List of foreigners who were in the service of the Ottoman Empire

This is an incomplete list that refers to those who were not from the Ottoman Empire, but later served the country. This may be militarily, as a diplomat, a spy, or any other way. Foreigners employed by the Sublime Porte, often renegades and refugees, were diverse in their ethnic origins, generally hailing from aristocratic families. Typically high-ranking individuals in Ottoman society, they were regarded as "invaluable" by the Sultan, and were therefore "generously rewarded" for their services.^[1]

Italian historian Giancarlo Casale posits that it was the ability of the Ottomans to "accommodate diversity" and "embrace it fully as their own" which attracted foreigners to the country.^[2] Those who converted to Islam in general, but especially while in the service of the Ottoman state, were considered by Christendom to have 'turned Turk'.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]

The increased prevalence of foreign military officers in the Ottoman Empire after the mid-1800s is owed to the fact that non-Muslims were no longer required to convert to Islam to serve in the Ottoman army after the passing of the 1856 Reform Edict.^[7] However, there are numerous notable cases before the Edict where conversion to Islam was not required. An example is Sinan 'The Great Jew', regarded as the right-hand man of famed Grand Admiral, Hayreddin Barbarossa.^[8]

List of notables[edit]

This is a list of 136 noteworthy foreigners who were in the service of the Ottoman Empire. It is not an exhaustive list, and is therefore subject to additions.

14th century[edit]

Köse Mihal, Greek renegade to the Ottoman Empire who was previously a Byzantine governor. He accompanied Osman I in his ascent to power and founding the Ottoman Empire. May have been of imperial Palaiologos descent
Lala Şahin Pasha, Christian renegade to the Ottoman Empire who is possibly of Bulgarian origins. One of the leaders of the Ottoman campaign into Thrace

15th century[edit]

Radu the Handsome, Wallachian noble who converted to Islam and led Ottoman forces against his brother Vlad the Impaler
Evrenos, Greek noble Byzantine military commander with an extremely long career in the Ottoman army. He participated in many battles (such as the 1396 Battle of Nicopolis) alongside Süleyman Pasha, Murad I, Bayezid I, Süleyman Çelebi, and Mehmed I. This is a period of over 70 years
Orban, Hungarian inventor of massive cannons which would heavily damage the walls of Constantinople during the 1453 siege
Suleiman Baltoghlu, Bulgarian admiral who is known for the role he played in the 1453 Fall of Constantinople
Yakup Pasha, Jewish-Italian royal physician of Sultans Murad II to Mehmed II

16th century[edit]

Joachim Strasz, Polish who served as Grand Dragoman from 1551 until his death in 1571
Occhiali, Italian admiral who later became beylerbey of the Regency of Algiers and Kapudan Pasha of the Ottoman fleet
Sinan Reis, Jewish-Spanish Barbary Corsair who served in the Ottoman navy for 30 to 40 years and engaged in several key battles against the Spanish and the Holy Roman Empire
Alvise Gritti, Venetian politician who served as an Ottoman minister and operated spy networks for the Sultan. Son of Andrea Gritti, Doge of Venice
Hass Murad Pasha, Greek renegade of imperial Palaiologos descent who served as an Ottoman commander and statesman. Brother of Mesih Pasha
Mesih Pasha, Greek renegade of imperial Palaiologos descent who served as Kapudan Pasha and Grand Vizier. Brother of Hass Murad Pasha
Adam Neuser, German former Protestant pastor who would flee to the Ottoman Empire, convert to Islam, and serve as a spy
Markus Penckner, Transylvanian renegade and convert to Islam who would serve as a spy for the Ottomans
Jácome de Olivares, Cochin Jewish businessman who served as a spy for Sultan Selim II in Portuguese India
Esther Handali, Jewish-Spanish businesswoman who was a financial advisor to Sultan Murad III. She was also the Kira (business agent) of Nurbanu Sultan, Safiye Sultan, and Roxelana
Joseph Nasi, Jewish-Portuguese businessman and diplomat. He also served as a financial advisor to multiple Sultans
Moses Hamon, Jewish royal physician to Suleiman the Magnificent
Janus Bey, Greek Dragoman and Ottoman ambassador to Venice
Payzen Yusuf Pasha, French statesman who became Agha of the Janissaries and the beylerbey of Budin and Temeşvar
Pál Márkházy, Hungarian nobleman who served as governor of multiple Sanjaks
Samson Rowlie, English renegade who served as Chief eunuch and treasurer of Ottoman Algeria
Hasan Agha, Italian renegade who ruled Algiers in the absence of Hayreddin Barbarossa. He commanded the garrison of the city during the 1541 invasion, resulting in catastrophic losses for Holy Roman Emperor Charles V
Hasan Corso, Italian renegade who was kaymakam of Algiers from 1549 until his assassination in 1556
Cafer Ağa, Italian who was Kapudan Pasha from 1516 to 1520
Hassan Veneziano, Italian regent of Ottoman Algiers from 1577 to 1580, and then 1582–1587
Bertrand d'Ornesan, French admiral who fought alongside the Ottomans at the 1537 Siege of Corfu

17th century[edit]

Cığalazade Yusuf Sinan Pasha, Italian renegade to the Ottoman Empire who would serve as Grand Vizier and Kapudan Pasha. As one of the most capable military commander and statesman of the early modern age, he contributed to the eastwards expansion of the empire, and successfully defended Ottoman Hungary from Habsburg invasion
Wojciech Bobowski, Polish musician and Dragoman who mastered 17 languages. He served in the Ottoman state for nearly 40 years
Jack Ward, English Barbary Corsair operating out of Ottoman Tunisia for over 20 years. Inspiration for Jack Sparrow of the Pirates of the Caribbean film franchise
Solomon Aben Yaesh, Jewish-Portuguese statesman who is regarded as one of the most influential figures in Ottoman foreign affairs history
Solomon Eskenazi, Jewish-German statesman who is regarded as one of the most influential figures in Ottoman foreign affairs history
David Passi, Jewish spy and closest confidant of Sultan Murad III. He served as Kapudan Pasha between 1595/6 to 1599
Carlo Cigala, Italian spy who regularly gave information on Spain to the Ottoman Sultan. He was the younger brother of Cığalazade Yusuf Sinan Pasha
Esperanza Malchi, Jewish-Italian businesswoman who was the Kira (business agent) of Valide Safiye Sultan and financial advisor to Sultan Murad III
Zymen Danseker, Dutch Barbary Corsair based in Ottoman Algeria who commanded a vast squadron made up of English and Turks
Sulayman Reis, Dutch Barbary Corsair who commanded the Algiers corsair fleet during his later years
Jan Janszoon, Dutch Barbary Corsair operating out of Ottoman Algeria for over 20 years
Usta Murad, Italian renegade who served in the Ottoman navy for nearly 50 years. He became Dey of Tunis 3 years before his death
Ali Bitchin, Italian renegade who made a fortune in Algiers from privateering with the Ottoman navy

18th century[edit]

Claude Alexandre de Bonneval, French count who was a renegade in the Ottoman Empire. Served in the Ottoman army and state in the last decades of his life
Mezzo Morto Hüseyin Pasha, Spanish privateer and renegade who served as the Dey of Algiers and Kapudan Pasha
François Baron de Tott, French aristocrat of Slovak-Hungarian origin who played a great role in the 1768–1774 Russo-Turkish war and was pivotal in the modernisation of the Ottoman army
Campbell Mustafa Ağa, Scottish convert to Islam who from 1775 was the chief instructor in the new Ottoman naval mathematical academy (the Hendishâne)
Frenk Abdurrahman Pasha, French who served as Kapudan Pasha from 1704 to 1706 and participated in numerous naval battles and raids
Aaron ben Isaac Hamon, Jewish doctor and printer who served as physician to the Ottoman royal court
Iliaș Colceag, Moldavian mercenary and military commander who was in the service of the Ottoman army for over 30 years
Sheikh Mansur, Chechen Islamic and military leader who fought with the Ottomans in the 1787–1792 Russo-Turkish war

19th century[edit]

Charles de Schwartzenberg, French-born Belgian aristocrat of German descent who fought in the Ottoman army irregularly between 1854 until his death in 1878
Adam Mickiewicz, famed Polish poet who served in the Crimean War and died in Istanbul (possibly from cholera)
Antoni Aleksander Iliński, Polish military officer and general who served in the Ottoman army from 1844 until his death in 1861
Augustus Charles Hobart-Hampden, British admiral in the Ottoman Navy irregularly between 1867 and the 1880s. He played a big role in suppressing the Cretan Revolt, and went on to serve in the 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish war
Adolphus Slade, British admiral in the Ottoman Navy from 1849 to 1866. He most notably served in the Crimean War
Józef Jagmin, Polish noble who served as an Ottoman officer in the Crimean War and the 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish war as the founder of the Polish Legion in Turkey
Rafael de Nogales, Venezuelan soldier and adventurer who served in the Ottoman army for the entirety of the Great War
Stanislas Saint Clair, Scottish-Polish-Lithuanian officer who served in the Crimean and 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish Wars
Mustafa Celalettin Pasha, Polish noble who served in the Ottoman army for nearly 25 years. Great-grandfather of Nâzım Hikmet
Jean Karadja Pasha, Greek Dragoman and Ottoman ambassador to numerous countries. Served in the foreign office for 44 years
György Kmety, Hungarian noble who served in the Crimean War and was known for refusing to abandon Kars in 1855 as general Fenwick Williams had advocated when the Russians started to attain significant gains
Fenwick Williams, Canadian military leader who served in the Crimean War and participated in the 1855 defence of Kars
Hekim Ismail Pasha, Greek physician who was an Ottoman statesman. He served in the 1828–1829 Russo-Turkish war against Greek and Russian forces, and was the Imperial family's private physician
Omar Pasha, Serbian Field marshal who fled from Austria and served in the Ottoman army for nearly 30 years
Władysław Stanisław Zamoyski, Polish aristocrat he led a Polish cavalry division in the Ottoman Army during the Crimean War
Gerandiqo Berzeg, Circassian commander who fought for the Ottomans in the Crimean and 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish Wars
Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, Prussian military advisor to the Ottoman Empire in the 1830s. He made extensive reconnaissances and surveys, riding several thousand miles in the course of his journey, visiting and mapping many parts of the Ottoman Empire to fulfil his role effectively
Seferbiy Zaneqo, Circassian diplomat who was the Ottoman ambassador to Circassia from 1829 to 1860. He was also a commander who served in important Ottoman wars such as 1828–1829 Russo-Turkish and Crimean Wars
Thomas Keith, Scottish POW who converted to Islam and joined the Ottoman army. He died in 1815 as governor of Medina while fighting the rising power of the Saudi dynasty
Richard Guyon, British soldier of Hungarian descent who fought in the Crimean War and had a pivotal role in organising the army of Kars in its 1855 defence
Józef Bem, Polish engineer and general who served as Governor of the Sanjak of Aleppo. He protected the city from sieges effectively
Thaddeus P. Mott, American adventurer who saw plenty of service in the Balkans with the Ottoman army between 1867 and 1869. His father, Valentine Mott, had been personal physician to Sultan Abdulmejid I and one of his sisters was married to the Ottoman ambassador to the United States, Edouard Blak
Edouard Blak, American of French-Scottish origins who served as the first Ottoman ambassador to the United States
Edward A. Wild, American homeopathic doctor and Union soldier who served in the Crimean War as a medical doctor
Michał Czajkowski, Polish noble of Cossack heritage who formed a Cossack brigade in the Crimean War to fight on the side of the Ottomans
Charles Ryan, Australian surgeon who served as a doctor and an Ottoman military commander in the 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish war
Valentine Baker, British soldier who served in the Crimean and 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish Wars
Teofil Lapinski, Polish major who fought in the Polish legion in the Ottoman army during the Crimean War
Henry Adrian Churchill, British diplomat and archeological explorer who participated in the 1855 defence of Kars during the Crimean War
Pierre-Désiré Guillemet, French painter who brought European style paintings to the Ottoman Empire. Died while trying to help refugees and the sick from the 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish war
Francesco Della Suda, Italian pharmacist who pioneered the career of pharmacy in the Ottoman Empire. He served in the front lines of the Crimean War as a medical doctor
Samson Cerfberr, French-Jew who fought as a commander alongside Osman Gradaščević against the rebelling Serbs in the Ottoman Eyalet of Bosnia in 1813
Damat Gürcü Halil Rifat Pasha, Georgian who would serve as Kapudan Pasha and married into the imperial Osmanoğlu family
Rüstem Mariani, Italian aristocrat who served as Ottoman ambassador to multiple countries and also as governor of Mount Lebanon from 1873 to 1883
György Klapka, Hungarian general who served in the Crimean and 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish Wars
Seydi Ali Pasha, Georgian grand admiral of the Ottoman navy from 1807 to 1809 and governor of Silistra Eyalet in 1808
Feliks Breański, Polish brigadier general and diplomat who served in the Crimean War
Ludwik Bystrzonowski, Polish general who served in the Crimean War
Julius Michael Millingen, Dutch-English who served as a court physician for five Sultans

20th century[edit]

Alfred Bilinski, Greek-born Polish–British aristocrat who would serve in the 1897 Greco-Turkish and 1912 Balkan wars. He would further become the Ottoman ambassador to the United States in 1914
Black Musa, Sudanese member of the Special Organization who participated in every war involving the Ottoman Empire from the Italo-Turkish War to World War I. Musa was seen as one of the faces of anti-colonialism in the Ottoman Empire, and was renowned for his loyalty to the state
Despina Storch, Greek woman who was a spy for the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Storch was immortalized as "Turkish Delight", "Turkish beauty", and a "modern Cleopatra" in spy literature
Colmar Freiherr von der Goltz, Prussian general who contributed to the transformation and modernisation of the Ottoman army and was seen as a 'father figure' by Ottoman soldiers. He would die serving in the Ottoman army in World War I, and was buried in Istanbul in accordance with his will
Friedrich Freiherr Kress von Kressenstein, German general who participated and led many battles on the side of the Ottomans in the First World War
Henry Felix Woods, British admiral who served in the Ottoman navy for decades. He was aide-de-camp to Sultan Abdul Hamid II for a few years
Ransford Dodsworth Bucknam, Canadian admiral in the Ottoman navy from 1905 to 1911
Thadée Gasztowtt, Polish journalist of noble Lithuanian descent who served as an Ottoman diplomat for years and fought in the Italo-Turkish War
Harun el-Raschid Bey, German heavy bomber pilot who converted to Islam while in the service of the Ottomans in World War I
Erich von Falkenhayn, German officer who was supreme commander of two Ottoman armies in Palestine, with the rank of Mushir (equivalent to field marshal) in World War I
Fritz Bronsart von Schellendorf, German officer and politician who was the chief of Staff of the Ottoman Army and was one of the many German military advisors assigned to the Ottoman Empire. He was instrumental in drafting initial war (WW1) plans for the Ottoman Army
Otto Liman von Sanders, German general who served as a military adviser to the Ottoman Army during the First World War, and commanded an Ottoman army during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in 1918
Ludwig Karl Friedrich Detroit, Prussian of Huguenot descent who served in the Ottoman army for 35 years
Stephen Bartlett Lakeman, British administrator who would serve in the Ottoman army for the entirety of the Crimean War
Wilhelm Souchon, German admiral who led a fleet which participated in the Black Sea Raid bringing the Ottoman Empire into World War I
William Sydney Churchill, British translator and gendarmerie officer who served in Turkey, Ottoman Egypt, and Ottoman Crete
Ludomił Rayski, Polish noble who served as a fighter pilot on multiple fronts for the Ottomans in World War I
Hans von Seeckt, German officer who replaced Schellendorf as Chief of Staff of the Ottoman Army. Contributed to the modernisation of the Ottoman army considerably, and participated in numerous battles of the First World War
Władysław Czajkowski, Polish noble who served as a statesman and general in the Ottoman army
Erich Prigge, German soldier who served in the Ottoman Empire during the entirety of the First World War. He was adjutant to Otto Liman von Sanders
Erich Weber, German officer who served in the Ottoman army during the First World War I and participated in the Gallipoli Campaign
Rudolf von Sebottendorf, German intelligence agent who fought in the First Balkan War
Moshe Sharett, Jewish who was the 2nd Prime Minister of Israel from 1954 to 1955 served in the Ottoman army as a first lieutenant in World War I
Abdur Rahman Peshawari, wealthy Kashmiri–Pashtun individual who served in the Ottoman army from the Balkan Wars to the Turkish War of Independence
Washington Carroll Tevis, American mercenary who commanded Ottoman forces in the Crimean War and was present at the defence of Kars
Otto von Feldmann, German commander who alongside Schellendorf was with Enver Pasha daily during the First World War
Fritz Grobba, German diplomat who fought in Ottoman Palestine during World War I
Otto von Lossow, German officer who assisted the Ottoman Army and the many German military advisors in planning the ongoing response to Allied landings at Gallipoli
Raimondo D'Aronco, Italian chief palace architect to Sultan Abdul Hamid II. Designed many important buildings of Istanbul such as Yıldız Palace
Ödön Széchenyi, Hungarian nobleman who was pivotal in the creation of a formal fire brigade in the Ottoman Empire. He is the son of István Széchenyi, a Hungarian count, politician, political theorist, writer, and statesman who is referred to in Hungary as 'the Greatest Hungarian'
Gyula Germanus, German–Jewish Islamologist who served in the Ottoman army during the Gallipoli campaign
Frederick van Millingen, Dutch-English officer who served in the Ottoman army from 1853 to 1864
Alexander Vallaury, French architect who founded architectural education and lectured in the School of Fine Arts in Istanbul
Raymond Charles Péré, French architect who worked in İzmir for 49 years and is best known for designing the İzmir Clock Tower and St. Helena Church
Giuseppe Donizetti, Italian musician and Instructor General at the court of Sultan Mahmud II. It is believed that he composed the first official Ottoman anthem and introduced European music to the Ottoman military
Paul Lange, German musician who much like Donizetti was one of the pioneers to bring European classical music to Istanbul (between 1880 and 1920)
Heinrich August Meissner, German engineer who served in the Ottoman army in World War I. He was largely responsible for the railway network in the Ottoman Empire, and later helped manage the network in Turkey
Muhammad Sa'id al-Habboubi, Iraqi Ayatollah who led volunteer groups in the Ottoman Empire against British invading forces during the First World War
Paul Wittek, Austrian historian who served as a military advisor to the Ottoman state during the First World War
Grigore Sturdza, Moldavian-born Romanian soldier and politician who joined the Ottoman army as a Colonel and took part in the Crimean War
Henry Langhorne Thompson, British officer who noted for his courageousness in the defence of Kars during the Crimean War
Hans Kannengiesser, German commander in the Ottoman army during World War I
Stanisław Julian Ostroróg, Polish noble from the Ostroróg family who served in the Crimean War
Leon Walerian Ostroróg, Polish noble from the Ostroróg family who served as an adviser in the Ottoman Public Administration of debt in Istanbul for over a decade
Léon Guilain Bureau, Belgian soldier who helped reorganize the Ottoman police and gendarmerie from 1898 to 1909
Marian Langiewicz, Polish leader of the January Uprising who fled to the Ottoman Empire and served the Sublime Porte in the last decade of his life
Sami Günzberg, Hungarian or Russian–Jew who served as the personal dentists of Turkish leaders Sultan Abdul Hamid II to Adnan Menderes. This is a period of over 60 years.
David Hacohen, Jewish Knesset member who served in the Ottoman army during World War I

References[edit]

^ Gürkan, Emrah Safa (2012). Espionage in the 16th century Mediterranean: Secret diplomacy, Mediterranean go-betweens and the Ottoman Habsburg rivalry (Ph.D). Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University. p. 132.
^ Casale, Giancarlo (2007). "The Ethnic Composition of Ottoman Ship Crews and the "Rumi Challenge" to Portuguese Identity". Medieval Encounters. 13 (1). Leiden: Brill: 140.
^ Nicolay, Nicolas de (1595). The Nauigations, Peregrinations and Voyages Made Into Turkie. Translated by Thomas Washington. London: Thomas Dawson. p. 8.
^ Vaughan, Dorothy M. (1954). Europe and the Turk: A Pattern of Alliances, 1350-1700. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press. p. 282.
^ Bennassar, Bartolomé; Bennassar, Lucile (17 August 2017). Les Chrétiens d'Allah (in French). France: Place des éditeurs. p. 258.
^ Isom-Verhaaren, Christine (2004). "Shifting Identities: Foreign State Servants in France and the Ottoman Empire". Journal of Early Modern History. 8 (1–2). Leiden: Brill: 113.
^ Gülsoy, Ufuk (1999). "ISLAHAT FERMANI" [REFORM EDICT]. İslâm Ansiklopedisi (in Turkish). TDV İslâm Araştırmaları Merkezi.
^ Kritzler, Edward (November 3, 2009). Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. pp. 59–60. ISBN 978-0-7679-1952-4.

[1] Gürkan, Emrah Safa (2012). Espionage in the 16th century Mediterranean: Secret diplomacy, Mediterranean go-betweens and the Ottoman Habsburg rivalry (Ph.D). Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University. p. 132.

[2] Casale, Giancarlo (2007). "The Ethnic Composition of Ottoman Ship Crews and the "Rumi Challenge" to Portuguese Identity". Medieval Encounters. 13 (1). Leiden: Brill: 140.

[3] Nicolay, Nicolas de (1595). The Nauigations, Peregrinations and Voyages Made Into Turkie. Translated by Thomas Washington. London: Thomas Dawson. p. 8.

[4] Vaughan, Dorothy M. (1954). Europe and the Turk: A Pattern of Alliances, 1350-1700. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press. p. 282.

[5] Bennassar, Bartolomé; Bennassar, Lucile (17 August 2017). Les Chrétiens d'Allah (in French). France: Place des éditeurs. p. 258.

[6] Isom-Verhaaren, Christine (2004). "Shifting Identities: Foreign State Servants in France and the Ottoman Empire". Journal of Early Modern History. 8 (1–2). Leiden: Brill: 113.

[7] Gülsoy, Ufuk (1999). "ISLAHAT FERMANI" [REFORM EDICT]. İslâm Ansiklopedisi (in Turkish). TDV İslâm Araştırmaları Merkezi.

[8] Kritzler, Edward (November 3, 2009). Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. pp. 59–60. ISBN 978-0-7679-1952-4.

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