Bayezid IFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaBayezid I

Sultan ofthe Ottoman Empire

Reign16 June, 1389 8 March, 1403

PredecessorMurad I

SuccessorInterregnum

Sultan of the Ottoman Empire

ConsortDevlet HatunHafsa HatunDespina Hatun

Royal houseHouse of Osman

FatherMurad I

MotherGliek Hatun

Born1360

Died8 March, 1403 (aged 43)

BurialBursa,Turkey

ReligionIslam

Tughra

Bayezid I(Ottoman Turkish: ;Turkish:1. Beyazt; nicknamedYldrm(Ottoman Turkish: ), "The Lightning"; 1360 8 March 1403) was theSultan of the Ottoman Empirefrom 1389 to 1402. He was the son ofMurad I[1][2]andGliek Hatun.Contents[hide] 1Biography 2Legacy 3Marriages and progeny 3.1Marriages 3.2Issue 4In fiction 5Notes 6References 7External linksBiography[edit]The first major role of Bayezid was as governor of Ktahya, city that was conquered from theGermiyanids. He was an impetuous soldier, earning the nickname of Lightning in a battle against theKaramanids.Bayezid ascended to the throne following the death of his father Murad I, who was killed by Serbian knightMilo Obiliduring (15 June), or immediately after (16 June), theBattle of Kosovoin 1389, by which Serbia became a vassal of the Ottoman Empire. Immediately after obtaining the throne, he had his younger brother strangled to avoid a plot. In 1390, Bayezid took as a wife PrincessOlivera Despina, the daughter of PrinceLazar of Serbia,[3]who also lost his life in Kosovo. Bayezid recognizedStefan Lazarevi, the son of Lazar, as the new Serbian leader (later despot), with considerable autonomy.

A manuscript of theQuranfrom the reign of Bayezid I.The upper Serbia resisted the Ottomans until general Pashayigit captured the city of Skopje in 1391, converting he city in an important base of operations.Meanwhile, the sultan began unifying Anatolia under his rule. Forcible expansion into Muslim territories could endanger the Ottoman relationship with thegazis, who were an important source of warriors for this ruling house on the European frontier. So Bayezid began the practice to first securefatwas, or legal rulings from Islamic scholars, justifying their wars against these Muslim states. However he suspected the loyalty of his Muslim Turkoman followers, for Bayezid relied heavily on his Serbian and Byzantine vassal troops to perform these conquests.[4]In a single campaign over the summer and fall of 1390, Bayezid conquered the beyliks ofAydin,SaruhanandMentee. His major rival Sulayman, the emir ofKaraman, responded by allying himself with the ruler ofSivas,Kadi Burhan al-Dinand the remaining Turkish beyliks. Nevertheless, Bayezid pushed on and in the fall and winter of 1390 overwhelmed the remaining beyliks --Hamid,Teke, andGermiyan-- as well as taking the cities ofAkehirandNide, as well as their capitalKonyafrom the Karaman. At this point, Bayezid accepted peace proposals from Karaman (1391), concerned that further advances would antagonize his Turkoman followers and lead them to ally with Kadi Burhan al-Din. Once peace had been made with Karaman, Bayezid moved north againstKastamonuwhich had given refuge to many fleeing from his forces, and conquered both that city as well asSinop.[5]From 1389 to 1395 he conqueredBulgariaand northernGreece. In 1394 Bayezid crossed the RiverDanubeto attackWallachia, ruled at that time byMircea the Elder. The Ottomans were superior in number, but on 10 October 1394 (or 17 May 1395), in theBattle of Rovine, on forested and swampy terrain, theWallachianswon the fierce battle and prevented Bayezid's army from advancing beyond the Danube.[6]In 1394, Bayezid laid siege toConstantinople,[7]the capital of theByzantine Empire.Anadoluhisarfortress was built between 1393 and 1394 as part of preparations for the Second Ottoman Siege of Constantinople, which took place in 1395. On the urgings of the Byzantine emperorManuel II Palaeologusa newcrusadewas organized to defeat him. This proved unsuccessful: in 1396 theChristianallies, under the leadership of the King ofHungaryand futureHoly Roman Emperor(in 1433)Sigismund, were defeated in theBattle of Nicopolis. Bayezid built the magnificentUlu Camiin Bursa, to celebrate this victory.

Bayezid I, held captive byTimur.Thus, the siege of Constantinople continued, lasting until 1402.[8]The beleaguered Byzantines had their reprieve when Bayezid fought theTimurid Empirein the East.[9]At this time, the empire of Bayezid includedThrace(exceptConstantinople),Macedonia,Bulgaria, and parts ofSerbiain Europe. In Asia, his domains extended to theTaurus Mountains. His army was considered one of the best in the Islamic world. In 1400, theCentral AsianwarlordTimursucceeded in rousing the local Turkicbeyliksthat had been vassals of the Ottomans to join him in his attack on Bayezid, who was also considered one of the most powerful rulers in the Muslim world during that period. In the fatefulBattle of Ankara, on 20 July 1402, Bayezid was captured by Timur and the Ottoman army was defeated. Many writers claim that Bayezid was mistreated by the Timurids. However, writers and historians from Timur's own court reported that Bayezid was treated well, and that Timur even mourned his death. One of Bayezid's sons,Mustafa elebi, was captured with him and held captive inSamarkanduntil 1405.Four of Bayezid's sons, specificallySleyman elebi,sa elebi,Mehmed elebi, andMusa elebi, however, escaped from the battlefield and later started a civil war for the Ottoman throne known as theOttoman Interregnum.[10]After Mehmed's victory, his coronation asMehmed I, and the death of all four but Mehmed, Bayezid's other sonMustafa elebiemerged from hiding and began two failed rebellions against his brother Mehmed and, after Mehmed's death, his nephewMurat II.Legacy[edit]A commando battalion in thePakistan Armyis named Yaldaram Battalion after him.Yildirim Beyazit University, a state university in Turkey, is also named after him.Marriages and progeny[edit]His mother wasValide SultanGliek Hatunwho was of ethnicGreekdescent.[1][11]Marriages[edit] Devlet Hatun(m. 1376), daughter of Prince Sleyman ah elebi of theGermiyanidsand Mutahhare Abide Hatun; Despina Hatun(m. 1389), daughter ofPrince Lazar of SerbiaandPrincess Miliza; Hafsa Hatun(m.1390), daughter of Prince Fahreddin Isa Bey of theAydinidsand Azize Hatun;Issue[edit] ehzade Erturul elebi, withDevlet Hatun ehzadeSleyman elebi(13771411), co-sultan ofRumelia, withDevlet Hatun ehzadesa elebi(13801406), governor ofAnatolia, withDevlet Hatun ehzadeMehmed elebi(13891421), governor ofAnatolia, and later sultan Mehmed I elebi (14131421), withDevlet Hatun ehzadeMustafa elebi(13931422), withDevlet Hatun ehzadeMusa elebi(d. 1413), sultan ofRumelia(14101413), withDevlet Hatun ehzade Kasm elebi - son, sent as a hostage to Constantinople together with his sister, Sultan Fatma Hatun ehzade Yusuf elebi - son, converted to Christianity, changed his name to Demetrios[12] Erhondu Hatun - daughter, married to Damat Yakup Bey son of Pars Bey Hundi Fatma Hatun - daughter, married to Damat Seyyid emseddin Mehmed Buhari, Emir Sultan Sultan Fatma Hatun - daughter, married to Damat Sanjak Bey Oruz Hatun - daughter, married to Abu Bakar Mirza, son of Jalal ud-din Miran Shah son ofTimur Paa Melek Hatun - daughter, married to Amir Jalal ud-din Islam, son of Shams ud-din Muhammad, a General in Timur's service