#Who was The First Valide Sultan in Ottoman History

[1533-secrets-from-history]

Mistakes in the Magnificent Century part III

(title, ranks and traditions)

Some facts might be the same or very similar to the ones in previous parts,but they will be discussed from different angle.

1. Valide Sultan title

As I have spoken in the previous chapters, pre 1520 mothers of sultans were not sultans at all, they were titles as hatuns, though treated with utmost respect. In 1520 as Suleiman the Magnificent ascended the throne, he bestowed the title of Sultan to her mother Ayşe Hafsa, thus making her the first person in the ottoman history to become sultan from slavery. However, for Ayşe Hafsa being Sultan was not the same as the Valide Sultan that we know today. She was sultan yes, and she was the mother, so "Valide" was the proper address,from her children, as it was for every mother in the Ottoman empire, she was registered as "the mother of Sultan Suleiman", therefore in some sense, we can say she was not "Valide Sultan".

The first person,who actually made the "Valide sultan" a thing and officially registered herself was Nurbanu. So, the first Valide sultan with its full meaning was not Hafsa,but Nurbanu, who was registered as Valide Afife Nurbanu Sultan.

2. Haseki Sultan and Hürrem's marriage.

There were more than just several miscon- ceptions about the subject in the show.

First and foremost it was created specifically for Hürrem,so neither Hafsa nor Mahidevran have ever had the title. It also brought another mistake about Hafsa,that I will explain below,but now I will just make clearer how, when and why the status was created.

It was almost definitely created in mid-1534 after the death of Ayşe Hafsa Sultan and was probably legalised by their marriage, which by some sources is mentioned to be in 1533. If this is right, then it would mean, Suleiman married Hürrem before he gave her the status of Haseki and the marriage only freed her,but the most common and for me the most logical version is that after the death of Hafsa Sultan, Suleiman married her and gave her the title.

The death of Hafsa Sultan is a crucial part in the story, nor because she had some kind of objection towards Hürrem or her promotion,but the legal status of Hürrem reached its peak of necessity after her death. As we know, Ayşe Hafsa was a trusted ally and Confidant of uprising Sultan, even during his time as shehzade, so during the campaigns, his mother was the supervisor of the capital and his family, so the sultan could go to war without worrying about what he was leaving behind. However, after Hafsa's death things changed, Süleiman lost beloved mother and most trustworthy person around him, he needed to act immediately,as the campaign was near. He needed someone,whom he could entrust Harem, Family and the capital. His children were little, Sisters(whom by the way he trusted very much) were all married and Hürrem did not have a proper rank. It is said that he also discussed the candidate of high ranking harem servants, one and most promoted one of whom, in my opinion, would have been Gulfem, but he finally found the best possible solution that would affect his empire for centuries. He married Hürrem, gave her the rank of Haseki Sultan and left her in charge of the Harem, Family and the empire.

Hürrem became the first Haseki sultan in history.

Misusage of the title did not and here and there, not only the status and function,but even relevance of achievement was changed here. In the very first episode, Nigar kalfa made it clear that giving birth to a son, was enough to achieve it however, originally only the chosen ones could become Hasekis until its relevance faded during Murad's reign and completely lost exclusivity during Ibrahim's.

Essentially, the original function of haseki sultan was filling the absence of Valide, therefore only Hürrem and Nurbanu can be considered as the "original Haseki Sultans". Later many women were given the status, however the show made it wrong. Mahidevran,Mahfiruz and Halime never held it, however Şevikar, referred as Şevikar hatun in the show, was actually Haseki Şevikar sultan, the fifth Haseki of Ibrahim, three of whom, Ayşe, Mahinerv and Saçbağli, were left out, which is kind of understandable, because they had no importance in plot, unlike Turhan, never became Valide,unlike Saliha Dilaşub and Muazzez and had no influence on Ibrahim,Unlike Şevikar and Humaşah.

Their social standing is also misportrayed in the show, where Haseki ranks below and bows to imperial princesses, while in real life it was the other way around.

3. Daughters of Ottoman Princesses

In the show, we met three daughters of the ottoman princesses: Esmahan,Huriçihan and Humaşah. They are referred to as Sultans,but in real life the daughters of imperial princesses were not called so,instead they had the title Hanimsultan and ranked even below the imperial consorts. The only exception to that was Humaşah, the daughter of Mihrimah Sultan, who received the title and prestige of the Sultan.

4. Harem Kalfa

In the show, they are just giving people the rank left and right. Nigar was already a high ranking, trusted servant of harem,but it turned out that she had only been there for 6 years. Fidan hatun was banished for attacking Sultan,but after a while she returned and became Kalfa, in Kösem melek hatun received rank out of the blue etc.

In real life, however, becoming kalfa was a long process. As we know,there were hundreds or even thousands of girls in the harem,but only a handful of them would become favourites,but what would happen to others? After ten years of being a harem resident some of them would have been transferred from harem and soon married off, some could by freedom, while others, usually the smartest and most responsible ones,would go to a special school that lasted two years, they would revive extensive training, both intellectual and physical, after that they could return in harem as teachers and overseers and if they were good enough they could promote.

There was actually quite a complicated hierarchy of harem servants,not only there were Kalfa's who had duty to supervise certain works like food or laundry(later even coffee),but there were administrative ranks, that they could achieve:

Mistress chief treasurer(Baş Hazinedar usta): she was head of the harem treasury.

Treasurers(Hazinedars): there were other hazinedars as well, who worked in harem treasury. Baş hazinedar usta was their direct superior.

Imperial Kalfa(Hünkar Kalfası): Personal kalfa of the padişah.

Lady stewardess(Kahya kadin/Kethüda Hatun): she ranked below imperial consorts,but her role raised during sultanate of women, when Gülfem and Çanfeda held the office, they were right hand women of Chief Harem managers(Hürrem and Nurbanu) therefore second in command of the Harem.

Senior Kalfa(Büyük Kalfa): Head of Kalfas, she was responsible for literally everything that was happening in the harem, sultans and şehzades treated her with respect and called "my kalfa" or "your grace"

Lady secretary: secretary of administrative organs of harem.

Junior kalfa( Küçük Kalfa): Senior kalfa was their direct superior. They had ranks within( second- ranking, third ranking, novice etc.) They were sometimes teachers and daily overseers.

Çanfeda for example entered the harem with Nurbanu, so in late 1530's or early 1540's. Nurbanu became favourite and went to Manisa, while Çanfeda remained in the old palace, in 1566 she was already a high ranking kalfa in the old palace, when Nurbanu called her. That would mean she was sent to train as kalfa in late 1540's or yearly 1550's, therefore she would have a decade or two to raise in ranks.

5. Princely harem.

In the magnificent century, prince usually gets his harem, whole in Topkapi palace, which is the lie through and through. They went even further and made up with the rule that the prince can not have a child with their concubine until they get their province to rule. Why would they be allowed to have concubines,but not having a child, when contraception is still unreliable.

Actually, their case was far more easier, princes would revive their sanjaks while still very young, their mothers, governesses and close servants would carefully choose their harem and leave the palace with their mother and full sisters. That also brought another mistake in the show. In the flashbacks, we can see Ayşe Hafsa and Hatice visiting Suleiman in Manisa, however Ayşe Hafsa along with Fatma and beyhan left for Manisa with Suleiman in 1512, while Hatice,being 4 years older than Suleiman, got married the same year.

6. Regency

They introduced Kösem's regency as something unheard of,while completely neglecting Handan and Halime.

Handan was the first woman ever to rule as regents in her son's stead. She appointed viziers, discussed political matters and built a trusted circle for her son.

Halime was not officially registered regent but due to the insanity of her son, paşas asked her to rule the state after the rebellion she herself organized.

Kösem's and Turhan's regency is well known, so I will not speak about it.

7. Kösem's wedding

Not exactly the mistake as it is not proven, but as the event is highly unlike, I'll just put it there.

In 1609 it is said that Ahmed had four children with two women,but neither of them were married to him. In the two latters, one form 1612 and other from 1616, the 1612 letter straight out mentions her as sultan's concubine, who he loves the most and in 1616 she is mentioned as juts Haseki,but nothing is said about the marriage( I am not adamant about him not marrying her,I am just saying that it's unlikely, however I admitt she might indeed was concubine in 1612 and after the death of Mahfiruz, Ahmed married her and raised her stipend),however early in Kösem's regency vencians questioned ottoman practice, that mother of sultan was honoured and even given the regency,despite not being married to his father. As we know in Venice and generaly in Europe, source of power for woman was her marriage and not just motherhood. That is a time, when it was "unrevealed" that ahemd married her before he died,(if that latter is to be believed than Kösem and Ahmed did not marry in 1613), now it was actually thought that it was false information used by Kösem to strengthen her position in the eye of Venice as they needed friendly relation with them. That is not widely accepted,but it can be strengthened by the fact that Vencians still did not believe it, so perhaps they knew for sure that it was lie?

8. The death of Halime sultan and Mustafa.

In the show Halime, like many others, is victim of making Kösem seem more powerful, while Mustafa was killed by Murad. In real life, Mustafa died of natural causes, probably because of epilepsy in 1539, he was buried in Hagia Sophia and the coffin was placed in a mosque built for him. Halime is buried next to him and no permission of reburial was asked or granted, therefore Halime was not killed by Kösem, she went to the old palace and lived a long life.

9. 1517-1540

I'll be honest, I don't remember much of those episodes, they were boring and monotonous for me, but what I remember is one part from Kösem's iconic " The state you are talking about is mine" speech. She mentioned that she took over the reins of the state from Ahmed 15 years before the event, well that is a huge lie. Though the show runners tried to make Kösem all powerful, the invincible mastermind behind every single breath people drew in the empire,but she was actually quite powerless from time to time and the period between 1617 and 1623 is one of such. She was still young and inexperienced that time and main powerhouses in the empire were Halime and Osman's faction and she was not the leading force during any of the rebellions, she was allie of Halime, who, according to many historians, had major influence that time and the great impact on Kösem. Some even go as far as claiming that she persuaded Osman to kill Mehmed, so Kösem would take her side.

In short, Kösem did not have reins of sultanate for 15 years,but only about 10.

As I said, I don't remember much about the episodes, but from what I remember, Kösem had something to do with Murad's death. I'll be short on this: that's a lie.

10. Coup of 1648

The show made Kösem something of a filicidal tyrant. However, In real life her tyrannical tendencies appeared only after the death of Ibrahim, which he had nothing to do with. The ones behind the incident were Turhan and her faction. Kösem indeed took part in the Ibrahim's dethronement for the good of everyone,but mainly because she had seen the mad sultan dethroned,but lived. Mustafa had a similar situation,he was dethroned and locked in kafe, while his mother was sent to the old palace, which Kösem was absolutely willing to do. However, Turhan made her move and had Ibrahim executed to get rid of opposition for good, or perhaps because of the old resentment. Things did not go exactly as she had planned though, Kösem became regent and visibly started to avenge Ibrahim's death, it became clear that she was not going to hand over any power to Turhan and after she started to oppose even went as far as attempted dethronement of Mehmed(however she was not going to kill him.)

Therefore the child killing monster the show made her become is straight out a lie. One of her sons died of natural causes and the other was killed by outer forces, that she tried to avenge.

[dodscans]

i noticed that in the manga hurrem is already referred to by the "haseki" title preceding the death of suleiman's mother, when to my knowledge he only legally married and created the title "haseki sultan" for hurrem after hafsa died, to solidify her position of authority in the harem. but manga hurrem also doesn't seem to be referred to by the title "sultan" yet, only "haseki." is it a case of historical liberty on the manga's part? and do you think manga hurrem will receive the "sultan" rank separately after being legally married to suleiman, or is she already considered someone with the rank of "sultan" since she's been given the haseki title? sorry about all the questions and tysm for the translations!

Sorry for the late reply, but I had to take a couple of books from my shelves for this XD But shortly after I figured it will take me too much time to do a deep research, so here's my unimportant opinion as an Ottoman history familiar:

When a woman is referred to as "sultan" in the Ottoman Empire, it doesn't mean that she is a "sultan." What I mean is, the Ottoman Empire does not have the "king/queen" or "emperor/empress" duos. You only have the male "sultan" as a ruler. Females being called "sultan" was mostly out of courtesy, and didn't mean that they had an official title in the state protocol.

I believe Hafsa was the first woman to be called "Valide Sultan", using the word "sultan". Also, the sultan's daughters/sisters are also referred as "sultan." For instance, we call Hatice "Hatice Sultan", but I call her simply "Princess Hatice" in the translations to avoid confusing the readers.

As for "haseki"s, they were simply sultan's favorite consort who gave him a son, and sultans had several haseki afterwards. Only the #1 haseki was called "haseki sultan." And again, That didn't make them a "sultan" like the emperor. At best, it meant that she is a woman to be respected because she is important to the sultan himself, like his female kin.

And there is also the mess created by the Europeans, who didn't understand how the Harem worked, and thought that just like their kings have queens, the Ottoman sultan must have a "sultana."

And later on, the use of the title "sultan" fell out of fashion with sultans's wives. So, we can say that even the people concerned didn't attach much meaning to it. And seriously, unless you are the valide sultan, being a "sultan" didn't make you the "sultan of the harem" anyway.

Okay, sorry but I don't even know what I'm getting at and made you read all this rambling XD

[blccdmoon]

BASICS.

name: rahşan özkara

birthdate: november 29th, 1784

age: 229 years old

species: vampire

face claim: miray daner

tw: ottoman slavery, murder

HISTORY.

Born into a mercantile family of little means but blessed with beauty even from a young age, her father saw little value in a daughter than a bargaining chip. She was only a girl of sixteen when the deal had been struck, a new gift for the favor of the Sultan to join his harem. Rahşan had little say in the matter of her own fate, her lack of thrill for the idea ignored and disregarded swiftly. Instead, she was told to worm her way into the Sultan's favor, to bring good fortune to their family with her rise.

But of course, reality is often so different than expectations. In truth, she saw very little of his majesty for the first several years of her life in the Topkapı Palace, instead spending the majority of her time with the other consorts and the Valide Sultana. It wasn't a fate Rahşan minded, much less frightening than she had first thought. While the Sultan had his favorites, she was free to spend her time learning to sing and play many instruments. It wasn't freedom, the eyes of guards were always strict upon the harem, but it wasn't misery either.

It was her singing, in the end, that caught the attention of the Sultan. One of his favorites had succumbed to sickness the winter before, and the Valide had sought to put someone new before him to distract from his sorrow. Rahşan was young, and had played her part well, currying favor with the queen mother. She would make a suitable replacement who would offer little threat in way of attempt to control her son, or so the Valide thought.

Taken to his bedroom, it was Rahşan's voice that brought a smile to the Sultan's face, for the first time in months. She was quickly raised in position of the harem, and though it made her new enemies amongst the other consorts who conspired for her position, Rahşan enjoyed much more comfort and power with the position. But it still wasn't freedom. In the end, it was something that could not be forgot.

When assassins came for the Sultan, while a few of the other concubines attempted to protect Selim, Rahşan only stepped back. It was during the chaos that she found there would be no better time to run — a new Sultan would be crowned soon, at best she would be sent away to Bursa, at worst married off to someone of their choice, and neither fate seemed enviable to Rahşan. So instead, she ran. Out of the palace, out of Turkey itself, as far west as she could make it, trading her jewels and even performances on her lute for passage with merchants, until she finally made it to Europe.

But her new life was much harder than she imagined, surviving by her own two hands. She made money as both seamstress and entertainer, though neither paid particularly well. After forming a friendship with another seamstress she'd later discover was a witch, the young woman was introduced to the world of the supernatural, and suddenly saw her path forward with complete clarity. There was more to the world, she was meant to be more, and Rahşan would make sure she got it.

Though becoming a vampire took more effort than she thought, Rahşan was nothing if not determined, eventually emerging as a creature of the night with sharp new fangs. She had a new outlook on life, everything she wanted at the tip of her fingertips, and all she had to do was take it. From that day forward, everything was going to be different.

She made the most of her immortality, indulging on every passing whim that crossed her mind — the things she'd lost in the trade seemed worthwhile to what she had gained, at least at the time. It was only after more than a century had passed of her new life that she had begun to question the hastiness of her decisions, when watching everything Rahşan had once known while the vampire still remained. It felt like there was an impernance to the world, one that had not existed before; or perhaps it had, but she had never thought to take note of it.

It was a new lesson to learn, to not make attachments to anything that could be taken from her, by either person or passage of time — one that she would use as a guide for the rest of her immortal life, flitting in and out of lives at the drop of a dime, becoming close with only precious few. It was easier than allowing her heart to be broken again and again with the changing of the seasons.

New York is always somewhere Rahşan ends up coming back to. After landing first in the early 1900s, she fell in love with the city, and always finds herself back in it's grasp after her flights of fancy. Though she'd been gone nearly ten years now with her latest return, it still felt as much of home as it ever had.

[annabthesolitarywriter]

Thank you for the tag, @saurongorthaur9!

Here is my list of blorbos:

Eönwë from The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien

My sweet Bird-boy.

Most of his personality is based on my headcanons, but those few lines in which he is mentioned in the books were enough for me to fall in love with him. He's excellent with a sword (with any weapon, actually), kind and absolutely loving and lovable. Maybe just a bit naive, but I will forgive him anything. He adores his wife and his children and is just the best husband and dad.

Fancasts:

Brad Pitt as Achilles from the movie Troy (his First Age/War of Wrath form)

and Daniel Sharman as Lorenzo De' Medici from the tv show Medici (his Fourth Age and final form)

2. Éowyn from The Lord of the Rings (book by J.R.R. Tolkien and movie trilogy by P. Jackson.)

This woman is so cool and slayed the Witch-King of Angmar. What more needs to be said?

3. Nurbanu Sultan from the TV show Muhteşem Yüzyıl (Magnificent Century).

My Italian Sultana. I am so proud of her. I love both her historical and her TV show version and I am so proud that a noblewoman who was mercilessly captured and abducted from her homeland (which also happens to be my own) managed not only to survive in the cruel and hostile environment which was the Ottoman harem, but to become its leader as Valide Sultan. She was said to be extremely beautiful and intelligent woman and I think Merve Boluğur—the actress they picked to play her in the show—was perfection. Show! Nurbanu is intelligent, cunning and does literally anything to protect her Prince (Selim x Nurbanu is a major OTP of mine) and her son. I just love her.

4. Kösem Sultan from the TV show Muhteşem Yüzyıl: Kösem (Magnificent Century: Kösem)

I love both her historical and her TV show version. A Greek girl who became the most powerful woman in Ottoman history. She is a boss and I simply love her. She also loses everyone (her birth family, her husband, her children) and her story partly influenced my most of the LOTR fics I've been writing. Although they're not really the same person, my main OC (Elenna "Enna") and Kösem are quite similar and go through some of the same hardships (notably the loss of their children).

5. Clarice Orsini from the TV show Medici

I only watched a few episodes of this show, but I do love Clarice so much. She is also the perfect faceclaim for my main OC, but that's another matter entirely.

Clarice deserved A LOT better than what she got. She is so kind and so cute and deserved a better husband than Lorenzo. Not much is known about her historical counterpart, but I did like the fact that he was by her side when she died (I am glad the writers at least gave her that, but it really didn't happen in real life. She died alone. Yes, Lorenzo was also very sick and couldn't physically be with his wife at the time of her death, but still...it's sad).

But, then again, Lorenzo and Clarice's marriage was an arranged one and they didn't really love one another historically (some say they did, but it's not certain) and the real Lorenzo was a bit less of a jerk than Show! Lorenzo.

That's it! These are my five main blorbos at the moment! I have others (nearly every single LOTR character except a few), but I think five is enough.

Tags: @lucifers-legions, @emmanuellececchi, @cilil, @fictionalmenjusthitdifferent, @sotwk, @fishing4stars, @evenstaredits and anyone else who may want to join!

Show your blorbos

Thank you for the tags, my loves @milla-frenchy @tateypots @sunshineispunk @sawymredfox @schnarfer @joelmillerisapunk @bonezone44 @itwasntimethatdidit40 💞💞💞

I feel like I’m doing everything ages later these days, when everyone’s already done with a game. But better late than never, right?😅

I’ll start with my favourite Pedro boys😍

Don’t glare, Joel! You’re always my number one😁

Joel Miller. He’s not my first Pedro love (it was Din) but the biggest one for sure❤️ (52 fics prove my obsession😅) I think we all feel the same about him so I don’t need to explain why I love the man. I don’t wanna start crying🥺 He deserves everything best. The love of my life❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

Din Djarin. He’s such a cunt lol but also soft, kind, brave, caring!! he’s the best dad🥹😍 His armor is super hot, his voice makes me weak but I lost my mind when he took his helmet off. He was so miserable and bloody, just my type🥺��� and Din brought me to fanfic so he’ll forever be in my heart🥹❤️‍🔥

Javi P. Do I even need to explain myself?🫠🫠🫠

Frankie Morales. When I need comfort, I write Frankie. My perfect teddy bear😍❤️

Tommy Miller. Gabriel Luna played him so well! he’s gorgeous and his kind eyes and sweet smile won my heart🥹❤️‍🔥

Dean, Sam, Cas. I put these three together because I love them equally (ok, I love Dean a liiiiittle bit more)❤️‍🔥

Jeff and Britta (Community) She’s a beautiful mess, he’s a lovable asshole, I wanna be their third❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

Love Quinn (You) I love her so fn much! She’s passionate, she loves hard and just wants to be happy🥹 She’s never done anything wrong😤

Chandler Bing. What an amazing character! Desperately looking for love and then being the absolute best tv husband😍 and his sense of humor is everything!! My favorite Friend for sure❤️❤️❤️

Kylo Ren. My baby😍 He’s just a hurt boy inside who wanted to be loved🥺 I’m pretty sure I was conditioned to love him harder by all amazing fics I read about him bc the movies left me disappointed tbh. Thank gods for fanfic and our talented writers❤️

Ahh I had so much fun thinking about my loves😍

Npt💞 @iamasaddie @toxicanonymity @604to647 @huskyfox5 @ellasinnombre @magpiepills @corazondebeskar @princessanglophile @evolnoomym and you🫵

[ottomanladies]

(OTTOMAN) WOMEN’S HISTORY MEME | 5 valide sultans: Ayşe Hafsa

Beloved within the palace as well as outside of it, “torrents of tears . . . poured forth when people learned of Hafsa’s death.” Selim’s death had rendered her legally free, and she became the first in a string of powerful mothers who governed alongside their sultan sons. For more than forty years—from her first administrative responsibilities in Trabzon in the 1490s to her death in Istanbul—Hafsa played a vital role in the governance of the empire. She was described as “the mother of the monarch, refuge of the world, the great woman whose whole work was piety, the [pure] woman whose every thought was good.” — Alan Mikhail, God's Shadow; Sultan Selim, His Ottoman Empire, and the Making of the Modern World

[reallifesultanas]

A Valide titulus / The Valide title

The title of Valide was the title of the mother of the Sultan. However, this seemingly logical title has also undergone many changes over the centuries of the sultanate. In this post, I would like to introduce this change and introduce the mother of the sultans from Osman I to the last sultan Mehmed IV's mother.

Valide Hatun

In the early centuries, the title of Valide Sultan did not yet exist, instead, Valide Hatun was in use. Valide was practically the address of the mother, and Hatun was the respectful address of the women, practically something like "My Lady." Thus, mothers were often called Valide Hatun even when their sons were not yet sultans, merely the governor of provinces. The mission of Valide Hatun began long before their son ascended the throne. At that time, these women were still simple concubines living in the sultan’s harem. During this time, their primary task was to take care and raise their children, and later accompany their single son (there could be no more sons because of the one-concubine-one-son law) to his designated province. In the province, it was the job of Valide Hatun to control the court of the young prince and begin to form a harem for his son, disciplining his concubines and grandchildren. If the Valide Hatun had daughters, they also went to the designated province with their mother and younger brother.

Valide Hatun was at the peak of her position when her son was young, so she could deal with all sorts of matters with relative freedom in the province. A great example of this is an account of Selim I’s mother, Ayşe Gülbahar Hatun. Ayşe Gülbahar held a weekly audience in Trabzon, Selim’s provincial post, where everyone listened to her words with great respect. As Selim then grew older and more and more mature, his mother became more and more relegated to the background. It was the same, of course, with all the other Valide Hatuns.

When their son ascended the throne, it became their job to control the harem, to keep it in order. They had no political influence, except in a few exceptional cases. Of course, in addition to their duties, the Valide Hatuns did a lot of charity and, if they had the time, also set up construction projects. In practice, charity and construction have been their right since their sons were escorted to the province. This is why most of the future Valide Hatuns have construction in their sons' former province.

Naturally, as time went on, the tasks of Valide Hatun also became more difficult. Previously, the Ottoman Empire was smaller, the capital and the Sultan's palace were more modest, so it was relatively easy to keep the harem in order. However, after the conquest of Constantinople, the mighty Old Palace became the home of the Sultan’s harem, which was a real little town in the city (you can read more about it here). In parallel with the move to the Old Palace, the political influence of Valide Hatun also increased. And pretty slowly the peak of Valide’s power also shifted. They could no longer live their most influential period in the provinces, but in the capital, during the reign of their sons.

A list of de facto and classic Valide Hatuns, complete with mothers who did not survive until their son's rule:

Halime Hatun, the presumed mother of Osman I. There are many legends circulating about her, so some claim she was a Seljuk Princess, but there is no evidence to suggest this. She was more likely to be a simple commoner or a child of an influential family. It was not typical for beys and rulers of that time to marry slaves or to keep a harem in the classical sense. We don't know anything about Halime's life, how many children she had when she was born when she died ... It's not even certain that she was the mother of Osman I.

Malhun Hatun, mother of Orhan I. Orhan was the first sultan in the classical sense, but even he formed a transition between the true sultanate and the earlier tribal system. Malhun Hatun was said by some to be daughter of an influential tribe, others say she was the daughter of a sheikh. Either way, she was certainly the lawful wife of Osman I and she gave birth to the later Orhan I. She is considered the mother of the Ottoman Empire and the Ottoman family. The date of her birth, the exact number of her children are not known, but we know that she died before 1324. This is indicated by the fact that her son built a complex in 1324 in honor of Malhun. Since this date coincides with the beginning of Orhan's reign, it cannot be ruled out that Malhun passed away much earlier. It is possible that before this date simply Orhan, being not yet a ruler, did not have the opportunity to build anything for his mother’s memory. So, finally, after he ascended the throne, he was able to embark on building a complex as soon as possible so that he could finally pay his respects. Either way, it is likely that Malhun had no control over his rule as she was not alive.

Nilüfer Hatun, mother of Murad I. Nilüfer was the first to rise from a slave to the rank of sultan's mother almost without a doubt. We know that she became Orhan's concubine after 1324, as she is not listed in a report from 1324, which mentions Orhan's other main concubines (who gave birth to children) or his wife. Nilüfer's child, Murad, was born in 1326, but the woman's first mentioning was not made until 1331 when she greeted a certain traveler named Ibn Battuta on behalf of Orhan in Nikea. Based on this and Murad's year of birth, we can calculate that Nilüfer may have been born around 1300, but rather after that. She died in 1383, so she survived the enthronement of her son. And with that, she became the first Valide Hatun in the history of the empire. She ruled for 21 years, however, we do not know much about her actions.

Gülçiçek Hatun, mother of Bayezid I. Contrary to legend, Gülçiçek was a slave, perhaps of Greek descent. It is not known when she became Murad I’s concubine, but her son was born in 1360. We don’t know much about Gülçiçek’s life, the exact number of her children. What is certain, however, is that she reached her son’s reign and during these years she had a mosque built in Bursa. With this, she became the first Valide Hatun to have a mosque built. The time of her death is not known either, so it is not clear that she was alive at the end of her son's reign when Bayezid I was captured by Timur Lenk in 1402. Gülçiçek was buried in Bursa in her own complex.

Devlet Hatun, mother of Mehmed I. Devlet was also a woman of slave origin. In her case, there is no doubt about that, as there is evidence available. She is listed in the records of one of her foundations as Daulat bint-i Abd’Allah, meaning she was the daughter of a non-Muslim and non-Turkish man. We don’t know much about her life, for there was a legal wife in Bayezid I’s life who was much better known, so Devlet didn’t really get into the spotlight. After the abduction and death of Bayezid I, the empire operated under interrgnum rule, so the sons of Bayezid divided the empire together. This ended in 1413 when Devlet's son Mehmed became monarch after defeating his brothers. However, Devlet was not able to enjoy the Valide Hatunship for long, as she died in January 1414 and was buried in Bursa, just after a year-long tenure.

Emine Hatun, Murad II's supposed mother. The identity of Murad's mother is still disputed to this day. In terms of her origins, Emine was a princess of Dulkadir, the child of an influential family. She officially married Mehmed Çelebi in 1403, when the Ottoman interregnum began. Their marriage was purely political, as Mehmed tried to gain - successfully - the support of the Dulkadir family, who eventually became key figures in his enthronement. In addition to Emine, it also arises that Murad's mother was the daughter of a family of noble descent called Şehzade Hatun. But it is also possible that an unnamed and insignificant slave was Murad's mother. We don't know when Emine or Şehzade Hatuns died.

Hüma Hatun, Mehmed II's mother. There are also many legends around Hüma, some say she was a Byzantine princess, others say she was a simple slave, but Venetian and Hungarian origins also arise. Most likely, however, Hüma was a simple slave, as her name suggests. She is mentioned in the records of one of her foundations as "Hatun bint-i Abdullah", which was one of the usual names for women of slave origin. We know very little about Hüma's life, which was not helped by the fact that her son Mehmed refused to ever talk about his mother. What is certain is that in 1343 she followed her son Mehmed to Amasya, where the sultan appointed Mehmed as governor. The next year Sultan Murad became depressed and resigned from the throne, so in 1344 Mehmed took over. At that time Hüma became Valide Hatun, but instead of the young sultan, the Grand Vizier ruled. So there was no real power in the hands of Hüma either. Then, in 1346, Sultan Murad returned, and Mehmed's brief reign came to an end. Hüma spent the next few years in Bursa, and her life from here on again was a set of question marks. Some say she died in 1449 before Mehmed could ascend the throne in 1451, others said that mother and son had arguments, which is why Hüma never followed her son to the conquested Constantinople and therefore never became Valide Hatun to her adult son.

Gülbahar Hatun, Bayezid II's mother. In the case of Gülbahar, too, a foundation document has survived, which clarifies that she was a woman of slave descent. Her origin was Greek or Albanian. In 1455/6 Bayezid was appointed by his father, Mehmed II as governor of Amasya, so Gülbahar and Bayezid traveled there and remained there until 1581 when Mehmed II died. During this time, Gülbahar was very active in Amasya. She held huge fortunes and also dealt a lot with local politics compared to her predecessors. Gülbahar was a rather strong-willed woman who certainly easily coped with the rule of the huge Old Palace after her son's accession to the throne in 1581. Her strong personality is well illustrated by one of her letters, in which she rebukes his adult son, Sultan Bayezid, for not visiting her often enough. In his letter, she writes, "My fortune, I miss you. Even if you don't miss me, I miss you ... Come and let me see you. My dear lord, if you are going on campaign soon, come once or twice at least so that I may see your fortune-favored face before you go. It's been forty days since I last saw you. My sultan, please forgive my boldness. Who else do I have beside you ... ?" Gülbahar's other letters also show that she often advised her son on political matters as well. She eventually died in 1492 after 11 years of rule and was buried in Istanbul. Gülbahar was the first Valide Hatun to rule in Istanbul and to have a significant influence on her son and politics as well.

Ayşe Gülbahar, mother of Selim I. Ayşe Gülbahar is mentioned in one of her foundation documents as "Hatun bint-i Abd-us-Samed", which was a typical mention for Christian-born Balkan and Anatolian converts. Based on this, it is probable that Ayşe Gülbahar was an Anatolian or Balkan slave who then became the concubine of Bayezid II. Ayşe Gülbahar, as I mentioned above, had high-arching eyebrows like angular hats over her dark, deep-set eyes, she shot daggers at those who prostrated in deference to her. Certainly the similar features of her son, Selim I was inherited from her. Ayşe Gülbahar gave birth to her only son Selim in 1470, with whom they lived in the harem of Bayezid until Selim became governor of Trabzon. In Trabzon, Ayşe Gülbahar had great influence, but as her son became more and more mature, she became more and more relegated to the background. Ayşe Gülbahar did not reach Selim's reign as she died in Trabzon presumably sometime before 1511. In 1514 her son, Selim had a complex built in Trabzon in memory and honor of his mother.

Valide Sultan

During his reign, Bayezid II created the title of Sultan (Sultana), which his daughters could use. Thanks to the rank of Sultan, the female members of his family rose well above the other Hatuns (women). However, Bayezid did not extend the title to his own mother, Gülbahar. Selim I's mother, Ayşe Gülbahar, died before Selim ascended the throne. Thus, in the end, it was Suleiman I who extended the title of Sultan to his mother. Thus, not only his aunts, sisters, and daughters could hold the title of Sultan, but also his mother, Ayşe Hafsa. With this, Ayşe Hafsa became the first Valide Sultan. However, this change in responsibilities did not mean anything. The Valide Sultan was still responsible for keeping the imperial harem in order after her son ascended the throne, supervising the sultan's family (concubines, children). As much as the remit remained the same, so much changed in the addressing. Previously, Valide Hatun was a respectful address for mothers, so they were already called that in the provinces. Valide Sultan, on the other hand, was clearly only a title reserved for the sultan's mother.

Murad III brought a huge change for the rank of Valide Sultan. Until then, Valide Sultan was only a respectful name for the sultan's mother, there was no official, legal title for it. By official, legal title, I mean, such as the Grand Vizier or the Chief eunuch. These positions had specific responsibilities and were not just addressing, but real titles, positions. It was Murad III who, on his accession to the throne in 1574, made the title of Valide Sultan a registered, official and legal title. This was a huge step forward for the Valide Sultan of all time. From then on, her role became official. She was not only the sultan’s mother but a person in her own right as Valide Sultan. Previously, the Valides signed their letters and foundation documents as the mother of the Sultan XY, but from then on they could sign them as the XY Valide Sultan.

The changes created by Murad III practically lasted until the end of the empire’s existence. Though the Valide Sultan over time lost the prominent influence she represented in the 16th and 17th centuries. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the power of Valides reached unprecedented levels. Due to unfit sultans, child sultans, and the evolution of the geopolitical situation, several of them were de facto or official regents. After the end o their regencies, their primary role was to keep the sultans’ harem in order, but they also paid special attention to charity and politics. In the 16th and 17th centuries, no Valide Sultan could be found without a political role.

List of Valide Sultans, supplemented by mothers who did not survive their son's reign:

Ayşe Hafsa Sultan, mother of Suleiman I. Ayşe Hafsa was the concubine of Selim I, who gave birth to at least three children. We don't know much about her early years. Hafsa was the first slave to hold the title of Sultan after her son, Suleiman, ascended the throne. The rule of Ayşe Hafsa was quite similar to her predecessor, Gülbahar. Hafsa led Suleiman’s harem in the Old Palace, creating a balance between her son’s concubines, paying attention to the well-being of her grandchildren, and doing plenty of charity. Hafsa was loved and respected by all, she was one of the most adored Valide Sultans. She was politically minimally active, had her own men, and when her son asked for her opinion, she tried to help him. However, Hafsa never wanted to overrule her son, so she didn’t even deal with politics more than necessary. She was Valide Sultan for 14 years, and after her death in 1534 she became the first slave-origin woman to receive an imperial burial. A longer biography is available at link.

Hürrem Sultan, Selim II's mother. Hürrem was a woman of Ruthenian origin who gave birth to six children to Sultan Suleiman I. Hürrem played a real form-breaking role, as she was associated with the abolition of several previous rules (one-concubine-one-son, marriage of sultans, residence of concubines) and associated with the creation of several new roles (Haseki Sultan title, harem leadership, sending princes alone to the province, etc.). However, Hürrem never saw her son Selim II to became a sultan, as he ascended the throne in 1566 and she died in 1558. A longer biography is available at link.

Nurbanu Sultan, Murad III's mother. Nurbanu was a slave of Venetian origin who then became the concubine of Selim II and gave him several children. We do not know much about her early years as she came into the public consciousness when in 1566 Selim ascended the throne. Nurbanu is a special woman in several aspcts: she was the first to hold the rank both of Haseki Sultan and Valide Sultan; and she also was a legal wife. To show his respect for his mother Murad III created a real official title out of the Valide Sultan title, making Nurbanu the first to wear it. Throughout her life, she did a lot of charity, building projects, and also had a huge influence on politics, her son asked for her opinion on everything. She was a Valide Sultan for 9 years from 1574 until her death in 1583. A longer biography is available at link.

Safiye Sultan, Mehmed III's mother. She was a concubine of Albanian descent, raised and taught by Suleiman I's granddaughter, Hümaşah Sultan. She gifted the girl to the later Murad III, with whom she had several children. Safiye reached both hell and heaven as she had a privileged status as Haseki Sultan and then was exiled and then became a legal wife. She reached the peak of her power as Valide Sultan when she ruled instead of her son Mehmed, who was unfit to rule. She was not popular at all, there were several uprisings against her persona, during which several of her supporters were executed. Safiye was the first Valide Sultan (and probably even the first Valide) to survive her sultan-son. This created an unusual situation, and it was not clear to her grandson Ahmed I what to do with his grandmother. Eventually, due to her unpopularity, Safiye was sent to the Old Palace, which has become the palace for the family of the deceased sultans so far. The influential Safiye, who had previously ruled the empire, found it difficult to bear this and felt it as an exile. It was for this reason that, in revenge, she completely damaged the Sultan's harem in Topkapi Palace, making her own return permanently impossible. Seeing her grandson and the rule of two more sultans, she finally died around 1620. A longer biography is available at link.

Handan Sultan, mother of Ahmed I. Handan was a slave of Bosnian origin who was raised and educated by Selim II's daughter, Gevherhan Sultan. Handan could not prevail at a young age as her tyrant's mother-in-law, Safiye suppressed all of Mehmed III's concubines. Handan found herself finally in the spotlight in 1603, when Mehmed died and the son of Handan, ascended the throne. The young sultan, Ahmed, was only 13 years old, so regents were needed beside him. Sultan Ahmed had two regents, his mother Handan and his teacher. Handan was an unofficially appointed regent but practically ruled instead of her son for months, attended audiences, organized political cleansing (to get rid of Safiye Sultan's men). Handan's life ended quite early, and due to her death in 1605, she became one of the shortest reigning Valide Sultans, with only 2 years of reign. At the same time, we must not forget that she was the first female regent of the empire. A longer biography is available at link.

Halime Sultan, mother of Mustafa I. Unlike Handan, Halime, who was also Mehmed III's concubine, was intolerant of Safiye Sultan's bullying and she tried to pick up the fight with her mother-in-law. Her ambitions were also shared by her son, Mahmud, who repeatedly spoke openly against his grandmother and father, the Sultan. The battle between Safiye and Halime ended in the summer of 1603, when, under pressure from Safiye, the sultan executed Mahmud. The life of  Halime was spared, but soon her other son, the toddler Mustafa was separated from her. Mustafa struggled with serious mental problems, which is why it was surprising when, after Ahmed I's death, he was finally chosen as heir. Ahmed was the first sultan not to execute his brothers when he ascended the throne, and this led to a change in the order of inheritance. From then on, it was not the sultan's son who followed the sultan on the throne, but the eldest living prince. Due to Mustafa’s tragic mental state, Halime ruled instead of him as the first official regent. In times of political instability, Mustafa was dethroned but was soon proclaimed sultan again. This made Halime the first Valide Sultan to be the Valide Sultan twice with the same son. After Mustafa's second dethronement, mother and son continued to live in isolation for many years. A longer biography is available at link.

Mahfiruz Hatun, mother of Osman II. Mahfiruz was Ahmed I's concubine, who, although was the eldest son's mother, was not Ahmed's favorite concubine. We know quite a bit about Mahfiruz's personality and actions due to her early death. Not living long enough to see her son's accession to the throne in 1618, she never became Valide Sultan. Her name also suggests this, as she was buried as Mahfiruz Hatun, not as Mahfiruz Sultan. A longer biography is available at link.

Kösem Sultan, the mother of Sultans Murad IV and Ibrahim I. Kösem, of Greek descent, found herself in a rather volatile political and geopolitical situation when her partner Ahmed I passed away. During the chaos of inheritance, she lost her eldest son, whom Osman II executed. Osman soon suffered a similar fate after being brutally murdered by rebellious Janissaries. The chaotic period ended in 1623 when Kösem's son Murad has proclaimed a sultan at just 11 years old. Kösem ruled as regent instead of him for many years, then when her son became old enough to rule, she retired. Kösem did a lot of charity during her Valide Sultanship and sought to be a political adviser to his son. Murad - not having a living son - was succeeded by his younger brother Ibrahim, who was also the son of Kösem. Ibrahim was mentally ill, like his uncle, so instead, Kösem ruled as an unofficial regent. Due to her two sons, Kösem was practically Valide Sultan from 1623 to 1648, so for 25 years. Eventually, Ibrahim was dethroned and replaced by his six-year-old son, Mehmed IV. The pashas asked the experienced Kösem Sultan to teach the young sultan and his mother Turhan Hatice to rule. And until then they asked Kösem to rule as a regent again. However, she acted differently and began to rule violently. This ended with her execution in 1651. She was the first and only Valide Sultan to be executed. A longer biography is available at link.

Turhan Hatice Sultan, Mehmed IV's mother. Turhan, of Russian descent, had a rather difficult youth as the concubine of the mentally ill Ibrahim I. The difficult period finally ended in 1651, when Turhan became the official regent to her son. She performed this task for only a few years and then handed over power to the Grand-Vizier. Throughout Turhan's life, she was politically very active, her son regularly sought his mother's opinion, and many times Turhan ruled by herself as her son did not like to rule. During her life, Turhan defended with all her might his foster sons, whom Mehmed wanted to execute at one point in his reign. Turhan Hatice was a truly respected and beloved Valide Sultan, who did a lot of charity and also carried out monumental constructions during her long reign. She was the longest reigning Valide, having held office for 32 years. At her death in 1683, the whole empire mourned and the people believed that the empire had lost its last strong and stable pillar. Unfortunately, they were right, Turhan's son was soon dethroned because he was unable to rule properly without his mother's advices. A longer biography of Turhan Hatice is available at: link.

Saliha Dilşub Sultan, Suleiman II's mother. Saliha Dilaşub, like Turhan and Ibrahim I’s other concubines, experienced rather confusing times in her youth. It is likely that Kösem Sultan wanted to use her and her son during a coup against Mehmed IV and Turhan Hatice in 1651. The coup was unsuccessful, Kösem Sultan was executed, however, Mehmed and his mother forgave Saliha and her son Suleiman. Moreover, Turhan protected Saliha's son throughout her life. Saliha Dilaşub lived in the Old Palace for almost forty years, separated from her son during the whole reign of Mehmed IV. Finally, after the dethronement of Mehmed in 1687, Saliha was able to leave the Old Palace to became a Valide Sultan to her son. Unfortunately, however, she did not enjoy this for long, as she died only after 2.5 years of rule. Her reign thus remained relatively gray, and although her philanthropy is known, she did not have time to activate herself politically. A longer biography is available at link.

Hatice Muazzez Sultan, Ahmed II's mother. Along with Saliha Dilaşub and Turhan, Muazzez was also the concubine of Ibrahim I and had a rather hard youth. We know very little about Muazzez's life, presumably, she had a daughter besides Ahmed. She spent 40 years in the Old Palace. During Mehmed’s reign, she barely met her son Ahmed. In September of 1687, a huge fire destroyed the Old Palace, and Muazzez, fearing the fire had a heart attack and died a few days later. Barely two months after her death, Saliha Dilaşub, who was "imprisoned" along with her, was able to leave the Old Palace, as her son Suleiman II became the sultan. Muazzez's son Ahmed II succeeded Suleiman in 1691. A longer biography is available at link.

Emetullah Rabia Gülnüş Sultan, mother of Mustafa II and Ahmed III. She was a woman of Greek descent who from a slave became the last influential woman of the Sultanate of Women. She was both a Haseki and Valide Sultan in her life, so she held the two most important titles of the era. In her youth, she had a huge influence as a favorite and was very active politically. When her partner, Mehmed IV was dethroned, Emetullah was forced into the Old Palace, which she could only leave in 1694, when she became a Valide Sultan to her son Mustafa II. She raised her former influence to even higher levels, having an amazing influence on political life and her son. Unfortunately, this aroused the disapproval of the pashas. Finally, her son was dethroned in 1703, and also Mustafa soon died of natural causes. Emetullah mourned her son and then, learning from her mistakes, throughout the reign of Ahmed III's, she remained in the background and worked closely with the pashas. Lots of charities, construction can be linked to her. Due to her two sons' reigns, she was a Valide Sultan for a total of 20 years. A longer biography is available at link.

Saliha Sultan, mother of Mahmud I. She was a woman of Serbian descent. As the concubine of Sultan Mustafa II, she had no prominent influence but had the opportunity to learn a lot from her mother-in-law, Emetullah Rabia Gülnüş. She gave birth to her son in 1696, and soon after, in 1703, Mustafa was dethroned and so she moved to the Old Palace. There, however, she did not accept her exile, she constantly was building relationships. In 1730 she was finally could leave Old Palace as her son, Mahmud I, ascended the throne. She was a Valide Sultan for 9 years and similarly to her predecessor, Emetullah Rabia Gülnüş, she gained amazing power. Everyone was trying to get into her graces to ensure their own advancement. They tried to win over the influential Valide with gifts. During her tenure, she embarked on several smaller construction projects, so there are several fountains she built in Istanbul. One such is the Azapkapı Saliha Sultan Fountain, the most beautiful water architectural monument in Istanbul.

Şehsuvar Sultan, mother of Osman III. She was the concubine of Mustafa II, but she could enjoy the spotlight for only a short period. Her child was born in 1699, and in 1703 she found herself in the Old Palace after the dethronement of Mustafa II. Like Saliha, Şehsuvar could no longer raise her son as the princes were taken to Topkapi Palace. Finally, in 1754, she was able to find herself on her son's side again when Osman became the new sultan of the empire. Osman, who had barely been able to meet his mother for decades, refused to immediately hold the coronation ceremony, as he only wanted to spend three days with his mother. Şehsuvar's reign was quite short, as she was a Valide Sultan for only 1.5 years. She died in 1756. No political, charitable or construction projects took place during this time. In some political cases, however, her role is possible, so she cannot be considered completely politically inactive.

Mihrişah Kadın, was Mustafa III's mother. She was the concubine of Ahmed III, and gave birth to three sons with quite large age differences (1710, 1717, 1728). After the dethronement of Ahmed III in 1730, Mihrişah was moved to the Old Palace, where she died two years later, 25 years before her son's accession. During her lifetime, she had some minor construction projects though she could never have been Valide Sultan.

Rabia Şermi Kadın, mother of Abdul Hamid I. Şermi was Ahmed III's concubine, with whom she had only one child, in 1725, Abdul Hamid. Şermi died in 1732, more than 40 years before her son accession. During her short life she could not leave a deep mark on history, she only had a single fountain built. Her son later named one of his children, Rabia, in her honor, but the little girl died shortly after her birth.

Mihrişah Sultan, Selim III's mother. Mihrişah was the concubine of Mustafa III. It is an interesting coincidence that Mustafa's mother was also called Mihrişah. The beautiful Georgian slave became the concubine of Mustafa in 1757. She had three children, but only Selim reached adulthood, as her two daughters died as infants. We don't know much about her youth, but she certainly had great wealth even then, because according to surviving documents, the sultan himself owed to her. After the sudden death of her partner in 1774, she was exiled to the Old Palace, from where she could only return 15 years later when her son Selim ascended the throne. Mihrişah was a Valide Sultan for 16 years alongside Selim. During these years, she strongly supported her son’s innovations. The renovation of the harem of Topkapi Palace can be linked to her name, but she also had several construction projects. Mihrişah and her son were very close to each other, they discussed everything and according to some Selim visited his mother every morning. Regardless, Mihrişah did not use her influence, did not interfere in politics, but rather spent her time in religion and charity. She died in 1805.

Sineperver Sultan, Mustafa IV's mother. In 1774 she became Abdul Hamid's concubine and in 1779 gave birth to her son. So far, Sineperver has buried a son. Because of the tragic memory, she asked for prayers for Mustafa's health after his birth and she paid the debt of prisoner so they could be released. Her prayers were heard, Mustafa reached adulthood, so did Sineperver’s daughter, Esma Sultan. Her other daughter, Fatma, on the other hand, died as her first child, Ahmed. In 1789 Abdul Hamid died and Sineperver moved to the Old Palace. She was able to leave it in 1807, when her son, Mustafa IV became sultan. Unfortunately, Mustafa's reign was rather short, he sat on the throne for barely 1 year, then he was dethroned and soon executed. Sineperver dedicated her remaining years to her only living child, Esma Sultan. She died in 1828.

Nakşidil Sultan, Mahmud II's mother. For a long time there was a theory that she was a distant relative of Josephine, Napoleon's wife. But it has now been proven that she was a slave of Georgian descent. She gave birth to her son Mahmud in 1785 as the concubine of Abdul Hamid. Unfortunatelly Abdul Hamid died in 1789 and Nakşidil moved to the Old Palace. In 1808 her stepson, Mustafa IV ascended the throne. He then executed his predecessor Selim III and also sent assassins against Nakşidil's son Mahmud. Nakşidil hid her son, so he survived and soon became a sultan in a coup. In return for Mustafa IV's attempted murder, Mahmud executed his half-brother immediately after his accession to the throne. Nakşidil moved back to Topkapi Palace during a huge ceremony. She was the last Valide to travel from the Old Palace to Topkapi in such way. One reason for this was that the dynasty began to favor other imperial palaces over Topkapi. (Actually it was Nakşidil whose idea was to change palace.) In the early years of Mahmud’s reign, he regularly consulted with his mother. The Valide Sultan did a lot of charity and also had smaller to larger construction projects. Nakşidil was a Valide Sultan for 9 years since she died of tuberculosis in 1817. Her son Mahmud, her daughter-in-law, Bezmialem and her grandson Abdulmejid also died of this disease.

Bezmialem Sultan, mother of Abdulmejid I. The woman of Georgian descent became Mahmud II's concubine in 1822. Bezmialem was raised by Mahmaud II’s half-sister, Sineperver’s daughter, Esma Sultan. Maybe that’s where her sophistication and intelligence comes from. In 1823, she gave birth to her only child, Abdulmejid. In 1839 Mahmud died and Abdulmejid became sultan. After her son's accession, Bezmialem ruled as Valide Sultan for 14 years. Abdulmejid was only 16 years old when he ascended the throne, so his mother helped him a lot in the early years. There was a very close link between mother and son, often corresponding with each other, letters never written by secretaries but by themselves, with their own hands. When the sultan left the capital, he always made his mother the head of the capital for the duration of his absence. Bezmialem was a dedicated philanthropist that the people loved immensely. She also made her construction projects known as well as her political influence. Bezmialem died of tuberculosis in 1853. Her son was shocked after hearing the news. After the death of his mother, the sultan spent an astonishing amount of money on the funeral.

Pertevniyal Sultan, mother of Abdulaziz. She gave birth to her only child, Abdulaziz in 1830 after becoming a concubine of Mahmud II. She was either Kurdish or Romanian descent. After Mahmud's death in 1839, Abdulaziz's brother Abdulmejid ascended the throne. Then in 1861 Abdulmejid also died and Abdulaziz followed. Pertevniyal was Valide Sultan for 15 years, during which time she gained amazing influence and wealth. She had unlimited power on her son, which she regularly used to influence the ruler. During her reign she repeatedly hosted influential guests in the harem. One such occasion almost ended in a diplomatic scandal as she slapped the French guest. However, in addition to her strong and sudden nature, she did a lot of charity and built. Pertevniyal's son was dethroned in 1876 and locked up in Topkapi Palace. A similar fate awaited Pertevniyal. Abdulaziz couldn't stand the confinement and cut his veins with scissors. The possibility of murder also arose, but all doctors who examined Abdulaziz's body ruled out this. Pertevniyal was shocked. The ascension of Abdul Hamid brought some relief for her as he loved Pertevniyal very much and he took care of the woman. For the rest of Pertevniyal's life, she retired and raised, taught children entrusted to her care. She died in 1884.

Şevkefza Sultan, mother of Murad V. She, a Georgian woman became Abdulmejid's concubine in 1839. In 1840 she gave birth to her son, Murad, who was soon followed by a little girl who died early. Şevkefza is a relatively gray character in history, having been Valide Sultan for only 3 months as her son was very quickly dethroned because of his mental condition. After Murad V's dethronement in 1876, Şevkefza wanted to put her son back on the throne in a coup, but Murad showed no interest. Şevkefsa finally died in 1889 from some kind of neck cancer.

Tirimüjgan Kadın, mother of Abdul Hamid II. She was a beautiful woman of Armenian descent who became a consort of Sultan Abdulmejid in 1839. Her son Abdul Hamid was born in 1842. Beside him, she had two other children, but they died early. Tirimüjgan was a woman with poor health, though she nevertheless tried to give everything to her son. She was finally died in 1852. She entrusted her son to Nergisnihal Hanım, one of her servants, who remained with Abdul Hamid for the rest of his life. In addition, Tirimüjgan was close to the Sultan's other concubine, Perestu, so that the Sultan eventually left Abdul Hamid to Perestu's care. Perestu had already raised another orphaned child, Cemile Sultan, as she had no children of her own. Cemile and Abdul Hamid eventually grew up in the same household. When Abdul Hamid became Sultan in 1876, he nominally gave Perestu the rank of Valide Sultan, making her the last great Valide of the empire. Abdul Hamid nicely asked Perestu not to interfere in politics, which she agreed happyly. Perestu's life was charity as she was a kind nature who was not a fan of politics anyway. She died in 1904 after 28 years of rule.

Gülcemal Kadın, mother of Mehmed V. She was a woman of Bosnian descent who had three children from Abdulmejid. She died of tuberculosis in 1851, and her children were raised by Servetseza Kadın. Mehmed ascended the throne in 1909, but Servetseza did not survive until that day because in 1878 she died.

Gülüstü Hanım, Mehmed VI's mother. Gülüstü came from an Abkhazian noble family and became the concubine of Sultan Abdulmejid in 1854, and in 1861 she gave birth to her second child, a son, Mehmed. Not much time was given to her and her children, having died out of cholera in 1865. Her little daughter was entrusted to the care of Verdicenan Kadın, and Mehmed was raised by Şayeste Hanım. Şayeste was also a descendant of an Abkhaz noble family, but she had a hard time coming out with Mehmed. Mehmed left his foster mother's mansion at the age of 16 with three if his faithful servants. Although the relationship between the two of them was not perfect, Mehmed later took care of Şayeste because he was grateful to her for raising him. Mehmed became sultan in 1918, while Şayeste died in 1912, so she never became Valide. However, judging by the relationship between the two of them, probably she would not have been a Valide even if she was still alive when Mehmed ascended the throne.

List of the Valides based on their tenure:

Turhan Hatice Sultan 34 years 11 months 2 days

Rahime Perestu Sultan 28 years 3 months 11 days 

Kösem Sultan 24 years 10 months 29 days 

Nilüfer Hatun 21 years 

Emetullah Rabia Gülnüş 20 years 9 months 

Mihrişah Sultan 15 years 6 months 9 days 

Pertevniyal Sultan 14 years 11 months 5 days 

Bezmialem Sultan 13 years 10 months 

 Ayşe Hafsa Sultan 13 years 5 months 19 days 

Gülbahar Hatun 11 years 

Nakşidil Sultan 9 years 25 days 

Saliha Sultan 9 years 1 day 

Nurbanu Sultan 8 years 11 months 23 days 

Safiye Sultan 8 years 11 months 7 days 

Gülçiçek Hatun 3 years 1 month 4 days 

Dilaşub 2 years 1 month 27 days 

Hüma 2 years 1 month 

Handan Sultan 1 year 10 months 18 days 

Halime Sultan 1 year 6 months 26 days 

Şehsuvar 1 year 4 months 

Sineperver Sultan 1 year 1 month 29 days

Devlet Hatun 6 months 18 days 

Şevkefza Sultan 3 months 1 say

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

A Valide rang a mindenkori szultán édesanyjának rangja volt. Azonban ez a logikusnak tűnő titulus is rengeteg változáson ment át a szultánátus évszázadai során. Ezen posztomban szeretném bemutatni ezt a változást és megismertetni az szultánok édesanyját I. Oszmántól az utolsó szultán VI. Mehmed édesanyjáig.

Valide Hatun

A korai évszázadokban a Valide Sultan titulus még nem létezett, helyette a Valide Hatun volt használatban. A Valide gyakorlatilag az édesanya megszólítása, a Hatun pedig az asszonyok tiszteletteljes megszólítása volt, gyakorlatilag olyasmi, mint az "Asszonyom". Így a Valide Hatunt már akkor Valide Hatunnak hívták gyakorta, mikor fia még nem volt szultán, csupán provincia irányítója. A Valide Hatun feladata már jóval azelőtt elkezdődött, hogy fia trónra lépett volna. Ekkoriban még csak egyszerű ágyasok voltak ezek a nők, akik a szultán háremében éltek. Ez idő alatt gyermekeik ellátása és nevelése volt az elsődleges felataduk, majd később egyetlen fiukat (nem lehetett több fiuk az egy ágyas - egy fiú törvény miatt) elkísérték annak kijelölt provinciájába. A provinciában a Valide Hatun feladata volt, hogy a fiatal herceg udvartartását kézben tartsa és elkezdje fia háremének kialakítását, az ágyasokat és unokákat fegyelmezze. Amennyiben voltak lánygyermekei a Valide Hatunnak, akkor ők is anyjukkal és öccsükkel tartottak a kijelölt provinciába.

A Valide Hatun egyébként pozíciójának csúcsán akkor volt, míg fia ifjú volt, így annak provinciájában viszonylagos szabadsággal foglalkozhatott mindenféle ügyekkel. Erre remek példa egy I. Szelim édesanyjáról, Ayşe Gülbahar Hatunról írt beszámoló. Ayşe Gülbahar hetente tartott audienciát Trabzonban, Szelim provinciális posztján, ahol mindenki hatalmas tisztelettel hallgatta szavait. Ahogy aztán Szelim egyre idősebb lett és egyre jobban beletanult az uralkodásba, anyja mind inkább háttérbe szorult. Ugyanígy volt ez természetesen az összes többi Valide Hatunnal is.

Mikor fiuk trónra lépett a Valide Hatun feladata lett, hogy a háremet irányítsa, rendben tartsa. Politikai befolyásuk nem volt, néhány kivételes esetet leszámítva. Természetesen feladataik mellett a Valide Hatunok rengeteget jótékonykodtak és amennyiben volt rá idejük, építkezési projekteket is létrehoztak. Gyakorlatilag a jótékonykodás és építkezés onnantól kezdve jogukban állt, hogy fiukat elkísérték provinciába. Emiatt van az, hogy a legtöbb majdani Valide Hatunnak fia egykori provinciájában van építkezése.

Természetesen ahogy az idő haladt a Valide Hatun feladatai is nehezedtek. Korábban az Oszmán Birodalom is kisebb volt, a főváros és a szultáni palota is szerényebb volt, így a háremet is relatíve könnyű volt rendben tartani. Konstantinápoly elfoglalása után azonban a hatalmas Régi Palota lett a szultán háremének otthona, ami egy valódi kis város volt a városban (bővebben itt olvashattok róla). Párhuzamosan a Régi Palotába költözéssel a Valide Hatun politikai befolyása is egyre növekedett. És szépen lassan a Valide hatalmának csúcsa is áthelyeződött. Többé már nem a provinciákban élhették meg a legbefolyásosabb időszakukat, hanem a fővárosban, fiuk uralma alatt.

A de facto and klasszikus Valide Hatunok listája, kiegészítve azokkal az anyákkal, akik nem érték meg fiuk uralmát:

Halime Hatun, I. Oszmán feltételezett édesanyja. Sok a róla keringő legenda, így néhányan azt állítják, hogy Szeldzsuk hercegnő volt, azonban nincs erre utaló bizonyíték. Valószínűbb, hogy egyszerű közember volt, vagy egy befolyásosabb család gyermeke. Az ekkori bégek, uralkodók ugyanis nem volt jellemző, hogy rabszolgákkal házasodtak volna vagy a klasszikus értelemben vett háremet tartottak volna. Nem tudunk semmit Halime életéről, arról, hogy hány gyermeke volt, mikor született, mikor halt meg... Még az sem bizonyos, hogy ő volt I. Oszmán édesanyja.

Malhun Hatun, I. Orhan édesanyja. I. Orhan volt az első klasszikus értelemben vett szultán, ám még ő is átmenetet képezett a valódi szultánátus és a korábbi törzsi rendszer között. Malhun Hatun egyesek szerint befolyásos törzsből származott, mások szerint egy sejk lánya volt. Akárhogy is, bizonyosan I. Oszmán hites felesége volt és ő adott életet a későbbi I. Orhannak. Őt tartják az Oszmán Birodalom és az Oszmán család anyjának. Születési ideje, gyermekeinek  pontos száma nem ismert, ám azt tudjuk, hogy 1323-ban halt meg. Erre utal legalábbis, hogy fia 1324-ben építtetett tiszteletére komplexumot. Mivel ez a dátum egybe esik Orhan uralkodásának kezdetével, az sem zárható ki, hogy Malhun jóval előbb elhunyt. Lehetséges, hogy egyszerűen fiának - lévén nem volt még uralkodó - nem volt lehetősége adózni anyja emléke előtt. Így végül trónra lépése után tudott leghamarabb belefogni egy komplexum építésbe, hogy végre leróhassa tiszteletét. Akárhogy is, valószínűsíthető, hogy Malhun, fia uralmát nem, vagy alig érte meg. Ebben az értelemben pedig ő sem viselhette a Valide Hatun rangot.

Nilüfer Hatun, I. Murad édesanyja. Nilüfer volt az első, aki szinte minden kétséget kizáróan rabszolgasorból emelkedett a szultán anyjának rangjára. Mindemellett azt is tudjuk róla, hogy 1324 után lett Orhan ágyasa, ugyanis nem szerepel egy 1324-es jegyzékben, mely említi Orhan többi fő ágyasát (akik gyermeket szültek a szultánnak) vagy feleségét. Nilüfer gyermeke, Murad 1326-ban született, ám a nő első feltételezett említésére csupán 1331-ben került sor, mikoris egy bizonyos Ibn Battuta nevű utazót üdvözölt Orhan nevében Nikeában. Ez alapján és Murad születési éve alapján úgy kalkulálhatunk, hogy Nilüfer 1300 körül születhetett, de inkább utána. 1383-ban hunyt el, bőven megérve fia szultánná avanzsálását. Ezzel pedig ő lett az első Valide Hatun a birodalom történetében. 21 évig uralkodott, azonban nem tudunk sokat cselekedeteiről.

Gülçiçek Hatun, I. Bayezid édesanyja. A legendákkal ellentétben Gülçiçek rabszolga volt, talán görög származású. Nem tudni mikor vált I. Murad ágyasává, de fia a későbbi I. Bayezid 1360-ban született. Nem sokat tudunk Gülçiçek életéről, gyermekeinek pontos számáról. Az azonban bizonyos, hogy megérte fia uralkodását és ezen évek során építtetett egy mecsetet Bursa városában. Ezzel pedig ő lett az első Valide Hatun, aki mecsetet építtetett. Halálának ideje sem ismert, így az sem világos, hogy megérte e fia uralmának végét. I. Bayezidet ugyanis 1402-ben elkapta Timur Lenk és az ő fogságában hunyt el hamarosan. Gülçiçeket saját komplexumában helyezték örök nyugalomra Bursában.

Devlet Hatun, I. Mehmed édesanyja. Devlet szintén rabszolga származású asszony volt. Esetében ehhez kétség sem fér, hiszen bizonyítékok állnak rendelkezésre. Egy alapítványának irataiban úgy szerepel, mint Daulat bint-i Abd'Allah, ami annyit jelent, hogy egy nem muszlim és nem türk férfi lánya volt. Nem sokat tudunk életéről, ugyanis I. Bayezid életében jelen volt egy hites feleség, aki jóval ismertebb volt, így Devlet nem jutott igazán a reflektorfénybe. I. Bayezid elrablása majd halála után a birodalom interrgnum kormányzásban működött, tehát Bayezid fiai megosztva a birodalmat együtt uralkodtak. Ennek 1413-ban lett vége, mikor Devlet fia, Mehmed testvéreit legyőzbe egyeduralkodó lett. Devlet nem sokáig élvezhette azonban a Valide Hatun rangot, ugyanis 1414 januárjában halt meg és Bursában temették el, mindössze 1 év Valideség után.

Emine Hatun, II. Murad feltételezett édesanyja. II. Murad anyjának kiléte a mai napig vitatott. Származását tekintve Emine egy Dulkadir hercegnő volt, befolyásos család gyermeke. 1403-ban ment hivatalosan is feleségül Mehmed Çelebihez, mikor az Oszmán interregnum elkezdődött. Házasságuk tisztán politikai volt, ugyanis Mehmed így próbálta megszerezni - sikeresen - a Dulkadir család támogatását, akik végül kulcsfigurái lettek szultánná válásában. Emine mellett felmerül az is, hogy II. Murad anyja egy Şehzade nevű szintén nemesi származású család lánya volt. De az sem kizárt, hogy egy névtelen és jelentéktelen rabszolga volt Murad anyja. Nem tudjuk, hogy Emine mikor hunyt el.

Hüma Hatun, II. Mehmed édesanyja. Hüma körül is sok a legenda, egyesek szerint bizánci hercegnő volt, mások szerint egyszerű rabszolga, de a velencei és magyar származás is felmerül. A legvalószínűbb azonban, hogy Hüma egyszerű rabszolga volt, erre utal ugyanis neve és az, hogy egyik alapítványának irataiban "Hatun binti Abdullah" néven szerepel, ami a rabszolga eredetű ágyasok egyik megszokott megnevezése volt. Hüma életéről nagyon keveset tudunk, melyen az a tény sem segített, hogy fia II. Mehmed elutasította, hogy valaha is anyjáról beszéljen. Annyi bizonyos, hogy 1343-ban követte fiát, Mehmedet Amasyába, ahová a szultán nevezte ki Mehmedet mint helytartót. A következő évben II. Murad szultán depressziós lett és lemondott a trónról, így 1344-ben Mehmed vette át a feladatait. Ekkor Hüma Valide Hatun lett ugyan, de a fiatal szultán helyett elsősorban a nagyvezír uralkodott. Így pedig nem volt valódi hatalom Hüma kezében. 1346-ban aztán Murad szultán visszatért, és Mehmed rövid uralmának vége szakadt. Hüma a következő éveket Bursában töltötte, élete innentől pedig újra kérdőjelek halmaza. Egyesek szerint 1449-ben meghalt mielőtt Mehmed trónra léphetett volna 1451-ben, mások szerint anya és fia összekülönböztek, emiatt nem követte Hüma sosem fiát az időközben elfoglalt Konstantinápolyba és emiatt nem lett sohasem Valide Hatun felnőtt fia mellett.

Gülbahar Hatun, II. Bayezid édesanyja. Gülbahar esetében is fenn maradt egy alapítványi okirat, ami egyértelműsíti, hogy rabszolga származású nő volt. Esetében felmerül a görög vagy albán származás is. 1455/6-ban Bayezidet édesapja kinevezte Amasya kormányzójává, így Gülbahar és Bayezid oda utaztak és ott is maradtak 1581-ig, II. Mehmed haláláig. Ezidő alatt Gülbahar igen sokat tevékenykedett Amasyában. Hatalmas vagyonokat tartott kezében és elődeihez képest sokat foglalkozott a helyi politikával is. Gülbahar meglehetősen erőskezű nő volt, aki minden bizonnyal könnyedén megbírkózott a hatalmas Régi Palota irányításával fia 1581-es trónralépése után. Erős személyiségét jól mutatja egyik levele, melyben fiát - a már szultán Bayezidet - korholja, amiért az nem látogatja meg elég gyakran. Levelében így ír: "Mindenem, hiányzol. Ha én nem is hiányzom neked, te nagyon hiányzol nekem... Gyere, látogass meg, hadd lássalak. Drága uram, hamarosan hadjáratra mész, kérlek gyere előtte egyszer-kétszer, hogy lássam drága arcodat mielőtt elhagyod a várost. Már negyven napja nem láttalak. Drága szultánom, bocsásd meg nyersségem, de kim van nekem rajtad kívül...?" Gülbahar más leveleiből kitűnik az is, hogy gyakran adott tanácsot fiának politikai ügyekben is. Végül 1492-ben halt meg 11 évnyi uralkodás után és Isztambulban temették el. Gülbahar volt az első Valide Hatun, aki Isztambulban uralkodhatott és akinek jelentős befolyása volt fiára és a politikára is.

Ayşe Gülbahar, I. Szelim édesanyja. Ayşe Gülbahar egyik alapítványi okiratában "Hatun binti Abd-us-Samed" néven szerepel, ami tipikus említés volt a keresztény származású balkáni és anatóliai áttértek számára. Ez alapján valószínűsíthető, hogy Ayşe Gülbahar anatóliai vagy balkáni rabszolga volt, aki aztán II. Bayezid ágyasa lett. Ayşe Gülbaharról, ahogy fentebb is említettem feljegyezték, hogy hegyesen ívelt fekete szemöldöke volt, mélyen ülő fekete szemekkel, amelyeknek egyetlen pillantásával ölni tudott, ha valaki felbosszantotta. Minden bizonnyal tőle örökölte ezen tulajdonságát I. Szelim. Ayşe Gülbahar 1470-ben adott életet fiának, Szelimnek, akivel Bayezid háremében éltek egészen addig, míg Szelim nem lett Trabzon kormányzója. Trabzonban Ayşe Gülbahar nagy befolyással bírt, ám ahogy fia egyre jobban beletanult az uralkodásba, egyre inkább háttérbe szorult. Ayşe Gülbahar nem érte meg Szelim uralkodását, még Trabzonban meghalt feltehetőleg 1511 előtt valamikor. 1514-ben fia, Szelim Trabzonban építtetett egy komplexumot anyja emlékére és tiszteletére.

Valide Sultan

II. Bayezid uralkodása során - nem teljesen tisztázott, hogy mikor - létrehozta a Sultan (szultána) titulust, melyet lányai használhattak. A szultána rangnak köszönhetően családjának nő tagjai is jóval a többi Hatun (asszony) fölé emelkedtek. A titulust azonban Bayezid nem terjesztette ki saját édesanyjára, Gülbaharra. I. Szelim édesanyja, Ayşe Gülbahar pedig azelőtt elhunyt, mielőtt Szelim trónra lépett volna. Így végül I. Szulejmán volt az, aki kiterjesztette a szultána titulust édesanyjára is. Így nem csak nővérei, húgai és lányai viselhették a szultána rangot, de édesanyja, Ayşe Hafsa is. Ezzel Ayşe Hafsa lett az első Valide Sultan. A feladatkörökben ez a változás nem jelentett azonban semmit. A Valide Sultan feladata volt fia trónra lépése után a birodalmi hárem rendben tartása, a szultán családjára (ágyasai, gyermekei) való felügyelés. Amennyire változatlan maradt a feladatkör, annyira változott meg a megszólítás. Korábban a Valide Hatun az anyák tiszteletteljes megszólítása volt, így már a provinciákban is így szólították őket. A Valide Sultan viszont egyértelműen csak a szultán anyjának fenntartott megszólítás volt.

Hatalmas változást hozott III. Murad uralma a Valide Sultan rang számára. Addig ugyanis a Valide Sultan csupán egy tiszteletteljes megnevezése volt a szultán anyjának, nem volt hivatalos, bejegyzett titulus. Hivatalos, bejegyzett titulus alapján azt értem, mint amilyen például a Nagyvezír vagy a Fő eunuch volt. Ezek a tisztségek meghatározott feladatkörrel bírtak és nem csak megszólítások voltak, hanem valódi titulusok, tisztségek. III. Murad volt az, aki 1574-es trónralépésekor a Valide Sultan titulust egy bejegyzett, hivatalos ranggá tette. Ez hatalmas előrelépés volt a mindenkori Valide Sultan számára. Innentől szerepe hivatalossá vált, nem csupán a szultán anyja volt, hanem saját jogán Valide Sultan. Korábban a Validék leveleiket, alapítványi irataikat úgy jegyezték, mint a XY szultán anyja, innentől kezdve azonban XY Valide Sultanként írhatták alá.

A III. Murad által létrehozott változások gyakorlatilag a birodalom fennállásának végéig megmaradtak. Ugyanakkor a Valide Sultan idővel elveszítette azt a kiemelt befolyást, amit a 16. és 17. században képviselt. A 16. és 17. században ugyanis a Validék hatalma sosem látott szinteket ért el. Az alkalmatlan szultánok, a gyermek szultánok és a geopolitikai helyzet alakulása miatt többük volt de facto vagy klasszikus értelemben vett régens. Régensségük lejárta után, alapvető szerepük továbbra is fiuk háremének rendben tartása volt, ám emellett kiemelt figyelmet szenteltek a jótékonykodás és politika felé. A 16. és 17. században nem találni olyan Valide Sultant, akinek ne lett volna politikai szerepe.

A Valide Sultan rang viselőinek listája, kiegészítve azokkal az anyákkal, akik nem érték meg fiuk uralmát:

Ayşe Hafsa Sultan, I. Szulejmán édesanyja. Ayşe Hafsa I. Szelim ágyasa volt, aki legalább három gyermeknek adott életet. Korai éveiről nem tudunk sokat. Hafsa volt az első rabszolga, aki a szultána rangot viselhette, mikor fia, Szulejmán trónralépése után ezt engedélyezte neki. Ayşe Hafsa uralma meglehetősen hasonlított nagynevű elődjéhez, Gülbaharéhoz. Hafsa irányította Szulejmán háremét a Régi Palotában, egyensúlyt teremtett fia ágyasai között, odafigyelt unokái jólétére és rengeteget jótékonykodott. Hafsát mindenki szerette és tisztelte, ő volt az egyik legimádottabb Valide Sultana. Politikailag minimálisan volt aktív, megvoltak a saját emberei, és ha fia kikérte véleményét, igyekezett segíteni őt. Azonban Hafsa sosem akarta felülbírálni fiát, emiatt nem is foglalkozott a szükségesnél többet a politikával. 14 évig lehetett Valide Sultan fia mellett, és ő lett az első rabszolga eredetű személy, aki birodalmi temetést kapott 1534-es halála után. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Hürrem Sultan, II. Szelim édesanyja. Hürrem ruténiai származású nő volt, aki hat gyermeket szült a szultánnak, I. Szulejmánnak. Hürrem igazi formabontó szerepet töltött be, hiszen envéhez fűződik több korábbi szabály megszűnése (egy ágyas - egy fiú, szultánok házassága, ágyasok lakhelye) és új szerepkörök betöltése (Haseki Sultan rang, hárem vezetés, fiai egyedül provinciába küldése stb). Ugyanakkor Hürrem sosem érte meg, hogy fia II. Szelim 1566-ban trónra lépjen, mert 1558-ban elhunyt. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Nurbanu Sultan, III. Murad édesanyja. Nurbanu velencei származású rabszolgából lett ágyas volt, aki több gyermekkel ajándékozta meg II. Szelimet. Korai éveiről nem tudunk sokat, akkor került be a köztudatba, mikor 1566-ban II. Szelim trónra lépett. Nurbanu több szempontból véve is különleges nő: ő volt az első, aki egyszerre viselhette a Haseki Sultan rangot és lehetett hites felesége a szultánnak, majd férje halálával, fia tróra lépésével Valide Sultan is lett. Hogy anyja iránti tiszteletét megmutassa III. Murad valódi hivatalos titulust kreált a Valide Sultan rangból, így Nurbanu lett ennek első viselője. Élete során rengeteget jótékonykodott, építtetett és a politikára is hatalmas befolyása volt, fia mindenben kikérte véleményét. 1574-től haláláig, 1583-ig, tehát 9 évig volt Valide Sultan. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Safiye Sultan, III. Mehmed édesanyja. Albán származású ágyas volt, akit I. Szulejmán unokája, Hümaşah Sultan nevelt és taníttatott ki. Ő ajándékozta a lányt a későbbi III. Muradnak, akinek több gyermeket is szült. Safiye ifjú korában megjárta a mennyet és poklot, volt kiemelt státuszú Haseki Sultan és volt száműzött asszony is, majd hites feleség. Hatalmának csúcsát Valide Sultanként érte el, amikor gyakorlatilag fia, a meglehetősen alkalmatlan III. Mehmed helyett uralkodott. Egyáltalán nem volt népszerű Valide, több felkelés is történt személye ellen, mely felkelések során több kegyeltjét is kivégezték. Safiye volt az első Valide Sultan (sőt valószínűleg az első Valide), aki túlélte fiát. Ezzel pedig szokatlan helyzet állt elő, unokája I. Ahmed számára nem volt egyértelmű, mihez kezdjen nagyanyjával. Végül népszerűtlensége miatt Safiyét a Régi Palotába küldték, ami az elhalálozott szultánok családjának helyt adó palota lett eddigre. A korábban a birodalmat irányító, befolyásos Safiye nehezen viselte ezt és száműzetésként élte meg. Épp emiatt bosszúból teljesen megrongálta a szultán Topkapi Palotában található háremét, amivel végleg ellehetetlenítette saját visszatérését. Unokáját és még két szultán uralmát megtapasztalva, 1620 körül hunyt el. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Handan Sultan, I. Ahmed édesanyja. Handan bosnyák származású rabszolga volt, akit egy született szultána, II. Szelim leánya, Gevherhan Sultan nevelt és taníttatott. Handan fiatal korában nem érvényesülhetett, zsarnok anyósa, Safiye ugyanis elnyomta III. Mehmed összes ágyasát. Handan végül 1603-ban került a reflektorfénybe, mikoris III. Mehmed meghalt és örököse, Handan fia lépett trónra. Az ifjú szultán, Ahmed csupán 13 éves volt, így szükség volt régensekre is mellette. Ahmed szultánnak két régense volt, édesanyja Handan és tanítója. Handan nem hivatalosan kinevezett régens volt, ám gyakorlatilag hónapkig fia helyett uralkodott, meghallgatásokon vett részt, politikai tisztogatást szervezett (hogy megszabaduljon Safiye Sultan embereitől). Handan élete meglehetősen korán véget ért, 1605-ös halála miatt az egyik legrövidebb ideig uralkodó Valide Sultan lett, mindössze 2 évnyi uralkodással. Ugyanakkor nem felejthetjük el, hogy ő volt az első női régense a birodalomnak. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Halime Sultan, I. Musztafa édesanyja. Handannal ellentétben, Halime, aki szintén III. Mehmed ágyasa volt, nem tűrte Safiye Sultan zsarnokoskodását és igyekezett felvenni a harcot az anyóssal. Ambícióit fia, Mahmud herceg is osztotta, aki többször beszélt nyíltan nagyanyja és apja, a szultán ellen. Safiye és Halime harca 1603 nyarán zárult le, mikor a szultán, Safiye nyomására kivégeztette Mahmud hereceget. Az összetört Halime életét megkímélték, ám hamarosan elszakították tőle másik fiát, Musztafát, akit évekig alig láthatott. Musztafa komoly mentális problémákkal küzdött, ezért is volt meglepő, mikor I. Ahmed halála után végül őt választották örökösnek. Ahmed volt az első szultán, aki trónralépésekor nem végeztette ki fiú testvéreit, ez pedig az öröklésirend megváltozásához vezetett. Innentől nem a fia követte a szultánt a trónon, hanem a legidősebb élő herceg. Musztafa tragikus mentális állapota miatt Halime uralkodott fia helyett, első hivatalos régensként. A politikailag instabil időkben Musztafát trónfosztották, ám hamarosan újra szultánná kiáltották ki. Ezzel pedig Halime lett az első Valide Sultan, aki ugyanazon fia mellett kétszer is Valide Sultan lehetett. Musztafa második trónfosztása után egymástól elzárva élt tovább anya és fia hosszú évekig. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Mahfiruz Hatun, II. Oszmán édesanyja. Mahfiruz I. Ahmed ágyasa volt, aki bár a legidősebb fiú anyja volt, nem ő volt Ahmed kedvenc ágyasa. Mahfiruz személyéről, tetteiről meglehetősen keveset tudunk korai halála miatt. Nem érte meg fia, II. Oszmán 1618-as trónralépését, így sohasem lehetett Valide Sultan. Erre utal neve is, hiszen Mahfiruz Hatunként temették el, nem pedig Mahfiruz Sultanként. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Kösem Sultan, IV. Murad és I. Ibrahim szultánok édesanyja. A görög származású Kösem meglehetősen ingatag politikai és geopolitikai helyzetben találta magát, mikor kedvese I. Ahmed elhunyt. Az örökösödési káosz során elvesztette legidősebb fiát, akit II. Oszmán végeztetett ki. Hamarosan Oszmán is hasonló sorsra jutott, miután fellázadt janicsárok brutáisan meggyilkolták. A kaotikus időszaknak 1623-ban szakadt vége, mikor Kösem fiát IV. Muradot tették meg szultánnak, mindössze 11 évesen. Kösem régensként uralkodott fia helyett hosszú évekig, majd mikor fia elég idős lett az uralkodáshoz, visszavonult. Kösem rengeteget jótékonykodott Valide Sultansága alatt és igyekezett politikai tanácsadója lenni fiának. Muradot - nem lévén élő fia - öccse Ibrahim követte a trónon, aki szintén Kösem fia volt. Ibrahim mentálisan beteg volt, hasonlóan nagybátyjához, így helyette Kösem uralkodott nem hivatalos régensként. Két fia mellett Kösem gyakorlatilag 1623-tól 1648-ig, tehát 25 évig volt Valide Sultan. Végül Ibrahimot trónfosztották és helyébe gyermekét, IV. Mehmedet ültették. A pasák a tapasztalt Kösem Sultant kérték fel, hogy tanítsa be az ifjú szultánt és annak édesanyját Turhan Haticét az uralkodásra. Amíg pedig ez megtörténik, Kösem újra régensi pozícióban találta magát. Ez azonban más volt, mint a korábbi régensségei, meglehetősen megváltozott a szultána és erőszakosan kezdett uralkodni, melynek 1651-es kivégzése vetett véget. Ő volt az első és egyetlen Valide Sultan akit kivégeztek. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Turhan Hatice Sultan, IV. Mehmed édesanyja. Az orosz származású Turhannak meglehetősen nehéz ifjú kora volt a mentálisan beteg I. Ibrahim ágyasaként. A nehéz időszaknak végül 1651-ben szakadt vége, mikor Turhan lett a hivatalos régens fia mellett. Ezt a feladatot csupán néhány évig látta el, majd átadta a hatalmat a fővezírnek. Turhan élete során végig politikailag igen aktív volt, fia rendszeresen kérte ki anyja véleményét, sokszor pedig Turhan maga döntött, lévén fia nem kedvelte az uralkodást. Turhan élete során minden erejével védte nevelt fiait is, akiket IV. Mehmed ki akart végeztetni uralkodásának egy pontján. Turhan Hatice rengeteget jótékonykodó, igazán tisztelt és szeretett Valide Sultan volt, aki monumentális építkezéseket is eszközölt hosszú uralma alatt. Ő volt a leghosszabb ideig uralkodó Valide is, hiszen 32 évig volt hivatalban. 1683-ban bekövetkezett halálakor az egész birodalom gyászba borult és úgy vélte a nép, hogy a birodalom elveszítette utolsó erős és stabil oszlopát. Sajnos igazuk volt, Turhan fiát hamarosan trónfosztották, mert anyja tanácsai nélkül képtelen volt megfelelően uralkodni. Turhan Hatice hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Saliha Dilşub Sultan, II. Szulejmán édesanyja. Saliha Dilaşub hasonlóan Turhanhoz és I. Ibrahim más ágyasaihoz meglehetősen zavaros időket élt meg fiatal korában. Valószínűsíthető, hogy Kösem Sultan egy puccs során őt és fiát szerette volna felhasználni IV. Mehmed és Turhan Hatice ellen 1651-ben. A puccs nem járt sikerrel, Kösem Sultanát kivégeztették, IV. Mehmed és anyja azonban megbocsájtottak Salihának és fiának, Szulejmánnak is. Sőt, Turhan egész életében védelmezte Saliha fiát is. Saliha Dilaşub majd negyven éven keresztül élt a Régi Palotában, fiától elszakítva IV. Mehmed uralkodása során. Végül Mehmed trónfosztása után 1687-ben Saliha elhagyhatta a Régi Palotát, hogy végre fia oldalán Valide Sultan lehessen. Sajnos azonban nem sokáig élvezhette ezt, hiszen nem sokkal később, mindössze 2,5 év uralkodás után elhunyt. Validesége így viszonylag szürke maradt, és bár jótékonykodása ismert, politikailag nem volt ideje aktivizálódni. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Hatice Muazzez Sultan, II. Ahmed édesanyja. Saliha Dilaşubbal és Turhannal együtt Muazzez is I. Ibrahim ágyasa volt és meglehetősen hányatott ifjúkor jutott neki. Helyzete később sem változott, hiszen végig a Régi Palotában töltötte IV. Mehmed uralkodását, alig találkozva fiával, Ahmeddel. Muazzez életéről nagyon keveset tudunk, feltételezhető, hogy Ahmed mellett volt egy lánya is. 1687 szemptemberében hatalmas tűzvész pusztított a Régi Palotában és Muazzez attól rettegve, hogy elevenen elég, szívrohamot kapott és néhány nappal később elhunyt. Alig két hónappal halála után a vele együtt "raboskodó" Saliha Dilaşub elhagyhatta a Régi Palotát, hiszen fia II. Szulejmán lett a szultán. Muazzez fia 1691-ben követte Szulejmánt, II. Ahmed néven. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Emetullah Rabia Gülnüş Sultan, II. Musztafa és III. Ahmed szultánok édesanyja. Görög származású nő volt, aki rabszolgából lett a Nők szultánátusának utolsó befolyásos asszonya. Élete során volt Haseki és Valide is, a kor két legfontosabb rangját viselte és a legjobbaktól tanult. Ifjúkorában, IV. Mehmed kedvenceként is hatalmas befolyással bírt és politikailag is igen aktív volt. Mikor kedvesét trónfosztották Emetullah a Régi Palotába kényszerült, melyet csak 1694-ben hagyhatott el, mikor Valide Sultan Emetullahból fia II. Musztafa oldalán. Korábbi befolyását még magasabb szintekre emelte, elképesztő befolyással bírt a politikai életre és fiára, amely felkeltette a pasák rosszallását is. Végül fiát trónfosztották 1703-ban, majd hamarosan természetes okokból el is halálozott Musztafa. Emetullah meggyászolta fiát, majd tanulva hibáiból, másik fia, III. Ahmed uralkodása során végig a háttérben maradt és a pasákkal szorosan együttműködött. Rengeteg jótékonyság, építkezés köthető nevéhez. Két fia mellett összesen 20 évig lehetett Valide Sultan. Hosszabb életrajza itt érhető el: link.

Saliha Sultan, I. Mahmud édesanyja. Szerb származású nő volt, akinek II. Musztafa szultán ágyasaként nem volt kiemelt befolyása ám lehetősége volt rengeteget tanulni anyósától, Emetullah Rabia GÜlnüştől. 1696-ban adott életet fiának, majd nemsokkal később, 1703-ban Musztafa trónfosztásával a Régi Palotába költöztették. Itt azonban nem fogadta el háttérbe szorulását, folyamatosan kapcsolatokat épített. 1730-ban végül újra fellélegezhetett, ugyanis fia, I. Mahmud trónra lépett. Fia mellett 9 évig volt Valide Sultan és hasonlóan nagynevű elődjéhez, Emetullah Rabia Gülnüşhöz elképesztő hatalomra tett szert. Mindenki az ő kegyeibe próbált férkőzni, hogy önmaga előrejutását biztosítani tudja. Igyekeztek ajándékokkal lekenyerezni a befolyásos Validét. Uralkodása során több kisebb építkezési projektbe belekezdett, így Isztambulban több általa építtetett kút is fellelhető. Egyik ilyen, az Azapkapı Saliha Sultan Kút Isztambul legszebb vízi építészeti emléke.

Şehsuvar Sultan, III. Oszmán édesanyja. II. Musztafa ágyasa volt, akinek még annyi rivaldafény sem jutott, mint Salihának, ugyanis elő gyermeke 1699-ben született, majd 1703-ban már a Régi Palotában találta magát II. Musztafa trónfosztása után. Hasonlóan Salihához, Şehsuvar sem nevelhette tovább fiát, hiszen a hercegeket a Topkapi Palotába vitték. Végül 1754-ben újra fia oldalán találhatta magát, mikor az III. Oszmán néven a birodalom új szultánja lett. Oszmán, aki évtizedek óta alig találkozhatott anyjával elutasította, hogy azonnal megtartsák a szultánná avatási ceremóniát, ugyanis három napig csak az édesanyjával kívánt időt tölteni. Şehsuvar uralkodása elég rövid volt, ugyanis csupán 1,5 évig lehetett Valide Sultan, mert 1756-ban elhunyt. Ezidő alatt sem politikai sem jótékonysági vagy építkezési projekt nem történt. Néhány politikai ügyben azonban sejthető a szerepe, így nem tekinthető politikailag teljesen inaktívnak.

Mihrişah Kadın, III. Musztafa édesanyja. III. Ahmed ágyasa volt, aki három fiút is szült a szultánnak meglehetősen nagy korkülönbségekkel (1710, 1717, 1728). III. Ahmed trónfosztása után 1730-ban a Régi Palotába költöztették Mihrişaht, ahol két évvel később, 25 évvel fia trónra lépése előtt meghalt. Élete során néhány kisebb építkezési projektje volt még úgy is, hogy sosem lehetett Valide Sultan.

Rabia Şermi Kadın, I. Abdul Hamid édesanyja. Şermi is III. Ahmed ágyasa volt, akinek egyetlen gyermeket szült, 1725-ben, Abdul Hamidot. Şermi több mint 40 évvel fia trónralépése előtt halt meg, 1732-ben. Rövid élete során nem tudott mély nyomot hagyni a történelemben, egyetlen kutat építtetett. Fia később az ő tiszteletére nevezte el egyik gyermekét, Rabiának, ám a kislány nemsokkal születése után meghalt.

Mihrişah Sultan, III. Szelim édesanyja. Mihrişah III. Musztafa ágyasa volt. Érdekes egybeesés, hogy Musztafa édesanyját is Mihrişahnak hívták. A szépséges grúz rabszolga 1757-ben lett Musztafa ágyasa. Három gyermeke született, ám közülük egyedül Szelim élte meg a felnőttkort, két lánya csecsemőként elhunyt. Fiatalkoráról nem sokat tudunk, de minden bizonnyal már ekkor is nagy vagyonnal bírt, ugyanis fenn maradt dokumentumok alapján maga a szultán is tartozott neki. Párja 1774-es hirtelen halála után a Régi Palotába száműzték, ahonnan csak 15 évvel később térhetett vissza, mikor fia, Szelim trónra lépett. Mihrişah 16 évig volt Valide Sultan fia, Szelim mellett. Ezen évek során erőteljesen támogatta fia innovációit. Az ő nevéhez köthető a Topkapi Palota háremének felújítása, de több építési projektje is volt. Mihrişah és fia igen közel álltak egymáshoz, mindent megvitattak és egyesek szerint Szelim minden egyes reggel meglátogatta édesanyját. Ettől függetlenül Mihrişah nem használta ki befolyását, nem avatkozott politikába, inkább vallással és jótékonykodással töltötte idejét. 1805-ben hunyt el.

Sineperver Sultan, IV. Musztafa édesanyja. 1774-ben lett Abdul Hamid ágyasa, majd 1779-ben adott életet fiának. Eddigre Sineperver eltemette már egy fiát. A tragikus emlék miatt Musztafa születése után imákat kért fia egészségéért és minden adósság miatt börtönben ülőnek kifizette adósságát, hogy szabadon bocsáttassanak. Imái meghallgatásra leltek, Musztafa megérte a felnőttkort, akárcsak Sineperver lánya, Esma Sultan. Másik lánya, Fatma viszont első gyermeke, Ahmed sorsára jutott és gyermekként elhunyt. 1789-ben Abdul Hamid meghalt, Sineperver pedig a Régi Palotába költözött. Innen 1807-ben távozhatott, mikor fia, IV. Musztafa szultán lett. Sajnálatos módon Musztafa uralma meglehetősen rövid volt, alig 1 évig ült a trónon, majd trónfosztották és hamarosan kivégezték. Sineperver hátralévő éveit egyetlen élő gyermekének, Esma Sultannak szentelte. 1828-ban halt meg.

Nakşidil Sultan, II. Mahmud édesanyja. Sokáig tartotta magát a teória, hogy Napóleon feleségének Josephinnek távoli rokona, mára azonban bebizonyosodott, hogy grúz származású rabszolga volt. Abdul Hamid ágyasaként 1785-ben adott életet fiának Mahmudnak, ám nem sokáig élvezhette a szultán ágyasaként őt megillető figyelmet. Abdul Hamid 1789-ben elhunyt, Nakşidil pedig a Régi Palotába költözött. 1808-ban mostoha fia, IV. Musztafa lépett trónra, aki elődjét III. Szelimet meggyilkoltatta és merénylőket küldött Nakşidil fia, Mahmud ellen is. Nakşidil elrejtette fiát, így túlélte és puccsal hamarosan szultán lett belőle. Mahmud trónra lépése után azonnal kivégeztette féltestvérét, IV. Musztafát. Nakşidil fia trónralépésével hatalmas ceremónia során költözött vissza a Topkapi Palotába. Ő volt az utolsó Valide, aki a szokásoknak megfelelően így utazott a Régi Palotából a Topkapiba. Ennek egyik oka az volt, hogy pont az ő javaslatára a Topkapi helyett más birodalmi palotákat kezdett előnyben részesíteni a dinasztia. Mahmud uralkodásának korai éveiben rendszeresen konzultált édesanyjával. A Valide Sultan sokat jótékonykodott és voltak kisebb nagyobb építkezési projektjei is. Nakşidil 9 évig lehetett Valide Sultan, mivel 1817-ben tuberkolózisban meghalt. Fia, Mahmud, menye Bezmialem és unokája, Abdulmejid is ebben a betegségben haltak meg.

Bezmialem Sultan, I. Abdulmejid édesanyja. A grúz származású nő, 1822-ben lett II. Mahmud ágyasa. Bezmialemet II. Mahmud féltestvére, Sineperver lánya, Esma Sultan nevelte fel. Talán innen ered kifinomultsága és intelligenciája. 1823-ban adott életet egyetlen gyermekénetk, Abdulmejidnek. 1839-ben II. Mahmud meghalt és Abdulmejid lett a szultán. Fia trónra lépése után Bezmialem 14 évig uralkodott Valide Sultanként. Abdulmejid csupán 16 éves volt, amikor trónra lépett, így anyja igen sokat segítette a korai években. Igen szoros volt a kapocs anya és fia között, gyakran leveleztek egymással, mely leveleket sosem titkárok írták helyettük, hanem önmaguk, saját kezükkel. Amikor a szultán elhagyta a fővárost, mindig anyját tette meg a főváros fejévé távolléte idejére. Bezmialem elhivatott jótékonykodó volt, amiért a nép mérhetetlenül szerette. Emellett építkezési projektjei is ismertté tették, valamint politikai befolyása. Bezmialem tuberkolózisban halt meg 1853-ban, fia pedig összeomlott a hírtől. Anyja halála után a szultán elképesztő mennyiségű pénzt költött a temetésre.

Pertevniyal Sultan, Abdulaziz édesanyja. II. Mahmud kurd vagy román származású ágyasa egyetlen gyermekének, Abdulaziznak 1830-ban adott életet. II. Mahmud 1839-es halála után Abdulaziz bátyja, Abdulmejid lépett trónra. 1861-ben aztán Abdulmejid is elhunyt és Abdulaziz következett. Pertevniyal 15 évig volt Valide Sultan, mely idő alatt elképesztő befolyásra és vagyonra tett szert. Fián korlátlan hatalma volt, melyet ki is használt, rendszeresen befolyásolva az uralkodót. Uralma során többször látott vendégül befolyásos vendégeket a háremben. Az egyik ilyen alkalomnak majdnem diplomáciai botrány lett a vége, mert felpofozta a francia vendéget. Lobbanékony természete mellett azonban rengeteget jótékonykodott és építkezett. Pertevniyal fiát 1876-ban trónfosztották és elzárták a Topkapi Palotában. Hasonló sors várt Pertevniyalra is. Abdulaziz nem bírta elviselni a bezártságot és egy ollóval felvágta ereit. Felmerült a gyilkosság lehetősége is, de az Abdulaziz testét megvizsgáló összes orvos kizárta ezt. Pertevniyal összetört. Egy kis enyhülést hozott számára II. Abdul Hamid trónralépése, aki nagyon szerette Pertevniyalt, így gondoskodott az asszonyról. Pertevniyal élete hátralévő részében a gondjaira bízott gyermekeket nevelt, tanított és visszavonultan élt. 1884-ben halt meg.

Şevkefza Sultan, V. Murad édesanyja. A grúz nő 1839-ben lett Abdulmejid ágyasa. 1840-ben adott életet fiának, Muradnak, akit hamarosan egy kislány követett, aki korán elhunyt. Şevkefza viszonylag szürke szereplője a történelemnek, mindössze 3 hónapig volt Valide Sultan, mivel fiát igen gyorsan trónfosztották mentális állapota miatt. V. Murad 1876-os trónfosztása után Şevkefza szerette volna fiát puccsal visszaültetni a trónra, de Murad nem mutatott érdeklődést. Şevkefsa végül 1889-ben hunyt el valamilyen nyaki daganat következtében.

Tirimüjgan Kadın, II. Abdul Hamid édesanyja. Örmény származású, gyönyörű nő volt, aki 1839-ben lett Abdulmejid szultán kegyeltje. Fia Abdul Hamid 1842-ben született meg, két másik gyermekét pedig korán elvesztette. Tirimüjgan beteges nő volt, aki ettől függetlenül igyekezett mindent megadni fiának. Végül a halál 1852-ben elragadta. Fiát Nergisnihal Hanımra, egyik szolgálójára bízta, aki élete végéig Abdul Hamid mellett maradt. Emellett Tirimüjgan közel állt a szultán egy másik ágyasához, Perestuhoz, így végül a szultán Abdul Hamidot Perestu gondjaira bízta. Perestu akkor már nevelt egy másik elárvult gyermeket, Cemile Sultant, lévén neki magának nem volt saját gyermeke. Cemile és Abdul Hamid végül egy háztartásban nőttek fel. Mikor Abdul Hamid 1876-ban szultán lett névlegesen Perestunak adta a Valide Sultan rangot, amivel ő lett az utolsó nagy Validéje a birodalomnak. Abdul Hamid nyomatékosan megkérte Perestut, hogy ne avatkozzon politikába, amit az asszony szívesen teljesített is. Perestu élete a jótékonykodás volt, kedves természet volt, aki nem rajongott egyébként sem a politikáért. 1904-ben halt meg 28 évnyi uralkodás után.

Gülcemal Kadın, V. Mehmed édesanyja. Bosnyák, nemesi származású asszony volt, aki három gyermeket szült az uralkodónak, Abdulmejidnek. 1851-ben tuberkolózisban halt meg, gyermekeit Servetseza Kadın nevelte fel. Mehmed 1909-ben került trónra, Servetseza azonban nem érte meg ezt a napot, mert 1878-ban ő is meghalt.

Gülüstü Hanım, VI. Mehmed édesanyja. Gülüstü abkház nemesi családtól származott és 1854-ben lett Abdulmejid szultán ágyasa, majd 1861-ben életet adott második gyermekének, egy fiúnak, Mehmednek. Nem sok közös idő adatott meg neki és gyermekeinek, lévén 1865-ben kolerában meghalt. Kislányát Verdicenan Kadın gondjaira bízták, Mehmedet pedig Şayeste Hanım nevelte fel. Şayeste is abkház nemesi család sarja volt, azonban nehezen jött ki Mehmeddel. Mehmed 16 éves korában elhagyta nevelőanyja lakását három hű szolgálójával. Bár kettejük kapcsolata nem volt felhőtlen, Mehmed később is gondoskodott Şayestéről, mert hálás volt neki, amiért felnevelte. Mehmed 1918-ban lett szultán, míg Şayeste 1912-ben halt meg, így sosem lett Valide. Azonban kettejük viszonyából következtetve valószínűleg akkor sem lett volna Valide, ha még életben van Mehmed trónra lépésekor.

A Validék listája, uralkodásuk ideje alapján:

Turhan Hatice Sultan 34 év 11 hónap 2 nap

Rahime Perestu Sultan 28 év 3 hónap 11 nap

Kösem Sultan 24 év 10 hónap 29 nap

Nilüfer Hatun 21 év

Emetullah Rabia Gülnüş 20 év 9 hónap

Mihrişah Sultan 15 év 6 hónap 9 nap

Pertevniyal Sultan 14 év 11 hónap 5 nap

Bezmialem Sultan 13 év 10 hónap

Ayşe Hafsa Sultan 13 év 5 hónap 19 nap

Gülbahar Hatun 11 év

Nakşidil Sultan 9 év 25 nap

Saliha Sultan 9 év 1 nap

Nurbanu Sultan 8 év 11 hónap 23 nap

Safiye Sultan 8 év 11 hónap 7 nap

Gülçiçek Hatun 3 év 1 hónap 4 nap

Dilaşub 2 év 1 hónap 27 nap

Hüma 2 év 1 hónap

Handan Sultan 1 év 10 hónap 18 nap

Halime Sultan 1 év 6 hónap 26 nap

Şehsuvar 1 év 4 hónap

Sineperver Sultan 1 év 1 hónap 29 nap

Devlet Hatun 6 hónap 18 nap

Şevkefza Sultan 3 hónap 1 nap

[minetteskvareninova]

Was this necessary? Episode 1: Valide Sultan

A first in a hopefully long series of metas, in which I analyse Magnificent Century, and maybe later other historical fiction, and ask myself the burning question on every history nerd’s mind - did they really have to change a specific historical detail in order to make for a better story? (Most of the time, no, not at all.)

First topic: Is it better that Ayşe Hafsa was made a Crimean princess instead of a slave woman, like she was in history?

First off, I am not sure it was a conscious decision on the part of creators, rather than bad research. They didn’t invent this misconception, it was perpetuated by some actual historical literature, even if by 2011 it was already outdated. That aside, would the story gain anything by more historically accurate origins for Valide?

Are there any benefits to this change? Well, Valide’s relationship with power in the harem was made unique by the fact that she was never a slave, never in the position of her son’s concubines. Şah Sultan upholds her as an example of a woman who knows her place in life, so to speak, and this would also account for her exceptional political influence as well as her outrage when other women of the harem try to gain the same - after all, they aren’t daughters of a Crimean khan, they have no right to power. Valide’s conflict with Hürrem would parallel nicely with Ibrahim and his status as a lowly former slave among other pashas, who were already born as members of the Ottoman elite. This would work MUCH better if Valide was shown to be exceptionally powerful in comparison with other valide sultanas, as she was in history, but oh well.

Okay, so the reason Valide wasn’t made exceptionally powerful probably is that she represents tradition, the order that Hürrem completely upends. Does that work? Well, it’s fine, though I’d argue since most valide sultans were slave women, Ayşe Hafsa falling into that category would work better; her being an exception from the rule as a free woman and princess doesn’t translate well into her being a bastion of the centuries-old traditions. In this way, the story would work best if she was either a completely standard valide sultan, born a slave and not possessing more power than her predecessors, or born a princess, and thus entitled to more respect than those who came before her. The story would be better off if they changed one of the two aspects of historical Ayşe Hafsa; changing both ruins any thematic elements that might compensate for lack of historical faithfulness

What about the fact that her being born privileged would lend her a different perspective on the conflicts in the harem? Well, as valide sultan, she is already above everyone else, and as mother of an heir she has been for a long time. As we saw with every other valide sultan (and honestly it’s kind of tiring, I wish at least one of them was different, just one sultana that acknowledges she knows what it feels to be at the bottom, I BEG OF YOU), time can make people forget, lose empathy for those who stand where they used to. Which on the other hand is also an argument in favour of making her a princess - it makes her stand out, even if it is in a pretty shallow way in my opinion. It’s also worth noting that aside from marrying Süleyman and perhaps meddling in politics more than usual, Hürrem in the show doesn’t do much upending of the established order in the first place, but that’s a topic for another day.

There is one other, actually pretty surprising reason why her being a Crimean princess adds something to the story - Aybige. Her character and connection to the Ottoman court just wouldn’t work in the same way without her being a relative of Ayşe Hafsa. That’s a whole season 2 storyline out of the window, right there. Is it a good storyline? Well, no, but it had a potential, and some of Mustafa’s best moments came from it, so I can’t completely condemn it.

VERDICT: Overall I don’t think this change was worth it, but at least some good came from it. It wasn’t implemented without thought and it did add some unique elements to Ayşe Hafsa’s character, I’ll say as much. As someone who doesn’t like Hafsa and cares little for her character, I myself don’t have any strong feelings about this, but if you do, feel free to express your opinion trough a note, reblog, or a meta of your own! I’ll be happy to start a discussion on this.

[mc-critical]

Something I can never bring myself to understand is the MY fandom’s seeming obsession with *proving* Mahidevran or Hürrem as the more morally correct, more noble, more respect-worthy etc sultana. Or measuring whose actions and beliefs were the most justifiable or who suffered the most unfortunate circumstances. It seems to completely ignore the fact that most characters in the franchise, sans a small handful of characters, fall into the category of morally questionable or ambiguous. I feel like both Mahidevran and Hürrem are both victims to the same terrible circumstances and the enviornment in which they both lived and were forced to adapt to was a catalyst to a lot of their deplorable actions and beliefs. They both came to the palace as concubines with no family nor money to their names (I can’t recall if this was held consistent in the TV series for Mahidevran’s case or not but I know this is the case for her historically as well), both of them had their worth and their livelihood tied to their ability to produce princes and please the Sultan (who will take any opportunity to remind these women that they are a mere piece of property to him anytime they attempt to assert themselves in any way.) Then there’s the looming threat of the principle of fratricide that basically haunted them throughout the entirety of their motherhood. I’m in no way saying the immoral decisions they made was justifiable or somehow okay (Mahidevran killing Mehmet, Hürrem killing Mustafa, etc.) I just feel that there’s a lot of black-and-white thinking at play whenever the Mahi/Hürrem discourse comes up. What do you think?

Thank you for bringing this up, because it's probably the thing that bugs me the most about this fandom (outside of Tumblr currently). You voiced my overall thoughts into words so well!

I think these double standarts come from many places that can be both the only reasons for a person or just one of the many. In my experience, this "black or white", "all or nothing" attitude stems from the absolutist belief that people should pick sides and root for only one character (usually the protagonist) in a narrative. They're using the standard, superficial narrative roles of the protagonist and the antagonist in terms of Hürrem, thinking that for some reason the protagonist is always morally right in all she does, simply because she's the protagonist and we're supposed to unconditionally root for her. And if they don't like the protagonist, they choose root for "the other side" instead. They're better than that anyway, so of course, we should root for them!!

To be honest, the earlier seasons of the show make an attempt in justifying this assessment, with them having the narrative voice be rooted in Hürrem's favor, despite of all possible problematic actions that tell a different story altogether. MC Hürrem was given very understandable and sympathetic motivations, thorough character exploration, gradual character development and the privilege of far too obvious Plot Armor (make no mistake, every historical figure in the show has Plot Armor, but with the many attempts at her life, Hürrem's in particular, was way too glaring at points, sometimes to a ridiculous degree.) and the writers making her enemies doom themselves by their own failings, with her seemingly only enduring the "charade". (Valide's flanderization post-E38 is the most egregious example of this.) People I've encountered that are excusing Hürrem's behavior, are citing precisely the first episodes to present their arguments, often refusing to go beyond that. Mahidevran's motivations, while as nuanced as Hürrem's, don't seem as delved into in comparison at first (the origins and backstory of MC Mahidevran are shrouded in ambiguity, and while this is thematically appropriate for her character arc, as I explained here, it definetly doesn't help her case in bringing in more vocal sympathy.) and it could seem that her character is simply antagonistic to Hürrem, doesn't go anywhere and later revels in the depths of her ambition and wounded pride earlier than Hürrem began that similar development of hers. Some Mahi stans could see that probable difference of treatment in narrative and support her simply because of that, as well.

Assessing moral ambiguity isn't all that easy in the grand scheme of things, but it especially falls short when the narrative voice seemingly doesn't support it at first. But many miss that there's a very thin line between the actions and the narrative voice, that only turns into a very deep incongruity as the series progresses. I don't know, perhaps determing the moral ambiguity is indeed so complex, confusing and conflicting, since the whole story could get too complex and many might wonder who they'll root for now when everyone is so problematic. And that's a show that began as a simple soap opera, no less! Why would they even put in the effort in this case?

Not many people are used to ambiguous and questionable character development and are still trying to prove that there is one main positive characters in the show, which is why they try to make Mahidevran or Hürrem more morally right and justifiable than they actually are. They are so passionate about the debates they engage in, because this time period and MC is truly so ripe in analysis and it could be very fun to figure out where these characters come from and go through their 4-seasons long evolution in one chosen context, but by doing this, they so often miss the depth and nuance of the subject at hand and it all turns into a one-sided discourse that drives me nuts.

There is a historical context of the issue is also important to note, in my opinion. Both Mahidevran and Hürrem are historical figures and quite a bit of facts and deeds of theirs are now widely known. Most people in the fandom have opinions of them in advance or could've gained opinions of them a while after they began to watch the show. (There are also numerous fictional interpretations of the events during Süleiman's reign and the players in it, which may also play a part in the overall judgement.) Either way, the known historical facts about them (and other fictional interpretations one could've read, of course) could influence their points of view by a certain amount and use these general impressions to present them while analyzing the characters in the show. I've heard numerous arguments that this Hürrem isn't like the Hürrem the history knows about, that she isn't "their" Hürrem and what they read about her isn't depicted all that much in the show, which takes a lot away, according to them. I especially hate when they call MC Hürrem a one-dimensional "evil" caricature that only has vileness and smug about her, no conscience, no complexity whatsoever. (no, MC Hürrem isn't as simplistic and is much deeper and more nuanced. As far as fictional interpretations go, what they're describing is Hürrem in "The Sultan's Harem" from Colin Falconer, not MC Hürrem! In the MC/K franchise's terms, all they're doing is reducing her to the level of MCK Turhan Sultan, which is disrespectful to this character, to say the least. Turhan is the exact thematic contrast to Hürrem smh while Falconer's Hürrem is the most absurdly evil caricature imaginable, at least IMO, please and thank you!) Or even more unbelievably and outright hilariously, considering Hürrem's actions and the Sultanate of Women overall the downfall of the Ottoman Empire o.o and that's why Hürrem is so ruthless, so cruel, always intentionally, of course. This is plain ridiculous. Mahidevran, on the other hand, is presented by this clique as her "victim", as a completely innocent victim that had everything taken away from her. That Hürrem had stood between her and Süleiman and "ruined" their family. This take ignores every other factor of this falling out (Süleiman, that is) and a part of the nuance of Mahidevran's character. Reducing her to a simple "victim" doesn't cut it at all. Conversely, we have fans that simplify MC Mahidevran's character beyond every belief, loving the historical figure, but claiming they made her an "evil" and "stupid" bitch that cries and whines all the time. It's limiting and one-sided and even if it appears so, there are way far more layers to her character, that develop consistently throughout the narrative. The historical context of the time period itself is usually brought up in the debates, too, justifying whoever they want to justify by "It's a war, only the strongest ones survive!" or "You eat or get eaten! We should understand their time period, not judge by our contemporary times !", which is understandable and valid, but the only thing they end up doing is applying this logic only to their preferred characters when it should be applied to everyone. They try their best efforts to make one more morally right than the other, but they continually fail in the process, because the metric they judge them from is plagued by double standarts.

I wholeheartedly agree with you that excusing one of them, but not the other for most situations is wrong, because Mahidevran and Hürrem.... aren't all that different. What most people seem to miss, is that their character arcs are so contrastingly paralleling, because both of their endings were far from victorious and they got it for the exact same character reason, gained in a different way and in a different time. The persistent insistence of the fandom wanting a main character necessarily having a triumphant grand finale fails flat immediately, because there is no true victory in the franchise. They also miss the negative character development of both of them, them having to do the exact same stuff in many instances, both of them letting go of their pasts and/or former attachments, becoming vicious and ruthless in order to adapt to the circumstances, both of them had to make moves out of desperation because they felt threatened and they both protected their lives and the ones of their children at the end of the day. Heck, they're way more alike than they're different in my book. There is no morally right, no more noble here. Both of them had no qualms to do whatever it took to secure their own future and as you said, the narrative presented very neat motivations for them to do so as a whole. There is always a shade of grey and yes, who has the lighter shade of gray could be up for debate due to differing sympathies and perceptions, but that mustn't stop people to at least try looking at the "bigger picture" and try to view their characters with a bit more criticality, depth and respect.

Rooting for both conflicting sides is still seen as questionable and contradictory by some, but there really is nothing wrong with exploring their motivations without justifying them, no matter where your sympathies extend. I think it creates a more unbiased outlook on the both these characters and the themes around them and it's always awesome to see people doing that in any fandom, really.

And both Sultanas are worthy of respect, I said what I said.

[fymagnificentwomcn]

However, neither Nurbanu’s husband nor her son ever led their troops on military campaigns. Without the pomp and purport characterizing Selim and Süleyman’s excursions to and from the darülharb, the two new sultans were deprived of an important vehicle to promote the prestige of their dynasty. Coupled with the lack of military ceremonies was Selim II and Murad III reclusion in the Harem, a fact that induced a pervasive feeling of dismay among the Ottoman populace regarding the future of the dynasty. Many perceived Selim and Murad as grievously breaking with tradition and equated the two sultans’ lackluster record on military fronts as a telling sign of the imminent decay of the empire. Alternate ways to display imperial grandeur were in order, as was a justification of Selim’s and Murad’s handling of the affairs of state. (...) Contemporary writers, Ottoman and foreign, duly recognized the prominent role she [Nurbanu] played in dynastic politics as well as in administrative and diplomatic decision-making. Except for a few critics, many contemporaries viewed Nurbanu as a pivotal element in the wellbeing and functioning of the Ottoman state and hailed her capability, intelligence, and level-headedness in the face of dire conditions. In the end, it was Nurbanu, and not her husband and son, who affirmed the dynasty’s prestige, power, and piety by means of a splendid monument of imperial charity erected at a most prominent site in the capital city. Having amassed the highest status first as the royal wife of Selim II and subsequently as the Queen Mother of Murad III, Nurbanu poured her immense personal resources into her building project to pronounce an eloquent rebuttal of the perceived shortfalls of her husband and son. The clout Nurbanu wielded during the reigns of Selim and Murad found an unmistakable reflection in the body of her monumental külliye, which aptly fulfilled the dynasty’s need for sumptuous displays of might, splendor and staying power. It is impossible to measure the exact degree of Nurbanu’s own authorship in the creation of her composite iconography. However, the exceptional selfawareness she demonstrated at each ascending stage of her career cannot be missed. Nurbanu secured the license to launch a building project of imperial proportions when she was Haseki. But she made sure not to lay the first brick before establishing herself at the top of the Harem hierarchy as Valide, regardless of the fact that her son had not yet ascended to the throne. True to the competitive nature of waqf-making specific to Ottoman female royal endowers, Nurbanu set out to surpass the legacies of her predecessors. Vested with the supreme title of Valide Sultan, she transcended the limits of female imperial architectural patronage as precedented by Hürrem and subsequently entered a competitive discourse with Mihrümah. Nurbanu’s külliye was much more expansive than both Hürrem’s and Mihrümah’s in terms of the variety and breadth of the services that it provided. Indeed, by means of the Atik Valide, Nurbanu came to endear herself to all segments of Ottoman society—old and young, pious and mundane, sick and well, resident and transient, orthodox and mystic. Second, Nurbanu proved much more involved in the conception and materialization of her külliye than were Hürrem and Mihrümah, a fact that is richly evidenced by the Atik Valide’s waqfiyya and epigraphic program as well as a number of imperial decrees that were issued with respect to the külliye’s construction. These visual and textual sources underscore the place of Nurbanu as the unrivaled Queen Mother of the Ottoman dynasty and the most eloquent deflector of criticisms directed to the statesmanship of Selim II and Murad III.

Kayaalp, Pinar. The Empress Nurbanu and Ottoman Politics in the Sixteenth Century: Building the Atik Valide (Routledge Studies in Middle Eastern History)

[1533-secrets-from-history]

Mistakes in Magnificent Century part I

In part I I would like to speak about mistakes they made while writing characters. Their ages, titles, origins etc.

Let's start with Ayse Hafsa Sultan:

Several things about her were done wrong. First of all, She was not Crimean princess. There are two possibilities that although contradicts one another counters her royal origin. 1. There was another concubine named Ayse,who was daughter of Crimean khan, while she was called Ayse Hafsa for that reason 2.( I agree with that possibility more ) there was no concubine from Crimean family Sultan Bayazid would never let Selim, who was not his favourite, to gain such allie, nor would khan of Crimea risk to marry her daughter to non-favoired prince. Besides, Selim did not have much of a support from Crimea during his Rebellion.

As we more or less agreed that Ayse Hafsa was not Crimean, now we have to agree on where she was from. Legendary mother of the Magnificent sultan was actually converted slave of Caucasian origin, therefore she was either Circassian or Georgian.

Third thing about her is her title. Screenwriters both demoted and promoted her in this case. She was not "Valide Sultan" as we know today, first holder of that title would be Nurbanu 40 years after her death. She was Sultan and respected mother Padisah yes,but those two honours never joined for her. She was simply " Mother of Sultan Suleiman",who had title of Sultan instead of Hatun. While Nurbanu was full fledged "Valide Sultan" and was addressed so. Despite not being Valide Sultan, she was the first slave in Ottoman history, who was elevated to Status of Sultan that was never underlined in the show.

Other mistakes about her are how they represented her pre-1520 life, which I will discuss in Part 3 about "Titles, ranks and traditions" and her relationship with daughters- in law, that will be discussed in part 2, that will be specifically about relationships.

2. Ages of Suleiman's sister.

In the show Suleiman Seems to be older, followed by Sah or beyhan, Fatma being somewhat middle and Hatice as baby of the Family, while actually going backwards. One thing I want to make clear is that all the full sisters of sultan were older than them(before 1522 of course), half sister could have been either younger or older. So Fatma, Beyhan and Hatice despite being portrayed as younger sisters were definitely older. A more accurate sequence would be:

Hatice- c. 1490

Fatma: 1491-92

Beyhan: most likely 1493

Suleiman: 1494

Hafsa: 1495

Sah-huban: 1500

Suleiman also had at least three brothers orhan, salih, who seemed to be older than Suleiman, a sister who likely died during childhood and Shehzade sultan or Hanim sultan, who was either another sister or perhaps she never existed and all the little sources about her is actually about hatice.

3. Origin of Sah Huban Sultan.

She was not the daughter of Hafsa and older sister of Hatice, she was actually the youngest of shown siblings,born as the only child of an unknown concubine registered as " The mother of Sah Huban Sultan".

4. Origin of Hurrem

In the show she was portrayed to be Crimean and was addressed as " Russian slave" numerous times. However, she was actually from Ruthenia, it was then part of the Polish crown, now it's part of Ukraine, so definitely not Russian.

5. Forgotten Children

Apart from the six children that were shown in the show, Suleiman had four other children. Three sons and a daughter.

Shehzade Mahmud and Shehzade Murad were born before Hurrem arrived and had different mothers. Mahmud was the eldest born in 1512, Murad was younger than Mustafa born in 1519. Raziye was born between 1513 and 1518, but most likely she was born in 1513-14 as she seems to be the second child and old enough to be considered Mahidevran's(which is by the way false). All three of them died in 1521 as the result of the plague.

The fourth child Shehzade Abdullah was born as the fourth child of Hurrem and Suleiman, born in 1525 and died in 1528. His date of birth is kind of troubling, some historians argue if he was born in 1525,some even say he was Mihrimah's twin, but considering no birth of twins registered, definite ages of other kinds and his appearance in Hurrem's letters Abdullah seems to be born in 1525.

6. Nurbanu's Triplets

Mistakes about the birth of Selim I daughters are more or less clear, let's speak about Selim II as well.

In the show, triplets- Sah, Esmahan and Gevherhan were introduced as younger twin sisters of shehzade Murad. In reality, all three were older but certainly not twins, Sah was not even Nurbanu's daughter, she shared the birth year with Gevherhan though, both were born in c.1544, then was Esmahan in 1545, Murad in 1546, at this point Nurbanu stopped giving birth to any more kids, last of Selim II's kids was Fatma born in 1559.

7. Origin and death of Gulfem hatun

In "Magnificent century" Gulfem is portrayed as Suleiman's first concubine, who bore a son,but lost everything after he died. In reality, Gulfem was one of the highest ranking harem managers, whom Suleiman trusted Hurrem to, she was overseeing her education and well-being, bonding with future Haseki Sultan in the process. Gulfem actually became the closest friend and Confidant of Hurrem, about which I will speak about in part II.

Her death was also portrayed inaccurately. She was not killed for the attempted murder of Suleiman, The closest rumor to it is him executing Gulfem for rejecting him,but she actually died of old age. Suleiman had no reason to execute Gulfem,there is a version were Gulfem exchanges her Night to other concubine to for money to build complex,but there are so many flaws in this theory:

1. There was no such thing in harem as "my turn and your turn"

2. It was strictly against the traditions to call harem servant, especially one from the highest ranks, and considering when it happened in kate nineteen-early twentieth century at caused some probmens,which means tradition was never broken before

3. Gulfem had right to send concubine to Suleiman and even reject one already chosen.

4. Suleiman had no known concubine that time

5. Gulfem was not building anything as all of her projects was already finished.

6. Even if she was building something, it would cost so much mere concubine would never have enough money to help it. Gulfem's daily stipend was 150 akches, which is almost four times as much as Mahidevran's and almost as much as imperial princesses', while titles concubines were receiving 1-6 depending on their status.

7. Even if she needed something she would ask it to either Suleiman, Mihrimah or Sah huban as we know it had happened before and they thought her as family member.

8. Even if we just jump these 7 reasons and somehow accept that Suleiman realy called her that night , he would never kill her for that, she broke no rule, she needed money for project, he would understand this.

9. Gulfem was childhood friend of Suleiman, she was already a high ranking woman when mahidevran came,so she was certainly older than her,who was likely born in 1498-99, she was even older than Suleiman most likely. She was a childhood friend of one of Suleiman's sisters so her date of birth could vary from 1490 to 1493. That would make her between 69 and 72 in 1562. Dieing at such age is nothing strange even today, live past 60 was actually achievement in her era. There is no need to look for intrigue where there is none. Several theory existed,but show chose most dramatic one,that happened to be least likely.

8. Safiye's arrival

I have nothing against the portrayal of her origin, but about how she got in Murad's harem. Accord- ing to MC she was Mihrimah's gift. However,in real life she was raised and educated at Humaşah sultan's court,who later gifted Sifiye(then called Meleki) to her cousin.

9. History of Kösem

In Magnificent Century Kosem young Anastasia was kidnapped as a gift of Safiye to Ahmed per his accession. Actually, Kösem, then called Mahpeyker, was a servant of Handan Sultan and met Ahmed in his mother's personal Gardens. Ahmed developed a "Childhood crush" towards her and Handan,aware of what it could cause, had Kösem beaten up and exiled. When Ahmed ascended her recalled her and brought back.

10. Another forgotten child.

In the show, Şehzade Mehmed died without any kids, while in reality, he had a posthumous daughter born in 1543 named Humaşah. Who grew up to be one of the most powerful women in the Ottoman empire. She was one of two favourite grandchildren of Suleiman and Hurrem and due to the death of her father, she was raised in the household of her grandmother, so she would have been deeply involved in their later life. However, her existence was completely cut out, while the role and importance of Ayse Humaşah, daughter of Mihrimah Sultan was reduced into nothingness.

[dodscans]

Neighborhoods of İstanbul that are named after DoD characters

İstanbul doesn't show it as much as it should, but this place is old. The traces the old days are more sparse than I would have liked here, but when I stop and think "hey, why do we call this neighborhood this way?", the history just comes back to life. Reading and translating DoD made me have so many epiphany moments in that regard, so let me note them down.

I wish I could organize myself another little İstanbul DoD tour and visit all of these neighborhoods to take pictures, but I am writing this post while I have Covid and am in quarantine. Sad. So no pictures.

Süleymaniye - Suleiman Of course, our beloved bishie sultan lives on in the city. The place where he had his imperial mosque and its complex built is still called "Süleymaniye". What to do there today: It is a hot spot for haricot bean restaurants (yeah I know, strange choice of dish). So you go there, order some beans, pilaf and cacık, and admire the views of Süleymaniye Mosque.

Haseki - Hürrem As avid readers, you all know that "Haseki" is a common title given to the favorite of the Sultan. But the Haseki neighborhood in İstanbul is named after Hürrem herself. In the manga, she has established her vakif instutitions in Galata neighborhood; but in reality, her vakif in İstanbul was located in Galata. To be frank, I couldn't find any records of a Hürrem vakif in Galata, but I probably don't know where to look. This neighborhood actually screams power for her: First, a woman who doesn't even have royal blood was allowed to have something built under her name inside the city walls. Yes, Haseki neighborhood is right in the middle of the old city. Considering how previous Valide Sultans had their vakifs in the provinces or remote rural areas of İstanbul at best, that is a statement y'all. Second, like in the manga, she indeed had a hospital and medical school built there. If you ask me, that has a stronger impact on the populace than building a mosque and calling it a day. She touched people's lives. Third, that institution is still alive today. The original buildings are owned by the Directorate of Religious Affairs and do not serve their original intended purpose, but you still have a huge and well-known hospital there called "Haseki Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi", and İstanbul University's medical school is located in the vicinity. 500 years later, the neighborhood still thrives on thanks to the health services it provides.

Cihangir - Prince Cihangir When Cihangir died, Suleiman had a mosque built to his name on the other side of the Golden Horn (See? Even his beloved son doesn't get to have his mosque within the old city walls. Hürrem is that cool.) Today, it's known as a den of hipsters, but when it hits you the name is related to DoD, you go soft.

Şehzadebaşı - Prince Mehmed Shinohara doesn't use this word in the JP original, so I don't use it either so that I don't confuse the readers further with the titles, but the proper way to call an Ottoman prince in Turkish would be "şehzade". When Mehmed dies, Suleiman has a mosque built for him in the old city. It's close to his own mosque complex too. Today most people would call this neighborhood "Saraçhane", but it is kind of interchangeable with "Şehzadebaşı" because the mosque is commonly called as "Şehzadebaşı mosque". Especially older people call the place "Şehzadebaşı".

Beyoğlu - Alvise Gritti Iirc, this was explained somewhere in the manga but I'm too lazy to check. So, since Alvise was the son of the Venetian Doge, a "bey" (lord), he was called "son of the lord" (beyoğlu) in Turkish. This is a huge area which is also a municipality, so Alvise had the biggest impact on İstanbul in a sense.

Barbaros Bulvarı (Barbarossa Boulevard) - Hayreddin Barbarossa The avenue which has Barbarossa's tomb at its ending point is called "Barbaros Avenue". This isn't some random street, it's pretty much a main artery of İstanbul traffic in Beşiktaş, so it's impressive that it was named after him.

Ayaspaşa - Vizier Ayas Paşa Yes, even that old guy Suleiman sometimes gives orders to has a neighborhood named after him. The place where he used to have his mansion is still called "Ayaspaşa" although the said estate is no more.

Kasımpaşa - Vizier Kasım Paşa Another one of Suleiman's viziers, Güzelce Kasım Paşa, was tasked with the development of this neighborhood and he himself used to live there. He had his mosque, school, public bath etc. built there.

Belgrad Ormanı (Belgrade Forest) After Suleiman's 1926 Hungarian Expedition, a village was set up here for the Serbian prisoners.

[questionsonislam]

Who was the Wailing Wall built by? Can you give information about the Wailing Wall?

Hz. Sulaiman (pbuh) was a magnificent and majestic prophet. His kingdom included the whole land of Palestine and Jordan and some part of Syria. Among the works of Hz. Sulayman, the most important buildings were the ones that he built to defend his country. The bulwarks built in the important places for the dispatch of soldiers were important.

The most important work of Hz. Sulayman was the Temple he built on Mount Zion. During the era of his father, Hz. Dawud, (David) (pbuh), there was only a tent there; and the Ark of the Testimony was put in it. Today, only one part of the foundations of Sulayman's Temple exists. The wall called the Wailing Wall is that part of the foundations of the Temple.

The Children of Israel were punished by God Almighty like many other nations in history because they did not appreciate the bounties given to them. It is not easy for an understanding that showed ingratitude toward the quail and manna sent down to them directly to appreciate bounties from trees. In fact, ingratitude is valid not only for the Children of Israel but for all human beings, that is, for all of us.

As it is stated in the Quran, the Children of Israel rebelled against God Almighty; they unjustly killed the prophets that were sent to them and that wanted nothing but good things for them. Invasions, massacres and exiles started as punishment. The palaces and temples that had been built for a lot of money were plundered and burnt down. After the invasion, they cooperated with the invaders against the religion. When they tried to assassinate Jesus, the two thousand-year exile started.

It is reported that the last temple demolished by the Romans had been built by the rich except one wall built by the poor. The Romans left only one wall when they demolished the Temple probably to show what they had demolished; and that wall turned out to be wall built by the poor: the Wailing Wall, the famous wall that remained as a dump of the Christians up to the era of Ottoman Sultan Selim I.

The History of the Wailing Wall According to the Old Testament:

When Pharaoh and his army was drowned in the Red Sea and could not follow Moses and the Jews, Moses took the Jews to Sinai. There, on the Mount Sinai, Moses was given the Torah and the Ten Commandments. The Jews wandered in the Sinai Desert for forty years. After Moses, Joshua took them to Palestine. (Exodus, Chapters VII-XL; Joshua, Chapter I-XXIV) After the era of Judges and Kings in Palestine, King David (1013-973 B.C.) conquered Jerusalem and the brightest era of Jews started. (see II. Samuel, chapters V-IX) His son, King Shelomo (Hz. Sulayman, 973-933 B.C.) built the Holy Temple on the place prepared by his father. The Arc of Testimony, which contained the Ten Commandments and which was kept in a tent up to that time, was placed in a room in the Temple. (see I. Kings, Chapters V-IX.)

After the death of Hz. Sulayman, the kingdom was divided into two as Judah in the south and Israel in the north. (I. Kings, Chapters XI-XII., etc) Ten tribes became subject to the Kingdom of Israel and two tribes to the Kingdom of Judah. First, the Kingdom of Israel was demolished by Assyrians in 721 B.C. Then, the Kingdom of Judah was demolished by Babylonians in 586 B.C. The Temple was destroyed and the Jews were deported to Babylonia. In the exile, the Jewish people gathered under Ezra and returned to Jerusalem in 538 B.C. The Temple was repaired after 520 B.C. (see Daniel, Ezra, Ester).

The holy book of Jews, the Torah, gives information about both the previous and later prophets. Prophets like Isaiah and Jeremiah were sent during the period of Babylonia Exile. Malachi is the prophet before Elijah-Messiah.

According to Jewish history, Jerusalem was conquered by Antigonids and Seleucids after Alexander. The Temple was plundered in 168 B.C.. Maccabees established sovereignty but the period of Roman hegemony that started in 63 B.C. ended in 70 A.D. when the Roman commander Titus destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. The Jews scattered all over the world. The Western Wall (Wailing Wall), which remained from the Temple, has kept their national and religious consciousness alive for centuries. The hope given by the Messianic faith has maintained the existence of this consciousness.

[dangermousie]

Watching Ekin Koc as a sexy Seljuk ninja reminded me how obsessed I was with Magnificent Century Kosem and how hard I shipped his Sultan Ahmed with Kosem. MCK is one of the main reasons I rediscovered my love of Turkish shows as an adult.

This vid is delicious and the OTP was beyond anything even though I will never not be amused that they cast a blond actress as younger Anastasia and dark-haired Beren Saat as older one and never bothered with two actors for Ahmed but just had Ekin grow a beard to signify he is an adult.

This is a rare harem show I liked and shipped even tho they had him occasionally sleeping with other ladies because sultan. Mainly because in a context of a polygamous society with him at the apex where it wouldn’t even occur to him it’s weird to have a harem and also it’s his duty to sleep with a ton of them (gazillion characters discuss how much he needs to sleep when and with who to have as many heirs as possible the way one normally would do a breeding schedule on a farm), they made it clear he only loved her which I can be ok with.

I still think it’s hilarious though that poor Kosem got kidnapped from being a random island peasant because Ahmed’s crazy granny saw how her almost suicidal grandson the sultan glommed into a random portrait and was all “hey let’s kidnap the original to cheer him up.” Heh. And then Kosem eventually killed her so what goes around comes around?

Anyway, I think the relationship was the reason first season worked and second one was such a mess. It’s hard to watch a show where there aren’t characters you can super root for and seeing Kosem as Valide dealing with all her crazy children and ruling the place sort of palls if there isn’t an emotional hook there - in the first season, Ahmed and Kosem did plenty of dark stuff (though compared to the real ones they are saints) but you always had their relationship to root for and ship because they loved each other so. But that was obviously gone in s2. (They tried with Murad and Farya but were constricted by history aka Murad being a violent insane mess; though the bad writing which turned him from a cool fighter dude to a lunatic basically for no reason and explanation didn’t help.)

Anyway...

Lessons to take from Kosem are (a) if you are hot do not have your portrait painted (b) please make sure your hot husband is not being poisoned or you will be a widow dealing with bratty violent offspring without any sex relief (c) if you aren’t willing to risk small pox to save your sexy sultan husband, you might as well not be married and (d) being kidnapped into a harem kinda sucks but you get to rule the Ottoman Empire for decades as a compensation.

[ottomanladies]

Mustafa III + harem and children

Consorts

Aynü’l-Hayât Baş-Kadınefendi (1726?-1.8.1764): she is sometimes considered Mustafa III's official wife. She was Mihrimah Sultan's mother, though Öztuna claims she was also mother to Mihr-i Şâh Sultan, Hibetullah Sultan and Hatice Sultan (the princess that died young). Esad Efendi, in Teşrifat-ı Kadime, claims that she died on 1 August 1764 and that she was Third Imperial Consort to "Allah's Shadow on Earth". Öztuna, on the other hand, claims that she was Mustafa III's first Baş-Kadınefendi. She was buried in Laleli, the plaque on her tomb clearly identifying her as the mother of Mihrimah Sultan (there is no mention of possible other daughters). She had built the Katırcıham Mescid Mosque in 1760.

Mihr-i Şâh Baş-Kadınefendi, later Vâlide-Sultân (1745?-16.10.1805): mother of Selim III, Fatma Sultan, and Hibetullah Sultan. Some historians say that she was mother to Şâh Sultan as well, but she was born only 8 months before Selim III. According to a legend, she was Genoese, but it's more likely that she was Georgian instead. Sakaoğlu claims that she was appointed Senior Consort because she was the mother to Mustafa III's only son. There is not much information about her tenure as Senior Consort, only that she was immediately sent to the Old Palace on the death of her husband. A document preserved in the Topkapi Palace Archives states that Mustafa III had borrowed money from Mihr-i Şâh; since the document wasn't torn, it means that the debt was never paid back (most probably because of Mustafa III's sudden death). On the death of his uncle Abdülhamid I on 7 April 1789, Selim III ascended the throne and Mihr-i Şâh was ceremoniously crowned Valide Sultan through the procession of the Valide Sultan, at which dignitaries, members of the ulema and the military participated. The next day the Valide Sultan assumed office with a written decree that was read to everyone present at the ceremony. At this point, gifts were sent to her. During her 15-years tenure, Mihr-i Şâh Sultan supported her son's innovations and was personally behind the renovations in the Topkapi Palace harem. According to a palace rumour, Selim III would go greet his mother in her apartments every single morning. Mihr-i Şâh Valide Sultan died on 16 October 1805, around 10 in the morning. During her tenure, she oversaw philanthropic projects, such as two fountains in memory of her two daughters - Hibetullah and Fatma - who had died young, and the Mihr-i Şâh Sultân Mosque with two minarets.

Fehîme 2. Kadınefendi (?? - 1761): she died while giving birth and, according to Sicill-i Osmani, Mustafa III called her "şehide" (martyr). Sakaoğlu claims that she was a Hanım, and not the Second Imperial Consort. She's not mentioned in Uluçay.

Rifat 2. Kadınefendi (1744?-12.1803): apparently a free woman whom Mustafa III met during an incognito tour of Istanbul, she was kept outside of the harem for a long time, then trusted into the care of the Grand Vizier and his wife who educated her in the harem ways, and finally admitted to the Imperial harem as Fourth Imperial Consort. In 1764, she eventually rose to the rank of Second Imperial Consort. From her burial place in Haydarpaşa Cemetery, it has been suggested that after Mustafa III's death, she returned to her own family instead of being sent to the Old Palace. Öztuna claims that she was Şâh Sultan's mother.

(Ayşe) Â’dil-Şâh 3. Kadınefendi (1748?-19.12.1803): of Circassian origin, she was the mother of Beyhan and Hatice Sultan. She died during the Ramadan month, supposedly around or on the same day of Rifat Kadınefendi. She was buried in the garden of Mustafa III's tomb, where an old plaque identified her as the mother of Beyhan and Hatice Sultan, which did not survive to present day. In her honour, her daughter Beyhan built a school around Yeşillioğlu Palace in the same year she died. In 1805, her other daughter, Hatice, built the Adilşah Kadın Mescidi Mosque. That she was also called Ayşe is present only in Alderson and Öztuna.

Binnâz 3. Kadınefendi (?? - 5.1823): not mentioned in Uluçay or Sakaoğlu, she was a childless consort who, after Mustafa III's death, married Çayır-zâde İbrahim Ağa. She had been Fourth Imperial Consort until Aynü’l-Hayât Kadınefendi's death in 1764, when she was promoted. At the time of her death, she was about 80 years old. She was buried in the Hamidiye Mausoleum.

Gülman: no information about her. Alderson suggests that she might have been called Gülnar instead.

Children

Hibetullah Sultan (17.3.1759 - 6.1762): she was the first birth in the Dynasty in 29 years. Her birth was therefore celebrated for ten days and ten nights by rich and poor alike. Her name is sometimes written as Heybetullah or Heyyibetullah. On the fountain dedicated to her, it is written that her mother was Mihr-i Şâh Sultan, and not Aynü’l-Hayât Kadınefendi as Öztuna believes. Her nurse seems to have been Emine Hanım, Aynü’l-Hayât Kadınefendi's sister. When she was three months old, Hibetullah was engaged to Hamid Hamza Paşa in another pompous ceremony; on this occasion, her father bestowed the Gümrükçü farms to her. Unfortunately, she died at the age of three either of smallpox or another disease. She was buried in her father's mausoleum.

Şâh Sultan (21.4.1761 - 11.3.1803): mother unknown, she was born during the month of Ramadan and therefore the celebrations in her honour were postponed on the day next to Eid. She was engaged at the age of three to Grand Vizier Köse Bahir Mustafa Paşa but, at the engagement ceremony, Mustafa III exiled his Grand Vizier to Lesbo and later had him executed. At the age of seven, she was engaged to Nişancı Yağlıkçızade Mehmed Emin Paşa (later Grand Vizier); a year later, though, he was exiled to Edirne and executed there. Finally, during the reign of her uncle Abdülhamid I, she was married to Nişancı Seyyid Mustafa Paşa on 6 November 1778. The couple had two daughters: Şerife Havvâ Hanım-Sultân and Âliye Hanım-Sultân, both died at six months old. Şâh Sultan and her husband adopted a girl, New Hanım, who died at the age of 18. Şâh Sultan may have suffered from health problems because she lived in a mansion on the seaside and was definitely less active than her other two sisters, Beyhan and Hatice. Selim III used to visit her very often, even staying for days and summoning the Grand Vizier there to discuss affairs of state. In Tarih-i Cevdet it is stated that she was an impeccable Muslim, who protected and helped the poor. In 1792, she built the Şâh Sultan fountain in Yeşildirek; in 1800, she built her tomb, a school and a public fountain near the Zal Mahmud Paşa Mosque in Eyüp. She died at the age of 42 years old and was buried in the tomb she had built for herself.

Selim III (24.12.1761 - 28.7.1808): 28th sultan of the Ottoman Empire, he reigned for 18 years before being deposed in favour of his cousin Mustafa IV. He had several consorts but no children.

Mihr-i Mâh Sultan (5.2.1762 - 3.1764): Alderson claimed she was born in 1760 but documents in Topkapi Palace Archives found by Uluçay reveal that she was born in 1762 and died in 1764. Her mother was Aynü’l-Hayât Kadınefendi. For her birth, celebrations were held for five days. She, unfortunately, died young and was buried next to her sister Hibetullah.

Mihr-i Şâh Sultan (9.1.1763 - 21.2.1769): mother unknown, Mustafa III ordered celebrations for three days and three nights to be held. She died at the young age of 6 and was buried in her father's mausoleum.

Beyhan Sultan (13.1.1766 - 7.11.1824): elder daughter of Â’dil-Şâh Kadınefendi, she is sometimes called Big-han Sultan. She was nine years old when her father died, and moved to the Old Palace with her mother and younger sister. In a note sent to the Grand Vizier, the new sultan Abdülhamid I said that Beyhan fainted often inside the Old Palace and had bouts of screaming and shouting. Her mother thought that it was time for her to get married. The sultan selected Silahdar Çelik/Perişan Mustafa Paşa for Beyhan; the wedding was celebrated on 22 April 1784 and the couple had a child together, Hatice Hanım-Sultân, who lived into adulthood, as she got married in 1814. Beyhan was the sister that Selim III met most often during his reign; he would visit her on her seaside palace on the Bosphorus and listen to musical performances together. She was most active in the innovations of the empire and even organised parties for foreign ambassadors' wives. She built twin palaces in Yeşillioğlu, giving the other to her sister Hatice. In 1791, she demolished the old Çırağan Palace with Selim III's approval and started the construction of a European-style mansion. The mansion was ready in 1795, just when her sister Hatice was busy with the construction of her seaside mansion with Melling's help. Her husband died around 1798 but Beyhan did not remarry though she lived for 26 more years. She died during the reign of Mahmud II at the age of 59.

Hatice Sultan (15.6.1766 -1767): according to Alderson and Öztuna. There is no information about her.

Şehzade Mehmed (10.1.1767-12.10.1772): died of smallpox, his tutor had been Küçük Hüseyn Ağa (later Damad and Paşa). He was buried in the mausoleum of his father.

Hatice Sultan (13/14.6.1768 - 17.7.1822): younger daughter of Â’dil-Şâh Kadınefendi, she was six years old when her father died and she had to move to the Old Palace with her mother and elder sister. She was educated by the other concubines living there. Like her sister, Hatice Sultan developed depression, according to her mother, who wrote to the new sultan, Abdülhamid I, asking him to find a husband for her younger daughter. According to Hatice Sultan's deputy, Ahmed Vasıf Efendi, the princess' depression was due to the environment in which she was forced to live. Ahmed Vasıf Efendi would later write a history of the period, providing valuable information on Hatice Sultan's life. At the age of 18, the princess married Seyyid Ahmed Paşa; the marriage lasted till 1799 when the pasha died, but the couple had no children. After being widowed, Hatice Sultan chose not to remarry. In 1806, she built the Hatice Sultan Fountain in the Spice Bazaar. In 1809, she bought a large plot of land in Arnavutköyü and had the Hatice Sultan Palace built there. She died in 1822, during the reign of Mahmud II, and as she had no children, she left everything to her elder sister Beyhan. Her staggering debt was paid off by Mahmud II. She was buried in the mausoleum of Mihr-i Şâh Valide Sultan.

Fatma Sultan (9.1.1770 - 26.5.1772): she was buried in the mausoleum of her father

Reyhan Sultan (?-?): she was very young when she died.

[reallifesultanas]

About the Haseki title

Yesterday was the anniversary of Hafsa Valide Sultan's death. For this reason, I would like to talk a little about the Haseki title as it was created due to her death.

Origin of the Haseki title

The title itself was created in 1534 by Suleyman I. The reason is more complicated than we would think at first. Usually, we believe that Suleyman created this title for Hürrem because he loved her so much that wanted to give her something valuable. But it's not only about his love and affection for Hürrem, the whole title had a deeper meaning.

Suleyman went a lot to war in his early-mid reign. During the wars, his mother was left in the capital to take care of his harem and act as a messenger for him. Hafsa was great for that role because Suleyman could trust her, she told him everything that happened, she was respected by everyone and she could take great care of Suleyman's family. So Suleyman could be calm, everything stayed fine in the capital while he was far away. Suleyman - and every sultan - needed a strong and honest and trustworthy ally in the capital during war-time, especially when war seemed to be long and hard. For example, his father Yavuz Selim I made Suleyman act as a regent while he was chasing his brothers and fighting against them. True that these times Suleyman was not in Topkapi Palace, Istanbul but Edirne, because that was the custom. So until 1534, Suleyman could leave the capital in relative calmness because the city was in the hands of his mother, and also his mother was there to keep safe the harem and take care of his children and family.

But everything changed in 1534, in the year of Suleyman's hardest campaign. Suleyman's Persian campaign started and these kinds of campaigns were the hardest and most dangerous campaigns for the Ottomans. The wars with the Safavids are legendary! In such a situation Suleyman's mother fell ill, very ill. This is why Suleyman didn't leave with his army in early 1534 but sent Ibrahim Pasha instead. This was the first time that he did not accompany his army. At first, the army was fine with it, at least there is no evidence suggesting otherwise. Most probably they knew the reason why the sultan stayed and understood him. But with time as the war became worse and worse, Suleyman was very needed at the battlefield. Hafsa Sultan in the end died on 19 March of 1534. After the mourning period, Suleyman should leave and join his army already. But who he could trust to keep the harem and the city safe? All of his trusted men were at the campaign and the only person he could trust, Hürrem, was not suitable for the position. In the end, Suleyman named his younger son, Mehmed as the protector of Istanbul, but he was young also. Mehmed moved to Topkapi Palace with his mother and tutor, but still, it was not enough. Hürrem was the only one Suleyman could completely trust, so he must have to make her suitable for the role.

But how could a simple consort rule the whole harem and help the young protector of Istanbul? Hürrem was the mother of a prince, which definitely was something but still, she was very far from the highest-ranking women of the harem. In the harem, there lived Suleyman's widowed sisters and aunts, who all had a higher rank than Hürrem. Most of them were even older than Hürem and age was a very important factor in the hierarchy especially together with ranks. How could Hürrem rule over them? How could Hürrem with a lower rank keep the harem in order? Well, there was no way for that, so Hürrem must have had a higher rank to do so. Suleyman was thinking about what he could do... When the mourning period ended he immediately married Hürrem in May 1534. She became a wedded wife and stuff so she had a high rank but she still was only a Hatun, as only the trueborn princesses and the Valide could have the title "Sultana". As a wedded wife she still was not completely above the old true-born sultanas. Suleyman wanted to mark Hürrem's importance and position for everyone, to make it even more clear that she is Suleyman's favorite and only woman, his ear in the capital while he is abroad. So he created a new rank for Hürrem: the Haseki Sultan title. As a wedded wife and a Haseki she had a higher rank than anyone else in the Harem, she became a Sultana. And with such titles, she could easily move to Topkapi Place with Sehzade Mehmed to act as regents while Suleyman was far away. They - along with Mehmed's tutor - did a nice job, wrote letters to Suleyman about everything, and kept the harem and the city in order.

But what was the Haseki's role?

The original usage of Haseki Sultan title meant that she was the chief consort of the sultan with special status. A Haseki Sultan had an important place in the palace, being the second most powerful woman and enjoyed the greatest status in the imperial harem after Valide Sultan and usually had chambers close to the sultan's chamber. Rumors have it that Suleyman and Hürrem had a secret corridor between their rooms so they could meet anytime. When the position of Valide Sultan was vacant, a Haseki took the Valide Sultan's role, have access to considerable economic resources, become chief of the imperial harem, sultan's advisor in political matters, and even have an influence on foreign policy and international politics. So this was the original meaning of being a Haseki.

What happened later?

After Hürrem the next Haseki Sultan was Nurbanu Sultan, mother of the heir, later Murad III and partner of Selim II, Hürrem's son. When Selim ascended the throne Hürrem was already dead, so the position of the Valide Sultan was vacant. This is why Nurbanu could act similarly to Hürrem. She had a less long tenure, as Selim was sultan for only 8 years, but her power and work were very similar to Hürrems. Hürrem was the only woman in Suleyman's life after they met and she was the mother of all his children except Mustafa, who was born long before Hürrem and Suleyman met. Nurbanu was similarly to the only woman in Selim's life, however, their situation was different. Due to the law of fratricide, Nurbanu and Selim stopped reproducing after the birth of their first son in 1546. They never had any children together again, but still, they were faithful to each other and Nurbanu acted as a companion and partner, and ally to Selim. Later when their son, Murad got his first province, Nurbanu had to leave with him, leaving Selim alone. The alone Selim during this period accidentally impregnated a consort and had a daughter with her. From then on Selim was loyal to Nurbanu again and the mother of the daughter couldn't have any position or any special wealth. Selim ascended the throne in 1566 and his pashas were worried because he had only one son, one heir, the son of Nurbanu, Murad. So the pashas in the end pushed Selim to produce more children. The mothers of these children were one-night stands and they had a shamefully low stipend (50 aspers for a day) compared to Nurbanu's stipend (1100 aspers for a day). Selim wanted to show everyone that these women and these sons born from these one-night stands mean nothing compared to Nurbanu and Murad, so he stated that his heir is Murad, and his love is Murad's mother. So he married Nurbanu. So all in all true, that Selim had other women in his life besides Nurbanu but we cannot compare any of them to Nurbanu. And in general, Nurbanu had a very similar role as Hürrem so we can consider them being both the original kind of Hasekies.

When Selim II died his son Murad III took his place, and Nurbanu reached her peak, becoming a Valide Sultan. Murad to sign his love for his mother made a legal and official title out of Valide Sultanship (though it's a different story). Murad immediately made his favorite consort, Safiye a Haseki Sultan, however this time Haseki meant a different thing. The whole Haseki title was created because of the absence of a Valide Sultan and both titles have similar tasks so the two titles were incompatible. Still first time in history there was a Valide Sultan (one of the strongest of all time) and a Haseki Sultan. Both were very loved by the sultan, and both wanted to influence the sultan. This naturally caused trouble. The Haseki Sultan, Safiye wanted to be such a Haseki as Nurbanu and Hürrem were previously, but it was not possible with the presence of such a Valide Sultan. Safiye, while was a Haseki, was considered more like a favorite consort by people. Things changed when Nurbanu died in 1583 and so Safiye became a real Haseki Sultan, acting like a Haseki Sultan. However besides her Murad continuously had other consorts and these consorts had a bigger value than previously Selim II's late consorts. Some of them could to charitable foundations, which suggest a higher stipend than Selim II's late consorts. All in all of course none of them couldn't be compared to Safiye, but still, they were present.

When Murad III died, Safiye became the Valide Sultan to Mehmed III and so reached her peak in power. Safiye Sultan knew how terrible A Valide could be to a Haseki and vica versa, this is why she forbade to her son to make a Haseki out of any of his consorts. During Mehmed's reign, there was no recorded Haseki Sultan.

When Mehmed died his barely 13 years old son, Ahmed I ascended the throne in 1603. Soon he made his favorite consort, Kösem a Haseki Sultan. Kösem was a strong Haseki Sultan, but she was not similar in tasks or any other perspective to Hürrem and Nurbanu, who were the original kind of Hasekies. Kösem's situation was similar, because Ahmed's mother died young, so the Valide Sultan's position was vacant, but she couldn't make power out of the harem. She couldn't take the Valide Sultan's job. She had no political activity, she tried in vain to gain any political influence, Ahmed never let her do so. She couldn't really have her allies, she didn't have heavy burdens on her shoulders such her predecessors had. She was not even the one ruling the imperial harem as it was ruled by Haci Mustafa Agha, the chief black eunuch, who was a father-figure to the sultan. During this period the Haseki title had a meaning of being the sultan's favorite, and not being a kind-of-valide.

The next years were chaotic for the Haseki title. The new ruler after Ahmed I who had a Haseki was Osman II. Osman II's Haseki did not have any political influence, was not ruling the harem (while the position of Valide Sultan was vacant though). We cannot even consider her any kind of Haseki, only her stipend suggests she was a Haseki but nothing else.

The next sultan, Murad IV had a Haseki, Ayşe Sultan who was similar to Osman II's Haseki, as she also couldn't gain any political or another kind of influence. And in his late reign, Murad IV made a second Haseki out of his favorites. With this, the original meaning and the whole raison d'etre of it were destroyed.

The Haseki Sultan title was destroyed by Murad, but his brother Ibrahim I made a total mess out of it. He gave a Haseki title and Haseki stipend to all of his favorites, so during his reign, there was a total of 8 Hasekies. These women cannot be compared to the original Hasekies but not even to Murad IV's Haseki, Ayşe. The Haseki title was devastated and it seemed like it will end like this.

A little light came then, with the reign of Mehmed IV, who made his favorite consort, mother of his children a Haseki Sultan. Emetullah Rabia Gülnüş was again a kind of normal Haseki Sultan. She had political power, she influenced the sultan, but the role of Valide Sultan was not vacant, as Mehmed IV's mother, Turhan was alive, so she couldn't act as an original Haseki. She was similar to Kösem Sultan actually. While Emetullah Rabia Gülnüş had a Valide mother-in-law, we still cannot compare this to Safiye and Nurbanu, because those two fought with each other, while Turhan and Emetullah had a cordial relationship. True that Emetullah was not as strong and independent as the original Hasekies but after the mass of Ibrahim I, it was a refreshment to see a kind-of-Haseki-Sultan.

Mehmed IV's brother, Ahmed II had a Haseki also, Rabia Sultan, but this woman was nothing like a Haseki should be. She had the salary of a Haseki but that's all. She didn't have any kind of influence, so in reality, she was more like a simple favorite than a Haseki Sultan. The Haseki Sultan title was soon abolished and in general, the whole harem system changed a lot, the titles of the harem concubines changed also. With the death of Rabia, the last Haseki Sultan, the Haseki title disappeared.

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Tegnap volt Ayşe Hafsa Valide szultána halálának évfordulója. Ennek okán szeretnék egy kicsit beszélni a Haszeki szultána címről, amely részben halála miatt jött létre.

A Haszeki cím eredete

A címet magát I. Szulejmán alkotta meg 1534-ben. Ennek oka bonyolultabb volt, mint azt először gondolnánk. Általában úgy hisszük, Szulejmán azért alkotta meg ezt a rangot Hürrem számára, mert annyira szerette és ki akarta fejezni, mennyit jelent neki. A cím azonban nem csupán a szerelemről szól, sokkal mélyebb jelentése és jelentősége van.

Szulejmán uralkodásának korai-középső periódusában rendeteget háborúzott. A háborúk idején édesanyja a fővárosban maradt és vigyázott a háremre, mindenről beszámolt a szultánnak, ami a fővárosban zajlott. Hafsa nagyszerűen megfelelt erre a szerepre, mert Szulejmán megbízhatott benne, Hafsa mindent elmondott fiának, ami történt és nagyszerűen gondját viselte Szulejmán családjának, emellett pedig mindenki szerette és tisztelte. Szulejmán ilyen háttérrel nyugodt lehetett a háborúban is, hiszen családja és a főváros jó kezekben volt. Szulejmánnak - és minden más szultának is - hatalmas szüksége volt erős, megbízható emberekre, akiket a fővárosban hagyhatott háború idejére, különösen ha hosszadalmas háború volt kilátásban. Példának okáért Szulejmán apja, I. Yavuz Szelim saját fiát, Szulejmánt hagyta meg Isztambul őrzőjének, amíg ő a keleti fronton harcolt vagy saját testvéreit üldözte. Igaz, Szulejmán nem Isztambulban volt ekkor, hanem Edirnéből kormányozta az országot és vigyázott a rendre, hiszen a hagyomány így követelte. Lényegében tehát 1534-ig Szulejmán nyugodtan hagyhata hátra a fővárost, ha háborúzni ment.

1534-ben aztán minden megváltozott. Ebben az évben indult Szulejmán egyik legkeményebb hadjárata, a perzsa hadjárat. A Szafavidák ellen vívott háborúk mindig a legnehezebbek voltak az oszmánok számára, nem volt ez másként Szulejmán esetében sem. Ilyen körülmények között azonban, pont a hadjárat előkészületei alatt Hafsa szultána súlyos beteg lett. Szulejmán nem akarta elhagyni édesanyját, ezért hadseregét előreküldte Pargali Ibrahim vezetésével, ő maga pedig anyja mellett maradt. Ez volt az első alkalom, hogy Szulejmán így cselekedett. Úgy tűnik, a hadsereg nem különösebben bánta eleinte Szulejmán döntését, bizonyára tudták, mi távollétének oka és megértették. Később, ahogy a hadjárat egyre rosszabbul ment, Szulejmánra nagy szükség volt a hadszíntéren. Hafsa végül március 19-én hunyt el. A gyászidő letelte után Szulejmánnak el kellett volna indulnia hadserege után, azonban nagyon nehéz helyzetben találta magát. Nem tudtakire bízza a háremét és a fővárost. Bár kinevezte fiát, Mehmedet Isztambul védelmezőjévé, a herceg még nagyon fiatal volt ekkor. Mehmed herceg anyja és tanítója kíséretében a Topkapi Palotába költözött, ám ez kevés volt. Hürrem volt az egyetlen, akiben Szulejmán kellőképpen megbízott, hogy ráhagyja a háremet és a fővárost, azonban a nőnek nem volt megfelelő rangja ahhoz, hogy elláthassa ezt a feladatot.

Hogyan uralhatta volna egy egyszerű ágyas a háremet és hogyan segíthette volna Isztambul ifjú őrzőjét? Hürrem bár több herceg anyja volt és a szultán kedvence, mégis nagyon távol állt rangban a hárem sok más lakójától. A háremben éltek ugyanis Szulejmán özvegy testvérei, nagynénjei, akik mint rangban, mind korban felülmúlták Hürremet. Hogy uralkodhatott volna tehát Hürrem? Szulejmán végül feleségül vette kedvenc ágyasát, Hürremet 1534 májusában. Ezzel bár hites feleség lett és pozíciója sokat javult, továbbra is csak a Hatun rang illette meg, nem uralhatta tehát a háremben élő született szultánákat. Szulejmán ezért megalkotott egy olyan rangot Hürrem számára, amellyel maga is szultána rangot kapott, így pedig alkalmassá vált arra, hogy a háremet uralja. A Haszeki szultána rang megalkotása után mindenki számára nyilvánvalóvá vált, hogy mit jelent Hürrem a szultán számára, és kénytelenek voltak elfogadni felsőbbrendűségét. Ezekután Hürrem fiával együtt nyugodtan költözhetett a Topkapi Palotába, ahonnan rendszeresen számoltak be a szultánnak az aktuális eseményekről. Jó munkát végeztek, így Szulejmán nyugodtan koncentrálhatott hadjáratára.

Na de gyakorlatban mi volt a Haszeki szultána feladata?

Eredetileg a Haszeki szultána cím a szultán fő kedvencét jelölte, akinek kiemelt státusza volt. A Haszeki szultána nagyon fontos szerepet játszott a háremben, és a második legbefolyásosabb nő lehetett a Valide szultána után. Emellett megvolt a saját lakrésze, mely a validéével vetekedett. A legendák szerint Hürrem lakrésze például titkos összeköttetésben állt Szulejmánéval, hogy zavartalanul találkozhassanak. Ha a Valide Szultána hiányzot a hierarchiából, a Haszeki vette át feladatait, amivel hatalmas gazdasgi forrásokhoz jutott hozzá, ő volt a hárem feje, a szultán tanácsadója politikai ügyekben, sőt akár befolyással lehetett a más államokkal vlaó politikára is. Ezt értjük tehát a Haszeki cím eredeti jelentőségének.

Mi történt később?

Hürrem után a következő Haszeki, Nurbanu szultána volt, az örökös, későbbi III. Murad anyja és II. Szelim partnere. Amikor Szelim trónralépett, Hürrem már régóta halott volt, így a Valide szultána rang üres volt. Ennek köszönhetően Nurbanu hasonló keretek között ténykedett, mint elődje, Hürrem. Haszekisége csupán 8 évig tartott, mely alatt hatalma, munkája nagyban hasonlított Hürremére. Szulejmán életében nem volt más nő miután megismerte Hürremet és ő volt minden fiának anyja, kivéve Musztafának, aki jóval idősebb volt Hürrem fiainál. Nurbanu hasonlóan az egyetlen nő volt Szelim életében, azonban esetük kissé eltérő volt. A testvérgyilkosság törvénye miatt Szelim és Nurbanu első fiuk születése után nem nemzett többé gyermeket, azonban hűségesek voltak egymáshoz és Nurbanu vált Szelim partnerévé, társává. Később, mikor egyetlen közös fiuk megkapta első uralnivaló provinciáját, Nurbanu a szokásokhoz híven követte fiát, ezzel hátrahagyva Szelimet. A magány idején Szelim nemzett egy gyermeket egy névtelen ágyasnak, egy kislányt. A lány születése után aztán Szelim újra hűséges lett Nurbanuhoz és nem kockáztatta többé, hogy gyermeket nemzen. A sors azonban máshogy gondolta. Szelim 1566-ban, Szulejmán halálát követően foglalhatta el a trónt. Ekkor Szelimnek gyakorlatilag egyetlen örököse volt, fia Murad, ami a pasák szerint rendkívül kevés volt. Ha Murad elhunyt volna egy betegség következtében, ami talán nem lett volna meglepő, tekintve, hogy nem volt egy erős megjelenésű figura, akkor a birodalom örökös nélkül maradt volna. Emiatt a pasák minden erejükkel azon voltak, hogy Szelimet rávegyék a további gyermeknemzésre. Végül Szelim több egyéjszakás kaland során több fiút is nemzett. Ezen ágyasok azonban szinte szégyenteljesen alacsony fizetést kaptak (50 asper egy napra) Nurbanuhoz viszonyítva (1100 asper egy napra). Szelim emellett nyilvánosan is ki akarta fejezni, hogy életében egy nő és egy örökös van, emiatt nyilvánosan Muradot nevezte meg örököséül, fia anyját pedig feleségül vette. Így bár Nurbanu mellett voltak más nők Szelim életében, mégsem vehetjük egyiküket sem komolyan, csupán a körülmények adtak létjogosultságot nekik. Épp emiatt általánosságban véve (hatalmát, befolyását, elismertségét, vagyonát, munkáját) Nurbanu Haszekisége nagyban hasonlított Hürremére, ami mindkettejüket egyértelműen a Haszekik eredeti generációjává teszi.

Mikor II. Szelim elhalálozott, fia III. Murad követte a trónon, amivel Nurbanu elérte hatalma csúcsét, Valide szultánaként. Murad, hogy bizonyítsa, mennyire tiszteli és szereti anyját egy valódi tisztséget alkotott a Valide számára, de ez egy másik történet... Murad ugyanekkor kedvenc ágyasát, Safiyét a Haszeki ranggal tüntette ki. Azonban ez a Haszekiség merőben eltért Hürrem vagy Nurbanu Haszkiségétől. Az egész rangra azért volt szükség, mert nem volt életben Valide szultána és szükség volt a pótlására. Jelen esetben azonban nagyon is volt Valide, ráadásul a történelem egyik legerőebbike, így természetes frusztrációt okozott a két rang együttes jelenléte. Mivel mind a Valide, mind a Haszeki rang hasonló feladatkörrel és befolyással bír, a két nő között verseny alakult ki, ami vérremenő harcig fajult az évek múlásával. Bár Safiye szeretett volna hasonló Haszeki lenni, mint elődei, esélye sem volt erre sem a háremen belül sem a politikai életben. Gyakorlatilag Safiye csak egy kedvenc ágyas volt, magas fizetéssel, hiába viselte a Haszeki rangot. A dolgok természetesen megváltoztak, amikor Nurbanu 1583-ban lehalálozott. Innentől Safiye valódi Haszekivé lépett elő. Fontos azonban megjegyezni, hogy Muradnak rendszeresen voltak más ágyasai Safiye mellett ebben az időszakban és jóval nagyobb vagyonnal és befolyással rendelekzdtek, mint például II. Szelim elfeledett ágyasai. Murad ágyasai közül többen is tudtak jótékony szervezetet alapítani és egyéb más adaozásokat csinálni, melyre aligha lettek volna képesek, ha annyi a fizetésük, mint II. Szelim ágyasainak. Ettől függetlenül természetesen Safiyéhez nem érhettek fel.

III. Murad halálával Safiye Valide szultána rangot kapott fia, III. Mehmed mellett és elérte befolyása csúcsát. Safiye mindneki másnál jobban tudta milyen szörnyűséges, ha egyszerre van jelen egy erős Valide és egy Haszeki, épp emiatt, megtiltotta fiának, hogy bármelyik ágyasát Haszeki rangra emelje, így III. Mehmed uralkodása alatt Safiynek nem igazán volt vetélytársa.

Mehmed halálával, alig 13 éves fia, I. Ahmed került trónra, 1603-ban. Hamarosan ő is kinevezett magának egy Haszekit, kisebbik fiának anyja, Köszem kapta meg ezt a titulust. Köszem erős asszony volt, Ahmed háremében is kiemelt szerepe volt, azonban sem befolyásában sem feladatköreiben nem hasonlíthatjuk az előbbi Haszekikhez. Bár Köszem helyzete hasonló volt Hürrem vagy Nurbanu helyzetéhez, hisz a szultán anyja nem élt, így a Haszeki volt a legmagasabb rangú nő, Köszem mégsem tudott felérni elődeihez. Nem volt politikai befolyása, Ahmed nem engedte meg neki, hogy aktivizálja magát a politikában. Emellett saját támogatói körrel sem rendelkezett, nem nyomták nehéz terhek a vállait, hiszen a hárem vezetése sem az ő feladata volt. Tény, hogy volt beleszólása a hárem életébe, de azt Haci Musztafa Aga, fő fekete eunuch irányította, aki egyfajta apafigura volt a szultán életében. Köszem Haszekisége inkább volt egy kiemelt kedvenc szerepe, mint az eredeti Haszekiség.

A következő néhány év teljesen kaotikus volt a Haszeki rang szempontjából. A soronkövetkező szultán, II. Oszmán is odaadta a titulust egyik ágyasáank, azonban a nőnek nem volt semmiféle politikai befolyása vagy akár hárembeli befolyása (még úgy sem, hogy nem volt Valide szultána Oszmán uralkodása során). Fizetését leszámítva semmi köze nem volt a Haszekikhez ennek az ágyasnak.

A következő szultán IV. Murad szintén Haszekivé tette egyik ágyasát, aki éveken keresztül dominálta Murad szerelmi életét, azonban politikai befolyása nem volt és a Valide szultánával sem versenyezhetett a háremben. Ayşe Haszeki is inkább volt jó fizetéssel rendelkező kedven ágyas, mintsem Haszeki. Ráadásul Murad uralkodásána végén feltűnt egy második Haszeki, amivel az egész Haszeki szultána rang létjogosultságát sikerült lerombolni.

A Haszeki szultána rangot bár Murad is erőteljesen elkezdte rombolni, a munkát öccse, I. Ibrahim végezte be. Ibrahim minden kedvenc ágyasának kiosztotta a Haszeki rangot, amivel összesen 8 Haszekit produkált. Ezeket a nőket egyáltalán nem hasonlíthatjuk a korábbi Haszekikhez, még Ayşe Haszekihez sem! Úgy tűnt, a Haszeki rang teljesen tönkre ment és megsemmisült.

Egy kis fényt hozott a következő uralkodó, IV. Mehmed, aki újra logikus módon használta ezt a rangot és kedvenc ágyasának, gyermekei anyjának, Emetullah Rabia Gülnüşnek adta oda. Emetullah Rabia Gülnüş függetlenül attól, hogy volt életben Valide szultána politika befolyásra is szert tudott tenni, emellett befolyással bírt a szultánra és a háremre is. Esete kissé hasonlít Safiye fiatalkori Haszekiségére, azzal a különbséggel, hogy IV. Mehmed édesanyja, Turhan Hatice Valide szultána és közte sosem volt harc a hatalomért, elfogadták és tiszteletben tartották egymást. Így bár összességében Emetullah Rabia Gülnüşt nem hasonlíthatjuk az eredeti Haszekikhez, mint Hürrem vagy Nurbanu, mégis felüdülés volt Ibrahim 8 Haszekije után látni valakit, aki legalább hasonlított a Haszeki eredeti értelmére.

IV. Mehmed öccse, II. Ahmed volt az utolsó szultán, aki rendelkezett Haszeki szultánával. Ez a nő Rabia volt, a szultán gyermekeinek anyja, kedvenc ágyasa. Bár fizetése a Haszekire jellemző, rendkívül magas fizetés volt, nem volt semmilyen beolyása, így inkább volt egyszerű ágyas, mint valódi Haszeki. A Haszeki szultána címet hamarosan végleg eltörölték és az egész hárem struktúra nagyban megváltozott, vele együtt az összes rang is. Rabia halálával pedig eltávozott az utolsó Haszeki szultána és a cím örökre eltűnt.

[wisdomrays]

TAFAKKUR: Part 239

A NEW MODEL: MULTIPLE UNIVERSES (MULTIVERSE): Part 1

There are a number of critical points in the history of physics, which strives for a better understanding of the mysteries about the creation of the universe. We can classify all the viewpoints which aim to explain the universe as it came into existence from non-existence under two fundamental starting points: The first viewpoint represents those who unite on the acceptance of and submission to a Creator Who is the All-Powerful with His Omnipotence and Will; the second viewpoint represents those who believe that the universe has come into existence by mere chance or assert that the universe is eternal and perpetual, and hence who do not accept a Creator at all. The classical physics taught in schools derives from Isaac Newton's ideas, according to which, the universe is kind of a machine working like a clock in strict accordance with certain mathematical equations that are called laws of physics. In this view there is no chance or probability, as the functioning of the universe is in strict accordance with principles. Space and time in Newtonian physics are infinite and precise. The time is 10:34 on Jupiter and in the Andromeda galaxy, as it is 10:34 here. Time is perceived as a steadily flowing river.

However, space and time are relative according to the theories of Special and General Relativity which were developed by Einstein. A time period which is two hours long with respect to an observer may be one and a half hours or three hours long with respect to another observer. Let us suppose that two events are happening in different places (say New York and Istanbul) but simultenously with respect to an observer who is in between. The same events, however, will not be simultenous with respect to an observer who is in motion. If the observer moves towards the event happening on his right, that is, he diverges from the one on his left, then he will perceive the one on his right as happening earlier than the one on his left. Contrariwise, if he moves towards his left, that is, diverges from his right, then he will perceive the one on his left as happening earlier than the one on his right. Distances in space are thus relative and varying with respect to observers' positions.

Matter has a certain amount of influence over time and space according to Einstein's General Theory of Relativity (which he described as the theory he most enjoyed). Proportional to its mass, an object may cause changes in the geometry of space or in the acceleration of time. The curvature of space, for instance, is infinite near a black hole, which is regarded as a highly dense substance. Time is, however, constant and does not accelerate. This theory, with such peculiar outcomes, is mathematically perfect and coincides with observations conducted until now. Whether the universe is finite or infinite depends on the density of the material it contains, according to this theory.

Einstein's theories, though they seem flawless, cannot explain how the universe started all by itself. All laws of physics lose their validity at the time of the Big Bang (the explosion at the creation of the universe) and all the questions relevant to that moment and its precedents remain unanswered. How come the Big Explosion happened? How did it happen? What was there before the explosion? We need to rely on quantum physics in order to answer these questions or at least to deal with their paradoxes and be able to say something about the formation of the universe.

Newton's clock model or the deterministic model (that everything is realized in strict accordance with certain rules) is still influential in Einstein's theories, whereas quantum physics (which explains the activities of atomic and subatomic particles) is a more revolutionary approach to matter, actively engaging the observer in processes and tying events to probabilities. It seems that developing consistent theories about the beginning of the universe may only be achieved by using quantum physics, which might also have something to say about the macrocosm. However, the issue of how the theory of relativity and quantum physics can be reconciled is not yet solved. Here, it seems that the theory of multiple or parallel universes may be an alternative solution, and hence, many issues have been hitherto paradoxical and unsolvable are now being explained within a rational and logical frame of reference.

WHAT ARE MULTIPLE UNIVERSES?

In the Many Universes Interpretation (MUI) developed by physicists like Everett in the 1950s, the paradoxes caused by quantum physics in our modes of thinking are being eliminated and the issue of how the universe functions is being reviewed by an all-new approach. A parallel universe is a realm that carries features identical to those of ours and comprises space, time, matter, galaxies, stars and human beings all identical to those of ours. It can even be said that these two universes are sharing the very same space and that they are positioned to coexist. The substances in these parallel universes are interrelated according to the laws of quantum physics. That is, there are a great many universes like ours. You may, for instance, be taking a walk in a forest in a parallel universe while you are reading this article in this one.

Alternative histories can help us to understand parallel universes. How would the world have been shaped if the Ottoman sultan Mehmet II, who conquered Istanbul, had also succeeded in conquering Rome? Or, what would be happening now if Hitler had won World War II? Each of these probabilities has been realized in a parallel universe. Any world which is imaginably different and any history which is conceivably alternative is present and available somewhere out there. We can understand these multiple universes when we also consider our preferences. A person who chose to study medicine, for instance, would later become a medical doctor. If he or she had chosen biology, they might later have become a research scientist. Or, a man who chose to marry a woman merely due to her physical beauty but did not have a happy family life with her might have enjoyed a happy family life if he had married a pious woman who was his social equal and compatible with him. Thus, different universes, that is, differing probabilities become available according to our preferences.

Parallel universes are often a theme in science fiction novels and films. In the popular television serial Star Trek, for instance, during a routine beaming up process from a planet to their starship "Enterprise," Captain Kirk and his crew suddenly and accidentally find themselves in an ionized gas cloud. They find themselves inside an "Enterprise" that is almost identical to but surprisingly different from their own Enterprise. But, interestingly, the Mr. Spock in the new "Enterprise," is an extremely cruel person. In fact, all of the crew are cruel in this alternative starship. Meanwhile, the cruel Captain Kirk and his cruel crew have been beamed up to the other (good) "Enterprise" and these bad men have been imprisoned by the good Mr. Spock there. Both Mr. Spocks understand, after a short while, what the problem is. The Enterprise, due to an ionized gas storm, has been directed to a parallel universe in which an identical "Enterprise" and its identical crew exists. The duplication is almost perfect except that good is bad and vice versa. Had the ion storm not formed a space-time interconnection, the two (parallel) universes would have never become aware of one another. The good and bad versions of the parallel Captain Kirks have replaced each other; while the bad Captain Kirk is being held prisoner inside the good Enterprise, the good Captain Kirk has found himself inside the bad "Enterprise" and soon noticed that he can covertly correct some errors without being noticed and by acting as if he was one of the bad character.

In the television series The Twilight Zone a woman meets her (parallel) double while waiting at the bus stop. Her double has apparently left her own universe and entered this one. This double wants to replace her and succeeds in doing this. The genuine woman is meanwhile sectioned to a mental hospital.

In the story "August 2002, Night Meeting" from The Mars Chronicles, a terrestrial person named Thomas Gomez who has settled on the planet Mars happens to meet a parallel universe there. He hears an elderly man as he is about to depart after taking gasoline for his vehicle: "You may return to your world if you will not accept Mars as it is. Everything is different here: soil, air, canals, aborigines (though I have not yet seen any of them, but heard their voices) and watches. Even my watch functions peculiarly and even the time is different here."

Thomas then meets a Martian with gold-color eyes being carried by a machine that looks like a preying mantis peculiarly painted in bluish-green colors and greets him. The Martian greets Thomas in his own language. But neither understands the other. The Martian approaches and touches him, but Thomas does not feel him. They somehow start speaking the same language. As they try to shake hands, each one's hand passes through the other's as if they did not have hands at all. They can see each other, but cannot touch each other. They realize that they are in intersecting parallel universes. Each can sense his own body, but sees the other one as a ghost. They try to understand why they cannot touch each other while their universes mutually counter-influence. But they cannot find the answer. As he looks at his environment, the Martian sees a beautiful city full of marvelous things, while Thomas sees only desolate, unpopulated, ancient urban ruins. He shouts at the Martian, "All of these canals are empty!" The Martian replies,"The canals are full of violet-colored flowers." They finally understand that what they are experiencing is something related to time. However, they cannot discern who is in the past and who is in the future. Each of them thinks that his own world is the real one and the other one's is a realm of fancy.

Such peculiar-sounding tales contain some reality in the light of new physics.