Evrenos or Evrenuz was an Ottoman military commander, with an unlikely long-lived career and lifetime. He served as a general under Süleyman Pasha, Murad I, Bayezid I, Süleyman Çelebi and Mehmed I. Byzantine sources mention him as Εβρενός, Ἀβρανέζης, Βρανέζης, Βρανεύς, Βρενέζ, Βρενέζης, Βρενές. A persistent Greek legend maintains that Evrenos' father was a certain Ornos, renegade Byzantine governor of Bursa who defected to the Ottomans, and then on to Karasi, after the Siege of Bursa, in 1326. He was known as Isa BeyPrangi, buried in the village of Prangi, a busy ferry-place on the Evros river about east from Didymoteicho. Stanford J. Shaw and Joseph von Hammer regard Evrenos as a Byzantine convert to Islam. Οriginally, Gazi Evrenos was a noble dignitary, a bey in the principality of Karasi, joining the Ottomans only after their conquest of the beylik in 1345. He led many crucial Ottomancampaigns and battles in Bulgaria, Thessaly, and Serbia. After having participated in the Ottoman conquest of Adrianopolis in 1362, Evrenos was appointed to uc beği of Thessaly. He and his akıncıs fought in the Battle of Kosovo and the Battle of Nicopolis. Evrenos conquered Keşan, İpsala, Komotini, Feres, Xanthi, Maroneia, Serres, Monastir, and, in 1397, Corinth. He founded the townYenice-i Vardar, modern Giannitsa. The inhabitants of Gianitsa down to the early 20th century displayed reverence for "Gazi Baba", that is "papa Gazi". Gazi Evrenos Bey was father of seven sons and several daughters. Among the numerous descendants of lord Gazi Evrenos, apparently the memory of some has dived into oblivion, as their deeds got incorporated into the achievements of their illustrious forefather. This explains the legendary, yet unlikely, 129-year lifespan of lord Gazi. Together with the Mihaloğulları, Malkoçoğulları, Ömerli/Ömeroğlu, and the Turahanoğulları, Evrenos' descendants, the Evrenosoğulları, constitute one of the Byzantine families that effectively formed the early Ottoman warrior nobility. Gazi Evrenos died at an advanced age in Yenice-i Vardar. He was buried in a mausoleum there in 1417. The mausoleum survives but was badly mutilated in 19th century and served for a time as an agricultural store. As one of the most successful Ottoman commanders, Evrenos acquired a considerable amount of wealth and founded numerous endowments. Several monuments attributed to him survive in southeastern Europe. Of primary importance is his mausoleum, or türbe, with its accompanying epitaph in Giannitsa. A hammam of Evrenos stands to the south of the mausoleum. Two other monuments stand inGreek Thrace.
