Early years Sokollu's birth name was probably (), He was said to be born into a modest shepherd family, adherent to the
Serbian Orthodox Church, in or near
Sokolovići () in the vicinity of modern-day
Rudo. He would appoint his relatives (both Muslim and Christian) to important positions, including
Sokollu Mustafa Pasha,
Makarije Sokolović,
Ferhad Pasha Sokolović,
Sinan-beg Boljanić,
Sokolluzade Lala Mehmed Pasha and
Lala Mustafa Pasha. As a soldier, Mehmed excelled at the
Battle of Mohács and the first
Siege of Vienna. In 1546 the
Kapudan Pasha Hayreddin Barbarossa died and Mehmed was appointed his successor. In this capacity he was present at the naval expedition against Trablus (present-day
Tripoli in
Libya). During his five years in this position, Mehmed Pasha greatly strengthened the arsenal of the naval fleet. Mehmed became
Beylerbey (Governor-General) of
Rumelia in 1551, headquartered in
Sofia. While he was visiting the area of his birth, his mother recognized him by the
birthmark on his face and embraced her child for the first time in more than thirty years. After the death of
John Zápolya, king of
Hungary as an Ottoman vassal, in 1540,
Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor looked to annex Zápolya's lands (the
Eastern Hungarian Kingdom). The Hungarian diet had elected infant
John Sigismund Zápolya, the son of Zápolya and
Isabella Jagiellon, as King of Hungary, which broke the
Treaty of Nagyvárad, and Ferdinand I invaded Hungary. Queen Isabella struggled to rule Hungary for her son. Frater
George Martinuzzi, appointed by John as regent, opposed her (he would later be created a Cardinal as reward for his accomplishments in this conflict). Ferdinand I sent mercenary leader (
condottiero) Bartolomeo Castoldo with more than 7,000 mercenaries who beat a contingent led by
Péter Petrovics, killing more than 2,500 of them, near
Csanád. The Sultan immediately ordered Sokollu Mehmed Pasha to move into
Hungary, so he assembled an army of 90,000 soldiers and fifty-four cannons and also summoned the
pashas of
Smederevo,
Vidin and
Nicopolis. When his forces reached
Slankamen in
Syrmia, George Martinuzzi begged Mehmed not to attack Transylvania, arguing that it had remained in the possession of the Sultan. Mehmed rejected negotiation proposals, led Ottoman forces into Transylvania and soon captured 16 cities, including
Bečej,
Becskerek,
Csanád and
Lippa. In this campaign, Sokollu won over to his side local Serb-manned garrisons by pointing out to his common ethnicity with them. Mehmed besieged the city until 28 October but could not seize it. Retreating to
Belgrade, he initiated peace negotiations with the Monk-Viceroy. Martinuzzi was assassinated on 17 December 1551, and peace talks ended. Sokollu Mehmed renewed his military campaign in 1552, seizing
Temesvár (see
Siege of Temesvár (1552)),
Hollókő,
Buják,
Rétság,
Balassagyarmat, the whole of
Banat and
Szolnok. Sokollu Mehmed's forces then joined with those of
Ahmet Pasha advancing towards
Eger. Mehmed's army assembled on the Hill of Egid but
could not take the city itself. In 1532, Sultan Suleiman
had declared war on
Safavid Persia following two decades of peace after the climactic
Battle of Chaldiran, when the Persian Shah
Tahmasp wanted to take advantage of the Sultan's preoccupation with Hungary and started making armed incursions into Ottoman territory. Sokollu Mehmed was dispatched to spend the winter of 1553/1554 in
Tokat to take charge of the final stages of the war against Persia. In June 1554, Mehmed Pasha and the Rumelian troops joined the Sultan's army and took part in the
Safavid campaign (1554–1555).
Vizier Third Vizier Impressed by Sokollu Mehmed's skills, the Sultan made him the Third Vizier in 1555 and he was given a place in the Imperial Council (
Divan). His position as Governor-General of Rumelia was given to a
Herzegovinian Janissary
agha, Pertev Pasha, an old companion of Mehmed's from when they had both served under
Iskender Çelebi. Almost immediately Sokollu Mehmed had to quell a rebellion around
Salonica, led by Mustafa Bey, who pretended to be the Sultan's late son Mustafa. Sokollu Mehmed took 4,000 horsemen and 3,000 janissaries and quelled the rebellion. Mustafa Bey was hanged. Mehmed had a close relative
Makarije Sokolović, who was a monk of the Serb
Hilandar Monastery on
Mount Athos. In 1557, while Mehmed was still the Third Vizier, the final re-establishment of the
autocephaly of the
Serbian Orthodox Church was achieved, through the restoration of the
Serbian Patriarchate of Peć, with Mehmed's cousin Makarije Sokolović becoming new
Serbian Patriarch as Makarije I, who was succeeded in 1571 by another family member
Antonije Sokolović, as Patriarch Antonije I. When the former Grand Vizier Ahmet Pasha was deposed and hanged, he was replaced by
Rüstem Pasha, who had numerous enemies. One of them was
Lala Mustafa, who instigated the Sultan's third son, Bayezid, then
Beylerbey of
Karaman, to raise a rebellion against his brother and heir-apparent
Selim. Sokollu Mehmed mustered an army and went to
Konya, where he decisively defeated Bayezid's forces in May 1559. Bayezid fled to Persia. Sokollu Mehmed remained in Asia and spent the winter negotiating with the Persian Shah regarding Bayezid's extradition. After long negotiations, the Shah handed over Bayezid and his four sons, who were subsequently executed.
Second Vizier In 1561, Grand Vizier Rüstem Pasha died and was succeeded by the Second Vizier,
Semiz Ali Pasha. Sokollu Mehmed Pasha in turn became Second Vizier, while Pertev Pasha became Third Vizier. On 17 August 1562, Sokollu Mehmed married Sultan Suleiman's granddaughter – Prince Selim's daughter – Ismihan Sultan (some sources read her name as Esma Han Sultan) . Mehmed spent the following years in peace, governing and administering the realm. In 1563, Mehmed's nephew,
Sokollu Mustafa Bey, became sanjakbey of the
Sanjak of Bosnia.
Grand Vizier In June 1565, Grand Vizier Semiz Ali Pasha died. Sultan Suleiman had much confidence in Sokollu Mehmed Pasha and promoted him to this position.
War with the Habsburgs (1566).
Nüzhet-i Esrâr (1568–1569). File:Česma Mehmed Paše Sokolovića (1).jpg|thumb|left|Fountain of Mehmed Pasha Sokolović in Belgrade from 1578. (Sokollu Mehmed Pasha Caravanserai with Bedestan in Belgrade - 3D Animation) The Sultan arrived with Sokollu Mehmed's sons, Kurt Bey and Hasan Bey, at
Pécs. Finally, the large Ottoman force, which numbered between 100,000 and 300,000 soldiers and 300 cannons, laid siege to
Szigetvár. The
Battle of Szigetvár was an Ottoman victory, with heavy losses on both sides. Both commanders died during the battle: while Zrinsky was killed in the final charge, Suleiman the Magnificent died in his tent from natural causes, before the Turks achieved victory. According to Robert William Fraser, more than 10,000 large cannonballs where shot into the fortress during the siege. Sokollu Mehmed Pasha had all witnesses to the Sultan's death executed, and announced that Suleiman was too sick to perform his duties and that he would be healing in Szigetvár, while he would be acting on the Sultan's behalf. Sokollu Mehmed rewarded those involved in the capture of Szigetvár and increased the soldiers' wages. He sent a part of the army to capture
Babócsa. The
Tartars, however, spread the news of the Sultan's death, and Sokollu Mustafa Bey wrote to Prince Selim about his father's death. Selim marched immediately towards
Srem. Upon his arrival in
Vukovar, Sokollu Mehmed wrote him that it would be best if he went to Belgrade to greet his army for a more formal and effective take-over of the Empire. Selim returned to Belgrade, and Mehmed ordered the army to march towards the town. Forty days after the Sultan's death, in October 1566, the army set out for Belgrade. At the fourth stop on the way to Belgrade, forty-eight days after Suleiman's death, Sokollu Mehmed announced the Sultan's death ceremonially, during the traditional reading of the
Koran. Sokollu Mehmed had Suleiman's body embalmed and ordered the army to proceed to meet the new Sultan in Belgrade. After three marches, the army arrived in
Sremska Mitrovica. Mehmed reminded Selim to send gifts to the viziers, pashas and the army, but Selim's advisors convinced the new Sultan not to do so. Sokollu Mehmed went to Belgrade and swore allegiance to Selim II as his Sultan, and Selim confirmed him as his Grand Vizier. Expecting a mutiny among the military in the capital, Sokollu Mehmed had Suleiman's body sent to Constantinople to restore order amongst the janissaries and other officials, who now demanded more compensation for their past efforts. In Belgrade, Sultan Selim II called a council, as even some of his closest officials were openly mocking him. Sokollu Mehmed assured him that he would manage everything effectively, and distributed gifts to the troops, rewarding them handsomely to regain their loyalty. On the fifth day of their stay in Belgrade, the Sultan, Sokollu Mehmed and the army departed for Constantinople. Before they managed to return to the Empire's capital, a mutiny broke out and the road to the city was blocked, and Sokollu Mehmed and Ahmed Pasha had to bribe their way into the city. Order was restored after Sokollu Mehmed convinced the Sultan to promise to send handsome gifts and higher wages to the janissaries. The next morning, each janissary was given standard pay of 40 ducats and an additional 20 ducats as an accession bonus. Soon, the other branches of the military, the
sipahis and mercenaries, demanded higher wages as well. Mehmed arrested and replaced their
aghas at once, finally stopping all dissent. Two years after Selim's accession, on 17 February 1568, Sokollu Mehmed succeeded in concluding at
Edirne a peace treaty with Emperor Maximilian II, whereby the Emperor agreed to pay an annual "honorary present" of 30,000 ducats.
Expedition to Sumatra One of Sokollu's greatest responsibilities was planning an Ottoman invasion of
Sumatra in 1567. Historical records from the time show that Sokollu played an active role in the strategic execution of the invasion and that he was extremely detailed in the logistics. Later on, Sokollu would also participate in the expedition as a commander. According to these historical records, between November and December 1567 Sokollu and his expedition took sail to Aceh with fifteen fully armed war galleys and two transport galleys. Upon a seemingly friendly arrival to Aceh, the sultan of Sumatra requested that all the members of the expedition follow his orders. He instructed the governor of Egypt to send architects engineers to assess the possibility of this canal, with the purpose of allowing a better connection from Muslims attempting to visit the Holy Cities. Although the government was weakening, Sokollu Mehmed Paşa managed to expand the borders of the Ottoman Empire greatly. In 1570 he dispatched
Sinan Pasha to conquer
Arabia. Sinan Pasha solemnly declared the reign of Sultan Selim II in
Mecca upon finishing his military campaign in
Hejaz and
Yemen. From 1571 to 1572, on the order of Mehmed's wife Ismihan Sultan (or Esma Han Sultan), the famous architect
Mimar Sinan built the
Sokollu Mehmed Paşa Mosque, which an authoritative guide to Constantinople states to be "The most beautiful of the smaller mosques in Istanbul, a minor masterpiece by Sinan". During the rule of Sokollu Mehmed Pasha as Grand Vizier, the Ottoman navy and army
took Cyprus in 1571 from
Venice. The administration of Cyprus was given to Mehmed's old friend, the
Arab Ahmed Pasha. The invasion of Cyprus led to the formation of a so-called
Holy League, comprising the
Pope,
Spain with Naples and Sicily, the
Republic of Venice,
Genoa,
Tuscany, and the
Knights of Malta. On 7 October 1571, the coalition's fleet under the command of
Don Juan of Austria decisively defeated the Ottoman fleet under
Müezzinzade Ali Pasha in the
Battle of Lepanto. Sokollu Mehmed Pasha immediately ensured that
Piyale Pasha and
Uluç Ali Reis, the new Grand Admiral, were provided with all the necessary means and resources to rebuild the Empire's shattered fleet. By July 1572 the Ottoman fleet already numbered 250 fully equipped warships "including eight of the largest capital ships ever seen in the Mediterranean". It is reported in Turkish chronicles that Sokollu Mehmed Pasha had said to the Venetian Ambassador "By conquering Cyprus we have cut off one of your arms; at Lepanto by defeating our navy you have only shaved off our beard. However, you know that a cut-off arm cannot be replaced but shaved-off beard grows thicker." Indeed, the Holy League ships had to retire to ports and Ottoman naval supremacy in the Mediterranean was restored. The new Ottoman Navy that started a naval expedition in summer of 1573 under Uluç Ali Reis found no rivals in the Mediterranean and ravaged the coasts of Sicily and southern Italy and in 1574 it captured
Tunis from the Hafsids, who for some time had been supported by Spanish troops, thus restoring Ottoman domination in the Western Mediterranean. On 3 March 1573, the Venetian Republic signed a new peace treaty with the Ottomans under Mehmed Pasha, thereby bringing the Holy League to an end, accepting the loss of Cyprus and increasing the tribute payments. He also extended for eight more years the peace treaty with the Holy Roman Empire and maintained good relations with
France,
Poland-Lithuania and Russia. He was preparing for a fresh attack on Venice when the Sultan's death on 12 December 1574 cut short his plans.
Final years Sokollu Mehmed Pasha's wealth reached its peak around 1573, when the value of his personal property (cash, goods, accounts, objects) amounted to 18 million ducats. Mehmed received the standard Grand Vizier's wage of 20 ducats every day. His wealth increased greatly through gifts and taxes of Ottoman officials: anyone who became a vizier had to pay Mehmed Pasha 50,000 to 60,000 ducats, and every Governor-General had to pay 15,000 to 20,000 or even sometimes 30,000 to 40,000 ducats upon ascending to the office. The provincial governor of Egypt at
Cairo alone dispatched 100,000 ducats to the Grand Vizier every year. On 30 August 1574, Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha installed his nephew
Antonije Sokolović, then the
Metropolitan of
Hum, as the new
Eastern Orthodox Archbishop of Ohrid. On 23 October the same year, upon the death of Patriarch Makarije, Antonije became the new
Serbian Patriarch. Antonije died soon, in 1575, and was replaced by yet another one of Mehmed's nephews,
Gerasim Sokolović. When Sultan Selim II died, Sokollu Mehmed Pasha again kept this secret until Selim's oldest son Murad arrived from his governor's post in
Manisa. Sokollu Mehmed Pasha acknowledged the new Sultan,
Murad III, and remained Grand Vizier, but now he had to cope with the rising political influence of the palace women, first with Sultan's mother
Nurbanu Sultan and then his wife, of Albanian origin,
Safiye Sultan. Murad III gradually soured on Sokollu Mehmed's overwhelming power within the Empire, and the Grand Vizier's influence declined. Sokollu Mehmed Pasha was involved in the succession disputes of the Polish Crown in 1576 and 1577, but this did not reach greater measures. Sokollu Mehmed signed numerous treaties of friendship with Venice,
Florence, Spain,
England and
Switzerland. He also managed to force a number of European states to pay tribute: Austria paid 9,000 ducats; Transylvania 3,000;
Wallachia 7,000;
Moldavia 3,000. Eventually, even Venice had to pay him 4,000 ducats annually. This altogether gave him an annual income of 31,000 gold ducats. Mehmed was initially known to be opposed to the
war with Persia, which began in 1578, but was overruled upon eventually, amongst the reasons being the constant urgings by Sokollu Mehmed to take advantage of the Ottomans neighboring rival. Sultan Murad III time afterwards, began to limit his Grand Vizier's powers by slowly removing his allies from high offices. The state secretary Feridun, an old companion of Sokollu mehmed's since the siege of Szigetvár, was sent to Belgrade, away from Constantinople. Mehmed's faithful Arab friend, the Governor-General of Cyprus, was lynched by mutinous soldiers. Mehmed's greatest rivals,
Hamid Efendi and Piyale Pasha, arranged the execution of the Grand Vizier's Greek protege,
Michael Kantakouzenos. On 10 October 1578,
Sokollu Mustafa Pasha, Sokollu Mehmed Pasha's nephew and
beylerbey (governor-general) of
Budin, was assassinated (some sources put it as 30 September 1578). On the anniversary of this day, on 10 October 1579, Sokollu Mehmed had his servant Hasan Bey read to him about the
Battle of Kosovo. ==Death==