Mehmed II
On the 30th of March 1432, a boy named Mehmed was born in Edirne, the capital of the Ottoman Empire. His father was Sultan Murad II and his mother Hüma Hatun, a slave of uncertain origin. When he was eleven years old, his father sent him to Amasya with two advisors known as lalas to govern and gain experience. This custom allowed young rulers to learn statecraft before taking full power. Teachers arrived to guide his Islamic education, which shaped his mindset and reinforced his Muslim beliefs. Molla Gürâni mentored him in science and epistemology, while Akshamsaddin emphasized the duty to conquer Constantinople.
In July or August 1444, at age twelve, Mehmed ascended the throne after his father abdicated following peace with Hungary on the 12th of June 1444. The Treaty of Edirne and Szeged had been broken when Hungarian incursions violated its conditions. Cardinal Julian Cesarini convinced the Hungarian king that breaking the truce was not betrayal. Young Mehmed asked his father to reclaim the throne, but Murad refused. According to 17th-century chronicles by Erhan Afyoncu, Mehmed wrote: "If you are the sultan, come and lead your armies. If I am the sultan, I hereby order you to come and lead my armies." Murad returned to command the Ottoman army and won the Battle of Varna on the 10th of November 1444. By 1446, Murad II resumed the throne while Mehmed retained only the title of sultan and acted as governor of Manisa.
When Mehmed II ascended again in February 1451, he devoted himself to strengthening the Ottoman navy and preparing an attack on Constantinople. In the narrow Bosphorus Straits, the fortress Anadoluhisarı stood on the Asian side, built by his great-grandfather Bayezid I. Mehmed erected a stronger fortress called Rumelihisarı on the European side between 1451 and 1452, gaining complete control of the strait. He began levying tolls on ships passing within cannon range. A Venetian vessel ignoring signals to stop was sunk with a single shot; all surviving sailors were beheaded except the captain, who was impaled and mounted like a human scarecrow as a warning.
In early April 1453, the siege of Constantinople began with an army between 80,000 and 200,000 troops, an artillery train of over seventy large field pieces, and a navy of 320 vessels. The city's harbor was blocked by a boom chain defended by twenty-eight warships. On the 22nd of April, Mehmed transported lighter warships overland around the Genoese colony of Galata into the Golden Horn's northern shore. Eighty galleys were moved after paving a route little over one mile with wood. The Byzantines stretched their troops along longer portions of the walls. About a month later, on the 29th of May, following a fifty-seven-day siege, Constantinople fell. After this conquest, Mehmed moved the Ottoman capital from Adrianople to Constantinople.
Mehmed II's first campaigns after Constantinople targeted Serbia, which had been an Ottoman vassal state since the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. Đurađ Branković's alliance with Hungarians and irregular tribute payments justified invasion. In 1454, the Ottoman army led by Mehmed set out from Edirne towards Serbia sometime after the 18th of April. Forces captured Sivricehisar and Omolhisar before repelling a Serbian cavalry force of 9,000 sent against them. The capital Smederevo came under siege until intelligence about Hungarian relief forces led by Hunyadi caused Mehmed to lift the siege.
By August 1454, the campaign ended with a combined Hungarian-Serbian army defeating Mehmed's forces near Kruševac on the 2nd of October. On the 16th of November, Ottomans avenged this defeat by defeating Skobaljić's army near Tripolje, where the Serbian voivode was captured and executed via impalement. A temporary treaty required Serbia to send thirty thousand florins yearly as tribute and provide troops for Ottoman campaigns. The 1454 campaign resulted in fifty thousand prisoners taken from Serbia, four thousand settled in villages near Constantinople. By 1459, Stefan Branković was ousted and Stephen Tomašević became king of Bosnia, infuriating Sultan Mehmed. He personally led an army capturing Smederevo on the 20th of June 1459, ending the Serbian Despotate.
Mehmed II focused on unifying Anatolia through subjugation of beyliks like Karamanids. İbrahim II of Karaman died in 1464, triggering succession struggles among his sons. Pir Ahmet declared himself bey of Karaman in Konya while İshak governed Silifke. With Ottoman help, Pir Ahmet defeated İshak in the battle of Dağpazarı. Pir Ahmet ceded territory but later recaptured it during western campaigns. Mehmed returned to capture both Karaman (Larende) and Konya in 1466.
In 1473, Uzun Hasan's Akkoyunlu army invaded and raided most of Anatolia, prompting the Battle of Otlukbeli. Mehmed led a successful campaign resulting in decisive victory for the Ottoman Empire. Before that, Pir Ahmet with Akkoyunlu help had captured Karaman, but could not enjoy another term as the Akkoyunlu army was defeated near Beyşehir. Pir Ahmet escaped to Akkoyunlu territory where he received a tımar in Bayburt before dying in 1474. These conquests allowed Mehmed to push further into Europe and recover Ottoman power over other Turkish states after the destructive Battle of Ankara in 1402.
His first grand vizier Zaganos Pasha came from devşirme background rather than aristocracy, followed by Mahmud Pasha Angelović also of devşirme origin. Mehmed codified and implemented kanunname based on independent authority, sometimes going against tradition. He transferred significant powers to viziers as part of imperial seclusions policy. A wall surrounded the palace making him inaccessible to public or lower officials. Viziers directed military operations and met foreign ambassadors like Kinsman Karabœcu Pasha, who played notable role in conquering Constantinople. The system produced four out of five Grand Viziers from this time among their alumni.
Later attempts proved fruitful inviting Costanzo da Ferrara and Gentile Bellini to Ottoman court. Mehmed built massive multilingual library containing over 8000 manuscripts in Persian, Ottoman Turkish, Arabic, Latin, and Greek. Notable items included copies of Arrian's Anabasis of Alexander the Great and Homer's Iliad in his Greek scriptorium. He patronized Greek writer Kritiboulos of Imbros producing History of Mehmed the Conqueror manuscript alongside efforts to salvage and rebind Greek manuscripts acquired after
conquest.
After conquering Constantinople, Mehmed entered through Topkapi Gate riding directly to Hagia Sophia where he ordered building protected. He commanded imam meet him there chanting Muslim Creed: "I testify that there is no god but Allah. I testify that Muhammad is messenger of Allah." Orthodox cathedral transformed into Muslim mosque through charitable trust solidifying Islamic rule. Main concern involved rebuilding city defenses and repopulation with immediate commencement of building projects including wall repairs, citadel construction, hospital with students and medical staff, cultural complex, two sets of janissary barracks, tophane gun foundry outside Galata, and new palace.
To encourage return of Greeks and Genoese who fled from Galata trading quarter, he returned houses providing safety guarantees. Orders across empire demanded Muslims, Christians, and Jews resettle requiring five thousand households transferred by September. From entire Islamic empire prisoners of war and deported people called Sürgün were sent to city. Survey carried out 1478 showed 16,324 households, 3,927 shops, estimated population 80,000.
Population composition was about 60% Muslim, 20% Christian, 10% Jewish. By end of reign ambitious rebuilding program changed city into thriving imperial capital.
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Common questions
When was Mehmed II born and who were his parents?
Mehmed II was born on the 30th of March 1432 in Edirne to Sultan Murad II and Hüma Hatun. His mother was a slave of uncertain origin while his father ruled the Ottoman Empire.
How did Mehmed II conquer Constantinople in 1453?
Mehmed II conquered Constantinople after a fifty-seven-day siege that ended on the 29th of May 1453 with an army between 80,000 and 200,000 troops. He transported eighty galleys overland around Galata into the Golden Horn to bypass the harbor chain defense.
What happened during the Ottoman campaigns against Serbia from 1454 to 1459?
Ottoman forces under Mehmed II defeated Serbian armies near Kruševac on the 2nd of October 1454 and captured Smederevo on the 20th of June 1459. The campaign resulted in fifty thousand prisoners taken and established a treaty requiring Serbia to pay thirty thousand florins yearly as tribute.
Which battles secured Ottoman control over Anatolia for Mehmed II?
The Battle of Otlukbeli in 1473 delivered a decisive victory against Uzun Hasan's Akkoyunlu army while earlier campaigns recaptured Karaman and Konya in 1466. These victories allowed Mehmed II to unify Anatolia and recover power lost after the Battle of Ankara in 1402.
How did Mehmed II rebuild Constantinople after its conquest?
Mehmed II transformed Hagia Sophia into a mosque and initiated massive rebuilding projects including wall repairs, hospitals, and janissary barracks. A survey carried out in 1478 showed the city contained 16,324 households with an estimated population of 80,000 people.