Description

Ahmed Muhtar Paşa (1839-1919).

[Mathematics by Muhtar. Mirror of Timekeeping and Changes]

Cairo, Bulaq: Bulak Matbaası 1303 [1886] – Ressam Hüseyin Sabri Efendi Matbaası [Lithographer of Plates].

2 Volumes:

Text volume: Large 4°. 2 blank sheets, [10 pp.] index, 387 pp., 2 blank sheets, entirely printed on E. M. & S. Superfine paper, contemporary cloth binding with tooling, contemporary spine with brown goat with gold tooling and lettering, contemporary patterned endpapers (minor sporadic staining, old signature on one of the blank sheets, stable crack in the hinge between pp. 191-192, minor scratching to the binding, overall good).

Volume with plates: Large 4°. 2 blank sheets, 36 plates with first plate printed on the verso of the title page (last one double-page), other plates blank verso, 2 blank sheets, contemporary cloth binding with tooling, contemporary spine with brown goat with gold tooling and lettering, contemporary patterned endpapers (minor age-toning and staining, old signature on one of the blank sheets, minor cracks in hinges, minor scratching to the binding, overall good).

 

This magnificent, richly illustrated work in Old Turkish language (Ottoman) on the measurement of time was authored by one of the most esteemed Ottoman military leaders Ahmed Muhtar Paşa. He combined the traditional Islamic knowledge on astronomy and instruments with contemporary Western discoveries. The author also lists foreign literature in Latin, French, English and German.

Gazi Ahmed Muhtar Paşa found the modernization of the Islamic calculation of time, which was until then mostly used for religious purposes, important for military purposes and for the development of the Middle Eastern science. In one of his other contemporary similar scientific works Islahü’t-takvim (1307-1890) Ahmed Muhtar Paşa advocated for the invariant Islamic calendar, which would help connecting the Islamic countries.

This is a rare first edition. The second edition was made ten years later, which only differs from the first one by a date 1313 on the last page under the text. A year later, an extremely rare appendix following the second edition was made.

Ahmed Muhtar Pasha: Scientist, Diplomat, Grand Vizier and War Hero

Ahmed Muhtar Pasha (1839 – 1919) was one of the most consequential and intriguing figures of the late Ottoman Empire. He was one of the most successful field commanders of his era, as well as a diplomat, politician, and highly respected authority on military technology and related sciences.

Ahmed Muhtar was born in Bursa, the son of a successful Turkish merchant. He attended the Ottoman Military College, where he was recognized for his exceptional intellect. Having gained his first field experience during the later days of the Crimean War, in 1862, Ahmed Muhtar led his own detachment in Montenegro, where he played a vital role in defeating the forces of Prince Nikola.

Upon his return to Constantinople, Ahmed Muhtar was appointed professor of engineering and artillery at the Ottoman Military College and was sent to France and Germany to learn about the most advanced European weapons systems. Acquiring a profound undertraining of ballistics and metallurgy, for the rest of his life he was a tireless advocate of the modernization of the Ottoman military. He was also involved in raising money for charities in the Constantinople, such that he possessed high level of popularity unusual for military officer.

During the same period, he became the tutor to Prince Yusuf Izzedin Effendi, the son of Sultan Abdulaziz, accompanying him on several trips to Europe.

In 1869, then Colonel Ahmed Muhtar was sent to Yemen to quell a long-running rebellion, an assignment that was perhaps the most difficult in all the empire. Brilliantly adapting the tactics of his forces to fight guerrilla warfare, by 1871, he scored major victories, extending Ottoman rule deep into the interior of the country for the first time. He was promoted to the rank of General and made the Governor of Yemen, extraordinary achievements for a man only in his early 30s. Ahmed Muhtar subsequently fulfilled senior staff postings in the Balkans, notably in Bosnia & Hercegovina. His next great achievement was, as described above, saving Anatolia from being overrun by Russia during the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-8.

Following that, Ahmed Muhtar Pasha was recalled to the western front, where Ottomans forces were collapsing against the combined forces of Russia and her Greek and South Slavic allies. He commanded the last lines of defence of Constantinople at Çatalca and Bakırköy, until the Russians were compelled to back down under heavy Anglo-French pressure.

Having saved Anatolia from being overrun by Russia, and Constantinople from being quickly seized, Ahmed Muhtar Pasha became the greatest war hero of the Ottoman Empire, and a much beloved celebrity. Sultan Abdul Hamid II appointed him President of the General Staff and the Commandant of the Ottoman Munitions Works, whereupon he employed his great enthusiasm for science towards modernizing weapons systems. His efforts in this regard led the Ottoman military to enjoy much-improved performance in wars over the next 20 years.

In 1882, Britain made Egypt a protectorate, even as it remained a de jure part of the Ottoman Empire.

While no longer subject to Constantinople, Egypt remained one of Turkey’s major trading partners, while maintaining its vital geostrategic position with respect to the Ottomans’ remaining possessions in Libya, Palestine and Arabia.

That year, Ahmed Muhtar Pasha was appointed as the Ottoman ‘Extraordinary Commissioner’ in Cairo (essentially the Ottoman Ambassador) and, remaining there for the next 16 years, he managed the Anglo-Turkish relationship in Egypt with remarkable skill.

In the summer of 1912, the Ottoman Empire was in a state of turmoil. The so-called ‘Savior Officers’ had successfully mounted a coup against the ‘Young Turks’, who had themselves taken over the country in 1908-9. Ahmed Muhtar Pasha, as a universally respected ‘father figure’, was appointed to lead the “Great Cabinet” (Turkish: Büyuk Kabine) to restore stability. Unfortunately, the chaos that reigned at the Sublime Porte caused the Ottoman army to be caught completely off-guard during the First Balkan War (1912-3), whereupon an alliance of Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria and Montenegro rolled over the Ottomans. Frustrated by the situation, Ahmed Muhtar Pasha resigned as Grand Vizier in October 29, 1912, after holding the post for barely four months. Nonetheless, he was not blamed for the disastrous outcome of the war, which was clearly due to the unpreparedness of others.

Ahmed Muhtar Pasha died in 1919, but his legacy survived him. He had published numerous works on military affairs and sciences, which are still cited even to this day. Moreover, Mustafa Kemal Pasha, later Atatürk, the founding President of the Republic of Turkey, revered Muhtar Ahmed and ensured that his example was honoured.

 

A Note on Rarity

It is hard to establish an exact number of first edition copies held by institutions is unknown, as both editions list the title page date as 1303. The only difference between the two editions is the printed year found below the text on the last page.