Osman I

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	Osman I Ottoman Period
Preceded by: Ertuğrul	Ottoman ruler 1281–1326	Succeeded by: Orhan I

Osman I (1258–1326) (Ottoman: عثمان بن أرطغرل, Turkish:Osman Gazi or Osman Bey or I.Osman or Osman Sayed II) was born in 1258 and inherited the title bey (chief) from his father, Ertuğrul, as the ruler of the village of Söğüt in 1281. The birth of what would become known as the Ottoman Empire originated with the conquest of the Turkish tribe of Eskenderum and the city of Eskişehir (Turkish for 'Old City') in 1301–1303, although Osman had already in 1299 declared the independence from the Seljuk Empire of his own small kingdom, the Ottoman Principality. He was known as Ghazi, or Warrior for the Faith. By the time that he died in 1324, Ottomans controlled all of Bithniya with the exception of some fortfied towns, which would fall to his successor, Orhan Gazi.

Founding an Empire

Osman I is regarded as the founder of the Ottoman Empire and it is from him that the Turks, became known as Osmanli or Ottomans. Ertuğrul, Osman's father and predecessor, had previously maintained himself as the vassal and lieutenant of the Seljuk Sultan of Rüm at Konya (Iconium). After the death of Ala ad-Din Kay Qubadh III in 1307, Osman, waged wars and accumulated dominions as an independent ruler. He had become the Bey, or chieftien, of his tribe twelve years earlier, after Ertuğrul’s death in 1281.

Osman was twenty-four at the time of his accession, and had already both proven his skills as a leader and warrior. His early fortunes and exploits are favorite subjects with Oriental writers, especially in love stories of his wooing and winning the fair Mal Hatun. These legends have probably been romanticized by the poetical pens which recorded them in later years. The Ottoman writers attached great importance to a legendary dream of the founder of their empire.

Ottoman historians often dwell on the prophetic significance of his name, which means "bone-breaker", signifying the powerful energy with which he and his appeared to show in the following centuries of conquest. “Osman” means the “Bone-breaker.” It is also the name given to a large species of vulture, commonly called the royal vulture, which is considered the emblem of sovereignty and warlike power in the East, comparable to the eagle in the nations of the West.

After the last prince of the family of Alaeddin, to which that of Osman's had been indebted for its foundation in Asia Minor, died, there was no other among the various Emirs of that country who could compete with Osman for the headship of the whole Turkish population and dominion over the whole peninsula, save the Emir of Karamanogullari. A long and fierce struggle between the descendants of Osman and Karamanogullari princes for the ascendency, commenced in Osman’s lifetime and was protracted during the reigns of many of his successors. Osman himself had gained some advantages over his Karamanli rival; but the weak and wealthy possessions of the Byzantine Emperor in the north-east of Asia Minor were more tempting marks for his ambition than the Karamanoglu plains, and it was over Greek cities and armies that the triumphs of the last twenty-six years of Osman’s life were achieved.

Osman’s uncle, the aged Dundar who had marched with Ertugrul from the Euphrates seventy years before, was still alive when Osman in 1299 summoned a council of his principal followers and announced to them his intention to attack the important Greek fortress Keaprihissar. His uncle opposed this enterprise, concerned that it would provoke the neighboring rulers, Turkish as well as Greek, to the detriment and possible destruction of Osman's tribe. Osman reportedly spoke not a word in reply but killed his old uncle on the spot, as a lesson to potential opponents.

Literature about Osman Ghazi

Osman is celebrated by Oriental writers for his personal beauty, and for “his wondrous length and strength of arm.” Like Artaxerxes Longimanus of the old dynasty of Persian kings, Liu Bei in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Gautama the Buddha, and the Highland chieftain of whom Wordsworth sang, Osman is said to have been able to touch his knees with his hands when standing upright. He was claimed to be unsurpassed in his skill and graceful carriage as a horseman; and the jet black colour of his hair, his beard, and eyebrows, gained him in youth the title of “Kara,” meaning “Black”, Osman. The epithet “Kara,” which is often found in Turkish history is considered to imply the highest degree of manly beauty when applied to a person. He dressed simply, in the tradition of the first warriors of Islam, and like them he wore a turban of ample white linen, wreathed round a red centre. His loose flowing kaftan was of one colour, and had long open sleeves.

References

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• Incorporates text from History of Ottoman Turks (1878)

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