Mehmed IV or Mehmed the Hunter: Ottoman Sultan from 1648 until 1687

From 1648 until 1687, Mehmed IV, commonly known as Mehmed the Hunter, was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. After his father was deposed in a coup, he ascended to the kingdom at six. After Suleiman, the Magnificent, Mehmed became the second-longest reigning Sultan in Ottoman history. While the foremost and end years of his reign were marked by military loss and political unrest, he supervised the restoration of the empire's fortunes associated with the Köprülü period during his middle years. Contemporaries remembered Mehmed IV as a highly religious king. He was dubbed gazi, or "holy warrior," to participate in the many victories he carried out throughout his lengthy reign. The empire achieved its pinnacle of geographical expansion in Europe under Mehmed IV's reign. He has had a strong passion for hunting since he was a child, and he is recognized as avcı for it (translated as "the Hunter"). Soldiers dissatisfied with the outcome of the continuing Holy League War overthrew Mehmed in the year 1687. After that, he moved to Edirne, where he lived until his natural death in 1693.

Mehmed was Sultan Ibrahim's son (r. 1640 to 1648) by Turhan Sultan, a Russian concubine and the grandson of Kösem Sultan of Greek ancestry. He was born in 1642 at Topkapı Palace in Constantinople. His father and mother fought soon after his birth, and Ibrahim became so enraged that he tore Mehmed from his mother's arms and threw the infant into a cistern. The harem servants came to Mehmed's rescue. On the other hand, Mehmed was left with a permanent scar on his skull due to this.

Accession

During the age of six, Mehmed came to the Ottoman throne in 1648, when the Ottoman monarchy was in turmoil. Mehmed, along with his brothers Suleiman and Ahmed, were circumcised on October 21, 1649. Palace intrigues, uprisings in Anatolia, the loss of the Ottoman navy by the Venetians outside the Dardanelles, and food shortages in Constantinople all contributed to the empire's downfall. Mehmed's mother gave Köprülü Mehmed Pasha absolute executive powers as Grand Vizier under these circumstances. On September 14, 1656, Köprülü entered office. Mehmed IV ruled during the Köprülü era, a period of Ottoman history that was remarkably stable. Mehmed is known as Avc, or "the Hunter," since he spends much time outside.

Combats

The Grand Vizier Köprülü Mehmed and his son Fazl Ahmed spearheaded a recovery of Ottoman fortunes during Mehmed's tenure. During the Cretan War (From 1645 to 1669), they reclaimed the Aegean islands from Venice and Crete. They also defeated Transylvania (In 1660) and Poland (From 1670 to 1674) in victorious battles. Ottoman control was expanded into Podolia and Right-bank Ukraine when Mehmed IV recognized Petro Doroshenko's vassalage. Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa, Köprülü Mehmed's adoptive son, conducted operations against Russia, capturing Chyhyryn in 1678. He then backed Imre Thököly's rebellion against Austrian authority in Hungary in 1683, leading a massive army across Hungary and besieging Vienna. The Ottomans were previously routed in the Battle of Vienna on the Kahlenberg Heights by Polish-Lithuanian troops headed by King John III Sobieski and his allies, including the Imperial army. Following the signing of the Bucaş Treaty in 1672 and 1673, the Sultan returned to Edirne after two Polish wars alongside serdar-ekrem and Grand Vizier Fazıl Ahmed Pasha, as well as the conquest of the Kamaniçi Castle.

1660's Fire

The fire of July 4 to 5, 1660, was the tremendous inferno that the Ottoman metropolis had ever seen. It began in Eminönü and quickly swept throughout the historic peninsula, destroying much of the city. Suleiman, I's mosque's minarets, were also set ablaze. In the fire, two-thirds of Istanbul was reduced to ash, and up to forty thousand people were murdered. In addition, thousands of people perished due to the hunger and pestilence that followed the fire. Following the fire, the dynasty evicted Jews from a large area of Istanbul, confiscating their synagogues and homes to make way for constructing the Yeni Cami (New Mosque) and the Spice Bazaar (Egyptian Market).

Turkish Combat

The Austrians and their Polish allies, headed by King John III Sobieski, won the Battle of Vienna on September 12, 1683, thanks to a devastating flank attack conducted by Sobieski's Polish cavalry. The Ottomans fled into Hungary, but this was only the start of the Great Turkish War, as the Holy League's forces launched a victorious campaign to drive the Ottomans back to the Balkans.

Later Life and Death

Mustafa II and Ahmed III, Mehmed IV's sons, were circumcised in May 1675, and his daughter Hatice Sultan married. To honour the event, the empire held the Famous Edirne Festival. Mehmed Aga, Silahdar Findikli, characterized Mehmed as a medium-sized, stocky, white-skinned man with a sunburned face and scanty beard who leans forward from the waist up due to his frequent riding. In Ottoman Istanbul, the only known stoning to death of a woman accused of adultery occurred in 1680. After reportedly being spotted alone with a Jewish man, the unidentified woman was stoned to death on Istanbul's Hippodrome, violating Ottoman legislation prohibiting sexual contact between Christian or Jewish men and Muslim women. Mehmed IV was present during the double crucifixion and promised the guy conversion to Islam in exchange for his not being stoned to death (he was beheaded instead). The Ottoman Empire was in serious trouble after the second Battle of Mohács (1687). A rebellion broke out among the Ottoman forces. Fearing that his men would assassinate him, the commander and Grand Vizier, Sarı Süleyman Pasha, left his command, first to Belgrade and then to Istanbul. When word of the loss and mutiny reached Istanbul in early September, Abaza Siyavuş Pasha was named commander and Grand Vizier shortly after. The Ottoman Army had dissolved before he could assume command. The Ottoman household troops (janissaries and sipahis) returned to their headquarters in Istanbul under their lower-rank officers. Sultan Mehmed IV killed Sarı Süleyman Pasha and installed Köprülü Fazıl Mustafa Pasha, the commander of the Istanbul Straits, as the Grand Vizier's regent in Istanbul. Fazıl Mustafa met with the chiefs of the existing army as well as other prominent Ottoman officials. After that, Mehmed was imprisoned at Topkapı Palace. He was allowed to leave the Palace on occasion, and he died in 1693 in Edirne Palace. He was buried near his mother's mosque in Constantinople, at Turhan Sultan's mausoleum. A scheme was revealed in 1691, a few years before his death, in which the empire's leading clerics intended to restore Mehmed to the throne due to the harmful health and impending death of his successor, Suleiman II. Gülnuş Sultan, a slave girl who eventually became Mehmed's wife, was his favourite harem girl. She was kidnapped and held captive in Rethymno, Crete. Mustafa II and Ahmed III, their two sons, were Ottoman Sultans from 1695 to 1703 and 1703 to 1730, respectively.