Köse Mihal

Köse Mihal (Ottoman Turkish: كوسه ميخال, lit. 'Michael the Beardless'; 13th century – c. 1340)[1] accompanied Osman I in his ascent to power as a bey and founder of the Ottoman Empire. He is considered to be the first significant Byzantine renegade and convert to Islam[2][3] to enter Ottoman service (see Nöker).

He was also known as Gazi Mihal (Ottoman Turkish: غازى ميخال) [4] and Abdullah Mihal Gazi.[5] He ruled over Harmankaya Kalesi (Ottoman Turkish: خرمن قيا قلعه سى).

Life

Köse Mihal was the Byzantine governor of Chirmenkia (Harmankaya, today Harmanköy) and was ethnically Greek.[6][7] His original name was "Michael Kosses".[7] The castle of Harmankaya was in the foothills of the Uludağ Mountains in Bilecik, Turkey.[4][8] Mihal also eventually gained control of Lefke, Mekece and Akhisar.[9]

Even before his conversion to Islam, Mihal had an amicable relationship with the Ottoman leader, Osman Ghazi.[10] He was an ally of Osman and his people in war, and also acted as a leader of the local Greek population. Additionally, he acted as a consultant and diplomatic agent for Osman I.[11][12] The sources describing the reason behind Mihal's change of faith vary. One tradition emphasises the influence exerted by his friendship with Osman Ghazi, whilst another describes him having experienced a significant dream which convinced him to become a Muslim.[13][11] His conversion is thought to have occurred between 1304 and 1313.[14][15][16] As a Muslim, he was known as Köse Mihal 'Abd Allah (Abdullah), Abdullah being a name commonly adopted by converts.[17]

Up to the conquest of Bursa in 1326, Köse Mihal played an important role as a diplomatic advisor and envoy of Orhan I, the son and successor of Osman Ghazi.[18] Köse Mihal was the first important Christian renegade to become an Ottoman subject, and he played a significant role in the creation of the Ottoman state.[19][20] Köse Mihal's descendants, known as the Mihaloğlu, were famous, particularly in the 15th and 16th centuries. They were a politically and militarily successful family of Ottoman dignitaries in Rumelia. However, they did not reach the very highest public offices.[21]

After the taking of Bursa, Köse Mihal is no longer mentioned in the sources. Kreutel notes that Köse Mihal died around 1340.[22] According to some historians, Köse Mihal was buried at Türbe, Edirne (Adrianople), in a mosque he himself built,[17] in this tradition Köse Mihal was believed to have lived until after the Ottoman capture of Adrianople by Murad I in the year 1361. He would therefore have lived to a very advanced age indeed. However, Franz Babinger appears to have made a mistake. He confused Köse Mihal with Ghazi Mihal Bey, a grandson of Köse Mihal. Ghazi Mihal Bey built a now ruined Mosque complex, with an Imaret and Hamam, in Edirne, which was completed in 1422. The cemetery adjoining the complex holds the tomb of Ghazi Mihal Bey.[23]

Issue

After his conversion, Mihal had two sons:[24]

Legacy

Mihal's descendants (the Mikhaloglu/Mikhaloglou; Greek: Μιχαλόγλου) held prominent positions through centuries of Ottoman history.[6]

Previously the oldest surviving Ottoman artifact was Orhan's helmet. But on 5 December 2020, the Ministry of National Defense of Turkey announced that Mihal's sword was recorded as the oldest surviving Ottoman artifact, and was taken to Istanbul Military Museum.[25]

In the Turkish television series Kuruluş "Osmancık" [tr] (1988), Köse Mihal was portrayed by Turkish actor Ahmet Mekin.[26]

In the Turkish movie Killing the Shadows, Köse Mihal is portrayed by Serdar Gökhan.

In the Turkish series Kuruluş: Osman, Köse Mihal is portrayed by Serhat Kılıç.

See also

Further reading

  • Dervish Ahmet-i 'Aşıki (called' Aşık Paşa, son): tevarihMenakıb u-i 'Al-i' Osman(Memories and times of the House of Osman). In Kreutel Richard Franz (Hrsg. / Editor):From Shepherd's Tent to Sublime Porte. Ottoman historian Vol 3, Graz 1959
  • Joseph Hammer Purgstall:History of the Ottoman Empire. Bd.1, Pest 1827
  • Nicolae Jorga:The history of the Ottoman Empire,according to sources presented verbatim reissue, Primus Verlag Darmstadt 1997
  • John Leunclavius:Annales Svltanorvm Othmanidarvm, A Tvrcis Sva Lingva Scripti Frankfurt a. M. 1588/1596, German:Neu Chronica Türckischer nation of self-described Türcke ... Frankfurt a. M. 1590
  • Majoros Ferenc u. Bernd Rill:The Ottoman Empire 1300–1922, Wiesbaden 2004
  • Mihaloğlu Mehmet Paşa Nüzhet: Ahval-i Gazi Mihal. 1897 (Ottoman)
  • Mehmet Neşrî:Kitab-i Cihan-Nümâ. Partially edited and translated in Journal of the German Oriental Society. 13. Volume 1859
  • MİHALOĞULLARI published in the 30th volume of TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, pp. 24–25 in Istanbul (2005)

References and notes

  1. ^ Joseph Hammer Purgstall: History of the Ottoman Empire. Erster Band, Pest 1827, p. 48
  2. ^ The Last Great Muslim Empires By H. J. Kissling, Bertold Spuler, F. R. C. Bagley, pg.3
  3. ^ American studies in altaic linguistics By Denis Sinor, pg.5
  4. ^ a b "KOSE MIHAL (GHAZI MIHAL)". www.osmanli700.gen.tr. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  5. ^ "Ömer Faruk Dinçel - Köse Mihal ve Harmankaya". yereltarih.tr.gg (in Turkish).
  6. ^ a b Ochsenwald, William; Fisher, Sydney Nettleton (2010-01-06). The Middle East: A History. McGraw-Hill Education. p. 163. ISBN 978-0-07-338562-4.
  7. ^ a b Majoros Ferenc u. Bernd Rill:The Ottoman Empire 1300–1922, Wiesbaden 2004, p. 96
  8. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-10-07. Retrieved 2011-10-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. ^ "OTTOMAN WEB SITE – 700th Anniversary of the OTTOMAN EMPIRE". www.osmanli700.gen.tr.
  10. ^ Nicolae Jorga after Leunclavius (Lewenklaw) :Annales sultanorum othmanidarum, Frankfurt 1596, Sp 129
  11. ^ a b "İbrahim Kaya – Şahin: AŞIKPAŞAAS-zade Historian: A STUDY ON THE TEVARiH AL-i-iOSMAN. PP.14 & 125" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-03-28. Retrieved 2009-08-14.
  12. ^ Dervish Ahmet-i 'Aşıki (called' Aşık Paşa, son):Menakıb u tevarih-i 'Al-i' Osman(Denkwürdigkeiten and times of the House Osman). In Kreutel Richard Franz (Hrsg. / Editor):From Shepherd Tent to Sublime Porte. Ottoman historian Vol 3, Graz 1959, p. 32ff
  13. ^ Dervish Ahmet-i 'Aşıki (called' Aşık Paşa, son):Menakıb u tevarih-i 'Al-i Osman (Denkwürdigkeiten and times of the House of Osman). In Kreutel Richard Franz (Hrsg. / Editor):From Tent to Shepherd High Pforte. Ottoman historian Vol 3, Graz 1959, p. 46
  14. ^ Leunclavius: Annales sultanorum othmanidarum, Frankfurt 1596, Sp 129
  15. ^ Mehmed Nesrî: Kitab-i Cihan-Nümâ- Nesrî Tarihi 1.Cilt, Ed: Prof. Dr. Mehmet A. Köymen and Faik Resit UNAT
  16. ^ İsmail Hakkı Uzunçarşılı:Osmanli Tarihi Cilt I-IV Ankara1972 – 1978
  17. ^ a b Franz Babinger:Mikhalik-OGHLU. In E. J. Brill's first encyclopaedia of Islam. Leiden 1913 – 1936, S.493–495
  18. ^ Mehmed Neşrî, quoted in Journal of the German Oriental Society. 13. Volume 1859, p. 214
  19. ^ Nicolae Jorga:The history of the Ottoman Empire, presented by source, unchanged reissue, Primus Verlag Darmstadt 1997, Vol 2, p. 204
  20. ^ Hans Joachim Kissling: Dissertationes orientales et Balcanica collectae, III. The Ottomans and Europe. Munich 1991, p. 217-225
  21. ^ Richard F. Kreutel:life and deeds of the Turkish emperor. The anonymous vulgärgriechische Chronik Codex Barberinianus Graecus 111 (Anonymus Zoras). Graz et altera 1971, p. 94f
  22. ^ Dervish Ahmet-i 'Aşıki (called' Aşık Paşa, son):Menakıb u tevarih-i 'Al-i' Osman(Denkwürdigkeiten and times of House Osman). In Kreutel Richard Franz (Hrsg. / Editor):From Shepherd Tent to Sublime Porte. Ottoman historian Vol 3, Graz 1959, p. 299
  23. ^ Gazi Mihal Bey Camii (images, text, Turkish) queried on 8 September 2008[permanent dead link‍]
  24. ^ The encyclopaedia of Islam. 7. Mif - Naz. Leiden. 1993. pp. 34–35. ISBN 978-90-04-09419-2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  25. ^ "MSB: Mihalgazi'nin kılıcı, Osmanlı Devleti'ne ait en eski eser olarak kayıt altına alındı" (in Turkish). Anadolu Agency. 5 December 2020.
  26. ^ "Full Cast & Crew: Kurulus". IMDb. Retrieved 21 January 2021.