#valide kosem sultan

[elizabeth-halime]

[anastasiasultana]

NURGÜL YEŞİLÇAY AS VALIDE KÖSEM SULTAN

keep your pain inside you wear it like an armour

[fictonrantsworld]

Turhan Sultan, I will never forgive the producers for only giving you 4 episodes, but that didn't stop me from making you one of my favourites... u served hard, with limited time u had and Ibrahim never deserved you.

Literally the only Sultana that was smart enough to care about herself and her son first and not the sultans love.

[humasahsultanimsworld]

Sultans and Their Colorful Clothes + Kösem Sultan is wearing a simple light green caftan

[burningdreambanana]

Unpopular opinion: Valide Hafsa was a way more formidable opponent to Hurrem than the so-called “great sultana” Safiye was to Kosem (in the show)

Safiye was supposed to be one of the most powerful and greatest sultanas ever and while I love the actress in MCK and think she played her character with incredible aura, I’m sorry she was a weak villain, and way less effective then Valide Hafsa was.

And yes people will say but Safiye killed Kosem’s father, managed to have her kill her own sister and set up Mehmed for execution, that’s so brutal !

But here are my issues with this. Safiye kidnapped, tortured and then killed Kosem’s father (even though Kosem did what she asked) and for what? Because she disobeyed her once. That’s such an extreme thing to do, she really went from a 0 to a 100 in the space of one episode, which sets up expectations very high. But then she spends almost the entire season losing to Kosem, so instead of a formidable villain she just comes across as a brute whose only tool is cruelty and not her brain. She gets her way this time, but only for a very short period of time because two episodes later Kosem blackmails her into exile to the Old Palace anyway.

And she spends so much of the season being just dumb and incompetent. She kidnaps baby Mehmet…then stands on a balcony with him. And then just gives him back. How useless was that?

Kosem is alone within a meter from her with an incriminating proof, having left her people at the door, and you’re telling me Safiye can’t grab a piece of paper from a skinny girl in a few second? Not to mention if Haci comes in it would be very difficult for him to put his hands on a sultana.

For all her resources she is unable to ensure Fahrye’s safety and leaves her at the mercy of her nephew.

Her coup was so badly prepared its hilarious: from putting it in motion without being 100% sure Ahmet is dead, while hiring her soldiers from the local choir (seriously none of these bums knew how to fight), not making sure that Kosem and Halime were dead, managing to lose her new toddler sultan for an entire day and only getting him back thanks to 10 years old Dilruba, not ensuring she had a substantial part of the army loyal to her….like I was supposed to be scared/thrilled but it was just sad to watch. Her and everyone around her were so incompetent.

And while Zulfikar has proven time and time again how loyal he is to Kosem, she still decided to trust him with Iskender’s life. Even the plan of placing a loyal Lala next to Osman would not have succeeded one bit if not for Kosem’s own dumbass idea to enthrone Mustafa.

As for the death of the sister and Mehmed, that was cruel but let’s be real here, does it derail Kosem in any way? Is it a serious setback where Kosem has to actually struggle for a period of time to gain the upper hand again? No, she’s immediately back to winning against Safiye again.

Compare this to Valide Hafsa Sultan. She truly puts Hurrem through the ringer in season 2. Her setting up the harem against Hurrem made her struggle for several episodes and it really felt like Hurrem had to fight tooth and nails and use her wits to prevail, even when she was the legal wife of Suleiman. And Hurrem never truly “defeated” Hafsa anyway, she found out by her own means Ibrahim had cheated on her daughter and that killed her.

So yeah I’ll die on the hill that apart from the casting, MCK really fumbled Safiye and she was kind of a joke of a villain, coming across more like a brute than a cunning woman, and Hafsa, who is not even supposed to be as clear as a villain (since MC was more neutral than Kosem), was a much more formidable opponent.

The only bright side to it is that it makes the claim that show Safiye could have defeated Queen Nurbanu (which I think Safiye tries to imply at some point), look absolutely ridiculous.

[chaos-of-the-abyss]

i swear they renovated the heck out of the palace between mck s1 and s2 bc i recognize none of the rooms or the halls now lol

[1533-secrets-from-history]

Power and status of ottoman princess

Title and honorifics

Before the rule of sultan Bayazid II every high ranking woman were called Hatuns,including mother,sisters,aunts and daughters, however thier social standing was naturally higher than non imperial women. The way to adrress them was Hatun that was used after their given name,for example, Gevherhan hatun,daughter of Mehmed the coqueror or effendi that would have similar meaning as mistress.

After accession of Bayazid II his daughters and granddaughters were given title of sultan,however non of his living sisters or aunts got the honor. Later on proper way to adress them woulf become “Sultanim”, which would mean “my sultan”,or again “effendim” by other members of imperial family. I would like to underline that contrary to what wikipedia states, there is no records that I know,where princesses where called with “Devletlu İsmetlu” like Valide sultan and Haseki sultan were.

The term “sultana” that was made more feminine by Europeans never existed in ottoman language.

Family, Marrige and Issues

I want to start discussing their family with brothers,it’s widely known fact that before suleyman there was “once concubine,one son” tradition therefore if shehzade/Sultan had full-sisters they were all older,that is one way to deduce if princess of unspecified mother was full sister of half sister of reigning sultan. Naturally Shezades had closer relationship to their full sisters as they were leaving with him and their mother,when he was appointed as governor of princely province. Their latter life would be spent in their brother’s harem before marriage.

being half sister of sultan did not automatically mean that their relationship would have been stained,however mostly,princess would favour full-brother over half,but were treated by same respect regardless who ascended the throne. It was different case when imperial princess had no full brother at all,for example Sah Huban, she had very close relationship with Suleyman,even closer than his deeply respected full sisters.

Their marriages,much like any other princesses of any country, was political,arranged by their parents to strengthen standing of their father or brother,for example daughters of Selim I were firstly married to powerful politicians,so their father would have supporters in his rebellion,while their second marriages were arranged to help Suleyman in his early reign. Their husbands were usually much older than them, therefore marital life was likely not consensual and in no way their choice. For example,Rustem paha,husband of Mihrimah,was same age as Hurrem,her daughter’s fate was even worse as she had to marry peer of her own grandfather,however given the fact that they had 8 children,marriage can be considered successful. After the Marriage princesses were getting their own little “Harrem”,where they had great rooms for themselves and their servants,where even their Husbands needed permission to enter and even refuse to have sexual intercourse with them,sometimes their marriage could end unconsumated and after some time princess could use another of their privilege-divorce. Reason of divorce could have been different: Personal attitude,mistreatment,political move or adultery. It was made clear,especially by Suleyman,that imperial princesses were full-fledged members of imperial family so they ranked higher than their husbands,therefore having relationship with other women was their humiliation,which would lead to divorce, after which they would retire in old palace and could refuse to remarry again.

Only their first degree descendants would be given imperial titles.

Daughters- Hanimsultan(with Ayse Humashah as exception)

Sons-Sultanzades. They ranked even below non-sultan imperial consorts and some of the highest ranking harem servants.

Hierarchy and Power

They actually had equal standing in ottoman hierarchy. As female members of dynasty they had the same status and privileges,were reffered as sultans and often received relative stipend.( Which was on average 200 akche a day, for comparison, Valide sultan had around 2000-3000 depended on time period, Haseki sultan 1000-1100(Hurrem as only exception,who got stipend of Valide sultan ) Gulfem,who was almost regarded as member of family herself was recieving 150, Nurbanu’s trusted friend and one of the highest ranking non-sultan woman ever Canfeda received 200, Mahidevran only received 40 and avarage stipend of cariye was 2-4) Besides, sisters of sultans were technically daughters of sultan, though the deceased one, still they were treated with great respect much like their late father. However, birth order was important thing in ottoman society so younger sister respected older and bowed to them as well as nieces bowing to aunts regardles of their martial or fianacal status. Therefore saughters of sultan,as nieces, were calling sisters of sultan,as aunts, “effendi" out of respect.

In conclusion, even if they had same social standing, sisters of sultan were still bit ahead daughters of sultan formally.

However, Granddaughters, Nieces and cousins of sultan,despite the same rank, were less prestigious.

Despite their relative social status and order of birth their actual power was dependent on several factors:

1. Their relationship with Padishah,Valide sultan or Haseki sultan. They had higher rank and much more evident political power, they still needed their permissions about major decisions,even if it were their right, so being on good terms with them was a good move. Half-sisters naturally were not as favoured as full-sisters by Valide sultan,but with padisah had more options, they could have been supportive, religious, charitable and obedient another way was sending beautiful, well-educated concubines,who could have become Haseki(after 1533), that is when their good relationship begun,most of Sultanate of women memebers were raised at their court and remained in favour after they became Valide Sultans, in that case even some of the Padisah’s expressed gratitude and gratefulness for raising their mother, (such occasion was Ahmed I’s attitude towards her aunt which I will discuss below.), they could also donate money to wars, harem managements and charitable projects, either all their own or assist Haseki sultan.

2. The second way to gain power was wealth. Money opens many doors and it was like that in the past. They could establish some business or even receive bribes.

3. They could also gain power with marriages, it was not only beneficial for their brothers,but for them as well. If their husband had a high rank, they could keep an eye on the political situation and act accordingly, they would use that influence to assist their brothers, who,In turn, would be extremely grateful for their support.

Comparison between Ottoman and European princess

Status- Status of European princesses depended on their marriage. Being princes was not guaranteed power,but only a formal status. For example, Margaret Tudor was below prince Henry in rank but when she married by proxy to Scottish king, she outranked him and demonstrated that by walking in front of him. On the other hand, another sister Mary married to Charles Brandon and was Duchess of Suffolk ever since,while Status of Imperial princess remained the same.

Opportunity- European princesses could have become Queen consort and Queen mother and veiled immense power, while imperial princesses could never become Haseki or Valide.

Marriage- Ottoman princesses were usually older when married and outranked their husbands,while European princesses were always below their husbands. Sultan could also refuse remarryin,while European princesses had no such right

Freedom-European princesses were less limited by social customs.

Consummation-Ottoman princesses had the right to refuse Consummation without a deadline, while European princesses had to Consummate marriage even if they were twelve, unless of course parents arranged it other way.

Divorce - it was right of ottoman princesses to divorce their husbands,while for European princesses it was a rare privilege.

Despite so many differences, one thing was same- they had a loveless purely political match .

Powerful ottoman princesses

Here I Rank ottoman princesses,who had considerable power and influence, sorted by date of birth.

P.S gifs are from MC and MC:K,but some characters might represent different historical figures.

Fatma sultan

Fatma may have been the second child of Ayşe Hafsa and Selim I . She was born in Trabzon around 1492 and spent her childhood there. When her younger brother Süleyman received his own princely province in 1509, she probably accomponied him to Caffa with their mother.

She was married in 1516 for the first time,but it soon ended in divorce and Fatma returned to Manisa. She gained considerable influence as she was most likely the sister,who was recorded to be in Manisa, helping mother manage harem and protect Suleyman from their father. If legends are true and Selim was indeed trying to kill Suleyman,that she had hands in saving him. Most likely, Fatma and her mother were instructing young sukeyman,how not to deserve the wrath of father and covering his mistakes. After Suleyman ascended the throne, she was married again to Kara Ahmed pasha in 1522. Marriage lasted long,but did not produce any child, so either fatma was infertile (Kara Ahmed pasha had two daughters that are disputed to be fatmas,but they were likely from previous marriage) or the match was not happy and Fatma refused sexual intercourse, however considering her reaction to his death, it was most likely the former.

According to what we have Fatma seems to be quite free spirited as depicted in the series. She was wealthy, cunning and might have been fond of parties. She had hands in financing some of her brother’s campaigns and even won the favour of janissrries. However, in 1555 Kara Ahmed pasha was executed by the efforts of Mihrimah and Hurrem and Fatma was married to eunuch and banished from the capital for hed intrigues against them She died either in 1557 or 1573.

Sah huban sultan

Daughter of Selim I and unknown concubine, born in 1500. As she has no full brothers, she was very close to Suleyman and their father, with whom she spent most of her childhood. Considering Suleyman’s great respect for her, Sah was likely a supporter of him and helped to deal with Selim I.

She was married in 1523 to well-educated and intelligent Lutfi pasha with whom she shared religious thoughts and beliefs. Marriage, however did not seem to be successful the couple only had one daughter and Sah refused to have a sexual relationship ever since. She was very pious, intelligent,outspoken and fierce in nature. In the only description of her daughter Esmahan Burnaz, it is said that she was arrogant and demanding and it was Shah’s domineering attitude in the family that was blamed for it, as by this “she had ruined the role of woman” in the child’s mind. However,that was recorded by the European ambassador only, who had never met any of them and probably heard some rumors or made it up after an ugly end of their marriage.

In 1541, Lutfi pasha punished a prostitute for adultery by mutilating her genitals.Şah could not tolerate the humiliation and mutilation of a woman without a word, which is why she got into an argument with her husband, who hit her . Şah had Lutfi pasha beaten up and immediately asked his brother to allow the divorce. Süleyman then exiled him. Şah remained with her brother in Istanbul for the rest of her life and supported the wife of Süleyman, Hürrem, in carrying out her construction projects. She lived a modest life in the Old Palace and devoted all her time to charity and religion. Shah had excellent relationship with Hurrem and Mihrimah and in my opinion, close bond between aunt and niece helped young sultan to shape her mind and characteristics. She died in 1572 and was buried in her father’s complex.

Mihrimah Sultan(1522-1576)

Her life is very much known. She was the most powerful imperial princess in the empire, so I will just list some of her achievements:

1. Her stipend was 600 akches a day during the reign of three different Sultans. it was three times as much as regular pirncess

2. She had correspondence with Catherine de Medici and other foreigner diplomats, who would often send her gifts to help them in some political affairs.

3. She financed some of Suleyman’s campaigns all her own

4. She built a whole fleet of 400 ships.

5. She had three palaces and two mosques

6. She served as sole de facto Valide from 1558 to 1566 and shared it with Nurbanu from 1566 to 1574.

7. After the death of Bayazid Mihrimah banned everyone from laughing and sent back clothes to Suleyman and Selim who were secretly planning a grandiose wedding, that was cancelled by Mihrimah and instead a very plain ceremony was held.

Humasah 1543-c.1582 or later

She was a posthanous daughter of Shehzade Mehmed and despite being only a daughter of prince, she was given the same privileges,but greater power, as any other sultans. She was one of two favourite grandchildren of Hurrem and Suleyman. She married three times,but the source of her power was a good relationship with Sultans. She was the one who raised Safiye and gifted her to Murad, so her power reached it’s peak during his reign.

She financed many construction projects,but was buried in a mosque that was built by Hurrem and Suleyman for her father.

Ayse Humasah 1543-1594.

Daughter of Mihrimah sultan and Rustem pasha, she was practically the same as her cousin with whom she shared many things started from date of birth and ended with their name. Ayse Humasah was the only woman born to an ottoman princess,who was herself addressed as sultan and her children were considered members of the dynasty. She was married two times and her influence was extremely great during the reign of three Sultans. Her power reached it’s peak, when her husband was appointed a grand Vizier and she had hands in very major political decision.

Gevherhan Sultan. 1544-after 1526.

Eldest child of Nurbanu and Selim. She was married to Piyale Pasha, an admiral who died in 1578 and she was remarried in 1579. She was one who raised Handan and gifted it to the prince, for which not only Handan was grateful, but her son Ahmed as well, who after his accession gifted very expensive furs to Handan, Gevherhan and Safiye. The second gifts were given to Handan and Gevherhan only,which indicates that unlike Safiye,she never fell from his favour. Peak of her power was from 1598 during her husband’s grand vazirate. She did a lot of charity in her life.

Ismahan sultan 1545-1585

Daughter of Selim and Nurbanu,she was married to Sokollu Mehmed Pasha and Through her husband and her own rank, Esmehan was the most influential sultana of the empire for years. In wealth, only her aunt, Mihrimah, could overtake her, but in influence, almost no one could. She constructed several projects and had foreign diplomatic affairs, most notable her correspondence with Catherine de Medici. She had a very artistic and dramatic personality, often throwing parties and shows. She was recorded to be very much alike Hurrem,both of them were short, not conventionally beautiful,but very intelligent. She was heavily involving herself in politics with her mother.

Burnaz Atike Sultan

Sultan Atike was born in 1614 or 1615 and although some sources consider her to be the daughter of Kösem, she was certainly not her child. That can be supported by the fact that she supported Turhan’s rebellion and had a good relationship even after kosem was killed. She was one who raised Turhan and remained in friendly terms for both Turhan’s gratitude and their shared politican views. Atike was noted to love children very much,but had none on her own, so she was involved in raising her nephew,who regarded her as second mother and listened to every of her advice.

She died around 1570.

I hope you liked it, I think it’s unfair to only talk about Mihrimah,while there were so many powerful and intelligent Princesses. I did not talk about Esma sultan as she was in later centuries and I am not fond of her times.

Which ottoman princesses are you favourites?

If i accedentaly missed something out you can ask it in comments

[sevgilisultana]

𝑂𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑛 𝐸𝑚𝑝𝑖𝑟𝑒 𝐻𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦 𝐴𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑀𝑜𝑛𝑡ℎ:

𝑊𝑒𝑒𝑘 1: 𝑉𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑆𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑠

𝐷𝑎𝑦 5: 𝐻𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑆𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑎𝑛, 𝐻𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑉𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑆𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑎𝑛

[laleru]

Handan Sultan (Tülin Özen) — Magnificent Century: Kosem Ep.13

[elizabeth-halime]

[ottomanladies]

Hello i Hope you're doing well ! There is an article made by a historian named ( Ibrahim etem çakir ) which he mentioned that Fatma and Ayse and hanzade helped their mother to remove kemankes and they made an alliance let me quote ! : " " Padişahın evli olan üç kız kardeşi ki bunlardanbiri bostanc��başı iken Mısır beylerbeyiliği ilemerkezden uzaklaştırılan Nakkaş MustafaPaşa'nın eşi Hanza- de Sultan; diğerleri iseAyşe Sultan ve Fatma Sultan'dı. Schmid'ingüvenilir bir kaynaktan aktardığ "

Hi! So, the author is actually Ersin Kirca and his essay is titled “Dönemin Yazarlarının Gözünden Kemankeş Kara Mustafa Paşa (1639-1644) / Kemankeş Kara Mustafa Pasha through the Eyes of the Writers of the Period (1639-1644)”

The part you quoted is this:

The Sultan's three married sisters, one of whom was Hanzade Sultan, the wife of Nakkaş Mustafa Pasha, who was removed from the center with the Egyptian beylerbeyilik when he was bostancıbaşı; the others were Ayşe Sultan and Fatma Sultan. According to Schmid's reliable source, these three sisters appeared before the sultan and begged him for the return of Mustafa Pasha, who had been sent to Egypt, and asked him not to be oppressed by the “cruel and arrogant Albanian vizier”. For fourteen days, these three sisters stayed in the palace behind their mother, Kösem Sultan, and "charged the vizier from within", while the pashas who used the sultans waited with great hopes. However, Sultan Ibrahim refused to accept his sisters' request and removed them from the palace. Schmid did not specify who the pashas who used the sultans were. However, from this account of his, we understand that a faction consisting of palace women and pashas were active against Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha, but the vizier's influence over the sultan was still solid.

Apparently Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha didn’t stop with Nakkaş Mustafa Pasha but got rid of everyone he saw as a threat to the monopoly he had on Ibrahim. According to Naima and Katib Celebi, he couldn’t let Silahdar Mustafa Pasha marry Kaya Sultan so he removed him from Istanbul:

Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha first imprisoned Silahdar Mustafa Pasha and confiscated a part of his income (50 thousand kurus). In return for this money, he appointed him first to Budin and then to the governorship of Rumelia, allowing him to leave Istanbul. However, this was a trick, and before Silahdar Mustafa Pasha started his duty in Rumelia, he was appointed to Timisoara, a mountainous region, with a new edict. In this way, he was decentralized.

When Silahdar Mustafa left Istanbul, Kaya’s kethuda went to Ibrahim to tell him about the betrothal Murad IV had in mind between Kaya and Silahdar Mustafa. They had Kosem’s approval:

Valide Kösem Sultan wanted to marry Silahdar Mustafa Pasha, whom she still kept as a favorite, to the daughter of Murad IV in order to return him to the "Gate". When Kaya Sultan's kethuda, Mevkufatçı Mehmed Efendi, presented the situation to Sultan Ibrahim for the marriage of Kaya Sultan to Silahdar Mustafa Pasha, with the approval of Kösem Sultan, Sultan Ibrahim consulted the Vizier Mustafa Pasha on this issue, as he did on all other matters.

Unfortunately, Ibrahim asked Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha what to do and the Grand Vizier replied that Silahdar Mustafa Pasha had been corrupt, and he had intervened in the empire’s affair during Murad IV’s reign. He advised Ibrahim to have him killed:

Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha stated that Silahdar Mustafa Pasha intervened in the affairs of the state during the reign of Murad IV and took bribes, that contrary ideas in state affairs would lead to strife and mischief, and that short-sighted people would continue to cause strife and mischief as long as Silahdar Mustafa Pasha was alive, and persuaded the sultan to kill Silahdar Mustafa Pasha while Kösem Sultan was unaware.

Ibrahim of course followed Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha’s advice.

In April 1642, after being imprisoned for a few days in Timisoara Castle, Silahdar Mustafa Pasha was executed by Bestan Ağa, the Bostancıbaşı of Edirne. All his buildings and palaces were sealed, and his belongings confiscated. Kara Mustafa Pasha gained the enmity of Kösem Sultan by having Silahdar Mustafa Pasha killed in this way

After Silahdar Mustafa Pasha, Kemankeş got rid of another favourite of Murad IV’s, Emirgune:

In the same way, Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha ensured that Emirgûneoğlu Yusuf, one of Murad IV's favorites, was murdered by the sultan's edict in 1641. During the reign of Sultan Murad IV, 288 thousand silver coins were allocated for Emirgûneoğlu from customs, and a farm in Kağıthane and a palace in Ahırkapı were given to him, apart from today's Emirgan Grove. After Emirgûneoğlu Yusuf was murdered, the garden formerly called Feridun Garden (Emirgan Grove), which was donated to him by Murad IV, was given to Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha by Ibrahim. Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha organized a great banquet for Sultan Ibrahim in that garden and gave gifts to the sultan and his relatives

And so on (he also had the governor of Aleppo Nasuh Paşazâde Hüseyin Pasha and Zülfikar Pasha murdered). Kemankeş Mustafa Pasha’s plan was to isolate Ibrahim and become the only one the sultan could trust. He worked hard to achieve this, not only by executing or sending away potential enemies but also by personally teaching the sultan how to ride a horse or how to throw the javelin.

I guess he didn’t expect Ibrahim’s mental health to deteriorate so quickly and so suddenly.

Anyway from the quote you sent me and everything else in this essay it becomes clear that Kösem Sultan couldn't wait for the grand vizier to be removed, one way or another. It's why I've always considered it laughable that MC:K made them allies (not only allies, but Kemankeş was basically her minion)

[skygifs]

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[humasahsultanimsworld]

Sultans and Their Colorful Clothes + Halime Sultan wears a black fur caftan and a dark green one underneath

[burningdreambanana]

My analysis/defense of Handan

An unlikely Valide Sultan

One of the main reasons I gravitate towards Handan character is because she was an unlikely Valide Sultan. Not just because her son was not the eldest but because while its never explicitly said, I feel like they were many hints that Handan was not a true favorite, especially if you compare her with Halime. Halime had at least three children, Handan only had one. Halime (at least in the beginning) had powerful contacts, while Handan appeared to be very isolated, with only Dervis and Haci as allies. Halime was influential enough that Safiye would try to bring her down (burning Cennet's face and making it seem like Halime was culprit) while we have no such stories with Handan.

On top of that, for both Handan and Halime, it must have been particularly difficult to be sultanas in a harem dominated by Safiye, who in the show is a true bully and tries to crush anyone that could outshine her even a little. It also seems that Handan has long been identified as "weak" by Safiye, because she has no issue talking down to her and humiliating her when Handan is Valide Sultan. And if she feels comfortable enough to do that when Handan is Valide, one can only wonder how she treated her when she was just a concubine.

Her being an unlikely Valide Sultan also explains why she was so adamant to have Mustafa killed, she must have lived in fear for years then when Mahmud ascends, which seemed the most likely, he would murder her son and of course, the fratricide law has been embedded in Ottoman dynasty politics for so long that its difficult for anyone to believe that its over just because a 13 year old boy sultan said so. And honestly both Handan's and Halime's perspective are valid, they can't take any chances for the safety of their sons, and they both end up doing things that reinforces the fear of the other, which is both ironic and tragic

The price of being soft

Being Valide Sultan does not come easy to Handan, it does not suit her like Hafsa, Safiye or Kosem. Her demeanor is too soft and fragile, and honestly she's not the brightest. And because of that she is constantly being denied the respect she deserves as Valide Sultan, being outshined by Safiye and then immediately after that Kosem, and she is unable to fight back effectively.

Handan is also a romantic, she finds true love (after years of being subjected to her enslaver, who on top of that was a particularly horrible man) with Dervis and while she does nothing physical she still submits to this love and its her one source of joy, but also a source of pain. I also find it particularly poignant when she tells him that being a sultana is a prison for her and that Dervis is her "freedom" -an incredibly underrated moment because this is one of the only, and the most beautiful moment of acknowledging the horrific side of being a concubine

In the end her suicide does not seems to me to be just about being afraid that Ahmet will kill her (though its horrific Handan even though that though) but because she tasted freedom and love and cannot go back to her cage now.

Her son was the worst son

Yes worse than Murad. Murad was horrible but I find it easier to understand his perspective, his mother was controlling, undermined him, wanted him to be a puppet ruler and would flat out tell him to his face that she's the only reason he can have keep the throne, Kosem/Murad is a toxic relationship where they both have their faults. But Ahmet? He had very little regards from the beginning for his mother. He did not respect her and did not care that everyone else was disrespecting her, he did not value her opinion or feelings, consistently put a concubine he only knew for a year above her, and of course physically assaulted her and exiled her, when she was trying to ensure his safety.

Her conflict with Kosem

It made perfect sense for her to be wary of Anastasia, she was gift from Safiye destined to control Ahmet. Anastasia also insulted the sultan in front of the entire harem, which would have gotten anyone else killed on the spot. It also made perfect sense for her to believe she had poisoned Ahmet, because on top of being a gift from Safiye, she had spent the night with Ahmet when he got sick and then ran away. And yet Handan was still willing to believe in her innocence eventually.

Then we have the fact that Kosem betrayed her and like she had a good reason but its still a betrayal that Handan would feel deeply since her son assaulted her and she was humiliated in front of the whole harem

And yet honestly the way Handan "antagonized" Kosem was so light in comparison to what we saw from other mother in laws? Also Kosem decided to fight against Handan because Handan, the Valide Sultan, had the AUDACITY of trying to be the Valide Sultan. Like its so crazy to me that what Kosem takes as a "declaration of war" is that Handan did not let her raise Osman, even though not only it makes perfect sense for him to be raised by his grandmother, it was also considered inappropriate for princes to have close relations with his father's concubines past a certain age (which is why in real life Ahmet started preventing Kosem from seeing Osman). And then she complains to Cennet that Handan wants to control the harem (that's literally her job????)

Kosem's self righteous anger to Handan's feelings for Dervis and hiding the fact that he killed Mehmet III was just an excuse because she could not handle the fact that other people were influential in Ahmet's life. And Haci Agha was just being a bitch for no reason (and its hilarious to see him act so self-right but when Kosem asks him to sterilize a girl, murder a pregnant girl or even kill a little child whose also the literal sultan he's like "yes boss")

Anyway, Handan deserved better both on the meta level that the show humiliated her and erased her regency to prop up Kosem, but also in the show itself

[magnificent-sultana]

Necklaces in Magnificent Century and Magnificent Century: Kosem

[1533-secrets-from-history]

Sultanate of women

People usually give Hürrem all the credits of starting the Period,but let's not forget the contribution of other women in this.

Ayşe Hafsa Sultan [the Base]- The first slave to become sultan. Without her support, perhaps there would have been no Hürrem Sultan.

Haseki Hürrem Sultan [ The Architect] - All the help aside, she truly is a one, who changed the fate of her and of all the women,who came after.

Valide Afife Nurbanu Sultan [The Pillar]- people often say that Hürrem is the one who traced the path, I say she is the one,who found it, while Nurbanu traced. She is the first registered Valide Sultan after all, she bestowed the power upon the title, something every other woman used. I would say, if we take Hürrem out Sultanate of women would still start in 1574,but if we take out Nurbanu, it would end with Hürrem. She prolonged Sultanate of women, she was the pillar of the era,that Hürrem started.