Murad IV (1612-1640) was a sultan of the Ottoman Empire for 17 years, being known as "the conqueror of Baghdad" or as Murad "the cruel." He was the successor to the throne of Mustafa I, who was his uncle and the second of Ahmed I's sons to occupy the throne as sultan..
His reign had many peculiarities and anecdotes. To begin with, he arrived as just an 11-year-old boy. This led to a very important stage in the Ottoman Empire, since for the first time a woman was appointed mother sultana, officially giving powers to Kösem Sultan, the mother of Murad IV, until the sultan was of legal age..
It was a period in which many decisions were made in order to change administrative and foreign policy aspects of the Ottoman Empire. Although he was considered a strict sultan, the state returned to peacetime and his reputation improved after the decline he had experienced in the early seventeenth century..
He went down in history as the first ruler to assassinate a Shaykh al-Islam. This was considered one of the most respected personalities in Islam for his extensive knowledge.
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On July 27, 1612, Murat Oglu Ahmed I was born in present-day Istanbul, the second son that Sultan Ahmed I had with Kösem Sultan, who also received the name Mahpeyker..
Murat was the second son of the Sultan to ascend to the throne of the Ottoman Empire, since Osman II achieved it first, one of the sons that Ahmed I had with Mahfuz Sultan.
His father died when Murad was only five years old.
Murad IV was described as a large man. Much was said about his great strength, but it has not been possible to determine if this description responded more to the fear he generated in his rivals. If anything, he was considered a tall man.
The coronation of Murad IV took place on September 10, 1623 when he was only 11 years old. Despite his age, he was appointed to replace his uncle Mustafa I, who was mentally unfit and who suffered a conspiracy by his own mother to leave office..
During the first decade, control of the sultanate was exercised almost entirely by the mother of Murad IV together with a group of ministers who had been appointed for the work..
To gain control of his civilization, Murad IV became a highly feared sultan. He killed ministers, opponents, women and figures of rank within the armies. He had a group of spies who helped him in the task of finding those responsible for starting riots in Istanbul against him..
At some point he also wanted to murder the immigrant Armenian peoples who lived in Constantinople. The decision was never carried out thanks to the intervention of one of the Sultan's ministers.
In the end he succeeded in getting the rulers of the Ottoman Empire back to enjoy respect. He stood out for his military skills in different battles such as the Caucasus and in Mesopotamia, although the conquest of Baghdad was one of his most memorable successes..
He used to execute people by hanging them on street corners, although he could have other less predictable methods as well. For example, one of his personal doctors was killed by forcing him to ingest his own opium excessively..
During the sultanate of Murad IV, trials or preliminary inquiries were not normal. If the ruler believed or suspected something, for whatever reason, he decided to cut off people's heads.
A very notorious case was when he killed a messenger who had made a mistake when announcing that a newborn that Murat had had was male, when it was really female.
He is believed to have murdered more than 20,000 people during his time on the throne..
Although many women had played an important role in Ottoman history, Kösem Sultan was the first to hold an official position. She was named Valide Sultan, which meant mother sultana.
Some legends say that he incited Murad IV to have homosexual relations. It is believed that this was one of the reasons why the sultan at times showed an irrational hatred towards women.
This battle was carried out for almost the entire sultanate of Murad VI. It began in 1623 and consisted of the dispute between the Ottoman Empire and the Persians for the dominion of Mesopotamia.
For some time, the Ottomans were focused on fighting on the European continent, but later they were able to recapture Baghdad, which was one of the most important victories of Murad IV..
The conflict came to an end on May 17, 1639, almost a year before the death of Murad IV. It all happened thanks to the treaty of Zuhab, where the border limits between the Persians and the Ottomans were defined.
Murad IV had a dozen male children throughout his reign, but none of them lived long enough to succeed his father on the throne of the Ottoman Empire. The remains of all his male descendants were buried in the mausoleum of Ahmed I, in the Blue Mosque.
In the case of his daughters it was different, since it was known that at least three of them did have a longer life: Kaya Sultan, Safiye Sultan and Rukiye Sultan. They all had marriages with men who held high positions in the Ottoman army.
The death of Sultan Murad IV occurred when he was not yet 28 years old. One of the laws that the Sultanate of Murad IV had prohibited the consumption of alcohol and tobacco. Violation of this law was sentenced to the death penalty.
The aim of Murad IV was to avoid criticism of his work, since bars, cafes and wine shops were considered favorable places for meetings and for speaking ill of the government..
Ironically, Murad IV did not follow his own law and suffered from alcohol addiction. He died of alcoholic cirrhosis on February 8, 1640. Ibrahim I, his brother, was his heir to the throne when he died..
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