Adil Giray

Adil Giray, Adil Khan Girai (Crimean Tatar: Adil Geray, عادل كراى‎‎) was khan of the Crimean Khanate from 1666 to 1671. He strongly supported the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and was one of the candidates in the Polish royal election of 1669.[1] In 1671 Giray was removed as khan by Mehmed IV, the Ottoman sultan, when the sultan decided to wage war with the Commonwealth.[2]

Adil Giray
Khan of the Tatar Crimean Khanate
Reign1666–1671
PredecessorMehmed IV Giray
SuccessorSelim I Giray
Born1617
Died1672
DynastyGiray dynasty
ReligionIslam

His grandfather and father

The story goes that some time between 1588 and 1597 [3] a noble Polish girl was captured during a Tatar raid and presented to Fetih Giray. Fetih wanted to marry her but she refused to betray her faith so she was held for ransom. A court servant named Haji Mustafa was sent take the girl to Poland and bring back the ransom. En route the girl gave birth to a son. Fetih indignantly denied responsibility and sent men to kill all three of them for the crime of fornication and insulting his good name. The girl died of childbirth and Haji Mustafa fled with the infant, whom he named Mustafa. After Fetih’s death in 1597 they settled in Crimea near Ak-Mesjid (Simferopol). Mustafa grew up as a simple shepherd and had two sons. In 1623 he was summoned to the capital by Mehmed III Giray. Mehmed recognized him as Fetih’s son, appointed him nureddin and made him take the name of Devlet Giray. His sons were to be called Fetih and Adil Giray in place of their lower class names of Kul-Bolda and Chul-Bolda. Because of this his family was called Choban or shepherd. The following year the Turks invaded Crimea and were defeated. While pursuing the defeated Turks Adil's father Mustafa-Devlet Giray-Choban was killed.

Howorth (1880) differs from Gaivoronsky's account (above) as follows. The girl was called Maria Potoska. He has 'Haji Ahmed' for Haji Mustafa and 'Ahmed Giray' for Devlet Geray. He seems to think (p558) that Adil was another son of 'Choban Giray'. He says that Mustafa was adopted because Mehmed was childless. Purgstall (1856) says that the girl was 'probably Maria Potocka'.

Sources and notes
  • Oleksa Gaivoronsky «Повелители двух материков», Kiev-Bakhchisarai, second edition, 2010, ISBN 978-966-2260-02-1, volume 2, pages 87, 88, 98 (father)
  • Henry Hoyle Howorth, History of the Mongols, 1880, Part 2, pp. 540, 541, 558 (father)
  • Joseph Hammar Purgstall, Geschichte Der Chane Der Krim, 1856, pp. 101–103 (father)
  1. Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi, Evliya Çelebi, Üçdal Neşriyat. VII. Cilt sayfa 617
  2. Büyük Osmanlı Tarihi, Hammer, Üçdal Neşriyat VI. Cilt, sayfa 166
  3. Fetih I Giray became kalga in 1588 and was khan in 1596 and 1597.
Preceded by
Mehmed IV Giray		 Khan of Crimea
1666–1671		 Succeeded by
Selim I Giray
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