Mustafa IV (8 September 1779 – 16 November 1808) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1807 to 1808.

Early life

Mustafa IV was born on 8 September 1779 in Constantinople. He was the son of Sultan Abdul Hamid I (1774–1789) and Sineperver Sultan. Both he and his half-brother, Mahmud II, were the last remaining male members of the House of Osman after their cousin, the reformist Sultan Selim III (1789–1807). They alone were therefore eligible to inherit the throne from Selim, by whom they were treated favorably. Since Mustafa was the elder, he took precedence over his brother to the throne. During his short reign, Mustafa would save his cousin's life and order him murdered. Mustafa was Sultan Selim III's favourite crown prince, but he deceived his cousin and cooperated with the rebels to take his throne.

Reign

Mustafa ascended to the throne after the deposition of his cousin, Selim, on 29 May 1807. He came to the throne in the wake of the turbulent events that led to the fatwa against Selim for "introduc[ing] among the Muslims the manners of infidels and showing an intention to suppress the Janissaries". Selim fled to the palace, where he swore fealty to his cousin as the new sultan, and attempted to commit suicide. Mustafa spared his life by smashing the cup of poison that his cousin tried to drink. Mustafa's brief reign was turbulent. Immediately upon ascending to the throne, the Janissaries rioted throughout Constantinople, looting and murdering anyone who appeared to support Selim. More threatening, however, was a truce signed with the Russians, which freed Mustafa Pasha, a pro-reformist commander stationed on the Danube, to march his army back to Constantinople to restore Selim. With the aid of the Grand Vizier of Adrianople, the army marched on the capital and seized the palace. Sarıbeyzade Aleko, the interpreter of Fenerli Divan-ı Hümayun, was executed on 11 September 1807 because he was involved in spying on government affairs unrelated to his job. It was written on the label hanging around his neck that he gave state secrets to the enemy. This execution strained relations with France. French envoy Sebastiani protested the execution of Aleko, who was under the government's patronage, by going to Babıali. After the cease-fire agreement signed in the Russian lada and the turmoil in the Silistra army, the Ottoman troops returned to Edirne, who had no army character left. Meanwhile, in Istanbul and Edirne, after a long winter with severe frosts, shortages and wood shortages were experienced. Troops starved, and the cadre of Edirne was devastated. Soldiers were asked to dispatch soldiers from the provincial governors until only a few had come from places near Istanbul, such as Izmit and Şile. The pro-New Order protestors in Anatolia and Çapanoğlu Süleyman Bey, in the first place, had cut all kinds of aid towards Istanbul. Attempting to secure his position by positing himself as Osman's only surviving heir, Mustafa ordered Selim and his brother Mahmud murdered at Topkapı Palace in Constantinople. He then ordered his guards to show the rebels Selim's body, and they promptly tossed it into the palace's inner courtyard. Mustafa then ascended his throne, assuming that Mahmud was also dead, but the prince had been hiding in a bath furnace. Just as the rebels demanded that Mustafa "yield his place to a worthier", Mahmud revealed himself, and Mustafa was deposed. The failure of his short reign prevented the efforts to undo the reforms, which continued under Mahmud.

Death

Mustafa was later killed on Mahmud's orders on 16 November 1808 and was buried in his father's mausoleum.

Family

Due to his short reign, Mustafa IV did not have a large family. He had four known consorts, a son and a daughter, who died newborn.

Consorts

Mustafa IV had four known consorts:

Sons

Mustafa IV had only one son: In the decades following Mustafa's death, a certain Ahmed Nedir, a Georgian man, claimed to be Mustafa IV's secret son, born after his mother, a Russian woman, was forced to flee Constantinople while she was pregnant following Mustafa IV's death. According to another version, Ahmed Nedir was the Şehzade Ahmed himself, whose death was faked in order to hide the child abroad, for fear that Mahmud II execute him. His claims were never proven or taken into consideration.

Daughters

Mustafa IV had only one daughter:

Sources