25 Facts About Ahmed I

Ahmed I was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1603 to 1617.

Ahmed I is well known for his construction of the Blue Mosque, one of the most famous mosques in Turkey.

Ahmed I ascended the throne after his father's death in 1603, at the age of thirteen, when his powerful grandmother Safiye Sultan was still alive.

Ahmed I broke with the traditional fratricide following previous enthronements and did not order the execution of his three years old half-brother Mustafa, the second son of Halime Sultan.

Ahmed I's mother tried to interfere in his affairs and influence his decision, especially she wanted to control his communication and movements.

Ahmed I soon died himself and the Safavid army was able to capture Ganja, Shirvan and Shamakhi in Azerbaijan.

Tavil Ahmed launched a revolt soon after the coronation of Ahmed I and defeated Nasuh Pasha and the Beylerbey of Anatolia, Kecdehan Ali Pasha.

In 1605, Tavil Ahmed I was offered the position of the Beylerbey of Shahrizor to stop his rebellion, but soon afterwards he went on to capture Harput.

Ahmed I went on to take control of the Adana area, forming an army and issuing coins.

Ahmed I's forces routed the army of the newly appointed Beylerbey of Aleppo, Huseyin Pasha.

Canbulatoglu Ali Pasha fled to Constantinople and asked for forgiveness from Ahmed I, who appointed him to Timisoara and later Belgrade, but then executed him due to his misrule there.

Ahmed I then worked on the resettlement of abandoned villages.

Ahmed I was removed from his post and replaced by Damat Halil Pasha.

Ahmed I renewed trade treaties with England, France and Venice.

Ahmed I expanded the capitulations given to France, specifying that merchants from Spain, Ragusa, Genoa, Ancona and Florence could trade under the French flag.

Sultan Ahmed I constructed the Sultan Ahmed I Mosque, the magnum opus of the Ottoman architecture, across from the Hagia Sophia.

Ahmed I became furious at this fault and became remorseful until the Shaykh-ul-Islam recommended that he should erect another minaret at the grand mosque of Mecca and the matter was solved.

Ahmed I became delightedly involved in the eleventh comprehensive renovations of the Kaaba, which had just been damaged by flooding.

Ahmed I sent craftsmen from Constantinople, and the golden rain gutter that kept rain from collecting on the roof of the Ka'ba was successfully renewed.

Sultan Ahmed I was known for his skills in fencing, poetry, horseback riding, and fluency in several languages.

Ahmed I was a poet who wrote a number of political and lyrical works under the name Bahti.

Ahmed I attempted to enforce conformance to Islamic laws and traditions, restoring the old regulations that prohibited alcohol, and he attempted to enforce attendance at Friday prayers and paying alms to the poor in the proper way.

Ahmed I was buried in Ahmed I Mausoleum, Sultan Ahmed Mosque.

Ahmed I had two known consorts, plus several unknown concubines, mothers of the other Sehzades and Sultanas.

Today, Ahmed I is remembered mainly for the construction of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, one of the masterpieces of Islamic architecture.