Early life and family Ahmed Shefik Midhat Pasha was born in
Istanbul in the
Islamic month of
Safar in 1238
AH, which began on 18 October 1822. He spent his youth in his parents' home in
Vidin,
Lovech and later
Istanbul, where his father held judicial office. During his governorship, he built countless
schools and educational institutes, built
hospitals,
granaries,
roads and
bridges, paying for these projects through voluntary contributions from the people. Within two years Midhat Pasha restored order, introduced the
new reformed hierarchy, provided agricultural credits (through the first agricultural credit co-operatives), extended roads, bridges, and waterways, started industries, opened schools and orphanages, founded a newspaper, and increased the revenues of the province from 26,000 to 300,000 purses. He clashed with the Grand Vizier
Mehmed Emin Ali Pasha, which led to his appointment as governor of
Baghdad in 1869, as the appointment to such a remote posting was intended as a punishment. He helped modernize the province, and he re-established Ottoman rule in
al-Hasa. Midhat Pasha was again appointed Grand Vizier, in place of
Mehmed Rushdi Pasha, on 19 December 1876. Popular support for the constitution began to plummet when it became known that it was to grant equal rights for non-Muslims. Abdul Hamid had no real interest in constitutionalism, and on 5 February 1877, he exiled Midhat Pasha. Midhat's popularity in Europe, coupled with British pressure, led Abdul Hamid to allow him to return from exile, and he arrived in
Crete on 6 September 1878. He admitted many Arabs in the civil service, including in the positions of
qaimaqam and
mutasarrif, and gave minorities broad representation in the administration. He then resigned the post, as he felt Istanbul was offering him an insufficient amount of support.
Imprisonment and death ''
Osman Nuri Pasha), who carried out the extra-judicial execution, photographed during his Hejaz service. He served briefly in
İzmir as governor of the
vilayet of Aydin, but on 17 May 1881, after only a few months on that post, he was arrested.
Ahmed Cevdet Pasha, the justice minister, brought him to
Istanbul, where he was charged with the murder of
Sultan Abdulaziz. However, they claim that the British pressure impeded his execution, so he was imprisoned in the fortress of
Taif, in
Hejaz. It was reported that, soon after his arrival, the
Emir of Mecca received a message from Istanbul demanding the death of Midhat from "an accident". The incumbent Emir Abdul Muttalib was a close friend of Midhat however, and no action was taken by him. Midhat Pasha's remains were brought from Taif and interned in the
Monument of Liberty on 26 June 1951, in a ceremony attended by President
Celâl Bayar. == Legacy ==