In 959 the Capudan Senan Pasha went to sea with one hundred and twenty vessels, the command of which he held till the end of 960. He died in 961, and was buried at Scutari. The poet Sahari has thus commemorated the period of his death:
Torghudjeh was the son of a rayah called Veli, and was born at a village in the neighbourhood of Seroloz, of the sanjak of Mantesheh. Being of a brave spirit, at an early age he excelled in archery and wrestling. He afterwards applied himself to navigation, in which he acquired considerable fame, and was made capudan of a privateer. On one occasion, as he was oiling his vessel, Oghlan, an infidel captain, fell upon him, and carried him prisoner to Genoa. On this account Khair-ad-din Pasha sailed against the Genoese with a fleet, threatening that if they did not give up Torghudjeh he would spoil all their villages: whereupon they immediately released him. The pasha also in a divan spoke so highly of him, saying, Torghudjeh was braver than himself, that they gave him a galley. After this he was in numerous engagements with Khair-ad-din Pasha in the south, by which he became rich, and increased the number of his ships to twenty-five, with which he began to cruise about. Having obtained information of the position of Senan Pasha, who was then at sea, he came out to meet him from the south. On their approach they saluted each other; but the salute from Torghudjeh’s ships being much louder than that of Senan Pasha, the latter suspected him; and artfully representing to the Porte that his not joining him was a proof of disaffection, and that to subdue him would be a difficult matter, recommended that he should be called to the capital. Thither Torghudjeh immediately proceeded with eight vessels, and made offers of submission. With him also came his brave companions in arms, Ghazi Mustaffa, Oluj Ali, Hassan Keleh, Mohammed Reis, Sanjakdar Reis, Deli Jafar, and Kara Kazi, to each of whom a fanar,46 and a stipend of seventy or eighty aspres were allotted. Both before and after his journey to the Sublime Porte, Torghudjeh was engaged in several memorable battles; a few of which we shall mention.
Whilst Torghudjeh was a capudan of the volunteers, he was on one occasion lying in a harbour called Kantar, in the island of Jarba, where he intended to oil his ships, amounting to eighteen, when Jeghaleh, a Venetian commander, came down upon him with a hundred and fifty vessels, blocked up the entrance to the harbour, threw overboard their ballast, and sat down to enjoy themselves; conceiving, that when Torghudjeh had exhausted his stock of provisions, they could take him and his ships without any effort. They even wrote to Genoa, saying they had secured the pirate Torghudjeh and his ships; and several of their gentlemen fitted out a vessel, and with the intention of taking a voyage of pleasure, sailed towards Jarba. Torghudjeh, on his part, trusted in God, by whose providence there was in the neighbourhood a small river, navigable by boats, which emptied itself into the sea. He therefore set his men to work, and cut a canal two miles in length, by which he conveyed his vessels to sea. He left a tent which he had pitched on the shore, and the infidels supposed he was safe in it. He then proceeded to a place about sixty miles distant, where he completed the oiling of his vessels, and again put out to sea. On his way he met the gentlemen on their voyage of pleasure, and took them prisoners. When the infidels found out that Torghudjeh had made his escape, thinking he had carried his ships overland, they were confounded, and declared that he must be a magician.
Torghudjeh now became the drawn sword of Islamism, and a brave and famous corsair. He frequently attacked the infidels ships, and destroyed their barges. He once met, at Mania, two barges, laden with corn from Salonica, bound to Venice, which he seized, showing no quarter to those on board. But his feats of this sort are numerous.
On one occasion, when this chief was beg of Carli-Eili (Acarnania), he met a Venetian barge, the captain of which, not supposing Torghudjeh to be the principal capudan, and desirous of availing himself as much as possible of the wind, which was then in his favour, neglected to lower his sails, (a mark of respect always shown to great capudans,) or offer any presents. At this, Torghudjeh Beg took umbrage, and began to fire upon the barge from the three ships that were with him. The wind having fallen, she was soon taken; but the capudan having lost one of his brave companions in the conflict, put every one of the infidels to the sword, and burnt the barge. The Venetian ambassador at the Porte, on hearing of this circumstance, went to Rustam Pasha, and lodged a complaint against Torghudjeh. Rustam Pasha, considering Torghudjeh as the enemy of his brother, bore him great hatred, and obtained permission to send a chiaoush to have him summoned to the Porte. Torghudjeh, however, aware of his purpose, sailed with all his vessels to Moghreb, where he remained two years an outlaw. When the capture of Western Trabalos became necessary, the late Sultan Soleiman Khan, whom he had offended, from motives of policy promised him safety, and sent him a copy of the holy book (the Koran) and a golden sword, with a promise that if he should succeed in reducing Trabalos, he should enjoy the begler-begship of that place during his life. The Capudan Senan Pasha was sent with a fleet, and by the direction of Torghudjeh, Trabalos was taken; but its government was given to Senan Pasha; which offended Torghudjeh, who immediately weighed anchor, and directed his course towards Moghreb. He was followed by all the capudans, whose orders were to obey his commands. Senan Pasha being thus left alone, Torghudjeh directed them to return, and some of them with great difficulty reached the Porte.
In some historical works it is recorded that, in A. H. 960, Torghudjeh took the command of one hundred and twenty galleys, and sailed to Novocacia. Afterwards, in the month of Rajab, 961, he sailed up the gulf, and besieged Bastia, a Spanish castle on the Italian coast. After many attempts, he was on the point of taking it, when four thousand horse and three thousand infantry came to the assistance of the besieged, and repulsed the Moslems several times. At length, by the favour of God, on the seventh of Ramazan, the abject wretches outside the walls were defeated, and the infidels inside were obliged to fly and abandon the castle. The Moslems allowed forty or fifty of the principal inhabitants their liberty, but put all the others into chains. With the wealth which they found in the castle, and about seven thousand prisoners, they then sailed to Avlona, in the neighbourhood of which the Albanian rebels, by the aid of the governor Ahmed Beg, were vanquished both by sea and land, and rewarded according to their demerits. The Moslems now returned to the Porte with riches far exceeding what they had anticipated. The emperor, who duly appreciated merit, offered Torghudjeh, in addition to his office of capudan, the begler-begship of Algiers. Rustam Pasha, however, prevented his obtaining the latter post, insinuating that Torghudjeh having acquired wealth abroad, had no wish to be employed in the service of the Sublime Porte; and in consequence the sanjak of Carli-Eili (Acarnania) was given to him; but this he declined to accept. The emperor then determined to go out against him, and had actually taken horse for that purpose, when Torghudjeh came out to meet his sovereign, and in person petitioned for the governorship of Trabalos. This was granted him, and he immediately proceeded to Trabalos west, and held his office till he was slain at Malta.
1 His entire name is مصطفي بن عبد الله حاجي خليفه Mustaffa Ben Abdullah Haji Khalifeh. He was also called كاتب چلبي Katib Chelebi.
2 To this work, and more especially to the invaluable “History of the Ottoman Empire,” by J. Von Hammer, the translator is principally indebted for this biographical notice of the author.
3 A compendious work on Geography, published at Constantinople, A. D. 1732.
4 Aker sū dekermenler: mills moved by running water.
5 Probably Citadini.
6 Azabs are the militia of Turkey.
7 The name of the castle is not given, but it is probable it was Kafa.
8 Sakalaba. The countries to the north of the Black Sea, as Poland, Russia, &c.
9 This is a chronogram. The letters of the word shafakat, a favour, make up the number 880.
10 Sultan Mohammed Khan, the conqueror of Constantinople, died at Mal-dipa, A. H. 886, A. D. 1481.
11 A species of light-sailing vessels.
12 Levend; a sort of volunteers who serve in the Turkish navy.
13 Kili, the ancient Lycostomos, a town on the northern mouth of the Danube.
14 One of the Sultan’s titles.
15 In the original the date is 970; but this is evidently a mistake, as may be seen below; or by consulting the author’s chronological tables.
16 Cantemir in giving an account of this expedition doubts whether it was the king of France who assisted the Venetians on this occasion, because the Turks call all the European nations Franks; but our author generally distinguishes France by the name of Fransa.
17 Rafezi, the Mohammedan sect of the Shiites, or followers of Ali, which chiefly prevails in Persia. The Turks consider them heretics.
18 In the original surkh ser, red heads, a term of contempt applied by the Turks to the Persians.
19 The first chapter of the Koran.
20 The Grand-master.
21 His name Keman-Kesh signifies an archer.
22 Khotba is an harangue read by the mullahs in the mosques, in which the reigning prince is mentioned and prayed for.
23 Sanjak, the standard given to governors of districts under begs.
24 A yūk is one hundred thousand aspres, or a thousand dollars.
25 مدجل This name is frequently given throughout the work to the Andalusian Moors; but I have never seen it used by any other author, nor can I discover its origin. The only instance in which a similar word occurs is in the following passage in Don Quixote: “The Moors of Arragon are in Barbary called Tagarins; and those of Grenada go by the name of Mudajares.”—Story of the Captive.
26 The name by which Khair-ad-din is generally called in European histories.
27 Chiaoush, a messenger of the Porte.
28 See p. 43.
29 Literally, to rub his face on the threshold.
30 Irakin, the name given to two countries, one of which, generally called Irak Arabi, is Babylonia; and the other, Irak Adgemi, or Persian Irak, is a large province of Persia.
31 Istakbal, a ceremonious procession to meet any great man.
32 Bashderdé, a commanders galley.
33 Rashid had been supplanted by his brother Hassan, and applied to Khair-ad-din for assistance in regaining his kingdom. Khair-ad-din, eager to add Tunis to his other possessions, induced Rashid to accompany him to Constantinople, under the pretence of obtaining the aid of the Ottoman arms. On their arrival there, Khair-ad-din communicated his designs to the sultan, who immediately gave orders for the preparation of a fleet. Rashid already considered himself restored to his kingdom; but just as the fleet was about to sail, he was seized by the command of the sultan, and was never after heard of. Such was the provision made for him at the Sublime Porte!
34 Tabor, a Polish word, signifying a wall or fence made with the baggage, carriages, &c.
35 These islands. In the text the word is جزاير by which also Algiers is called; but it being also the form of the Arabic plural of جزيره an island, and the Turkish plural, جزيره لر occurring a little after, I am inclined to think that the islands of Majorca, Minorca, &c. are meant.
36 In the original it is Majorca, but from the context this appears to be a mistake, which indeed might easily be made, the difference between منورقه and ميورقه being small. Hammer in his “Geschichte des Osmanischen Reichs,” in a note on this event makes it Minorca.
37 Literally “rubbed his face against the royal stirrup.”
38 Literally, “the battle market having been kept hot from morning till afternoon.”
39 Merted, probably Zea.
40 Sam, a sort of Simmoom.
41 According to Rycaut, Prevesa had just been taken by the Patriarch Grimmanus, who had the command of the Pope’s galleys. The grand fleet had left this place before Khair-ad-din’s arrival.
42 Bikli, “the moustached.”
43 The numerical value of مات رئس البحر is 953.
44 A work on navigation, of which further mention is made below, p. 72.
45 If these are the barges mentioned at p. 72, this should of course be read fifteen.
46 Fanar, a small vessel.