he determined on cutting him off. Nesúh saw the storm that was now rising, and therefore fled from the emperor’s presence. This explains the mystery of his going to the Yalí garden, as before observed. His death was determined on: justice had lifted up her hand against him.
It was announced to the grandees of the state, that his majesty intended to be present, on Friday the 13th of Ramazán, at the public assembly in the mosque. The astrologers informed the grand vezír that his horoscope had run its course; that his felicity was at an end; that his stars had prognosticated evil and not good concerning him; and that if he would escape the impending danger, he must avoid seeing the face of the emperor. The grand vezír, fearing the danger to which he was exposed, feigned himself sick, and determined on throwing himself on the emperor’s compassion when he came forth to attend at the mosque. The emperor, however, did not come forth on the day he had announced; for he too was afraid of the grand vezír: but he issued orders to take away his life. This was communicated to the ághá of the janissaries, who was desired to proceed and do the work. This ághá and his janissaries soon surrounded the palace of the grand vezír, when the bostánjí báshí, Hasan Aghá, with a hundred bostánjís, rushed into the premier’s inner chamber, where he was sitting, and instantly strangled him. The seals of office they carried away with them, and delivered them to the emperor.
The end of Nesúh Páshá was no less humbling than his previous fortune had been auspicious. The whole object of his life was to amass wealth. From his first appearance in public he advanced through all the various gradations of military office, but never gained any victory worthy of notice. The desire of accumulating wealth and property was this man’s foible.
In the account of Nesúh Páshá which we have perused there are some other things recorded which we must here insert. After the death of the celebrated Murád Páshá, and when Nesúh was made premier in his stead, he seized on Murád’s lieutenant, and threw him, and one Hasan Aghá, who had offended him, into prison. The former he caused to be executed on the battlements of the prison, and rooted out every individual of his family: the latter met with the same fate shortly afterwards.
When Alí Páshá, the válí of Baghdád, and son-in-law of the lamented Murád Páshá, was on the eve of retiring to his government, his father-in-law strongly advised him against meeting Nesúh. Alí Páshá neglected this advice, had an interview with him, and received several tokens of apparent kindness from Nesúh. He not only conferred a variety of presents upon him, but even sent some of his own domestics along with him under the pretence of rendering him service, whilst, in fact, Nesúh meant them only as spies. When the latter returned to Constantinople he removed Alí Páshá from office, and three times sent him word not to show his face in the metropolis. Alí Páshá, as might have been expected, was very much astonished at this treatment, and wondered what the crime might be for which he was thus treated. Leaving, therefore, his heavy baggage at Eskí-sheher, he secretly returned to Constantinople. The grand vezír made three several attempts to get the emperor to agree to deprive Alí of his life, but without success. On a fourth attempt of the same kind, the emperor, instead of listening to the advice and importunity of his minister, created Alí Páshá a vezír, and secured him against the machinations of the vindictive premier. After the assassination of the latter Alí Páshá was raised to the government of Buda.
The writer, whose sentiments we have introduced into the preceding paragraph, says, moreover, that when Nesúh Páshá accompanied the emperor to Adrianople, he wrote to Mohammed Gheráí, who, along with Sháhín Gheráí, had been the cause of a tumult among the Tátárs, desiring him to come to Adrianople, where he would introduce him to the emperor, and get him made khán. Mohammed Gheráí took the hint, and immediately set out for Adrianople. The emperor having gone out one day to follow the chase, chanced to spy a troop of armed Circassian horsemen, and Mohammed Gheráí at their head. The emperor, who did not seem to know the reason of their appearance in such circumstances, enquired why they had come. The result was, even though the vezír fully explained to the emperor the reason of Mohammed Gheráí’s arrival, that he was instantly seized and carried off to the Seven Towers, and there incarcerated. Persons were also sent to Kili to seize Sháhín Gheráí, but he made his escape before they arrived there.