Üveys Pasha

Üveys Pasha (1512–1547) was an Ottoman Prince, son of Selim I (also known as the Grim or the Inflexible).

Background

Üveys' mother was a harem girl whose name is not known, but because of her undisciplined manners she was expelled from the harem. In Ottoman tradition, such girls were matched to a bey or to a well-to-do man. However in her case she was already pregnant and Selim's son was born to a stepfather.

Professional life

Selim looked after his son and Üveys soon became a high-ranking bureaucrat of the empire. However when Selim died in 1520, Üveys laid no claim to throne because of Ottoman tradition which states that princes born to a stepfather have no right to ascend to throne. (This principle was similar to Byzantine tradition of Porphyrogenitos) Suleyman I (Later nicknamed the Magnificent) ascended to throne and he was careful to keep Üveys at the far reaches of his vast empire. In 1535, soon after the capture of Baghdad (now capital of Iraq), Üveys was appointed as the beylerbey of Baghdad. In 1545, he was assigned to capture Ta'izz ( a city in Yemen) in which he was successful.

Death

In 1548, a marine soldier named Pehlivan Hasan started a rebellion in Yemen. While trying to suppress the rebellion, Üveys was killed by the rebels. (The rebellion was later suppressed by Özdemir Pasha.) According to Ottoman historian Ali Efendi, upon learning the death of his half brother Suleyman I wept and said "He was my brother"