Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha (or simply Lala Mustafa Pasha) (c. 1500-1580) was an Ottoman general and Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire. He had risen to the position of Beylerbey of Damascus and then to that of Fifth Vizier. He commanded the Ottoman land forces during the Siege of Malta in 1565, during the conquest of previously Venetian Cyprus in 1570/71, and in the campaign against Georgia in 1578. He later was (briefly) Grand Vizier from 28 April to 7 August 1580. The honorific "Lala" means "tutor to the Sultan"; he had been tutor to the Sultan's sons. Mustafa was known for his cruelty towards vanquished opponents, a reputation that was amply borne out by his treatment of Marco Antonio Bragadin, the Venetian defender of Famagusta, whom he had skinned alive. He is buried in the courtyard of the Ayub Mosque in Istanbul. His tomb was designed by Ottoman architect Sinan.