Ibrahim Ben Ali

Ibrahim Ben Ali was a soldier, physician and one of the earliest American settlers of Ottoman origin.

Ibrahim Ben Ali was born in 1756 near Istanbul. His father, Ali Ben Mustafa, was a man of wealth and prominence and his estate, situated about six miles from that city, was valued at thirty thousand machbeu, equivalent to about fifty thousand dollars. He was a zealous Muslim and lost no opportunity to instill in his son a feeling of devout worship of Allah. His mother was born on the island of Zante and was a Greek Christian. She was kidnapped by Venetians, who sold her in Aleppo, Syria, to Ali Ben Mustapha.

When he was eleven years of age Ibrahim was circumcised and at thirteen he married his first wife, Halima, then twelve, making his first pilgrimage to Mecca soon after that event. The next year he married a second wife, Fatima, a name that has survived in his descendants the James Ben Ali Haggin family, and later in the same year chose a third, Ayesha.

Through the influence of his father he secured an appointment as captain in the Janissaries, a royal corps in the Sultan's army, and usually designated as the bodyguard. (Later, after five centuries of existence, this military organization fell into disrepute and was exterminated by royal decree.) After five years' service he reached the turning point in his life, undergoing a remarkable experience. Two companions, who slept next to him in the barracks, were murdered and suspicion at once pointed to Ibrahim, who was last seen with them. He protested his innocence and through the intercession of friends secured a reprieve of five days in which to establish proof of his assertion. On the fifth day a dish of black olives was sent to him, signifying that he must die on the sixth. In the prison was an old Spanish slave who advised him to put no trust in Mohammed. Sitting down by his side, the Spaniard taught him to repeat the following words: "Turn Christian and recommend your soul to God through Jesus Christ, and He will save you unto life eternal." This he did at intervals during the long night and on the morning of the day set for his execution the jailer came to announce his pardon, saying that two soldiers had confessed to the crime, for which they would immediately pay the penalty.

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