death he is said to have written a letter admitting the justice of his sentence.
His Aussgetrückte Emplössung des falschen Glaubens has been edited by R. Jordan (Mühlhausen, 1901), and a life of Münzer, Die Histori von Thome Müntzer des Anfengers der döringischen Uffrur, has been attributed to Philip Melanchthon (Hagenau, 1525). See G. T. Strobel, Leben, Schriften und Lehren Thomä Müntzers (Nuremberg, 1795); J. K. Seidemann, Thomas Münzer (Leipzig, 1842); O. Merx, Thomas Münzer und Heinrich Pfeiffer (Göttingen, 1889); G. Wolfrau, Thomas Münzer in Allstedt (Jena, 1852).
MUNZINGER, WERNER (1832–1875), Swiss linguist and traveller, was born at Olten in Switzerland, on the 21st of April 1832. After studying natural science, Oriental languages and history, at Bern, Munich and Paris, he went to Egypt in 1852 and spent a year in Cairo perfecting himself in Arabic. Entering a French mercantile house, he went as leader of a trading expedition to various parts of the Red Sea, fixing his quarters at Massawa, where he acted as French consul. In 1855 he removed to Keren, the chief town of the Bogos, in the north of Abyssinia, which country he explored during the next six years. In 1861 he joined the expedition under T. von Heuglin to Central Africa, but separated from him in November in northern Abyssinia, proceeding along the Gash and Atbara to Khartum. Thence, having meantime succeeded Heuglin as leader of the expedition, he travelled in 1862 to Kordofān, failing, however, in his attempt to reach Darfur and Wadai. After a short stay in Europe in 1863, Munzinger returned to the north and north-east borderlands of Abyssinia, and in 1865, the year of the annexation of Massawa by Egypt, was appointed British consul at that town. He rendered valuable aid to the Abyssinian expedition of 1867–68, among other things exploring the almost unknown Afar country. In acknowledgment of his services he received the C.B. In 1868 he was appointed French consul at Massawa, and in 1871 was named by the khedive Ismail governor of that town with the title of bey. In 1870, with Captain S. B. Miles, Munzinger visited southern Arabia. As governor of Massawa he annexed to Egypt the Bogos and Hamasen provinces of northern Abyssinia, and in 1872 was made pasha and governor-general of the eastern Sudan. It is believed that it was on his advice that Ismail sanctioned the Abyssinian enterprise, but on the war assuming larger proportions in 1875 the command of the Egyptian troops in northern Abyssinia was taken from Munzinger, who was selected to command a small expedition intended to open up communication with Menelek, king of Shoa, then at enmity with the negus Johannes (King John) and a potential ally of Egypt. Leaving Tajura Bay on the 27th of October 1875 Munzinger started for Ankober with a force of 350 men, being accompanied by an envoy from Menelek. The desert country to be traversed was in the hands of hostile tribes, and on reaching Lake Aussa the expedition was attacked during the night by Gallas—Munzinger, with his wife and nearly all his companions, being killed.
Munzinger’s contributions to the knowledge of the country, people and languages of north-eastern Africa are of solid value. See Proc. R.G.S., vol. xiii.; Journ. R.G.S., vols. xxxix., xli. and xlvi. (obituary notice); Petermanns Mitteilungen for 1858, 1867, 1872, et seq.; Dietschi and Weber, Werner Munzinger, ein Lebensbild (1875); J. v. Keller-Zschokke, Werner Munzinger Pasha (1890). Munzinger published the following works: Über die Sitten und das Recht der Bogos (1859); Ostafrikanische Studien (1864; 2nd ed., 1883; his most valuable book); Die deutsche Expedition in Ostafrika (1865); Vocabulaire de la langue de Tigré (1865), besides papers in the geographical serials referred to, and a memoir on the northern borders of Abyssinia in the Zeitschrift für allgemeine Erdkunde, new series, vol. iii.
MURAD, or Amurath, the name of five Ottoman sultans.
Murad I., surnamed Khudavendighiar (1319–1389), was the son of Orkhan and the Greek princess Nilofer, and succeeded his father in 1359. He was the first Turkish monarch to obtain a definite footing in Europe, and his main object throughout his career was to extend the European dominions of Turkey. The revolts of the prince of Caramania interfered with the realization of this plan, and trouble was caused from this quarter more than once during his reign until the decisive battle of Konia (1387), when the power of the prince of Caramania was broken. The state of Europe facilitated Murad’s projects: civil war and anarchy prevailed in most of the countries of Central Europe, where the feudal system was at its last gasp, and the small Balkan states were divided by mutual jealousies. The capture of Adrianople, followed by other conquests, brought about a coalition under the king of Hungary against Murad, but his able lieutenant Lalashahin, the first beylerbey of Rumélia, defeated the allies at the battle of the Maritsa in 1363. In 1366 the king of Servia was defeated at Samakov and forced to pay tribute. Kustendil, Philippopolis and Nish fell into the hands of the Turks; a renewal of the war in 1381 led to the capture of Sofia two years later. Europe was now aroused; Lazar, king of Servia, formed an alliance with the Albanians, the Hungarians and the Moldavians against the Turks. Murad hastened back to Europe and met his enemies on the field of Kossovo (1389). Victory finally inclined to the side of the Turks. When the rout of the Christians was complete, a Servian named Milosh Kabilovich penetrated to Murad’s tent on pretence of communicating an important secret to the sultan, and stabbed the conqueror. Murad was of independent character and remarkable intelligence. He was fond of pleasure and luxury, cruel and cunning. Long relegated to the command of a distant province in Asia, while his brother Suleiman occupied an enviable post in Europe, he became revengeful; thus he exercised great cruelty in the repression of the rebellion of his son Prince Sauji, the first instance of a sultan’s son taking arms against his father. Murad transferred the Ottoman capital from Brusa to Adrianople, where he built a palace and added many embellishments to the town. The development of the feudal system of timars and ziamets and its extension to Europe was largely his work.
Murad II. (1403–1451) succeeded his father Mahommed I. in 1421. The attempt of his uncle Prince Mustafa to usurp the throne, supported as it was by the Greeks, gave trouble at the outset of his reign, and led to the unsuccessful siege of Constantinople in 1422. Murad maintained a long struggle against the Bosnians and Hungarians, in the course of which Turkey sustained many severe reverses through the valour of Janos Hunyadi. Accordingly in 1444 he concluded a treaty at Szegedin for ten years, by which he renounced all claim to Servia and recognized George Brancovich as its king. Shortly after this, being deeply affected by the death of his eldest son Prince Ala-ud-din, he abdicated in favour of Mahommed, his second son, then fourteen years of age: But the treacherous attack, in violation of treaty, by the Christian powers, imposing too hard a task on the inexperienced young sovereign, Murad returned from his retirement at Magnesia, crushed his faithless enemies at the battle of Varna (November 10, 1444), and again withdrew to Magnesia. A revolt of the janissaries induced him to return to power, and he spent the remaining six years of his life in warfare in Europe, defeating Hunyadi at Kossovo (October 17–19, 1448). He died at Adrianople in 1451, and was buried at Brusa. By some considered as a fanatical devotee, and by others as given up to mysticism, he is generally described as kind and gentle in disposition, and devoted to the interests of his country.
Murad III. (1546–1595), was the eldest son of Selim II., and succeeded his father in 1574. His accession marks the definite beginning of the decline of the Ottoman power, which had only been maintained under Selim II. by the genius of the all-powerful grand vizier Mahommed Sokolli. For, though Sokolli remained in office until his assassination in October 1578, his authority was undermined by the harem influences, which with Murad III. were supreme. Of these the most powerful was that of the sultan’s chief wife, named Safié (the pure), a beautiful Venetian of the noble family of Baffo, whose father had been governor of Corfu, and who had been captured as a child by Turkish corsairs and sold into the harem. This lady, in spite of the sultan’s sensuality and of the efforts, temporarily successful, to supplant her in his favour, retained her ascendancy over him to the last. Murad had none of the qualities of a ruler. He was good-natured, though cruel enough on occasion: his accession had been marked by the murder, according to the
