Mehmed IV محمد رابع |
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Sultan of the Ottoman Empire Kayser-i Rûm Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Caliph of Islam |
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19th Ottoman Sultan (Emperor) | |||||
Reign | 8 August 1648 – 8 November 1687 | ||||
Predecessor | Ibrahim | ||||
Successor | Suleiman II | ||||
Regents |
See list
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Born |
Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, Ottoman Empire |
2 January 1642||||
Died | 6 January 1693 Edirne, Ottoman Empire |
(aged 51)||||
Burial | New Mosque, Istanbul | ||||
Consort |
Gülnuş Sultan (legal wife) Siyavuş Sultan Afife Sultan Rabia Sultan Kaniya Sultan Gülbeyaz Hatun Rukiye Hatun Cihanşah Hatun Dürriye Hatun Nevruz Hatun |
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Issue | see below | ||||
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Dynasty | Ottoman | ||||
Father | Ibrahim | ||||
Mother | Turhan Hatice Sultan | ||||
Religion | Sunni Islam | ||||
Tughra |
Full name | |
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Mehmed bin Ibrahim |
Mehmed IV (Ottoman Turkish: محمد رابع Meḥmed-i rābiʿ; Modern Turkish: IV. Mehmet; also known as Avcı Mehmed, Mehmed the Hunter; 2 January 1642 – 6 January 1693) was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1648 to 1687. He came to the throne at the age of six after his father was overthrown in a coup. Mehmed went on to become the second longest reigning sultan in Ottoman history. While the first and last years of his reign were characterized by military defeat and political instability, during his middle years he oversaw the revival of the empire's fortunes associated with the Köprülü era. Mehmed IV was known by contemporaries as a particularly pious ruler, and was referred to as gazi, or "holy warrior" for his role in the many conquests carried out during his long reign. Under his reign the empire reached the height of its territorial expansion in Europe. From a young age he developed a keen interest in hunting, for which he is known as avcı (translated as "the Hunter"). In 1687 Mehmed was overthrown by soldiers disenchanted by the course of the ongoing War of the Holy League. He subsequently retired to Edirne, where he resided until his natural death in 1693.
Born at Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, in 1642, Mehmed was the son of Sultan Ibrahim (r. 1640–48) by Valide Sultan Turhan Hatice, a concubine of either Russian or Ukrainian origin, and the grandson of Kösem Sultan of Greek origin. Soon after his birth, his father and mother quarreled, and Ibrahim was so enraged that he tore Mehmed from his mother's arms and flung the infant into a cistern. Fortunately, Mehmed was rescued by the harem servants. However, this left Mehmed with a lifelong scar on his head.