Berzek Mehmet Zeki Pasha

Representative of the princely family of Berzeki . Born in the family of the famous Ubykh military leader, Haji Ismail Dogomuko Berzek, in historical Ubykh. During the Circassian Muhajirism , he moved to the Ottoman Empire. In 1864 he graduated from a military school in Istanbul .

He served in the Ottoman army and distinguished himself during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 . For his successes in military service, he was awarded the title of Marshal. ^[one]

He is also known for the fact that he introduced the system of the Cossack army of Russia in the Ottoman army. So, in Eastern Anatolia, he created the so-called cavalry regiments " Hamidiye ", mostly armed and equipped in Circassian style. The regiments themselves mainly consisted of Kurds, Karapakhs and Circassians. In accordance with the Sultan’s decree, in the spring of 1891, Mehmet Zeki Pasha sent the Peaceful (Governor-General) Mahmud Pasha to form Kurdish tribes from among the Kurdish tribes living in Van, Malazgirt and Khynys. The Ottoman High Command, with the help of the Kurdish tribal leaders Ibrahim Pasha and Kerim Pasha, immediately began to create tribal regiments. ^[2] Until the end of the reign of Abdul Hamid II, he was one of the most influential military in the east of the Ottoman state. For good service, Abdul Hamid gives Zeki Pasha land and a mansion in Istanbul. It is noteworthy that the mansion is preserved in our time. ^[3]