Ahmed II

Ahmed II (; ; 25 February 1643 or 1 August 1642 – 6 February 1695) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1691 to 1695.

Early life Ahmed II was born on 25 February 1643 or 1 August 1642, the son of Sultan Ibrahim and Muazzez Sultan. On 21 October 1649, Ahmed, along with his brothers Mehmed and Suleiman was circumcised. During the reigns of his older brothers, Ahmed was imprisoned in Kafes, and he stayed there almost 43 years. The mausoleum of Ahmed II is located inside the türbe of Suleiman the Magnificent. (In the above picture, his tomb is seen side by side with Suleiman II and Suleiman the Magnificent).

Reign

During his reign, Ahmed II devoted his attention to wars against the Habsburgs and the governmental, foreign policy, and economic issues that related to it. Of primary importance was the creation of a permanent tax farm system (malikâne). Following the recovery of Belgrade under his predecessor, Suleiman II, the military frontier reached a rough stalemate on the Danube, with the Habsburgs no longer able to advance south of it, and the Ottomans attempting, ultimately unsuccessfully, to regain the initiative north of it.

Among the most important features of Ahmed's reign was his reliance on Köprülüzade Fazıl Mustafa Pasha. Ahmed II confirmed Fazıl Mustafa Pasha as his grand vizier after he took the throne. Fazıl Mustafa Pasha was from the Köprülü family of grand viziers, who had produced many capable administrators and military officials for the Turkish court. Following his father, Köprülü Mehmed Pasha, (grand vizier, 1656–61), Mustafa ordered dozens of the previous government's state officials fired or executed on charges of corruption. They were replaced with men loyal to Mustafa. He made significant adjustments in the function of the tax system to account for how recent wars impacted taxpayer's resources. He began the process of drafting tribesmen in Anatolia and the Balkans in order to increase possible levies of conscripts. In October 1690, Fazıl Mustafa Pasha recaptured Belgrade, a key fortress at the meeting point of the Danube and Sava rivers, which the Ottoman had held since 1521, but had been conquered by Habsburg forces after the Siege of Belgrade. probably with Şayeste Hatun. Died in infancy. Asiye Sultan (Edirne Palace, Edirne, 24 August 1694 – Eski Palace, Bayezid, Istanbul, 9 December 1695, buried in Suleiman I Mausoleum, Süleymaniye Mosque), with Rabia Sultan; Atike Sultan (born 21 October 1694), probably with Şayeste Hatun. Died in infancy.

In addition to his daughters, Ahmed II was deeply attached to his niece Ümmügülsüm Sultan, daughter of his half-brother Mehmed IV, so much so that he treated her as if she were his own daughter.