Headstone of Kara Mustafa, Edirne, Turkey

Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha (1634/1635 – December 25, 1683) was an Ottoman military leader and vizier who was a central character in the empire's last attempts at expansion into central and eastern Europe. Image File history File links Kara_Mustafa_Ibret_Tasi. ... Image File history File links Kara_Mustafa_Ibret_Tasi. ... Selimiye Mosque, built by Sinan in 1575 Edirne is a city in Thrace, the westernmost part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. ... Events Moses Amyrauts Traite de la predestination is published Curaçao captured by the Dutch Treaty of Polianovska First meeting of the Académie française The witchcraft affair at Loudun Jean Nicolet lands at Green Bay, Wisconsin Opening of Covent Garden Market in London English establish a settlement... Events February 10 - The Académie française in Paris is expanded to become a national academy for the artistic elite. ... December 25 is the 359th day of the year (360th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 6 days remaining. ... Events June 6 - The Ashmolean Museum opens as the worlds first university museum. ... Imperial motto (Ottoman Turkish) Devlet-i Ebed-müddet (the Eternal State) The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power (1683) Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital Sogut (1299-1326), Bursa (1326-1365), Edirne (1365-1453), Ä°stanbul (1453-1922) Imperial anthem Ottoman imperial anthem Sovereigns Padishah of the Osmanli Dynasty... A Vizier (وزير, sometimes also spelled Vizir, Wasir, Wazir, Wesir, Wezir - grammatical vowel changes are common in many oriental languages) is an oriental, originally Persian, term for a high-ranking political (and sometimes religious) advisor or Minister, often to a Muslim monarch such as a Caliph, Amir, Malik (king) or Sultan. ... World map showing Europe Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiogeographic one. ...

According to Turkish records, Kara Mustafa was born in the Islamic year 1044 (i.e. 1634 or 1635 CE). His name, Merzifonlu, hints that he was born in or near the city of Merzifon, Turkey). He was the son of Uruc Hasan Bey, a Turkish timariot (fief-holder), and rose through the ranks of the Ottoman military and government structure. The Common Era (CE), also known as the Christian Era and sometimes the Current Era, is the period of measured time beginning with the year 1 until the present. ... Merzifon is a city in Amasya Province in Turkey. ... A timariot (or timar holder; timarlu in Turkish) was an irregular cavalryman that served the Ottoman sultan and in return was granted a fief called a timar. ...

In contemporary Christian sources, Mustafa is universally described as both greedy and villainous. The veracity of this is naturally open to conjecture, although his nickname of Kara (black) can be interpreted in many ways. Christianity is a monotheistic religion centered on the life, teachings, and actions of Jesus of Nazareth, known by Christians as Jesus Christ, as recounted in the New Testament. ...

He was adopted into the powerful Köprülü family at a young age, and served as a messenger to Damascus for his brother-in-law, the grand vizier Ahmed Köprülü. After distinguishing himself, Mustafa became a vizier in his own right, and by 1663, commander of the Ottoman Grand Fleet of the Aegean Sea. The Köprülü (also Kiuprili, Koprili Kuprili and Kuprilic) was an Ottoman noble family of Albanian origin. ... Damascus by night, pictured from Jabal Qasioun; the green spots are minarets Damascus (Arabic officially دمشق Dimashq, colloquially ash-Sham الشام) is the capital city of Syria. ... A Vizier (وزير, sometimes also spelled Wazir) is an Arabic term for a high-ranking religious and political advisor, often to a king or sultan. ... Fazıl Ahmed Köprülü (1635 – October 19, 1676), of the Köprülü family, was the grand vizier of the Ottoman Empire from 1661 when he inherited the title from his father Mehmed Köprülü. He captured Crete in 1669 and signed the Treaty of Zorawno on... // Events Prix de Rome scholarship established for students of the arts. ... The Aegean Sea. ...

He served as a commander of ground troops in a war against Poland in 1672, negotiating a peace settlement that added the province of Podolia to the empire. The victory enabled the Ottomans to transform the Cossack regions of the southern Ukraine into a protectorate. In 1676, when the grand vizier died, Mustafa succeeded him. Events England, France, Munster and Cologne invade the United Provinces, therefore this name is know as ´het rampjaar´ (the disaster year) in the Netherlands. ... Historical arms of Podolia The region of Podolia (Ukrainian: Podillya, Polish: Podole) lies in the west-central and south-west portions of present-day Ukraine that correspond to Khmelnytskyi Oblast and Vinnytsia Oblast. ... The Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks to Sultan Mehmed IV of Turkey. ... For the rule of Oliver Cromwell, see The Protectorate. ... Events January 29 - Feodor III becomes Tsar of Russia First measurement of the speed of light, by Ole Rømer Bacons Rebellion Russo-Turkish Wars commence. ...

He was less successful in combatting a Cossack rebellion that began in 1678. After some initial victories, intervention by Russia turned the tide and forced the Turks to conclude peace in 1681, effectively returning the Cossack lands to Russian rule with the exception of a few forts on the Dnieper and Bug rivers. Events August 10 - Treaty of Nijmegen ends the Dutch War. ... Events March 4 - Charles II of England grants a land charter to William Penn for the area that will later become Pennsylvania. ... This article is about the river. ... Bug at Wlodawa One of the two rivers called Bug (pronounced Boog), the Western Bug, or Buh (Belarusian: Захо́дні Буг; Russian: За́падный Буг; Ukrainian: Західний Буг, Zakhidnyi Buh), flows from central Ukraine to the west, forming part of the boundary between that nation and Poland, passes along the Polish-Belarusian...

In 1683, he launched a campaign northward into Austria in an effort to put a final end to more than 150 years of war. By mid-July, his 140,000-man army had invested Vienna, following in the footsteps of Suleiman the Magnificent in 1529. By September, he had taken a portion of the walls and appeared to be on his way to victory. Events June 6 - The Ashmolean Museum opens as the worlds first university museum. ... Suleiman the Magnificent Suleiman I (Modern Turkish: Süleyman; Arabic: Sulaymān) (November 6, 1494-September 5/6, 1566), was the tenth Osmanli sultan of the Ottoman Empire, and its longest-serving, reigning from 1520 to 1566. ... Events April 22 - Treaty of Saragossa divides the eastern hemisphere between Spain and Portugal, stipulating that the dividing line should lie 297. ...

But on September 12, 1683, the Austrians and their Polish allies under King Jan Sobieski took advantage of Mustafa's incompetence and poor disposition of his troops winning the Battle of Vienna with a devastating flank attack led by Sobieski's Polish cavalry. The Turks retreated into Hungary, never again to threaten central Europe. September 12 is the 255th day of the year (256th in leap years). ... Events June 6 - The Ashmolean Museum opens as the worlds first university museum. ... Reign From May 21, 1674, until June 17, 1696 Elected On May 21, 1674 in Wola, today suburb of Warsaw, Poland Coronation On February 2, 1676 in the Wawel Cathedral, Kraków, Poland Nobel Family Sobieski Coat of Arms Janina Parents Jakub Sobieski Zofia Teofillia Daniłowicz Consorts Marie Casimire Louise Children... Combatants Habsburgs, Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Ottoman Empire and its allies Khanate of Crimea, Central Hungary, Transylvania, Wallachia, Moldavia Commanders Jan III Sobieski, Charles V, Duke of Lorraine Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha Strength 70,000 138,000 Casualties 4,000 dead 15,000 dead {{{notes}}} The Battle of Vienna (Turkish: Ä°kinci...

The defeat cost Mustafa his position, and ultimately, his life. On December 25, 1683, Kara Mustafa was executed in Belgrade by the order of the commander of the Janissaries. He suffered death by strangulation, followed by beheading, which was the capital punishment inflicted on high-ranking persons in the Ottoman Empire. His last words were, apparently, "Make sure you tie the knot right.". The stone on which his head, brought from Belgrade to Edirne, the second Ottoman capital, has been displayed to the public in today a visitor's curiosity in Edirne. December 25 is the 359th day of the year (360th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 6 days remaining. ... Events June 6 - The Ashmolean Museum opens as the worlds first university museum. ... Mayor Nenad Bogdanović Area 359. ... YOUNG GREEKS AT THE MOSQUE (Jean Léon Gérôme, oil on canvas, 1865); this oil painting portrays Greek youths who converted to Islam to become the elite of the army (Turkish yeniceri, recruit) The Janissaries (or janizaries; in Turkish: Yeni çeri, meaning new troops) comprised infantry units that... For sarcastic or humourous phrases characterised as famous last words, not actual dying quotes, see the article Famous last words (sarcasm). ... Selimiye Mosque, built by Sinan in 1575 Edirne is a city in Thrace, the westernmost part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. ...