of the nişancı, and coincided with the increasing transfer of state affairs from the Imperial Council exclusively to the purview of the Grand Vizier. The increasing importance of foreign relations for the Ottoman Empire from this period on also played a role, as the reis was responsible for checking on the treaties archived in the beylik and certifying the answers to the requests, notes and petitions of foreign ambassadors to the Ottoman government. This process led to the reis ül-küttab gradually evolving into a de facto Foreign Minister, a role that became established after the successful conduct of negotiations for the Treaty of Karlowitz in 1699 by the then reis ül-küttab, Rami Mehmed Efendi. Nevertheless, in protocol and ceremonial, the reis ül-küttab still retained his rather junior position until the late 18th century; for instance, he was not allowed to sit in the Imperial Council chamber, but had a seat outside, the reis tahtası, and his role in court ceremonies remained limited. It was not until Selim III's reform of the Imperial Council in 1792 that the reis ül-küttabs new role was formalized, as he became one of the ten ex officio members of the council. From then on the reis ül-küttab was formally responsible for foreign relations, a role kept until the post's abolition on 11 March 1836, along with his analogue for interior affairs, the Kahya Bey, and their replacement by two new, Western-style ministries. Reis ül-küttab who became Grand Viziers Rami Mehmed Pasha Naili Abdullah Pasha Koca Ragıp Pasha Halil Hamid Pasha Mehmed Said Galib Pasha References Sources Government of the Ottoman Empire Ottoman titles Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Ottoman Empire