Ibrahim, succeeded his brother Suleiman II. in 1691.
His chief merit was to confirm Mustafa Kuprili as grand
vizier. But a few weeks after his accession Turkey sustained
a crushing defeat at Slankamen from the Austrians under
Prince Louis of Baden and was driven from Hungary; during
the four years of his reign disaster followed on disaster,
and in 1695 Ahmed died, worn out by disease and sorrow.
AHMED III. (1637-1736), sultan of Turkey, son of Mahommed
IV., succeeded to the throne in 1703 on the abdication of
his brother Mustafa II. He cultivated good relations with
England, in view doubtless of Russia's menacing attitude.
He afforded a refuge in Turkey to Charles XII. of Sweden,
after his defeat at Poltava (1709). Forced against his
will into war with Russia, he came nearer than any Turkish
sovereign before or since to breaking the power of his northern
rival, whom his Grand Vizier Baltaji Mahommed Pasha succeeded
in completely surrounding near the Pruth (1711). In the
treaty which Russia was compelled to sign Turkey obtained
the restitution of Azov, the destruction of the forts built
by Russia and the undertaking that the tsar should abstain
from future interference in the affairs of the Poles or the
Cossacks. Discontent at the leniency of these terms was
so strong at Constantinople that it nearly brought on a
renewal of the war. In 1715 the Morea was taken from the
Venetians. This led to hostilities with Austria, in which
Turkey was unsuccessful, and Belgrade fell into the hands
of Austria (1717). Through the mediation of England and
Holland the peace of Passarowitz was concluded (1718), by
which Turkey retained her conquests from the Venetians, but
lost Hungary. A war with Persia terminated in disaster,
leading to a revolt of the janissaries, who deposed Ahmed
in September 1730. He died in captivity some years later.
AHMEDABAD, or AHMADABAD, a city and district of British
India in the northern division of Bombay. The city was once
the handsomest and most flourishing in western India, and it
still ranks next to Agra and Delhi for the beauty and extent
of its architectural remains. It was founded by Ahmad Shah
in A.D. 1411 on the site of several Hindu towns, which had
preceded it, and was embellished by him with fine buildings of
marble, brought from a distance. The Portuguese traveller
Barbosa, who visited Gujarat in A.D. 1511 and 1514, described
Ahmedabad as ``very rich and well embellished with good streets
and squares supplied with houses of stone and cement.'' In Sir
Thomas Roe's time, A.D. 1615, ``it was a goodly city as large
as London.'' During the course of its history it has passed
through two periods of greatness, two of decay and one of
revival. From 1411 to 1511 it grew in size and wealth; from 1512
to 1572 it declined with the decay of the dynasty of Gujarat;
from 1572 to 1709 it renewed its greatness under the Mogul
emperors; from 1709 to 1809 it dwindled with their decline; and
from 1818 onwards it has again increased under British rule.
The consequence of all these changes of dynasty was that
Ahmedabad became the meeting-place of Hindu, Mahommedan and Jain
architecture. Ahmad Shah pulled down Hindu temples in order
to build his mosques with the material. The Jama Masjid
itself, which he built in A.D. 1424, with its three hundred
pillars fantastically carved, is a Hindu temple converted
into a mosque (see INDIAN ARCHITECTURE, Plate III., fig.
15). One of the finest buildings is the modern Jain temple of
Hathi Singh outside the Delhi gate, which was built only in
1848, and is a standing monument to the endurance of Jain
architectural art The external porch, between two circular
towers, is of great magnificence, most elaborately ornamented,
and leads to an outer court, with sixteen cells on either
side. In the centre of this court is a domed porch of the
usual form with twenty pillars. The court leads to an inner
porch of twenty-two pillars, two stories in height. This
inner porch conducts to a triple sanctuary. James Fergusson
wrote of this temple that ``each part increases in dignity
to the sanctuary; and whether looked at from its courts or
from outside, it possesses variety without confusion, and an
appropriateness of every part to the purpose for which it was
intended.'' But perhaps the most unique sight in Ahmedabad
is the two windows in Sidi Said's mosque of filigree marble
work. The design is an imitation of twining and interlaced
branches, a marvel of delicacy and grace, and finer
than anything of the kind to be found in Agra or Delhi.
The modern city of Ahmedabad is situated on the left bank
of the river Sabarmati, and is still surrounded by walls
enclosing an area of about 2 sq. m. Its population in 1901 was
185,889. It has a station on the Bombay and Baroda railway,
309 m. from Bombay, whence branch lines diverge into Kathiawar
and Mahi Kantha, and is a great centre for both trade and
manufacture. Its native bankers, shopkeepers and workers are all
strongly organized in gilds. It has cotton mills for spinning
and weaving, besides many handlooms, and factories for ginning
and pressing cotton. Other industries include the manufacture
of gold and silver thread, silk brocades, pottery, paper and
shoes. The prosperity of Ahmedabad, says a native proverb,
hangs on three threads--silk, gold and cotton; and though
its manufactures are on a smaller scale than formerly, they
are still moderately flourishing. The military cantonment,
3 m. north of the native town, is the headquarters of the
northern division of the Bombay command, with an arsenal.
The DISTRICT OF AHMEDABAD lies at the head of the Gulf of
Cambay, between Baroda and Kathiawar. Area 3816 sq. m. The
river Sabarmati and its tributaries, flowing from north-east
to south-west into the Gulf of Cambay, are the principal
streams that water the district. The north-eastern portion is
slightly elevated, and dotted with low hills, which gradually
sink into a vast plain, subject to inundation on its western
extremity. With the exception of this latter portion, the
soil is very fertile, and some parts of the district are
beautifully wooded. The population in 1901 was 795,967,
showing a decrease of 14% in the decade, due to the effects of
famine. The principal crops are millets, cotton, wheat and
pulse. The district is traversed by the Bombay and Baroda
railway, and has two seaports, Dholera and Gogo, the former of
which has given its name to a mark of raw cotton in the Liverpool
market. It suffered severely in the famine of 1899-1900.
AHMEDNAGAR, or AHMADNAGAR, a city and district of British
India in the Central division of Bombay on the left bank of
the river Sina. The town is of considerable antiquity, having
been founded in 1494 by Ahmad Nizam Shah, on the site of a
more ancient city, Bhingar. This Ahmad established a new
monarchy, which lasted till its overthrow by Shah Jahan in
1636. In 1759 the Peshwa obtained possession of the
place by bribing the Mahommedan commander, and in 1797 it
was ceded by the Peshwa to the Mahratta chief Daulat Rao
Sindhia. During the war with the Mahrattas in 1803 Ahmednagar
was invested by a British force under General Wellesley and
captured. It was afterwards restored to the Mahrattas,
but again came into the possession of the British in 1817,
according to the terms of the treaty of Poona. The town has
rapidly advanced in prosperity under British rule. Several
mosques and tombs have been converted to the use of British
administration. The old industries of carpet-weaving and
paper-making have died out; but there is a large trade in
cotton and silk goods, and in copper and brass pots, and there
are factories for ginning and pressing cotton. Ahmednagar
is a station on the loop line of the Great Indian Peninsula
railway, 218 m. from Bombay, and a military cantonment,
being the headquarters of a brigade in the 6th division of
the western army corps. The population in 1901 was 43,032.
The DISTRICT OF AHMEDNACAR is a comparatively barren tract
with a small rainfall. The area is 6586 sq. m. The population
in 1901 was 837,695, showing a decrease of 6% in the decade,
due to the results of famine. The bulk of the population
consists of Mahrattas and Kunbis, the latter being the
agriculturists. On the north the district is watered by the
Godavari and its tributaries the Prawara and the Mula; on the
north-east by the Dor, another tributary of the Godavari; on
the east by the Sephani, which flows through the valley below
the Balaghat range; and in the extreme south by the Bhima and
its tributary the Gor. The Sina river, another tributary of the
Bhima, flows through the Nagar and Karjat talukas. The principal
crops are millet, pulse, oil-seeds and wheat. The district
suffered from drought in 1896-1897, and again in 1899-1900.
AHMED TEWFIK, PASHA (1845- ), Turkish diplomatist,
was the son of Ismail Hakki Pasha. He was at first in the
army, but left the service in 1862; four years later he
entered the diplomatic service, being employed at various
European capitals. He became minister at Athens in
1883 and ambassador in Berlin in 1884. He was appointed
minister for foreign affairs (Kharijie Naziri) in 1896.
AHMED VEFIK, PASHA (1819-1891), Turkish statesman and
man of letters, was born in Stambul in 1819. He was the
son of Rouheddin Effendi, at one time charge d'affaires in
Paris, an accomplished French scholar, who was, therefore,
attached, in the capacity of secretary-interpreter, to Reshid
Pasha's diplomatic mission to Paris in 1834. Reshid took Ahmed
with him and placed him at school, where he remained about
five years and completed his studies. He then returned to
Constantinople, and was appointed to a post in the bureau
de traduction of the ministry for foreign affairs. While
thus employed he devoted his leisure to the translation
of Moliere's plays into Turkish and to the compilation of
educational books--dictionaries, historical and geographical
manuals, &c.--for use in Turkish schools, with the object of
promoting cultivation of the French language among the rising
generation. In 1847 he brought out the first edition of
the Salnameh, the official annual of the Ottoman empire.
Two years later he was appointed imperial commissioner in
the Danubian principalities, and held that office till early
in 1851 when he was sent to Persia as ambassador--a post
which suited his temperament, and in which he rendered good
service to his goverment for more than four years. Recalled
in 1855, he was sent on a mission to inspect the eastern
frontiers, and on his return was appointed member of the
Grand Council of Justice, and was entrusted with the revision
of the penal code and the code of procedure. This work
occupied him until the beginning of 1860, when he was sent
as ambassador to Paris, for the special purpose of averting
the much-dreaded intervention of France in the affairs of
Syria. But Ahmed Vefik's abrupt frankness, irascibility
and abhorrence of compromise unfitted him for European
diplomacy. He offended the French government; his mission
failed, and he was recalled in January, 1861. None the less
his integrity of purpose was fully understood and appreciated
in Paris. On his return he was appointed minister of the
evkaj, but he only retained his seat in the cabinet for
a few months. He was then for a brief period president
of the Board of Audit, and subsequently inspector of the
Anatolian provinces, where he was engaged for more than three
years. His next appointment was that of director-general of
customs, whence he was removed to the office of musteshar
