Mir Muhammad Pasha of Rawanduz
| {{Short description|Kurdish prince of Rawanduz}}{{Infobox royalty
| name = Muhammed Pasha
| title = | titletext = | more = | image = Prince muhammad prince of soran.jpg | image_size = 180 | alt = | caption = Statue of Mohammed Pasha in [[Rawanduz]] | succession = Rule of [[Soran Emirate]] | moretext = | reign = 1814-1838 | reign-type = | coronation = | cor-type = | predecessor = Mustafa Beg | pre-type = | regent = | reg-type = | successor = Izeddin Beg | suc-type = | birth_name = | birth_date = 1783 | birth_place = [[Rawanduz]], [[Soran Emirate]], [[Ottoman Empire]] | death_date = 1838 | death_place = [[Istanbul]] - [[Trabzon]] road | burial_date = | burial_place = | consort = | spouse = | spouse-type = | issue = <!--list children in order of birth. Use {{plainlist}} or {{unbulleted list}} --> | issue-link = | issue-pipe = | full name = | era name = | era dates = | regnal name = | posthumous name = | temple name = | house = Azizan | house-type = | father = Mustafa Pasha of Rawanduz | mother = | occupation = | signature = | signature_type = | signature_alt = | religion = | embed = | investiture = | succession1 = | moretext1 = | reign-type1 = | reign1 = | cor-type1 = | coronation1 = | pre-type1 = | predecessor1 = | suc-type1 = | successor1 = | reg-type1 = | regent1 = | succession2 = | moretext2 = | reign-type2 = | reign2 = | cor-type2 = | coronation2 = | pre-type2 = | predecessor2 = | suc-type2 = | successor2 = | reg-type2 = | regent2 = | succession3 = | moretext3 = | reign-type3 = | reign3 = | cor-type3 = | coronation3 = | pre-type3 = | predecessor3 = | suc-type3 = | successor3 = | reg-type3 = | regent3 = | queen = | issue-type = | native_lang1 = | native_lang1_name1 = | royal house = | dynasty = | module = }} '''Muhammad Pasha of Rawanduz''' ({{Lang-ku|میر مەحەمەد پاشای کۆرە|translit=Mîr Mehemedê Rewandizî}}; also known as ''Mirê Kor'' - the "blind prince"; born in [[Rawandiz]]; 1783–1838) was [[Kurds|Kurdish]] [[Mir (title)|Mir]] of the [[Soran Emirate]] (1813–1838).<ref>{{Cite book|last=NEBEZ|first=Jemal|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hQIxDwAAQBAJ|title=Der kurdische Fürst MĪR MUHAMMAD AL-RAWĀNDIZĪ genannt MĪR-Ī KŌRA: Ein Beitrag zur kurdischen Geschichte|date=2017-08-14|publisher=epubli|isbn=978-3-7450-1125-8|language=de}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Jwaideh|first=Wadie|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FCbspX-dGPYC&pg=PA60|title=The Kurdish National Movement: Its Origins and Development|date=2006-06-19|publisher=Syracuse University Press|isbn=978-0-8156-3093-7|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last1=Ate|first1=Sabri|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WUQIAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA67|title=Ottoman-Iranian Borderlands: Making a Boundary, 1843-1914|last2=Ateş|first2=Sabri|date=2013-10-21|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-107-03365-8|language=en}}</ref> He led an unsuccessful attack against the [[Bohtan|Emirate of Botan]] of [[Bedir Khan Beg]] in 1834.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Behrendt|first=Günter|title=Nationalismus in Kurdistan: Vorgeschichte, Entstehungsbedingungen und erste Manifestationen bis 1925|date=1993|publisher=Deutsches Orient-Institut|isbn=3-89173-029-2|pages=166|language=de}}</ref>
== Path to power == In 1814, at the age of 31, he succeeded his father Mustafa Pasha as Prince of Soran.<ref name=":0">{{Cite thesis |last=Muhammad |first=Qadir Muhammad |title=Kurds and Kurdistan in the View of British Travellers in the Nineteenth Century |date=2017-12-14 |degree=thesis |publisher=University of Leicester |url=https://leicester.figshare.com/articles/thesis/Kurds_and_Kurdistan_in_the_View_of_British_Travellers_in_the_Nineteenth_Century/10239464/1 |language=en}} pp.94–98.</ref> Mohammed Pasha is portrayed as a cruel person who was probably not afraid to kill family members in order to stay in power.<ref name=":0" /> Therefore there was also the suspicion that he had his father blinded in order to become a prince himself. But this was denied by an English doctor who had treated his father.<ref name=":0" /> After coming to power, he had potential competitors eliminated. So he accused his treasurer Abdullah Aga of conspiracy and had him executed.<ref name=":0" /> Then Mohammed Pasha started waging war against his uncles. On December 14, 1814, he besieged Shteyn Castle, where his uncle Teymur Aga was.<ref name=":0" /> After four weeks of siege, his uncle and cousin were hanged on January 10, 1815. Shortly thereafter, he defeated and hanged his other uncle, Yahya Bey.<ref name=":0" /> == Military campaigns and independency == [[File: 1مدفع (وَستا رَجَب) في رواندز.jpg|thumb|A canon from the Muhammed Pasha period]] Having thus eliminated the internal competitor, he set about expanding his principality. First he had the city walls of Rawanduz reinforced and a fort built on a hill outside the city.<ref name=":1">{{Citation |last=Ates |first=Sabri |title=The End of Kurdish Autonomy: The Destruction of the Kurdish Emirates in the Ottoman Empire |date=2021 |work=The Cambridge History of the Kurds |pages=76 |editor-last=Gunes |editor-first=Cengiz |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/cambridge-history-of-the-kurds/end-of-kurdish-autonomy/9FA3CB919480C3748DA40C082FC2E5BF |access-date=2021-12-15 |place=Cambridge |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=978-1-108-47335-4 |editor2-last=Bozarslan |editor2-first=Hamit |editor3-last=Yadirgi |editor3-first=Veli}}</ref> Then he went against the neighboring tribes. He was considered a merciless prince who had all of his defeated opponents executed. He wanted to conquer the area between [[Great Zab]] and [[Little Zab]]. To do this he had to fight against the [[Baban|Baban principality]]. He conquered the cities of [[Harir, Iraq|Harir]] (1822), [[Koy Sanjaq|Koya]] (October 1823), [[Ranya]] (February 1824) and [[Makhmur, Iraq|Makhmur]] and [[Altun Kupri]] in September 1823.<ref name=":0" /> He had thus displaced the Baban and the small Zab was now the border between Soran and Baban. The Ottoman governor in Baghdad, [[Ali Rıza Pasha]], was unable to do anything about it.<ref name=":1" /> He also gave him the title of Pasha. Nevertheless, Muhammed Pasha declared himself independent and, as a sign of his sovereignty, had the Friday sermons (Chutba) read out in his name. He set out to build a large army and set up factories to produce weapons. He also had coins minted on which he called himself al-Amīr al-Mansūr Muhammad Bīk.<ref name=":1" /> Later, Mohammed Pasha was given an opportunity to expand his territory. Mullah Yahya, a member of the Mzurî tribe from the [[Bahdinan|Principality of Bahdinan]], asked Mohammed Pasha for help in a feud. The Mzurî tribal leader Ali Agha was murdered by the [[Yazidis|Yazidi]] tribal leader Ali Beg. However, the Prince of Bahdinan Said Pasha refused to allow the Mzuri to take revenge. So Mullah Yahya turned to Mohammed Pasha and asked him to take revenge on the Yazidis from Jabal Sinjar.<ref name=":1" /> Mohammed Pasha was able to use this punitive expedition to conquer the principality of Badinan. He issued a [[fatwa]] against the "infidel" Yazidis by his own [[Mufti]] Mullah Mohammed Khalti and crossed the Great Zab in 1831/32.<ref name=":1" /> In 1832, Muhammad Pasha and his troops committed a massacre against the Yazidis in [[Khatarah]]. Subsequently, they attacked the Yazidis in [[Ain Sifni|Shekhan]] and killed many of them.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jwaideh |first=Wadie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FCbspX-dGPYC&q=bedir+khan+beg+yazidis&pg=PA63 |title=The Kurdish National Movement: Its Origins and Development |date=2006 |publisher=Syracuse University Press |isbn=9780815630937 |language=en}}</ref> In another attempt he and his troops occupied over 300 Yazidi villages. The emir kidnapped over 10,000 Yazidis and sent them to [[Rawandiz]] and gave them the ultimatum of converting to Islam or being killed. Most of them converted to Islam and those who refused to convert to Islam were killed.<ref>{{Cite book |last=NEBEZ |first=Jemal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hQIxDwAAQBAJ&q=Ezidis&pg=PT254 |title=Der kurdische Fürst MĪR MUHAMMAD AL-RAWĀNDIZĪ genannt MĪR-Ī KŌRA: Ein Beitrag zur kurdischen Geschichte |date=2017-08-14 |publisher=epubli |isbn=9783745011258 |language=de}}</ref> Mohammed Pasha acted with great brutality against the Yazidis and massacred thousands of them.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Steinvorth |first=Daniel |date=2016-12-22 |title=Jagd auf den Engel Pfau {{!}} NZZ |url=https://www.nzz.ch/international/nahost-und-afrika/bedrohte-minderheiten-im-orient-jagd-auf-den-engel-pfau-ld.135327 |access-date=2019-09-30 |newspaper=Neue Zürcher Zeitung |language=de-CH |issn=0376-6829}}</ref> Some of the surviving Yazidis fled towards [[Tur Abdin]] and [[Mosul]].<ref name=":2" /> Christian villages and monasteries were also attacked and plundered.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Assyrians in the Christian Asia Minor Holocaust |url=http://www.atour.com/education/20000825a.html |website=www.atour.com}}</ref> After "avenging" the tribal leader, he took over the town of [[Akre]]. After the conquer of Akre, the capital of the Bahdinan Principality, [[Amedi]] fell and Prince Said Pasha fled. With the fall of Amedi, the entire principality fell complietly under Mohammed Pasha‘s power.<ref name="MacKenzie 1986">{{EI2|last=MacKenzie|first=D.N.|author-link=David Neil MacKenzie|volume=1|pages=920|title=Bahdīnān|url=https://referenceworks.brill.com/display/entries/EIEO/SIM-1044.xml}}</ref> At this time he controlled the area from the Little Zab to the [[Khabur River]]. Muhammed Pasha tried to subdue the [[Assyrian people|Assyrians]] of [[Tyari]] in 1834 but suffered a humiliating defeat near the village of Lezan in Lower Tyari. This defeat played a major role in the downfall of the emirate.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Aboona |first=Hirmis |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Zd9ynQAACAAJ |title=Assyrians, Kurds, and Ottomans: Intercommunal Relations on the Periphery of the Ottoman Empire |date=2008 |publisher=Cambria Press |isbn=978-1-61336-471-0 |pages=173 |language=en}}</ref><ref>Ross, Mosul, 19 November 1847. From Ross to Layard, 61,63,79</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Ross |first=Henry James |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zY8LAQAAIAAJ |title=Letters from the East |date=1902 |publisher=J. M. Dent & Company |pages=62–63 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Laurie |first=Thomas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qWedPP1eakYC |title=Dr. Grant and the Mountain Nestorians |date=1853 |publisher=Gould and Lincoln |isbn=978-0-7905-5103-6 |pages=262 |language=en}}</ref> A second Ottoman offensive was initiated in 1836 which forced Kor to retreat to Rawandiz, mainly due to the lack of support from his tribal allies.{{sfnp|Eppel|2018|pp=42-43}} Later, Mohammed Pasha marched north and conquered [[Cizre]].<ref name=":1" /> From their he threatened the cities of [[Mardin]] and [[Nusaybin]]. But he had to return to Amedi when Said Pasha took advantage of his absence to revolt.<ref name=":1" /> Mohammed Pasha repulsed Said Pasha and took bitter revenge on the city.<ref name=":1" /> == Defeat and aftermath == The Ottoman Sultan in Istanbul could no longer remain inactive and mobilized against Mohammed Pasha. The rebellious [[Muhammad Ali of Egypt|Muhammad Ali Pasha]] had made it clear to the Ottomans that the hot-tempered Muhammad Pasha should not be underestimated.{{sfnp|Eppel|2018|p=43}} The suspicion that both rebels were in contact made the problem more acute. In 1834, an Ottoman army led by [[Reşid Mehmed Pasha]] was sent towards Soran. His army was joined by soldiers from the Ottoman governors of Mosul and Baghdad.{{sfnp|Eppel|2016|p=56}} Muhammed Pasha was besieged and defeated at Rawanduz in 1838.<ref name=":1" /> It is also worth mentioning that Reşit Mehmet Pasha had previously issued a [[fatwa]] that forbade Mohammed Pasha's Muslim warriors from fighting against the army of the Ottoman caliph. Mohammed Pasha was summoned to Istanbul and ceremoniously received by [[Mahmud II|Sultan Mahmud II]]. It was decided that Mohammed Pasha should be exiled to [[Trabzon]]. But on the journey from Istanbul to Trabzon he and his companions were murdered. The perpetrators and the fate of the bodies are unknown.<ref name=":1" /> == Legacy == There were traits of [[Kurdish nationalism|Kurdish awareness]] by the Soran Emirate including the desire to unite all [[Kurdistan|Kurdish areas]] under one rule and the use of [[Kurdish clothing|Kurdish uniforms]] for his army. On this, Emir Kor's brother Rasul told British writer and traveller [[Frederick Milingen]]:{{sfnp|Millingen|1870|p=184}} {{blockquote|With an aspiring genius he had conceived the grande idée of emancipating his country from the authority of the sultans, and of consolidating the power of his family. Uniting the qualities of a conqueror and of a legislator, Mehemet Pasha succeeded in extending his sway over the neighbouring provinces of Kerkuk[sic] and Mussul [sic], and in gathering under his flag a large number of Koordish [sic] troop.}} Moreover, researcher Ghalib writes:{{sfnp|Ghalib|2011|p=111}} {{blockquote|[T]hrough many centuries of Ottoman rule, they [Kurds] could not build up a sense of community between the Kurds and the dominant ruler. Kurds remembered their happiness under Soran and other Kurdish emirates. Therefore, they did not welcome the Ottoman officials. Remembering the past is important for keeping one’s own history in mind.}}
*[[Persecution of Yazidis by Kurds]]
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[[Category:1783 births]] [[Category:1838 deaths]] [[Category:18th-century Kurdish people]] [[Category:19th-century Kurdish people]]
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