Sultan Mehmed V ” Rashad”

Sultan Mehmed V “Sultan Rashad“, was the ruler of the Ottoman Empire and the Caliphate during the First World War, where he assumed power after the Young Turks Association coup against Sultan Abdul Hamid II.

Sultan Rashad assumed power for only 8 years, and the years of his rule were marked by many important events, most notably the defeat of the Ottoman empire in the First World War and the loss of many lands.

The lineage and family of the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed V

Sultan Mehmed V belongs to the Ottoman family, as his full name is:

Sultan Muhammad the Fifth Rashad son of Abdul Majeed I son of Mahmoud II Abd al-Hamid I son of Ahmed III son of Muhammad IV son of Ibrahim I son of Ahmed I son of Muhammad III son of Murad III son of Salim II son of Suleiman the Magnificent son of Selim I son of Bayezit II son of Mehmed the Conqueror (Fatih) son of Murad II son of Mehmed Çelebi son of Bayezit I son of Murad I son of Orhan Ghazi son of Ottoman son of Ertugrul.

Sultan Muhammad V married four marriages and they are:

• Mrs. Camoras, from which he had a son, Prince Muhammad Ziauddin.
• Mrs. Mehranghiz, from whom he has fathered Prince Omar Helmy and Raifa Sultan.
• Mrs. Dorodan, from whom Prince Mahmoud Najmuddin was born.
  Mrs. Del Fripp.

The life of Sultan Muhammad Rashad before the sultanate

Sultan Mehmed V was born in Istanbul and lived in isolation for most of his life as he spent nine years in solitary confinement while assuming the position of Crown Prince, during this time he studied poetry in the ancient Persian style.

Educated in traditional Islamic subjects and Persian literature, he showed a keen interest in Ottoman and Islamic history.

After the declaration of the second constitutional monarchy of the Ottoman Empire in 1908, he began to participate in the ceremonies in his capacity as Crown Prince, using the honorary name “His Highness, Crown Prince Sultan Rashad Effendi” according to the protocol.

The reign of Sultan Muhammad V

Sultan Rashad ceded all his powers to the Union and Progress Committee according to the constitutional monarchy, as he began his reign on April 27, 1909, as he was largely a figurehead without real political power.

Sultan Rashad took power at the age of 64, he was the oldest Sultan to assume the Ottoman throne.

After assuming power, and in the speech he gave after the religious ceremonies, the Sultan said:

I am the first Sultan of Freedom and I am proud of that

After that he was called “Sultan of Meşrutiyet”

The change of the residence palace and the Friday processions were at the beginning of his first decisions as a Sultan, as he left Yildiz Palace, which was the residence of Sultan Abdul Hamid II, to settle in Dolmabahce Palace. 

On the recommendation of the Union and Progress Committee, the Sultan went on a friendly tour in Thrace, Albania and European cities in the Ottoman Empire in order to better communicate with the local population.

Sultan Mehmed V of the Ottoman opposed the entry of the Ottoman Empire into the First World War, along with Germany, Austria, and Hungary, but the state entered the war in any case as the Sultan did not possess real powers.

The most important work of Sultan Rashad is declaring jihad against the Allied forces in World War I, and calling on all Muslims to confront the English and French occupation.

Sultan Mehmed V hosted Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, his ally in World War I, in Istanbul on October 15, 1917.

The Ottoman Empire lost most of its lands during the era of Sultan Mehmet Rashad, and six months after his death, the Allied forces entered Istanbul.

The death of Sultan Mehmed Rashad

Sultan Mehmed V died in Yildiz Palace on July 3, 1918 at the age of 73 from heart failure, just four months before the end of the First World War.

His tomb is located in the Eyup district of Istanbul

After hist death, Sultan Mehmed VI “Sultan Vahid al-Din” who was the last to collect the title of Sultan and Caliph in the Ottoman Empire, took over the rule of the Sultanate.