Cüneyt Bey of Aydın
Encyclopedia
Cuneyd Bey , was the ruler of Aydinid principality in what is now modern Turkey
in the early 15th century (also known as İzmiroğlu Cüneyt. He actively participated in Ottoman Interregnum
where he made a name as an intriguer.
after the disintegration of Seljuq Sultanate of Rûm
. The capital of the beylik was Birgi
and Selçuk
(both in İzmir Province
, modern Turkey.) The beylik controlled the middle section of Aegean Sea
coast and was a minor sea power. (see Umur the Lion
) Although the beylik was dissolved by the Ottoman Empire
in 1390, it was restored after the battle of Ankara
in 1402 in which the Ottoman sultan Beyazit I was defeated by Temur
. After a civil war in the beylik Cüneyt of the Aydın dynasty, who was the governor of İzmir
defeated other claimants to throne and became the bey of Aydın in 1403.
and captured the forts of Alaşehir
(Philadelphia), Kemalpaşa
(Nif) and Sardis
all in the Aegean hinterland . But soon Süleyman Çelebi
, the most powerful of the fighting Ottoman princes began invading Aegean Region
in 1406. Although Cüneyt tried to fight, he was betrayed (or thought that he was betrayed) by his allies (like the beylik of Mentese) and he surrendered. Süleyman pardoned him and he continued ruling on his beylik. When Süleyman returned to Rumeli, the European portion of the empire, to fight against Musa Çelebi
, Cüneyt accompanied him as the sanjak-bey
(governor) of Ohrid
(in modern Macedonia
). During the later stages of the interregnum, Cüneyt returned to Anatolia and firmly reestablished his beylik.
(Kymai), Kemalpaşa and finally İzmir. Cüneyt was once more given pardon. But his beylik was incorporated into Ottoman realm and he was appointed as the sanjak-bey (governor) of Nikopol
(in modern Bulgaria
). But in Rumeli, he began supporting Mustafa Çelebi
, another son of Beyazıt who was not active during the interregnum years, but revolted against his younger brother. However Mustafa's forces were defeated by Mehmet I and Cüneyt as well as Mustafa escaped to Byzantine
territory where Cüneyt was cloistered in the monastery of Pammakaristos Church
in İstanbul
(then known as Constantinople.)
and Karamanids against Ottoman Empire. But when his son was captured by the Ottomans he retreated to Ìpsili (modern Doğanbey, a town in İzmir Province). Nevertheless an Ottoman commander who was supported by the fleet of Genoa
laid a siege on İpsili in 1424. Cüneyt was defeated and executed.
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
in the early 15th century (also known as İzmiroğlu Cüneyt. He actively participated in Ottoman Interregnum
Ottoman Interregnum
The Ottoman Interregnum began in 20 July 1402, when chaos reigned in the Ottoman Empire following the defeat of Sultan Bayezid I by the Turco-Mongol warlord Timur...
where he made a name as an intriguer.
Background
Beylik of Aydın was a small Turkmen principality in West AnatoliaAnatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
after the disintegration of Seljuq Sultanate of Rûm
Sultanate of Rûm
The Sultanate of Rum , also known as the Anatolian Seljuk State , was a Turkic state centered in in Anatolia, with capitals first at İznik and then at Konya. Since the court of the sultanate was highly mobile, cities like Kayseri and Sivas also functioned at times as capitals...
. The capital of the beylik was Birgi
Birgi
Birgi is a small town located in the Ödemiş district of İzmir province in Turkey. Its current name is a distortion of its ancient Greek name: Pyrgion ....
and Selçuk
Selçuk
Selçuk is the central town of Selçuk district, İzmir Province in Turkey, 2 km northeast of Ephesus.Its original Greek name, Agios Theológos referred to John the Theologian. Under the Ottoman Empire, it was known as Ayasoluk...
(both in İzmir Province
Izmir Province
İzmir Province is a province of Turkey in western Anatolia on the Aegean coast, whose capital is the city of İzmir. On the west it is surrounded by the Aegean sea, and it encloses the Gulf of İzmir. Its area is 11,973 km.2, population 3.948.848 . The population was 3,370,866 in 2000...
, modern Turkey.) The beylik controlled the middle section of Aegean Sea
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
coast and was a minor sea power. (see Umur the Lion
Umur the Lion
Umur Beg or Ghazi Umur , also known as Umur Pasha was the Emir of Aydin from 1334 to 1348. Umur was described in a chronicle Düstürnâme-i Enverî, which was written by Enverî during the reign of Mehmed II, as the "Lion of God" leading just and holy war of conquest against the "miscreants" and...
) Although the beylik was dissolved by the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
in 1390, it was restored after the battle of Ankara
Battle of Ankara
The Battle of Ankara or Battle of Angora, fought on July 20, 1402, took place at the field of Çubuk between the forces of the Ottoman sultan Bayezid I and the Turko-Mongol forces of Timur, ruler of the Timurid Empire. The battle was a major victory for Timur, and it led to a period of crisis for...
in 1402 in which the Ottoman sultan Beyazit I was defeated by Temur
Temur
Temur or Timur refer to Iron in Mongolic languages.People:*Mongke Temur , khan of the Golden Horde.*Temur Khan , Khagan of the Mongol Empire and ruler of the Yuan Dynasty....
. After a civil war in the beylik Cüneyt of the Aydın dynasty, who was the governor of İzmir
Izmir
Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
defeated other claimants to throne and became the bey of Aydın in 1403.
During Ottoman interregnum (1402-1413)
During Ottoman interregnum Cüneyt supported İsa Çelebiİsa Çelebi
İsa Çelebi was an Ottoman prince and a co-ruler of the empire during the Ottoman Interregnum. -Background:...
and captured the forts of Alaşehir
Alasehir
Alaşehir, in Antiquity and the Middle Ages known as Philadelphia , i.e. " brotherly love" is a town and district of Manisa Province in the Aegean region of Turkey. It is situated in the valley of the Kuzuçay , at the foot of the Bozdağ...
(Philadelphia), Kemalpaşa
Kemalpasa
Kemalpaşa is a large town and the center of the district of the same name in İzmir Province, Turkey. Its district area extends immediately to the east of İzmir's eastern-most metropolitan district, Bornova, and Kemalpaşa town being at a distance of only from the historical and traditional center...
(Nif) and Sardis
Sardis
Sardis or Sardes was an ancient city at the location of modern Sart in Turkey's Manisa Province...
all in the Aegean hinterland . But soon Süleyman Çelebi
Süleyman Çelebi
Süleyman Çelebi was an Ottoman prince and a co-ruler of the empire for several years during the Ottoman Interregnum. - Back ground :...
, the most powerful of the fighting Ottoman princes began invading Aegean Region
Aegean Region
Aegean Region , is one of the 7 census-defined regions of Turkey, and in Western Asia.It is located in the west part of the country: bounded by Aegean Sea on the west; Marmara Region on the north;...
in 1406. Although Cüneyt tried to fight, he was betrayed (or thought that he was betrayed) by his allies (like the beylik of Mentese) and he surrendered. Süleyman pardoned him and he continued ruling on his beylik. When Süleyman returned to Rumeli, the European portion of the empire, to fight against Musa Çelebi
Musa Çelebi
Musa Çelebi was an Ottoman prince and a co-ruler of the empire for three years during Ottoman Interregnum. - Background :...
, Cüneyt accompanied him as the sanjak-bey
Sanjak-bey
Sanjak-bey, Sanjaq-bey or -beg was the Turkish title of the Bey in military and administrative command of a sanjak , answerable to a Wāli or other provincial governor. In a few cases the Sanjak-Bey was himself a governor directly answering to Istanbul....
(governor) of Ohrid
Ohrid
Ohrid is a city on the eastern shore of Lake Ohrid in the Republic of Macedonia. It has about 42,000 inhabitants, making it the seventh largest city in the country. The city is the seat of Ohrid Municipality. Ohrid is notable for having once had 365 churches, one for each day of the year and has...
(in modern Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
). During the later stages of the interregnum, Cüneyt returned to Anatolia and firmly reestablished his beylik.
During the reign of Mehmet I (1413-1421)
After the interregnum, Ottoman sultan Mehmet I returned to Anatolia in 1415. He captured the forts AliağaAliaga
Aliaga can refer to:* Aliaga, Aragon, Spain* Aliağa, Turkey* the Filipino municipality of Aliaga, Nueva Ecija on Luzon* a family name, as in the case of the Peruvian writer Felipe Pardo y Aliaga...
(Kymai), Kemalpaşa and finally İzmir. Cüneyt was once more given pardon. But his beylik was incorporated into Ottoman realm and he was appointed as the sanjak-bey (governor) of Nikopol
Nikopol
Nikopol is a city in Ukraine, in the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, on the right bank of Dnieper river, about 100 km south-west of Dnipropetrovsk. It has about 128,900 inhabitants and is the third biggest city in the oblast as well as among the top 50 nationwide...
(in modern Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
). But in Rumeli, he began supporting Mustafa Çelebi
Mustafa Çelebi
Mustafa Çelebi, also called Düzmece Mustafa was an Ottoman prince who struggled for throne in the early years of the fifteenth century - Background :...
, another son of Beyazıt who was not active during the interregnum years, but revolted against his younger brother. However Mustafa's forces were defeated by Mehmet I and Cüneyt as well as Mustafa escaped to Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
territory where Cüneyt was cloistered in the monastery of Pammakaristos Church
Pammakaristos Church
Pammakaristos Church, also known as the Church of Theotokos Pammakaristos , in 1591 converted into a mosque and known as Fethiye Mosque and today partly a museum, is one of the most famous Byzantine churches in Istanbul, Turkey...
in İstanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
(then known as Constantinople.)
During the reign of Murad II (after 1421)
In 1421 Mehmet I died and Byzantines encouraged Mustafa to revolt against Murat II , Mehmet's 17 year old son. Cüneyt escaped from the monastery and once more joined Mustafa Çelebi who declared himself as the sultan in Rumeli . In 1422, Cüneyt followed Mustafa to Anatolia. But he betrayed him in Ulubat when Murat's army showed up. He returned to his former territories and declared himself as the sultan. He also tried to form alliances with the Republic of VeniceRepublic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
and Karamanids against Ottoman Empire. But when his son was captured by the Ottomans he retreated to Ìpsili (modern Doğanbey, a town in İzmir Province). Nevertheless an Ottoman commander who was supported by the fleet of Genoa
Republic of Genoa
The Most Serene Republic of Genoa |Ligurian]]: Repúbrica de Zêna) was an independent state from 1005 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast, as well as Corsica from 1347 to 1768, and numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean....
laid a siege on İpsili in 1424. Cüneyt was defeated and executed.