Sokollu Mehmed Paşa (1505–1579)
Born 1505 CE, died 1579 CE.
Sokollu Mehmed Pasha (Ottoman Turkish: صوقوللى محمد پاشا, romanized: Sokollu Mehmet Paşa; Serbian: Мехмед-паша Соколовић, romanized: Mehmed-paša Sokolović; pronounced [měxmet pâʃa sokǒːloʋitɕ]; 1505 – 11 October 1579) was an Ottoman statesman of Serb origin. He was most notable for being the grand vizier of the Ottoman Empire. Born in Ottoman Herzegovina into an Orthodox Christian family, Mehmed was abducted as a young boy as part of the so-called "blood tax" to serve as a janissary to the Ottoman devşirme system of recruiting Christian boys to be raised as officers or administrators for the state. He rose through the ranks of the Ottoman imperial system, eventually holding positions as commander of the imperial guard (1543–1546), High Admiral of the Fleet (1546–1551), Governor-General of Rumelia (1551–1555), Third Vizier (1555–1561), Second Vizier (1561–1565), and Grand Vizier (1565–1579, for a total of 14 years, three months, 17 days) under three sultans: Suleiman the Magnificent, Selim II, and Murad III.
Text from the Wikipedia article Sokollu_Mehmed_Pasha, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.