Abd-ul-Hamid I



         


Abd-ul-Hamid I (March 20, 1725 – April 7, 1789), also known as Abdulhamid, Abdul Hamid or Abdul-Hamid, was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire. He was a son of sultan Ahmed III and succeeded his brother Mustafa III on January 21, 1774.

His mother Rabia Semi Sultana took care of his education. He studied history. He learnt calligraphy.

Abdul Hamid spent the first forty-three years of his life imprisoned by his older brother, Mustafa. The social isolation he experienced, while he was imprisoned, made it extremely easy for his advisors to manipulate him.

Due to this long confinement in the palace aloof from state affairs left Abd-ul-Hamid pious, God-fearing and pacifist in disposition. At his accession the financial straits of the treasury were such that the usual donative could not be given to the janissaries. War was, however, forced on him, and less than a year after his accession the complete defeat of the Turks at Battle of Kozluja led to the treaty of Kuchuk-Kainarji on July 21 1774.

Instead of all his failures, Sultan Abdul Hamid I was regarded as the most gracious sultan of the Ottomans. He administrated the fire brigade during the fire in 1782, in Istanbul and he won the admiration of his people. He was so religious and gracious that, he was called as "Veli" (saint). He traced a reform policy. He followed the governmental administrations closely. He worked with statesmen. When he came to throne, the army asked for gratuity, and the Sultan claimed that; "there is no longer, gratuities in our treasury, all of our soldier sons should learn". He also began the restoration of the military system. He established modern schools. He tried to renovate the yeniceri corps and the naval forces. He established a new artillery troop. He made a census in the yeniceri corps.

Slight successes against rebellious outbreaks in Syria and the Morea could not compensate for the loss of the Crimea, which Russia soon showed that she meant to absorb entirely. In 1787 war was again declared against Russia, joined in the following year by Austriaand the Swedes entered on the conflict on the Ottoman's side. Nevertheless Joseph II was entirely won over to Catherine the Great and accompanied in her triumphal progress in the Crimea. The empire held her own against the Austrians, but in 1788 Ottoman Empire from 1281 to 1923, beginning with Osman I (not counting his father, Ertuğrul), though the dynasty was not proclaimed until 1383 when Murad I declared himself sultan. Before that the tribe/dynasty might have been known as Söğüt but was renamed Osmanli in honour of Osman.

The sultan was the sole regent and government of the empire, at least officially. The sultan enjoyed many titles such as Sovereign of the House of Osman, Sultan of Sultans, Khan of Khans, Commander of the Faithful and Successor of the Prophet of the Lord of the Universe. Note that the first rulers never called themselves sultans, but rather beys. See the article on state organisation of the Ottoman Empire for further information on the sultan and the structure of power.


Hereditiary heads of the House of Osman since 1926:

When Mehmed II (the Conquerer) took over Constantinople on May 29, 1453, he committed a coup d'état by replacing the Emperor of the Roman empire (a.k.a. the Eastern Roman Empire a.k.a. Byzantine Empire) with himself. He took the title Emperor (imparator)and protector of Orthodox Christianity.

He let himself be crowned Emperor by the Patriarch of Constantinople Gennadius Scholarius, whom he protected and whose stature he elevated into leader of all the Eastern Orthodox Christians.

So in addition to being Sultan of the Muslim citisens and Khan of the Turks, he was now also styled Emperor of the Romans. As emperor of the Romans he laid claim to all the Roman territories and succesfully managed to put most of the Roman territories (except Rome and Italy) under his own control.

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