Has Yunus Bey Tomb

Has Yunus Bey was appointed head of the Ottoman navy in 1455, just two years after Fatih's conquest of Istanbul. Although we do not have clear information about his origin, the opinions that Has Yunus Bey was a Catalan (Spanish) who converted to the Ottoman Empire need to be documented. One of the first duties of Has Yunus Bey, who became the head of the navy, was to reinforce the security of Istanbul, which was just recently conquered, by making the Ottoman domination felt in Saros and the North Aegean with the help of the navy, and to help the communities left behind from Byzantium via the ancient Via Egnetia. It was to prevent him from re-establishing a bond with Istanbul. The conquest of Ainos (Enez), an important trade and port city at the point where the Meriç River meets the sea, would be an important gain on this path. However, Has Yunus Bey will experience a series of misfortunes as soon as he takes office. During his first expedition to the Aegean from Gallipoli, he was caught in a severe storm and lost seven of the ships in his navy, and he could barely enter Chios with his flagship. The remaining twelve ships of the navy took refuge in Lesbos, thus making an unsuccessful start to the command. In order to overcome this failure, he captured Genoese merchants in Aegean ports and obtained booty, and on his return, he presented these booty to Fatih Sultan Mehmet Khan and hoped for forgiveness. Has Yûnus Bey, who only gained time with this chain of events, then participated in the conquest of Ainos (Enez). Ainos, which remained under Byzantine rule for many years, came under Genoese influence through the marriage of Maria Palaiologina, the sister of Emperor Ioannes Palaiologos V, with the Genoese Francesco Gattelusio, exactly a century before the conquest. Emperor Ioannes V Palaiologos gave Ainos as his bridal dowry along with the island of Lesbos (1355). After this moment, the region continued to live under a so-called Byzantine rule under the Genoese influence by the Gattelusio dynasty. In the winter of 1455, the navy under the command of Has Yunus Bey participated in the siege of Fatih's land troops from the sea. Dorino Gattelusio, one of the later generations of the dynasty mentioned before the conquest, was the administrator of the region. The people of Ainos, who were away from the administration after secretly fleeing to Samothrace with the siege, handed over the castle to the Ottomans in January 1456 and opened the door to conquest. Fatih Sultan Mehmet stayed in the castle for three days after the conquest and had the biggest church of the region inside the castle converted into a mosque. He handed over the administration to Murat Bey and returned to Edirne. The history of Âşıkpaşazâde and Neşri mentions that Has Yunus Bey, meanwhile, tended to conquer the islands of Thasos and Lemnos. After the conquest of Enez (Ainos), Fatih Sultan Mehmet Khan orders the Aegean islands to be cleared of Dorino's men and made safe and Dorino captured. The fate of Has Yunus Bey will once again drag him towards the inevitable end with the harsh storms of the Aegean. Yunus Bey, who went to the front of Imbros with a galley, was caught in a storm and had to take shelter in the port of Kefalo. By calling Kritobulus of Imbros, one of the Byzantine historians of the period, who would also write the biography of Fatih, he would choose to put an end to the domination of those who ruled on behalf of Dorino, by giving the island to his administration. However, in the meantime, Dorino will go to Edirne and apologize to Fatih Sultan Mehmet in person and will take over the administration again. This event will be a breaking point. Yunus Bey will convey to the sultan that Dorino cannot be trusted, he will give up his promise to Fatih Dorino and drive him into Macedonia by giving fiefs. Dorino, who understands what will happen to him, will have the Ottoman guards with him killed and escape to the Aegean islands and disappear into secret. There is no information about Yunus Bey after these events. The strong opinion is that his short naval command, which lasted from the summer of 1455 to the end of the winter of 1456, ended in impeachment, possibly by execution. While one of the reasons for this was shown as Fatih's anger against failures, another reason was that Has Yunus Bey, who had nominated himself to be the ruler of the island, might have made Fatih do this, which was influenced by Kritobulus of Imroz, with his sedition and intrigues. Another navy commander named Hadım İsmâil Bey was brought in his place. Located in the south of Enez, at the mouth of one of the lagoon lakes of Meriç, the structure known today as Has Yunus Bey Tomb is actually the Hagios Evplos Chapel, which belongs to before the conquest. It is believed that Yunus Bey, who had great benefits in the conquest of Enez, is buried here. Although it is highly probable that Has Yunus Bey did not die with the rank of martyrdom, he was probably executed by the sultan, it can be thought that this chapel was allocated as a tomb for Yunus Bey, who was respected by the public. The fact that this cemetery is marked with the inscription "Yunusluk" on the edge of Enez Harbor on the small portulan maps in Pîrî Reis's book Kitâb-ı Bahriyye reminds us once again of the importance given to this cemetery.