Damat Ibrahim Pasha

Biography

According to Turkish sources, he was "

He rose in the ranks during the period when virtual authority and influence was held by Sokollu Mehmed Pasha. In 1581, shortly after Mehmed Pasha's death, Ibrahim Pasha married Ayşe, daughter of the reigning Murad III and became governor of Egypt. But due to his absence from the capital and with Sokollu Mehmed Pasha dead, his influence waned for the rest of the reign of Murad III.

He made a comeback under the reign of Mehmed III, becoming grand vizier in 1596 for the first time. His recall was particularly due to the loss of territories in the border regions between the Ottoman Empire and the Habsburg monarchy in Hungary. Rather than dashing toward immediate action, he distinguished himself as an orderly, methodical, and prudent statesman who preferred to start by conducting a review of the entire Ottoman administrative system based on the focal point of the prepared campaign against Austria. The campaign as such proved a success and the Ibrahim Pasha acquired the title of "the conqueror of Eger" (north-east of Budapest) for his sultan, although he was the one who held the effective command. Since he favored solidifying the state structure and the gains acquired rather than pursuing Austrians, for which he has been dismissed from the post of grand vizier, at first for a short interval of forty-five days at the end of 1596, and then for a second time at the end of the following year.