Bayezid II was the son of Gülbahar Hatun, an Albanian concubine, and Şehzade Mehmed (later Mehmed II). Murad II, his grandfather, was Sultan at the time of his birth. His father became Sultan after his grandfather passed away in 1451.
Because of the two women's same middle name, Mükrime, some sources assert that Bayezid was Sittişah Hatun's son. This would make Bayezid II's first cousin Ayşe Hatun, one of Bayezid's consorts. The whole situation did not sit well with Mehmed, nevertheless, as Sittişah Hatun married two years after Bayezid was born .
Bayezid II was born in Demotika, received his education in Amasya, and spent 27 years working as a bey there. He engaged in combat with the Aq Qoyunlu at the Battle of Otlukbeli in 1473.
Reign
In 1481, Bayezid II took the Ottoman throne. Bayezid II shared his father's admiration for both eastern and western culture. He was known as "the Just" because, in contrast to many other sultans, he put a lot of effort into making sure domestic politics ran well. Bayezid II successfully established Morea as the location of future Ottoman naval dominance in the Eastern Mediterranean by launching multiple operations to subjugate the Venetian possessions there throughout his rule. When he fought Poland in the Moldavian expedition in 1497, he soundly crushed the Polish army, which numbered 80,000. When the final of these conflicts came to a conclusion in 1501, Bayezid II ruled over the entire Peloponnese. Much of Bayezid II's rule was marred by eastern rebellions, such the Qizilbash, who were frequently supported by Iran's Shah Ismail I, who was keen to spread Shi'ism in order to weaken the Ottoman state's hold on power. During this time, Bayezid II's vizier, Hadım Ali Pasha, was slain in combat against the Şahkulu uprising, indicating that Ottoman rule in Anatolia was in fact seriously endangered. A power vacuum resulted with the death of Hadım Ali Pasha. As a result, Kinsman Karaboecu Pasha (Turkish: "Karaböcü Kuzen Paşa"), who gained notoriety for carrying out espionage activities during the Fall of Constantinople in his youth, surreptitiously received the loyalty of numerous significant leaders.
Succession
A struggle for succession arose between Bayezid II's sons, Selim and Ahmet, after an earthquake ravaged Constantinople on September 14, 1509, during his last years. After capturing Karaman without warning, Ahmet marched on Constantinople to take advantage of his victory. Selim, fearing for his life, revolted in Thrace but was routed by Bayezid and had to return to the Crimean peninsula. Bayezid II refused to let his son enter Constantinople because he grew concerned that Ahmet may murder him in order to take the throne.
On April 25, 1512, Selim arrived from Crimea and, with the help of the Janissaries, compelled his father to cede the kingdom. Bayezid left for his hometown of Dimetoka to retire, but he passed away at Havsa on May 26, 1512, just one month after abdicating and before he had arrived at his destination. In Istanbul, he was laid to rest beside the Bayezid Mosque.