Historedia
EuropeEvent

Osman II strangled by Janissaries

When
1622
Where
Yedikule Fortress, Istanbul
Episodes
1

In May 1622, Ottoman Sultan Osman II was strangled by Janissaries at Yedikule Fortress after they revolted against his attempts to centralize power and reduce their privileges following the defeat at Khotyn.

Episodes

  1. 20 May 1622 · Yedikule Fortress, IstanbulJanissary Uprising and Regicide

    Janissaries revolted, killed the chief eunuch, imprisoned Osman II in Yedikule Fortress, and strangled him on 20 May 1622.

Background and detail

Background. Osman II ascended the throne in 1618 and sought to assert authority after the humiliating defeat at Khotyn in 1621. He blamed the Janissaries for the loss and attempted to recentralize power by reducing their payments and closing their coffee shops, which served as centers for political conspiracy.

The Regicide. On 20 May 1622, Janissaries launched a palace uprising, killing the chief harem eunuch Suleiman Agha. They imprisoned Osman II in Yedikule Fortress in Istanbul, where he was strangled to death. This marked the first instance in Ottoman history of a sultan being executed by the Janissaries.

People involved

Sources

  1. Osman II Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-06
  2. Janissary Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-15

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.