His father was Hacı Mehmed Agha, the muhassıl of Cyprus and a surre emini, who owned a house in Damascus known as "Beytü'ş-şürefâ".
Hasan Tahsin started his educational life with the lessons he took from his father, learning about the Quran and tecvid.
In October or November 1849, he was further designated as a member of the Meclis-i Vâlâ-yı Ahkâm-ı Adliyye ("Supreme Council of Judicial Ordinances").
With the decision of the Meclis-i Vâlâ to found a ministry for taking care of the properties of the orphans (Turkish: Emval-ı Eytam Nezareti), in November or December 1851 Hasan Tahsin was appointed the first minister of this institution with 24 employees.
[1] According to literary historian Mehmet Fatih Köksal, commentary on Hasan Tahsin's poetry is close to none.