Bosnalı Lala Mehmed Paşa, Sarayda yetişmiş; merkezdeki muhtelif görevlerinden sonra Yeniçeri Ağası olmuş; bu unvanla ilk defa, padişah olmadan sefere katılmış; İstanbul dışındaki görevlerinin büyük çoğunluğunu Rumeli'de geçirmiş; Anadolu Beylerbeyi, Budin Serdarı, Vezir, Rumeli Beylerbeyi, Macar Serdar Kaymakamı, üçüncü vezir unvanıyla Macar Serdarı ve nihayet Sadrazam olarak önemli görevlerde bulunmuş; yaklaşık olarak 15 yıl süresince Osmanlı Devletinin Macar siyasetinin belirleyicisi ve uygulayıcısı olmuştur.Lala Mehmed Paşa cesaret, dirayet ve uzak görüşlülüğüyle Osmanlı tarihinde önemli bir iz bırakmıştır.

Lala Mehmed Paşa was of Bosnian origin and was raised within the Ottoman palace in Istanbul. After he had assumed various official posts in the Ottoman capital, he was appointed to the agha of the Janissaries by which title he led the first Ottoman campaign, in which the Ottoman sultan did not participate in person. He spent most of his service years in Rumelia; he became the governor-general of Anatolia, the commander of Buda, the governor-general of Rumelia, the lieutenant-commander in the Hungarian campaign, the commander-in-chief of the Hungarian campaign, and finally the grand-vizier in sequence. For nearly 15 years, he was the decision-maker and the executor of the Ottoman policy towards Hungary. Lala Mehmed Paşa distinguished himself with his courage and ability in political and military matters and left a remarkable trace in Ottoman history.