212 honored by the glory of islam
of the world,” he is seated on a high, ornately patterned gold throne. He looks
directly at the reader. He confi dently clasps the end of the armrest with his
left hand while pressing fi rmly downward with his palm on the other armrest.
He wears a tall, white turban ornamented with three ghazi aigrettes. His eyes
are bright and active, his eyebrows slightly raised. His sumptuous fur-lined
cloak, which consists of large red and yellow diamonds on a blue background,
is opened, revealing a green and yellow garment and jeweled sash. He looks
ambitious, his feet turned to the right as if he is about to stand up, balancing
his weight on the armrests.
The text that accompanies the miniature celebrates his military triumphs.It claims that Mehmed IV is “the powerful and glorious sultan, the sovereign
of the world, and king of kings of humankind, sultan of two continents and
khan of two seas, custodian of the two noble sanctuaries [Mecca and Medina],
the sultan son of a sultan son of a sultan, the conqueror and ghazi Sultan Meh-
med Khan son of the Sultan Ibrahim Khan.”^8 Following this introduction, after
praying that God grant him continued strength and power and numerous con-
quests, the author immediately launches into a discussion of the conquests
and peace treaties obtained during Mehmed IV’s era. These include Yanova by
Köprülü Mehmed Pasha ( 1 657), Vardat by commander Ali Pasha ( 1 660), and
Uyvar ( 1 663), Yeni Kale ( 1 664), peace with the Habsburgs ( 1 664), Candia and
the island of Crete ( 1 669) by Fazıl Ahmed Pasha. Then the author notes that in
1 672 the sultan went in person to conquer Kamaniça, the linchpin of Poland
and Cossack territories, and successfully completed the mission with overpow-
ering force. Then again the sultan turned his attention to the state of the fron-
tiers and campaigned in person against the Cossacks at the unapproachable and
impregnable citadel of Ladezrin in 1 674. Finally, the author mentions that Kara
Mustafa Pasha used this citadel as a launchpad for conquering Çehrin from
the Poles, Russians, and Cossacks. He concludes by praying that the world’s
master of an auspicious conjunction will be honored by many more conquests.
This miniature had been commissioned by Kara Mustafa Pasha and presented
to the sultan shortly before the grand vizier set out for Vienna.
The Ottomans could have learned from the mistakes of the previous cam-paign to take the Habsburg capital. A major campaign in central Europe was
a severe test of Ottoman military capabilities. The campaign season lasted
from spring to autumn, yet it would take until midsummer for the army to
even reach Belgrade. Along the way the Ottoman commander would confront
storms, winds, and rain. He would also face the diffi cult problems of provi-
sioning his troops and transporting them along roads and across streams and
rivers to the battlefront. Most war matériel had to be carried overland on ani-
mals, but the harsh conditions caused a high attrition rate. Winter weather also