Omar Pasha

Omar Latas or Mihajlo Latas, better known as Omar Pasha (Serbian: Omer-paša Latas, Cyrillic: Омер-паша Латас, Ömer Paşa; 1806–1871) was an Ottoman general and governor. He was born in Austrian territory, to Orthodox Christian parents, and was initially an Austrian soldier. When faced with the charges of embezzlement, he fled to Ottoman Bosnia and converted to Islam, and then joined the Ottoman army where he quickly climbed in ranks. Latas crushed several rebellions throughout the Empire, and was a commander in the Crimean War, where he defeated Russia at Sevastopol.

Early life
Omar Pasha was born Mihajlo Latas (Михајло Латас), an Orthodox Christian, an ethnic Serb in Janja Gora, Croatian Military Frontier of Austrian Empire (in modern Plaški, Lika region, Croatia)   Educated and than at he joined a frontier regiment.

His father Petar served in the Austrian Army and in time was appointed lieutenant-governor of the Ogulin district. Michael was an intelligent and lively child, if rather sickly. He developed a passion for the military, and on leaving school in Gospić, he went to a military school in Zadar and was accepted as a cadet in his father's Ogulin Regiment on the frontier. He had beautiful handwriting, and was assigned to clerical duties. There he might have languished, if his father had not upset someone along the corruption line and suffered a conviction for misappropriation.

Michael Latas might have himself been implicated in the charges of embezzlement, and felt that he couldn't stay with the regiment. In in 1823 he fled to the Ottoman Bosnia.

Military career


After escaping to Bosnia and living rough for a time, Michael Latas was offered a position as tutor to the children of a Turkish merchant, on condition that he changed his religion from Orthodoxy to Islam. A necessary condition to fulfill in order to get off the streets, it was a huge cultural step that led naturally to his decision that his future lay with the Ottomans.

The big break came for the newly named Omar when the family moved to Istanbul. By astute networking and doubtless exploiting his curiosity value as an ex-European military man, he was appointed lecturer at the Turkish Military Academy. With this exposure he shone enough to be snapped up as ADC to the Polish Ottoman General Chrzanowski, who was engaged in the re-organization of the Ottoman Army after the defeat of the Janissaries

Now a Major, Omar completed a mapping assignment in Bulgaria and the Danube territories, gaining detailed knowledge of the ground which was to serve him well in the future. Chrzanowski also milked his ideas for re-organizing the Army; in return he smoothed the way for Omar's introduction into Turkish society. He thereby met and married a rich heiress, the start of his meteoric rise in Turkish military circles.

There is no doubt that Omar's marriage had opened all the right doors for him, but equally no doubt that he proved equal to the challenges of high command which resulted. He became writing-master to the Ottoman heir, Abd-ul-Medjid, and on the succession of the latter in 1839 was made a colonel. He was shortly afterwards appointed Military Governor of Constantinople.

In 1840-41 he led a successful expedition to quell a revolt in Syria, and in 1842 was Governor of the Lebanon. He won distinction in suppressing the Albanian Revolt of 1843–44, led by local Muslim aristocrats. There followed the expedition to Kurdistan following the Massacres of Badr Khan (1846),. After the Hungarian Revolution of 1848,Omar Pasha was put in command of the Ottoman forces in Moldavia and Wallachia. His firm and effective handling of a powder keg situation involving potential confrontation with the Russian and Austrian Armies, demonstrated that he possessed considerable diplomatic skills.

There followed his command in Bosnia (1850) where he executed Ali-paša Rizvanbegović of Stolac - who had himself earlier defended Ottoman power during an earlier revolt, but then started to build up an independent power base. Omar Pasha executed, plundered and abolished the respected historical aristocracy of the Bosniaks, in the interest of buttressing Ottoman central power.

This was followed by a command in Montenegro (1852).

His chief services were rendered when the Crimean War broke out. He successfully defended Kalafat in 1853, entered Bucharest in 1854, and defeated 40,000 Russians next year at Eupatoria in the Crimea.

A later achievement was his capture of Cetinje, Montenegro, during the Montenegrin–Ottoman War (1861–62), considered a difficult feat.

A clear and precise military thinker, Omar Pasha took bold decisions and relentlessly followed them through. Although he had a reputation as a strict and ruthless disciplinarian, he was revered and respected by his men. A true professional, while the other allies struggled to come to grips with local campaigning conditions, he had seen it all too often before. Perhaps for that reason the allied troops found his expression cold and uninterested when seated on his horse plodding round their lines.

Activities
Repulsed the Russians at Eupatoria, in Crimea.
 * Tutor in the household of Hussein Pasha, Governor of Widdin.
 * 1834 - Writing master in a military school at Constantinople.
 * Instructor to Abd ul Medjid, heir apparent to the throne.
 * 1842 - Appointed Governor of Lebanon.
 * Successfully repressed insurrections in Albania (1843) and Kurdistan (1846).
 * 1850 executed Ali-paša Rizvanbegović of Stolac, plundered and abolished the respected historical aristocracy of the Bosniaks.
 * 1852 defeated the Montenegrins under Prince Danilo
 * 1853 - Defeated the Russians at Olteniţa.
 * 1854 - Successfully defended Silistria against Russians, gaining possession of Bucharest.
 * 1857-59 - Governor of Baghdad.
 * 1862 - Repressed the insurrection in Montenegro and took possession of Cetinje.
 * 1864 - Made field marshal.
 * 1867 - Fought rebels in Crete.
 * 1869 - Made Minister of war.