Khalil Bey
Encyclopedia
Khalil Sherif Pasha (Turkish transliteration: Halil Şerif Paşa) was an Ottoman diplomat and art collector, whose collection was described by Théophile Gautier
as "the first ever to be formed by a child of Islam".
For most of his life Khalil was known by the name Khalil Bey. In the Turkish language and social structure the word "Bey" is not a surname, but rather a courtesy title recognized and sanctioned by the Ottoman government. The title "Bey" is used by a person to indicate that he is the son of a Pasha (Lord). Khalil used the title "Bey" as part of his name because his father Muhammad Sherif had attained the rank of Pasha. On August 10, 1871 Khalil Bey was raised to the rank of Mushir (Field Marshal) by Sultan Abdülaziz
I (reigned 1861-1876). The rank of "Mushir" entitled Khalil to use his father's name "Sherif," as well as the honorific title "Pasha," as parts of his name.
(Muhammad Ali Pasha), making a huge fortune in the process. Khalil's father sent Khalil, along with his brothers Ali Bey (Ali Pasha Sherif
) (1834-1897) and Osman, to be educated at the École Militaire Égyptienne, an Egyptian military school which Muhammad Ali Pasha had set up in Paris in 1844. Khalil took up his first official post in 1855 as Commissioner to the International Exhibition
in Paris that year. He entered the Ottoman diplomatic service in 1856, serving as one of the plenipotentiaries negotiating the end to the Crimean War
then as ambassador to Athens
and Saint Petersburg
, on which posts he began collecting. He grew to dislike Saint Petersburg's cold and so retired in a private capacity to Paris
in the mid 1860s, renting expensive rooms from the English collector Lord Hertford
on Rue Taitbout and becoming a noted gambler, art collector and patron.
He was introduced to Gustave Courbet
by Sainte-Beuve
, and commissioned Les Dormeuses (The Sleepers) and L'Origine du monde
from him. He also acquired Le Bain turc
(The Turkish Bath) from Ingres
and other works by Eugène Delacroix
, Troyon
, Daubigny
, Meissonier
, Corot
, Rousseau
and Gerome
. In January 1868 he sold off his collection just before leaving to become Ottoman ambassador to Vienna, thus getting out of Paris only 2 years before the Franco-Prussian War
. After that posting he moved to Constantinople and married Princess Nazli Fazl
, the daughter of one of the prominent reformers of the time, Mustafa Fazl Pasha. In 1877 he returned to Paris as Ottoman ambassador for a few months.
Théophile Gautier
Pierre Jules Théophile Gautier was a French poet, dramatist, novelist, journalist, art critic and literary critic....
as "the first ever to be formed by a child of Islam".
For most of his life Khalil was known by the name Khalil Bey. In the Turkish language and social structure the word "Bey" is not a surname, but rather a courtesy title recognized and sanctioned by the Ottoman government. The title "Bey" is used by a person to indicate that he is the son of a Pasha (Lord). Khalil used the title "Bey" as part of his name because his father Muhammad Sherif had attained the rank of Pasha. On August 10, 1871 Khalil Bey was raised to the rank of Mushir (Field Marshal) by Sultan Abdülaziz
Abdülâziz
Abdülaziz I or Abd Al-Aziz, His Imperial Majesty was the 32nd Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and reigned between 25 June 1861 and 30 May 1876...
I (reigned 1861-1876). The rank of "Mushir" entitled Khalil to use his father's name "Sherif," as well as the honorific title "Pasha," as parts of his name.
Life
Khalil was born in Syout, Upper Egypt, after his father Muhammad Sherif Pasha (died Feb. 13, 1865) had emigrated to Egypt from Kavala, Macedonia (in what is now northern Greece) to serve as a captain in the army of Muhammad Ali of EgyptMuhammad Ali of Egypt
Muhammad Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha was a commander in the Ottoman army, who became Wāli, and self-declared Khedive of Egypt and Sudan...
(Muhammad Ali Pasha), making a huge fortune in the process. Khalil's father sent Khalil, along with his brothers Ali Bey (Ali Pasha Sherif
Ali Pasha Sherif
Ali Pasha Sherif was an Egyptian government official and a renowned breeder of Arabian horses during the late 19th century.-Family Background:...
) (1834-1897) and Osman, to be educated at the École Militaire Égyptienne, an Egyptian military school which Muhammad Ali Pasha had set up in Paris in 1844. Khalil took up his first official post in 1855 as Commissioner to the International Exhibition
Exposition Universelle (1855)
The Exposition Universelle of 1855 was an International Exhibition held on the Champs-Elysées in Paris from May 15 to November 15, 1855. Its full official title was the Exposition Universelle des produits de l'Agriculture, de l'Industrie et des Beaux-Arts de Paris 1855.The exposition was a major...
in Paris that year. He entered the Ottoman diplomatic service in 1856, serving as one of the plenipotentiaries negotiating the end to the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
then as ambassador to Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
and Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, on which posts he began collecting. He grew to dislike Saint Petersburg's cold and so retired in a private capacity to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in the mid 1860s, renting expensive rooms from the English collector Lord Hertford
Richard Seymour-Conway, 4th Marquess of Hertford
Captain Richard Seymour-Conway, 4th Marquess of Hertford KG was the son of Francis Seymour-Conway, 3rd Marquess of Hertford....
on Rue Taitbout and becoming a noted gambler, art collector and patron.
He was introduced to Gustave Courbet
Gustave Courbet
Jean Désiré Gustave Courbet was a French painter who led the Realist movement in 19th-century French painting. The Realist movement bridged the Romantic movement , with the Barbizon School and the Impressionists...
by Sainte-Beuve
Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve
Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve was a literary critic and one of the major figures of French literary history.-Early years:...
, and commissioned Les Dormeuses (The Sleepers) and L'Origine du monde
L'Origine du monde
L’Origine du monde is an oil-on-canvas painted by French artist Gustave Courbet in 1866. It is a close-up view of the genitals and abdomen of a naked woman, lying on a bed with legs spread...
from him. He also acquired Le Bain turc
The Turkish Bath
The Turkish Bath is an 1862 painting by the 82-year-old Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, showing nude women in a harem. Originally rectangular, it was only converted to its present tondo form by the artist in 1863...
(The Turkish Bath) from Ingres
Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres
Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres was a French Neoclassical painter. Although he considered himself to be a painter of history in the tradition of Nicolas Poussin and Jacques-Louis David, by the end of his life it was Ingres's portraits, both painted and drawn, that were recognized as his greatest...
and other works by Eugène Delacroix
Eugène Delacroix
Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school...
, Troyon
Constant Troyon
Constant Troyon , French painter, was born in Sèvres, near Paris, where his father was connected with the famous manufactory of porcelain....
, Daubigny
Charles-François Daubigny
Charles-François Daubigny was one of the painters of the Barbizon school, and is considered an important precursor of Impressionism....
, Meissonier
Jean-Louis-Ernest Meissonier
Jean-Louis Ernest Meissonier was a French Classicist painter and sculptor famous for his depictions of Napoleon, his armies and military themes. He documented sieges and manoeuvres and was the teacher of Édouard Detaille.-Biography:Ernest Meissonier was born at Lyon...
, Corot
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot was a French landscape painter and printmaker in etching. Corot was the leading painter of the Barbizon school of France in the mid-nineteenth century...
, Rousseau
Henri Rousseau
Henri Julien Félix Rousseau was a French Post-Impressionist painter in the Naïve or Primitive manner. He was also known as Le Douanier , a humorous description of his occupation as a toll collector...
and Gerome
Jean-Léon Gérôme
Jean-Léon Gérôme was a French painter and sculptor in the style now known as Academicism. The range of his oeuvre included historical painting, Greek mythology, Orientalism, portraits and other subjects, bringing the Academic painting tradition to an artistic climax.-Life:Jean-Léon Gérôme was born...
. In January 1868 he sold off his collection just before leaving to become Ottoman ambassador to Vienna, thus getting out of Paris only 2 years before the Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
. After that posting he moved to Constantinople and married Princess Nazli Fazl
Princess Nazli Fazl
Princess Nazli Zeinab Fazil was an Egyptian princess from the dynasty of Muhammad Ali of Egypt and is famous for being hostess to the first modern intellectual salon in the Arab world at her palace in Cairo from the 1880s through her death.-Life:Princess Nazli Fazil was born in Egypt, most likely...
, the daughter of one of the prominent reformers of the time, Mustafa Fazl Pasha. In 1877 he returned to Paris as Ottoman ambassador for a few months.
Sources
- Francis Haskell, 'A Turk and His Pictures in Nineteenth-Century Paris', Oxford Art Journal, Vol. 5, No. 1, Patronage (1982), pp. 40-47