Politician and poet (b. 1534,
Crimea - d. 1607, Akmescit). He was the son of Devlet Giray who was one of
Crimean Khans. He took part in the Turkish-Iranian War (1578-81) in the
regiment of Özdemiroğlı Osman Paşa as the Commander of the Crimean Army. On the
orders of the Sultan, he launched campaigns in Russia, Hungary and Austria. He
played a major role in crushing the Celali Anatolian Rebellions. He died from
the plague while he was on campaign to Iran.
He brought different themes to Divan* Poetry with his poems that he wrote under the pen name Gazayi. His Divan*, where he collected his odes and wrote about the themes of bravery and fearlessness, is quite well known. Besides Turkish, he also wrote poems in Arabian and Persian. He wrote Gül ve Bülbül (The Rose and the Nightingale) in the Çağatay dialect. Gazi Giray Han, who was well educated in the fields of mathematics and biology, was also known for his calligraphy and musical compositions and was known as “Tatar” in the musical area of the time.
REFERENCE: Halim Giray / Gülbün-i Hânân (1908), Bursalı Mehmet Tahir / Kırım Müellifleri (1916), Ruşen Ferid Kam / Gazi Girayhan ve Solakzade (Türk Mûsikisi Dergisi, sayı: 31, 1950), İsmail Hikmet Ertaylan / Gâzi Giray Han Hayatı ve Eserleri (1958), Yılmaz Öztuna / Büyük Türk Mûsikisi Ansiklopedisi (c. 1, 1990, s. 300-301), Halil İnalcık - Mustafa Uzun / TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi (c. 13, s. 451-453, 1996), İhsan Işık / Resimli ve Metin Örnekli Türkiye Edebiyatçılar ve Kültür Adamları Ansiklopedisi (2006, gen. 2. bas. 2007) - Ünlü Bilim Adamları (Türkiye Ünlüleri Ansiklopedisi, C. 2, 2013) - Encyclopedia of Turkey’s Famous People (2013).
