Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 13.djvu/732

MOHAMMED. 654 MOHAMMEDAN ART. readiness to fnrjiive an ciiciiiy, and the extreme simplicity of lii> domestic life. He lived, wlien already in full pouer. in simple quarters, mended his own clollies, and freed all his slaves. He was much inclined to melancholy and nervous sensitiveness. His mind contained a strange mix- ture of truth and error, of right and wrong. En- tering the field as the foe of the old superstitions, he yet i lung to superstitious heliefs current among his people. He believed in jinns, omens, charms. and dreams. However much the religion of Islam may, rightly or wrongly, he considered the bane and cause of the decay of Kastern States and na- tions in our day. it nuisl, in the first place, not be forgotten that it is not necessarily islam which has caused the corruption, as indeed its ethics are for the most part of the Ivigher order: and in the second place, that ilolianuncd is not to be made responsible for all the errors of his successors. Take him all iu all, the history of humanity has seen few more earnest and sincere 'prophets,' using the word prophet in the true sense of one irresistibly impelled by an iinier power to ad- monish, and to teacb. and to utter austere and sublime truths, the full purport of which is often unknown to himself. Mohammed is described as of middle height, lean, but broadshonldered, with slightly curling hair about a well-devcdoped head. His eyes, over- hung with thick lashes, were large and coal-black : his nose, large and slightly bent, was well formed. A long beard added to the dignity of his appear- ance. A black mole between his shoulders be- came known among the faithful as the '.seal of prophecy.' BiBLlooKAPHY. Of the lives of Mohammed the best are: In English. Sir illiam Muir (4 vols., London, ISfjl-Gl : 2d ed.. abridged, 1 vol.. ib.. 18941: in German. Niildeke (Hanover, 18G3) : Weil (Stuttgart. 1804) : Sprenger (•2d ed., Ber- lin. ISr.n) : Krehl (l.eiiizig. 1S84): Grimme (Minister. 1802) : in Krencli. Laniairesse and Du- jarric ( I'aris. 18!t8). fonsult also Saint •Hilaire. Mohniiirl ct tr Coran (Paris, 1805) : Wellhausen, Muhammed in Medina (Berlin, 1882) : id.. Hkizzen und Vorarbeitni, iii. and iv. (ib.. 1887-89) : August Miiller. Her Islnm im Mortim- vnd Ahendlnndr. vol. i. (Berlin, 1885) ; .Iuir, Mnhomel and Islam (London, 1887); I Ameer Ali. TIte Life and Tcachinris of Moham- med (London. 1891): and the Vorks mentioned under KoitAN and .M<)1I.mmi;i)AMs.i. S<v also Sinn A. MOHAMMED. The name of four sultans of Turkey. — Miiiiammi;i> 1. was the son of Siiltan Bajazet I., who was defeateil and captured by Tinuir in 141)2 an<l died in captivity in 1403. Mohammed I., after sharing the supreme ])Ower with his biotheis. became sole Sultan in 1413. He reigned until 1421. He consolidated the Em pire, which ba<l snlfered from the inroad of Tinuir.— MoiiAMMKU !i. (c. 1430-81) was Sultan from 1451 to 1481. He was surnamed F.l<lhazl. i.e. conrpieror (of infidels), ami also Hiijiiil:, i.e. the (Iieat. He was born at Adrianople. and succeeded bis father, .miinith II. His first nets were the murder of hi-; brothers and the suppression of a rebellion in Karamania. Having thus secured himsidf on the throne, he lient all his energies in order to effect the cap- ture of f'on-lantinople. This city was now the sole remnant of (he once mighty empire of the Coesars, and after more than a year spent in ]>reparations. .Moliammed commenced the siege on .pril li, 14.'>3, with an army of aliout 70.000 and u llect of 320 essels. The Greeks, aided by gal- lant bands under Gian Giustiniani, a noble Genoese, long maintained an obstinate resistance. On the niorning of ilay 2yth the Turks made a combined attack by land and sea without suc- cess; but the retirement from the ramparts of Giustiniani. who had been severely wounded, caused a panic among bis followers, and the si- multaneous charge of a chosen body,of .Janizaries, with Mohammed himself at their head, proved irresistible. The brave Emjieror, Constantino XI., died in the breach, and the Turks poured in over his corpse to phmder and devastate his cap- ital. Mohammed now transferred the seat of his government to Constantin iple, and sought to gain the good will of the inhabitants oy promis- ing them a free e.vercise of their . eiigion. .fter achieving this great ccmiiuest, he made formidable preparations for the invasion of Hungary. Bel- grade was the first point oi attack; but .lanos Hunyady |i|.v. ) coiii|iellecl him to raise the siege (1450). Soon after this Mohammed became master of the Morea, annexed Servia. and con- quered the Empire of Trebiz<m<l, an otl'shoot of the Byzantine Empire. He then turned his arms against the .Albanians, whose leader. Scanderbeg, long defied the Turkish power. Scanderbeg died in 140,S. and ten years later the subjugation of .ll)ania was eompleteil. In 1470 MohamiiuMl con- quered Xegrojiont from the Venetians. In 1475 he made the Khan of the Crimea tributary, and at the same time deprived the Genoese of Kafl'a. In 1480, however, he was repulsed by the Knights of Saint John from Rhodes. In the same year he captured Otranto. in Italy, the last achievement of his reign. Mohammed was possessed of great abilities; he was brave, enter- prising, and sagacious; he is said to have spoken five languages (luently, and to have been well versed in geography, ancient history, natural sci- ences, and the fine arts. But the brilliancy of his career, and the occasional generosity and I'ven magnanimity which he showed, cannot obliterate the recollection of those acts of cruelty and treachery which have justly branded him as the most ruthless tyrant of the House of Osman. — JIoi!A.i.MKi) 111'. (1500-1003) was Sultan from 1595 to 1003. He succeeded bis father and at once murdered his nineteen brothers. He waged war against .ustria without success. — Moiiam- MEn IV. (KMI-On was Sultan from 1048 to 1087. He came to the throne when only seven years of age, succeeding his father, Ibrahim, who liad been murdered by the .Janizaries. The real rulers were the Kiujirili (q.v.). The reign of Mohammed IV. Avitnessed the collapse of Turkish power in Eurojie. The great onslaught upon the House of .uslria in 1083 resulted in the difea) of Kara Miislai)ha (q.v.) before Vienna. When other disasters followed. Alohammed was de- throned In 10S7. lie died in prison. MOHAMMEDAN ART. The art produced by (lie naliuii-. und in the countries professing the religion of Islam, from the seventh century A.n. to the present time. The most nourishing period was between the ninth and fourteenth centuries, though in ivrtain places, such as Constantinople, Cairo, and India, the golden age lasted later. The homes of this art have been mainly Syria, Persia. Egjpt. North Africa. Spain, Asia Minor, Judia, Sicily, and Constantinople, In a large