Farrukh Pasha
Farrukh Pasha ibn Abdullah, also known as Farrukh Bey, was an Ottoman official who governed Nablus and Jerusalem in the early 1600s and founded the Farrukh dynasty. He was born in Circassia as a slave and became a mamluk of Bahram Pasha, who helped him rise in power. In 1596, Bahram helped him become Jerusalem’s subashi (public order officer). He later became sanjak-bey of Jerusalem in 1603 and, in 1609, sanjak-bey of Nablus. Farrukh Pasha made Nablus the base for his family and served as governor of Jerusalem, Nablus, or both from 1609 until his death around 1620–1621. He also held the prestigious post of amir al-hajj, commanding the Hajj caravan. He built the large Wikala al-Farrukhiyya (Khan al-Farrukhiya) caravanserai in Nablus for Hajj pilgrims; Evliya Çelebi described it as huge, like a castle with about 150 rooms. Farrukh Pasha died while leading the Hajj caravan toward Mecca. His son Muhammad ibn Farrukh succeeded him as sanjak-bey of Jerusalem and Nablus and as amir al-hajj until 1638. The Farrukh dynasty continued to be an important ruling family in Palestine through much of the 17th century, with influence in Jerusalem, Nablus, and Damascus into the 18th century, although no later sanjak-bey appointments were made after Assaf Pasha’s death in 1670.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 00:36 (CET).