Narrative of Travels in Europe, Asia, and Africa, in the Seventeenth Century, Vol. IEvliya Çelebi
History
Narrative of Travels in Europe, Asia, and Africa, in the Seventeenth Century, Vol. I
Evliya Çelebi
Caucasus, South -- Description and travel; Istanbul (Turkey) -- Description and travel; Turkey -- History
In this kind of elegies he was an incomparable poet. Sultán Báyazíd at
length sent an ambassador to the King of France and claimed Jem-Sháh.
On this the ill-complexioned Frank caused a sallow-faced fellow to
cut his throat while shaving him with a poisoned razor. The corpse of
Jem, together with his property, amongst which was an enchanted cup,
which became brimful as soon as delivered empty into the cup-bearers
hand, a white parrot, a chess-playing monkey, and some thousands of
splendid books, were delivered up to Sa’dí Chelebí (Sivrí Hisárí) and
Haïder Chelebí, that they might be conveyed to the Sultán. Jem’s Sa’dí
[_i.e._ Sivrí Hisárí], being a learned and acute man, first dyed the
parrot black, and taught him to say, “Verily we belong to God, and
to Him shall we return! Long live the Emperor!” He then returned to
him with the remains of his master, and delivered over his property
to the imperial treasury. But when Báyazíd asked “where is the white
parrot?” the bird immediately repeated the above-mentioned text, and
added: “Sire, Jem-Sháh having entered into the mercy of his Lord, I
have put off the attire of the angel clad in white, and clothed myself
in the black of mourning weeds.”—“How!” said the Sultán, addressing
himself to Sivrí Hisárí, “did they kill my brother Jem?” “By Heaven! O
Emperor!” replied he, “though he indulged in wine, yet he never drank
it but out of that enchanted cup, nor did he ever mingle with the
infidels, but spent all his time in composing poetry; so by God’s will
there was a certain barber named Yán Oghlí (John’s son), who shaved
him with a poisoned razor, which made his face and eyes swell, and
he was suffocated.” Báyazíd ordered the remains of Jem to be buried
at Brúsah, beside his grandfather Murád II. While they were digging
the grave there was such a thunder-clap and tumult in the sepulchral
chapel, that all who were present fled, but not a soul of them was
able to pass its threshold till ten days had passed, when this having
been represented to the Sultán, the corpse of Jem was buried by his
order in his own mausoleum, near to that of his grandfather. Prince Jem
Sháh died in A.H. 900, after having spent eleven years in travelling
through Egypt, Arabia, Syria, Mesopotamia, and in Firengistán, through
Spain and France, and having escaped from his brother’s den, and
drunk of the cup of Jem, he at last was intoxicated by drinking of
the cup of Fate. According to the French account, however, another
person was killed by the poisoned razor, and his corpse was sent to
Rúm (Turkey) instead of the remains of Jem, who in fact became King
of France, and was the forefather of the present sovereign of that
country. On enquiring into this report, and hearing what had happened
at the tomb, _viz._ that Murád would not allow the corpse to be buried
in his mausoleum, he ordered it to be interred elsewhere. After the
taking of Uïvár (Raab) in the year 1073 (A.D. 1662-3), Mohammed Páshá
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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