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Köprülü Mehmed Pasha (in Albanian: Mehmed Pashë Kypriljoti or Qyprilliu, also called: Mehmed Pashá Rojniku) (born at 1575, 1578 or 1583 in Rojnik, Berat, Albania– 31 October 1661 Edirne), was the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire from 1656 until his death. He was the first leader and founder of the Albanian Köprülü noble dynasty/family.

[edit]Life

He was recruited as a part of the devshirmeh system and was trained in the palace school. He eventually rose to the rank of pasha and was appointed the beylerbey (provincial governor) of the Trebizond Vilayet in 1644. Later he was to rule the provinces of Eğri in 1647, of Karamanid in 1648, and of Anadolu in 1650. He served as vizier of the divan for one week in 1652 before being dismissed due to the constant power struggle within the palace. He retired to an estate in the small town of Köprü in northern Anatolia that he had inherited from his father-in-law. The town became the seat of his family, and the family came to be called as Köprülü, meaning ‘from Köprü’. It is called Vezirköprü today to the family’s honor.

In 1656 the political situation in Ottoman Empire was very critical. The war in Crete against the Venetians was still continuing. The Ottoman Navy under Captain-of-Seas Kenan Pasha on May 1656 was defeated by the Venetian and Maltese navy at Battle of Dardanelles (1656) and the Venetian navy continued the blockade of the Canakkale Straits cutting the Ottoman army at Crete from Istanbul, the state capital. There was a political plot to unseat the reigning Sultan Mehmed IV led by important viziers including the Grand Mufti (Seyhulislam) Mesud Effendi. This plot was discovered and the plotters were executed or exiled. The Mother Sultana Turhan Hatice conducted consultations and the most favored candidate for the post of Grand Vizier came out as the old and retired but experienced Koprulu Mehmed Pasha. Koprulu Mehmed Pasha was offered the post of Grand Vizier but he would only accept it if he was given extraordinary powers and political rule without interference, even from the highest authority of the Sultan. His conditions were accepted and he was appointed Grand Vizier by the Sultan Mehmed IV on 15 September 1656.

As the Grand Vizier, his first task was to advise Sultan Mehmed IV to conduct a life of hunts and traveling around the Balkans and to reside in the old capital of Edirne, thus stop his political interventions. In 4 January 1657 the household cavalry Sipahi troops in Istanbul started a rebellion and this was cruelly suppressed by Koprulu Mehmed Pasha with the help of janissary troops. The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Istanbul was proven to be in treasonous contacts with the enemies of Ottoman state and Koprulu Mehmed Pasha approved of his execution.

Against external enemies of the Empire Mehmed Köprülü was also quite successful. He started on a military expeditions against the Venetian blockade of Dardanelles Straits. The Ottoman navy had a victory against Venice in the Battle of the Dardanelleson 19 July 1657. This allowed Ottomans to regain some of the Aegean islands, including Tenedos and Limni (15 November) and to open the sea-supply routes to the Ottoman Army still conducting the sieges of Crete.

Koprulu Mehmed Pasha then directed his attention to internal rebellions in Anatolia and started on a military campaign in Anatolia. He suppressed the revolts some of the Anatolian governors of provinces, most notably the revolt of Abaza Hasan Pasha, the ruler of Aleppo and of Ahmed Pasha, Kenan Pasha, Ali Mirza Pasha, Ferhad Pasha, Mustafa Pasha in 1658–1659.

In 1658 he conducted a successful campaign in Transylvania where he defeated the disloyal vassal prince, George II Rákóczi (György Rákóczi), and had him replaced. He also annexed Yanova (Jenö) on 1 August 1660 and Várad on 27 August.

In July 1660 there was a big fire in Istanbul (the Ayazmakapi Fire) causing great damage to persons and buildings, leading later to a food scarcity and plague. Koprulu Mehmed Pasha became personally involved in the reconstruction affairs. The honesty and integrity in conducting state affairs by Koprulu Mehmed Pasha is shown by an episode in this task [see Sakaoglu (1999) p.281). The burnt-out Jewish quarters from the Ayazmakapi Fire were decided to be compulsorily purchased by the state. The Jewish merchants with the aim of changing this policy offered the Grand Vizier a very large monetary bribe from their ‘Accidents and Emergencies Fund’. This was refused by the Grand Vizier and those who offered the bribes were punished.

Koprulu Mehmed Pasha died in Edirne on 31 October 1661. During his short extraordinary rule as the Grand Vizier from 1656 to 1661 the Ottoman Empire had regained some of its former prestige and power internally and externally. Koprulu Mehmed’s victories in Transylvania would push the Ottoman border closer to Austria. He was succeeded as Grand Vizier by his son, Köprülü Fazıl Ahmet Pasha.

In Germany, in 1933, due to increased pressure by the Hitler regime, especially on the Jewish people, in order to isolate them from society, the process of escaping from Germany began. The first stop, especially for the academical refugees, was The Society for Assistance to German Scientists Abroad in Zurich which was led by Prof. Dr. Philipp Schwartz. Because of the hospitality displayed by the Turkish institutions “mass immigration” of German academicians occurred. Thus, Istanbul University became “the greatest and the best German university”. This experience turned out to be successful by employing the help of students, assistants and voluntary translators who helped overcome the problem of language.

When a University Reform was made in Turkey the same year in August, many worthy and famous scientists of German origin taking refuge in Switzerland came to Istanbul, in October, upon the invitation of President Mustafa Kemal ATATÜRK and became members of various faculties of Istanbul University. While Ord. Prof. Dr. Alfred HEILBRONN gave lectures in the Pharmacobotany and Genetics Institute in the newly built Biology Building in Süleymaniye, which was called Biology Institutes at that time, together with his colleague and friend in destiny Ord. Prof. Dr. Leo BRAUNER he worked on the establishment of the most modern Botanical Garden in Turkey after the declaration of the Republic.

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Little Hagia Sophia (Turkish: Küçuk Ayasofya Camii), formerly the Church of the Saints Sergius and Bacchus (Greek: Eκκλησία τῶν Άγίων Σεργίου καί Βάκχου ὲν τοῖς Ὸρμίσδου), is a former Eastern Orthodox church dedicated to Saints Sergius and Bacchus in Constantinople, later converted into a mosque during the Ottoman Empire.

This Byzantine building with a central dome plan was erected in the 6th century and was a model for the Hagia Sophia, the main church of the Byzantine Empire. It is one of the most important early Byzantine buildings in Istanbul.The building stands in Istanbul, in the district of Fatih and in the neighborhood of Kumkapi, at a short distance from the Marmara Sea, near the ruins of the Great Palace and to the south of the Hippodrome. It is now separated from the sea by theSirkeci-Halkalı suburban railway line and the coastal road.Location[edit]History[edit]Byzantine period

Plan of the building

A particular of the Colonnade

According to later legend, during the reign of Justin I, his nephew Justinian had been accused of plotting against the throne and was sentenced to death. However, in a dream, the saints Sergius and Bacchus appeared before Justin and vouched for Justinian’s innocence. He was freed and restored to his title of Caesar, and in gratitude vowed that he would dedicate a church to the saints once he became emperor. The construction of this Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus, between 527 and 536 AD (only a short time before the erection of the Hagia Sophia between 532 and 537), was one of the first acts of the reign of Justinian I.^[1]

It lay at the border between the First and Τhird Regio of the City.^[2] The location that was chosen for the new church was an irregular area between the Palace of Hormisdas (the house of Justinian before his accession to the throne) and the Church of the Saints Peter and Paul. Back then, the two churches shared the same narthex, atrium and propylaea. The new church became the center of the complex, and part still survives today, towards the south of the northern wall of one of the two other edifices. The church was one of the most important religious structures in Constantinople. Shortly after the building of the church amonastery bearing the same name was built near the edifice.

Due to its strong external resemblance to the Hagia Sophia, it is believed that the building had been designed by the same architects, namely Isidorus of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles, and that its erection was a kind of “dress rehearsal” for that of the largest church of the Byzantine Empire. However, in terms of architectural details, the building is quite different in design from the Hagia Sophia and the notion that it was but a small-scale version has largely been discredited. ^[1]

During the years 536 and 537, the Palace of Hormisdas became a Monophysite monastery, where followers of that sect, coming from the eastern regions of the Empire and escaping the persecutions against them, found protection by Empress Theodora. ^[3]

In year 551 Pope Vigilius, who some years before had been summoned to Constantinople by Justinian, found refuge in the church from the soldiers of the Emperor who wanted to capture him, and this attempt caused riots. ^[3] During the Iconoclastic period the monastery became one of the centers of this movement in the City.

Ottoman period

22 December 2010: Muslim prayers in the mosque.

After the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453, the church remained untouched until the reign of Bayezid II. Then (between 1506 and 1513) it was transformed into a mosque by Hüseyin Ağa, the chief of the Aghas, (Black Eunuchs) who were the custodians of the Bab-ı-Saadet (literally The Gate of Felicity in Ottoman Turkish) in the Sultan‘s residence, the Topkapı Palace. At that time the portico and madrasah were added to the building. ^[4]

In 1740 the Grand Vizier Hacı Ahmet Paşa restored the mosque and built the Şadırvan (fountain). Damage caused by the earthquakes of 1648 and 1763 were repaired in 1831 under the reign of Sultan Mahmud II. In 1762 the minaret was first built. It was demolished in 1940 and built again in 1956. ^[4]

The pace of decay of the building, which already suffered because of humidity and earthquakes through the centuries, accelerated after the construction of the railroad. The laying down of the railroad caused parts of St. Peter and Paul to be demolished to the south of the building. Other damage was caused by the building’s use as housing for the refugees during the Balkan Wars. ^[4]

Due to the increasing threats to the building’s static integrity, it was added some years ago to the UNESCO watch list of endangered monuments. The World Monuments Fund added it to its Watch List of the 100 Most Endangered Sites in 2002, 2004, and 2006. After an extensive restoration which lasted several years and ended in September 2006, it has been opened again to the public and for worship.

Architecture

[edit]Exterior

The exterior masonry of the structure adopts the usual technique of that period in Constantinople, which uses bricks sunk in thick beds of mortar. The walls are reinforced by chains made of small stone blocks.

The building, the central plan of which was consciously repeated in the basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna and served as a model for the famous Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan in the construction of the Rüstem Pasha Mosque, has the shape of an octagon inscribed in an irregular quadrilateral. It is surmounted by a beautiful umbrella dome in sixteen compartments with eight flat sections alternating with eight concave ones, standing on eight polygonal pillars.

The narthex lies on the west side, opposed to an antechoir.^[5] Many effects in the building were later used in Hagia Sophia: the exedrae expand the central nave on diagonal axes, colorful columns screen the ambulatories from the nave, and light and shadow contrast deeply on the sculpture of capitals and entablature.^[6]

In front of the building there is a portico (which replaced the atrium) and a court (both added during the Ottoman period), with a small garden, a fountain for the ablutions and several small shops.

[edit]Interior

Inside the edifice there is a beautiful two-storey colonnade which runs along the north, west and south sides, and bears an elegant inscription in twelve Greek hexameters dedicated to the Emperor Justinian, his wife, Theodora, and Saint Sergius, the patron-saint of the soldiers of the Roman army. For some unknown reason, Saint Bacchus is not mentioned. The columns are alternately of verd antique and red Synnada marble; the lower storey has 16, while the upper has 18. Many of the column capitals still bear the monograms of Justinian and Theodora. ^[7]

• 

  The Apse of the former Church with the Mihrab. The Minbar is seen in the foreground.

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  Colonnades.

• 

  Dome.

• 

  Interior north-west.

Nothing remains of the original interior decoration of the church, which contemporary chroniclers describe as being covered in mosaics with walls of variegated marble. During the Ottoman conversion into a mosque, the windows and entrance were modified, floor level raised, and interior walls plastered.^[6]

Grounds

North of the edifice there is a small Muslim cemetery with the türbe of Hüseyin Ağa, the founder of the mosque.

Cukurcuma is a formerly neglected neighbourhood which has recently been swept up in Cihangir’s breakneck gentrification. In some ways, Cukurcuma 49, a split-level former workshop of bare brick, glass and wood, seems to be the inevitable result of the new aesthetic, yet somehow it retains its own charm. Perhaps it’s the thin-crust pizzas, made from fresh Turkish ingredients, or perhaps it’s because it serves its own wine, bottled especially on the small Aegean island of Bozcaada. Either way, attention to detail triumphs over pretension.
• Turnacibaşi sokak 49/A, Cihangir, +90 212 249 0048

Other than the numerous hotel bars, it’s very hard to find a decent drink in the old city, but for those desperate not to leave the vicinity of Sultanahmet there are a few options. The Sultan Pub is a fun, if slightly garish, American-style bar spread over three floors, serving hamburgers and alcoholic drinks within sight of the Aya Sofya. The pavement seating is always lively but the roof terrace affords the best views over the Hippodrome.
• Divanyolu Caddesi 2, Sultanahmet, +90 212 528 1719, sultanpub.com.tr

Built in 1881, the Büyük Londra (or Grande Hotel de Londres) is an achingly nostalgic piece of Beyoğlu’s past. It clearly intends to invoke the neighbourhood’s bohemian heyday, but the dowdy furnishings and talking parrot in the ground-floor bar take you back to a more recent time, before foreign mores and local money made Istanbul cool. This is fin de siècle Ottomania seen through the prism of the 1980s, and rarely crowded. The rooftop bar is slightly less olde worlde and looks out over the Golden Horn.
• Mesrutiyet Caddesi 53, Beyoğlu, + 90 212 245 0670, londrahotel.net

Cafe Smyrna, a former antique shop, embodies leafy, literary Cihangir’s laid-back, old-fashioned style: tables are shaded from the street by plants and awnings, and the bar is a jumble of furniture and standing lamps. Beloved of writers, thespians and the neighbourhood’s foreign journalists and expats, Smyrna’s outdoor tables, under the plane trees that line the streets, are a lovely place to while away an evening, drink in hand.
• Akarsu Caddesi 29, Cihangir, +90 212 244 2466

Susam Sokak (Sesame Street) is one of Istanbul’s most charming nooks, in the heart of the leafy, literary Cihangir neighbourhood, and this effortlessly friendly local cafe, which buzzes on weekend evenings, is a destination in itself. A mixed bunch of regulars – from local hipsters to foreign newspaper hacks – people the bar, sucking down good cocktails, such as its famous Egeli Mojito (Aegean Mojito), on mismatched furniture in the sitting room-like interior. Most, however, come to soak up the atmosphere on the cafe’s street-side terrace.
• Susam Sokak 11, Cihangir, +90 212 251 5995

Urban is a fantastic bar-cum-cafe tucked away in a sidestreet between the Galatasaray Lisesi (high school) and Galatasaray hamam. In summer, tables spill out onto the street, covered by a çarşaf (a sun shade made of trellised vines and ivy) and are thronging with Beyoğlu’s boho set, sipping on ice-cold Efes Pilsen. A rare patch of calm in the beating heart of Istanbul, it livens up as the sun sets. Winter brings people into the cosy, old-fashioned, faintly Parisian interior, with a mezzanine and bar – the perfect place to curl up with a book and while away the hours with a beer.
• Istiklal Caddesi, Kartal Sokak 6, +90 212 252 1325, urbanbeyoglu.com