Hasan Pasha of Morea
This replica exhibited in your room is of one of the 87 talismanic shirts from the Collection of Sultan’s Clothing at Topkapi Palace and belongs to Hasan Pasha of Morea, one of the grand viziers of the 18th Century…
I have a request from Sultan Mustafa… May my love, my affection touch Sultan Mustafa’s heart with this talisman… May my soul walk on the same path as his soul…
His story started in Morea… He was taken into the palace and educated at Enderun School. He was smart, cautious and generous. He was someone following his dreams. He wanted to be talked about, respected and have a status. Thus, he started to make his dreams reality.
He became an armorer during the reign of Sultan Mehmed IV. Then he was let out of the palace as the Governor of Egypt during the reign of Sultan Suleiman II.
During these times it was known that the daughter of Mehmed IV Hatice Sultan married Mustafa Pasha the Courageous of Merzifon with a glorious wedding. However the young woman became a widow after the unfortunate death of Pasha during one of his battles.
Hasan Pasha was now at the top of his ambition for status and power… After a while, he reached his dreams with a marriage. Sultan Suleiman II had him marry young, beautiful and smart Hatice Sultan. He was now one of the grooms of the palace.
Yet he had never-ending wishes. Years had passed and he still was not made the grand vizier, his biggest desire. This desire lasted during the reign of Mustafa II after Suleiman II but it was yet to happen…
Pasha wanted to have a shirt tailored to tell these feelings and thoughts…
The Head Augur designated propitious moment for prayers to be effective according to Sultan Mustafa’s birth date and horoscope. Cotton fabrics were weaved according to rituals and prepared to be written on. Black, red and gold coloured inks were used. The words on the shirt read Hasan Pasha’s calling out Sultan Mustafa and his desire to become the grand vizier. All the prayers asked for the love and affection of His Highness, a touch of the heart of his servant. He was begging "Make my soul walk on the same path as his soul"…
Finally his dreams came true and he made grand vizier. However his extreme ambition prevented him from staying there for so long… He was dismissed from this position and relocated to the governorship of Tripoli, Egypt. However, he died of plague after a while…
Hasan Pasha did not see Hatice Sultan only as a step to his dreams. He truly loved her, he was bound to her with love. There is no information if he used poetry to tell his deep feelings for her. But for not to ignore this big love and in the name of respect for love, we used a poem on the shirt telling the love of Ibrahim Pasha for another Hatice Sultan, the daughter of Selim I, by asking for your forgiveness…
