Mehmed The Conqueror Episode 01 Mehmed was Murad II’s fourth child by Hümâ Hâtûn, a slave woman who was a member of Murad’s harem. As per custom, he was transported with his two instructors to Manisa (Magnesia) when he was 12 years old. In the same year, his father abdicated and installed him on the throne of Edirne. Mehmed had to deal with serious internal and external challenges during his first reign (August 1444–May 1462). A Crusade was successfully organised by the king of Hungary, the pope, the Byzantine Empire, and Venice, who were all eager to benefit from the succession of a child to the Ottoman throne. The powerful grand vizier “andarl” Halil and the viziers Zaganos and “ihâbeddin,” who asserted that they were superior, engaged in a deadly struggle in Edirne.
Mehmed The Conqueror Episode 01 The Crusader army traversed the Danube in September 1444. This information led to a massacre of the Christian-influenced Urf sect in Edirne and sparked panic and arson. The father of the reigning sultan was persuaded to return from retirement in Bursa and take command of the army as the Crusaders laid siege on Varna. The issues were resolved by Murad II’s Ottoman victory at Varna on November 10, 1444. After the war, his father retired to Manisa, and Mehmed II, who had remained in Edirne, kept the throne. The infant sultan was then incited by Zaganos and Ihâbeddin to attack Constantinople, but Andarl staged a Janissary uprising and summoned Murad II back to Edirne to continue the assault.
Mehmed The Conqueror Episode 01 Mehmed took the throne in Edirne for the second time after the passing of his father (February 18, 1451). He couldn’t stop thinking about taking Constantinople. Remembering his previous rule, Europe and Byzantium were then not overly worried with his plans. In the empire, his authority was also not well-established. Yet, he didn’t take long to demonstrate his authority by harshly executing the Janissaries who had dared to threaten him in response to the delay in the traditional gift of accession. Nonetheless, he strengthened the armed force that would serve as his means of future conquest. He gave every military and diplomatic preparation for the conquest of Constantinople his utmost attention. He signed to maintain Hungary and Venice’s neutrality.
Mehmed The Conqueror Episode 01 Mehmed II, the ruler at the time, personally oversaw the defence against the breach his cannon caused in the city wall on the day of the attack. Andarl was detained the day after the city was taken, and he was put to death in Edirne the following day. Zaganos, who was now Mehmed’s father-in-law, took his place. Mehmed had to agree to a three-day siege of the city, but he changed his mind before the nightfall of the first day after it was taken. He proceeded straight to Hagia Sophia after entering the city at the head of a parade and turned it into a mosque. After that, he started charity organisations and gave the mosque 14,000 gold ducats annually for maintenance and service.