Lala Mustafa Pasha

Lala Mustafa Pasha
Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire
In office 28 April 1580 – 7 August 1580
Monarch	Murat III
Preceded by	Şemsi Pasha
Succeeded by	Koca Sinan Pasha
Personal details
Born	c. 1500 Sokolovići, Sanjak of Bosnia, Ottoman Empire
Died	7 August 1580 Constantinople, Ottoman Empire
Nationality	Ottoman
Relations	Sokollu Mehmed Pasha (relative)
Religion	Islam

Lala Mustafa Pasha (c. 1500 – 7 August 1580), also known by the additional epithet Kara, was an Ottoman general and Grand Vizier from the Sanjak of Bosnia.

He was born around 1500, apparently near the Glasinac Plateau in Bosnia, the younger brother of Deli Husrev Pasha, who apparently helped him rise through the system's ranks more quickly.

Mustafa Pasha briefly served as kaymakam (acting governor) of Egypt Eyalet in 1549. He had risen to the position of Beylerbeyi of Damascus and then to that of Fifth Vizier.

The honorific "Lala" means "tutor to the Sultan"; he was tutor to Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent's sons, including Şehzade Bayezid. Apparently, he was in agreement with Bayezid's decision to rebel against his father, although he did not openly support him in a financial or military way. He also had a long-standing feud with his cousin, Sokollu Mehmed Pasha.

He commanded the Ottoman land forces during the conquest of previously Venetian Cyprus in 1570/71, and in the campaign against Georgia and Persia in 1578. During the campaign on Cyprus, Lala Mustafa Pasha, who was known for his cruelty towards vanquished opponents, ordered the Venetian commander of Famagusta Marco Antonio Bragadin and other Venetian military officers flayed alive, even though he had promised safe passage upon surrendering the city to the Turkish army. This was a response to Bragadin's murder of a convoy of Muslim pilgrims whose safety he had promised. It also meant that Mustafa had indicated his aggressive intentions to the Sultanate. (reference The Great Sea, David Abulafia)

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