450 years ago, on September 6, 1566, during a military campaign, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Suleiman the Magnificent, died. A few years ago, the Turkish series "The Magnificent Century", dedicated to the era of this Sultan, enjoyed considerable popularity in Russia. The main character of the series is the Russian slave Alexandra, she is also the famous Roksolana, Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Sultan, the wife of Suleiman.
Left: Carl Anton Hickel. "Roksolana and the Sultan". 1790
Right: Sultan Suleiman in the film "The Magnificent Age"
She arrived in the capital of the Ottoman Empire as a prisoner (from the territory of modern Ukraine), but managed to achieve the position of the lawful wife of the ruler of the strongest state in the world at that time. The film is based on real events, Roksolana is a real historical person, like other heroes of the film, although, as its authors have repeatedly warned, the film is "a fiction inspired by history."
The entire film was apparently conceived as a kind of big commercial for the new Ottoman Empire that Mr. Erdogan is now building. Although later, as it often happens (it happened, for example, with Sergei Eisenstein's film "Ivan the Terrible"), the work went beyond these initial limits and even caused complaints from customers, that is, the Turkish government, for "distortions of history". Indeed, the film turned out frankly revealing, although, perhaps, against the will of its creators.The general impression is something like this: constantly sprinkling their speech with pious remembrances of the Almighty, raising their eyes to grief and praying, his heroes get up absolutely any evil deeds and crimes.Send each other poisonous snakes in a chest or poisoned caftans, pour poison into food, throw plague-infected scarves and make other equally "nice" gifts... The Sultan himself, this example of nobility and conscience (as emphasized many times in the film), contrary to his earlier oaths, executes his closest relatives and friends, including two of his own sons and young grandchildren (the youngest of whom was only 3 years old).In general, as soon as one of the Sultan's sons ascends the throne, he, according to tradition, immediately gives the order to execute all his own brothers. And this is by no means arbitrariness, on the contrary, it is accepted and expected - there is also a corresponding Islamic fatwa, which allows this fratricide from the point of view of Sharia and law. (True, Suleiman himself, upon accession to the throne, escaped this "beneficial fratricide", but there was no merit in this - all his brothers simply died earlier on their own, from diseases).
In one of the episodes, the mother of Sultan Suleiman expresses confidence that the son she has raised "will never become a tyrant." At first, it is not very clear what she actually means, because the power of the Sultan is absolute and completely unlimited, and no one even tries to argue with this. But it turns out that she meant something else: that he would not shed the blood of members of his dynasty, that is, his own family. Such is the measure and the boundary between "tyranny" and "non-tyranny". However, this boundary is violated extremely easily, as noted above.
What can be said about the attitude of the rulers of the empire towards ordinary people? It is all expressed in the phrase of the main character: "They killed my horse! And the maid ...". A maid costs and is valued much less than a horse. This, one might say, is a paraphrase of the famous dialogue from Mark Twain's novel about Huckleberry Finn (about slave-owning America):
"A cylinder head exploded on the ship.
- Lord have mercy! Has anyone been hurt?
- No, ma'am. Killed Negro.
- Well, you're lucky; and sometimes it hurts someone..."
All the thinking and behavior of the characters in the film have an equally pronounced class character. For example, in one of the episodes, the Sultan gives the order after the trial to hang one of his influential and noble associates, Iskander Celebi. And she is terribly worried about his execution. Although, according to the film, this figure committed all the most serious state crimes imaginable - for example, he was preparing the defeat of his own Ottoman army. And in another case, a simple warrior-courier brings unpleasant news to the Sultan - he does not believe the news and, without blinking an eye, immediately, without any trial or clarification, orders to cut off the head of the messenger. And he does not feel any feelings and remorse, when it later turns out that the messenger told the pure truth. Still would! After all, this is the most ordinary warrior, and not some rich man and aristocrat from a noble family. His head is worthless...
However, if you do not pay attention (or rather, keep in mind) that the entire series is thoroughly saturated with monarchist and clerical ideology, then you can find a lot of interesting things in it. For example, the repeatedly repeated phrase is good: "Remember that any privilege granted by the Ottoman Empire brings you closer to death!" This is usually said by a superior when officials are promoted and reappointed.
The executioners execute the eldest son of Sultan Suleiman, Shahzade Mustafa (frame from the film)
Sultan Suleiman with the body of his son executed on his orders (frame from the film)
It must be admitted that both the Sultan, this son and grandson murderer, and the main character in the film are not at all devoid of a certain charm. It's just that they, like flies in a web, are woven into a certain historical fabric, within which they are forced to act. It's hard to blame them. But what about those who want to resurrect this historical fabric of 450 years ago and are resurrecting it in our reality, in the 21st century? After all, it was in 2011, when the series had just started, one could think that it was of purely historical interest. That all these marvelous realities: slave markets, the capture and sale of non-Christian slaves into slavery, the cruel executions of heretics and non-believers... have irretrievably sunk into the past. And in June 2014, when the last episode of the series was shown, there were only a couple of weeks left before the resurrection of all this within the framework of the newly created Caliphate (by the way, Sultan Suleiman also once assumed the title of Caliph, i.e. the ruler of all the faithful).
So peering into the historical abyss of the past, of course, can be entertaining, but you shouldn’t especially admire it, otherwise the abyss can be reflected in us, you can easily, without even noticing it, fall through the screen and wake up already on the other side of it ...
Roxalana- a famous Ukrainian, concubine, and then the wife of the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent
STORY
It is believed that Roksolana is the daughter of the priest Gavrila Lisovsky from Rohatyn, a small town on the territory of modern Western Ukraine (Ivano-Frankivsk region). Rogatin and the town of Chemerovtsy (now Khmelnytsky region) are arguing about the exact place of her birth, appealing to various works of art dedicated to Roksolana. In those days, both cities were on the territory of the Kingdom of Poland, and these were one of the most multinational lands, so now it is difficult to say anything about the nationality of Alexandra-Anastasia.
According to the legends, she was a very tough, even cruel woman. In order to place her son on the throne, she sacrificed the life of Suleiman I's step-son, Mustafa, who was killed. By order of Roksolana, who had already become the queen mother, several pregnant concubines of her husband were killed.
BIOGRAPHY
She was born around 1506 (although the exact date is not known). Not only Roksolana's maiden name is in question, but even her original name. There is no information about her original name in the sources of the 16th century, but much later there was a tradition to call her Anastasia (a Ukrainian tradition that arose only in the 19th century) or Alexandra (a Polish tradition coming from the works of Stanislav Rzhevutsky). It is also customary to consider her the daughter of the priest Gavrila Lisovsky from the town of Rohatyn. According to another version, Chernivtsi was the hometown of Roksolana.
During one of the raids of the Tatars, approximately in 1520, the girl was captured (according to the film "Roksolana - the Captive of the Sultan" during the wedding with Stefan) captured and transported, probably first to the Crimean city of Kafu (now Feodosia), and from there - to Istanbul, where she was noticed by the vizier Ibrahim Pasha, who later presented her to Suleiman I.
Sultan's wife
Suleiman I - the son of Selim I the Terrible (Yavuz) - was the most famous Turkish sultan. In Europe, he was called the Magnificent, in Turkey - Kanuni (Legislator), for creating a code of laws aimed at protecting the interests of the feudal lords and securing the peasants for their land plots, which in turn belonged to the feudal lords. In fact, this legislation introduced serfdom in Turkey.
Once in the Sultan's palace as an ordinary concubine, Roksolana became his great love. So much so that Suleiman I dedicated his love poems to her (the Sultan was a poet and wrote under the pseudonym Muhibbi).
Much later, in the harem, called Bab-us-saade, that is, the "Gate of Bliss", Roksolana received the nickname Khurrem, which means "Merry", for her sharp tongue and booming laughter.
According to the laws of faith, the Sultan could have four legal wives and as many concubines as he could support. However, according to tradition, the sultans before Suleiman I never married. In fact, Roksolana became the first official wife of Suleiman. Naturally, before the wedding (nikah), which took place in 1530, Roksolana converted to Islam. The firstborn of Suleiman I and Roksolana was born in 1521.
After the official marriage, Suleiman elevated Roksolana to the rank of bash-kadun, the main wife. And he called her none other than "Haseki" ("Dear to the heart"). Hurrem was not only a skilled lover, but also a reasonable, interesting conversationalist, well versed in the arts and state affairs. In the days of separation - Suleiman I spent 13 military campaigns in his life - they corresponded with exquisite verses in Persian and Arabic.
The most educated woman of her time, Haseki Hurrem Sultan received foreign ambassadors, answered letters from foreign rulers, influential nobles and artists. On her initiative, several mosques, a bathhouse and a madrasah were built in Istanbul. She died at about 60 years old, without seeing her native country at all.
Children
Roksolana gave birth to her husband 6 children:
Sons:
Mehmed (1521-1543)
Abdullah (1523-1526)
Jihangir (1533-1553)
Daughter:
Mihrimah (1522-1578)
According to rumors, Suleiman I loved his first son Mustafa most of all.
Of all the sons of Suleiman I, only Selim II survived the magnificent father-sultan. The rest died during the struggle for the throne (Mehmet died in 1543 from smallpox). Including Mustafa - the son from his third wife - Gulbekhar (in the film "Roksolana - Captive of the Sultan" Mahidevran). There is a version that it was Roksolana, weaving intrigues against Mustafa, who provoked his death: she turned her father against her son. By order of Suleiman I, Mustafa was strangled. The legend adds that Jahangir died of longing for his brother.
Bayazid, after an unsuccessful attempt to kill Selim, hid in Persia with 12 thousand of his people, became considered a traitor in the Ottoman Empire, which at that time was at war with Persia. Later, Sultan Suleiman I made peace with Persia and agreed with the Persian Shah that for 4,000 gold coins, Bayezid's associates would be killed, and he himself, along with his four sons, would be given to the envoys of the Sultan. The death sentence that Suleiman pronounced on his son Bayezid was executed on November 28, 1562.
IN WORKS OF ART
Roksolana: Nastunya (TV series, Ukraine, 1997)
Roksolana: Khalifa's beloved wife (TV series, Ukraine, 1997)
Roksolana: Mistress of the Empire (TV series, Ukraine, 2003)
Magnificent Century (TV series, Türkiye, 2011)
d / f "Roksolana: a bloody path to the throne" from the cycle "In Search of Truth" (2008)
INTERESTING FACTS
In honor of Roksolana, a species of monkey is named, which, like her, has an upturned, snub-nosed nose - Roksellan rhinopithek.
The series "The Magnificent Century", filmed in Turkey based on the biography of Roksolana, gained popularity not only in Turkey, but also in a number of European countries, including Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Since January 2012, the television series began to be broadcast in Russia in Russian.
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Freestyle story:
The path to the harem
Anastasia Gavrilovna Lisovskaya (born c. 1506 - d. c. 1562) was the daughter of priest Gavrila Lisovsky from Rohatyn, a small town in Western Ukraine, located southwest of Ternopil. In the 16th century, this territory belonged to the Commonwealth and was constantly subjected to devastating raids by the Crimean Tatars. During one of them in the summer of 1522, the young daughter of a clergyman was caught by a detachment of cannibals. The legend says that the misfortune happened just on the eve of Anastasia's wedding.
First, the captive ended up in the Crimea - this is the usual path of all slaves. The Tatars did not drive the valuable “living commodity” on foot across the steppe, but under vigilant guards they carried it on horseback, without even tying their hands, so as not to spoil the tender girl’s skin with ropes. Amazed by the beauty of the Polonyanka, the Krymchaks decided to send the girl to Istanbul, hoping to profitably sell her at one of the largest slave markets in the Muslim East.
The beautiful captive was sent to the capital of the sultans on a large felucca, and the owner himself took her to sell - history has not preserved his name. At the whim of a changeable Fate, on the very first day, when the Horde brought the captive to the market, she accidentally caught the eye of the all-powerful vizier of the young Sultan Suleiman I, the noble Rustem Pasha, who happened to be there. The Turk was struck by the dazzling beauty of the girl, and he decided to buy her to make a gift to the Sultan. No offense to the actress Sumskaya, but judging by the descriptions in historical chronicles, her beauty does not reflect the true appearance of Lisovskaya, in which, probably, in addition to Ukrainian, Polish blood also flowed.
However, such gifts to the padishah were not made just like that - first, the captive was carefully examined by experienced healers and they concluded: she is a virgin and absolutely healthy. Otherwise, Anastasia would never see Top-Kapy, or the "House of Joy," as the Sultan's harem was pompously called in the Brilliant Porte.
According to the laws of faith, the padishah could have four legal wives. The children of the first of them became heirs to the throne. Rather, one firstborn inherited the throne, and the rest often met with a sad fate: all possible contenders for supreme power were to be destroyed.
In addition to wives, the ruler of the faithful had any number of concubines that his soul desired and the flesh required. At different times, under different sultans, from several hundred to a thousand or more women lived in the harem, each of which was certainly an amazing beauty. In addition to women, the harem consisted of a whole staff of eunuchs-castrati, maids of different ages, chiropractors, midwives, masseuses, doctors and the like. But no one, except the padishah himself, could encroach on the beauties belonging to him purely physically. The head of the girls, the eunuch of Kyzlyaragassi, led all this complex and restless household.
However, one amazing beauty was not enough: the girls intended for the harem of the padishah were taught music, dance, Muslim poetry and, of course, the art of love without fail. Naturally, the course of the love sciences was theoretical, and the practice was taught by experienced old women and women, experienced in all the intricacies of sex.
So, Rustem Pasha decided to buy a Slavic beauty. But her Krymchak owner refused to sell Anastasia and presented her as a gift to the all-powerful courtier, rightly expecting to receive for this not only an expensive return gift, as is customary in the East, but also considerable benefits.
Rustem Pasha ordered to comprehensively prepare it as a gift to the Sultan, in turn, hoping to achieve this even greater favor with him. The padishah was young, he ascended the throne only in 1520 and greatly appreciated female beauty, and not just as a contemplative.
Pasha received a good education and knew a lot, so he gave the beauty a new name - Roxalana, under which she went down in history. In ancient times, Sarmatian tribes in the II-IV centuries of our era, who roamed in the steppes between the Dnieper and the Don, were called Roxalans or Roxans in ancient times. Starting from the 6th century, there is no historical information about them, but in the Middle Ages, the Roxalans were considered by many to be the progenitors of the Slavs. This led to the choice of a new name for Anastasia.
Padishah's wife
Contrary to the popular version, the new concubine did not immediately attract the attention of the padishah and completely took possession of his heart, skillfully kindling a furious passion in him. Suleiman simply could not greedily pounce on her, having hundreds of amazing beauties in the harem, trained in all the secrets of voluptuousness. But nevertheless, this finally happened, and Roxalana-Anastasia swore to herself that by all means she would achieve the position of the lawful wife of the padishah - to leave the harem at will and return home is nothing to even dream of!
Khurem Sultan
She had already learned to speak Turkish well and understood: her main trump card was that Rustem Pasha, thanks to whom she got to the palace of the padishah, received her as a gift, and did not buy it. In turn, he did not sell it to the kyzlyaragassi, who replenished the harem, but presented it to Suleiman. This means that Roxalana remained a free woman and could claim the role of the padishah's wife. According to the laws of the Ottoman Empire, a slave could never, under any circumstances, become the wife of the ruler of the faithful.
Another obstacle arose: Anastasia-Roxalana was a Christian. But this turned out to be a mere trifle for the priest's daughter! Although in those days to change the faith for a Christian meant to destroy his immortal soul! Nevertheless, the beautiful concubine did not hesitate to convert to Islam - she was in a hurry, because she could give birth to children, and they were to become the legal heirs of the Sultan!
Through many intrigues, skillful seduction of Suleiman, bribes to eunuchs and oath promises of all-round support for kyzlyaragassy, in case of luck, Roxalana achieved her goal and became the wife of the padishah. She named her firstborn Selim - in honor of her husband's predecessor, Sultan Selim I (1467-1520), nicknamed the Terrible. Roxalana really wanted her little golden-haired Selim to become the same as his older namesake. But from desires to their fulfillment - a terrifying abyss!
In an effort to strengthen her position in every possible way, Roxalana gave birth to Suleiman two more sons and a daughter. But Mustafa, the eldest son of the first wife of the padishah, the beautiful Circassian Gulbekhar, was still officially considered the heir to the throne. She and her children became mortal enemies of the power-hungry and treacherous Roxalana.
At times, the harem in general was very reminiscent of a serpentarium - in the struggle for their position, women of different races and nationalities behaved like poisonous snakes mated into a ball!
Anastasia-Roxalana conducted her intrigue methodically and inventively, slowly, but hurrying up so as not to miss the decisive moment. Outwardly, she constantly showed love and care for the ruler, managing to become very necessary to him. But no matter how smart, beautiful, desirable and loved she was, even the padishah could not violate customs with impunity. And did he want this, having hundreds of amazing beauties in the harem? After all, no one could say a word to him across!
Lisovskaya was well aware that until her son became the heir to the throne or sat on the throne of the padishahs, her own position was constantly under threat. At any moment, Suleiman could be carried away by a new beautiful concubine and make her his lawful wife, and order some of the old wives to be executed: in the harem, an objectionable wife or concubine was put alive in a leather bag, they threw an angry cat and a poisonous snake there, tied the bag and a special stone gutter lowered it with a tied stone into the waters of the Bosphorus. The guilty were considered lucky if they were simply quickly strangled with a silk cord.
Therefore, Roxalana prepared for a very long time and began to act actively and cruelly only after almost fifteen years!
Lady Death
While Roxalana weaved her love nets, set up cunning traps and tightly twisted the spring of bloody intrigue, serious events took place outside the walls of the harem. Sultan Suleiman received the nickname Kanuni (Legislator) for creating a set of laws aimed at protecting the interests of feudal lords and securing poor peasants for their land plots, usually owned by landowners. In fact, this was the introduction of serfdom. And to break out of the suffocating loop of dependence was only allowed by participation in wars of conquest - the Turks without exception became interested in waging war!
Suleiman himself waged many victorious wars, following the example of his ancestors, expanding the boundaries of the Ottoman Empire - he captured half of Hungary, a significant part of the Georgian kingdom, occupied all of Mesopotamia, took Yemen, Tripoli and Algeria. In Europe, he was already called the Magnificent and, quite rightly, they feared a terrifying Turkish invasion, similar to the invasion of Batu or Genghis.
Meanwhile, Lisovskaya began to put into practice far-reaching and terrible plans to seize power. Her daughter was twelve years old, and she decided to marry her to ... Rustem Pasha, who was already over fifty. But he was in great favor at court, close to the throne of the padishah and, most importantly, was someone like a mentor and "godfather" of the heir to the throne Mustafa - the son of the Circassian Gulbekhar, the first wife of Suleiman.
Roxalana's daughter grew up with a similar face and chiseled figure to her beautiful mother, and Rustem Pasha became related to the Sultan with great pleasure - this is a very high honor for a courtier. But the charming girl turned out to be very stupid and completely obeyed the will of the cunning and treacherous mother: women were not forbidden to see each other, and the sultana deftly found out from her daughter about everything that was going on in Rustem Pasha's house, literally bit by bit collecting the information she needed. Finally, Lisovskaya decided it was time to strike the death blow!
During a meeting with her husband, Roxalana, who had considerable influence on the padishah due to her feminine charms, secretly told the ruler of the faithful about the "terrible conspiracy." Merciful Allah vouchsafed her time to learn about the secret plans of the conspirators and allowed her to warn her adored husband about the danger that threatened him: Rustem Pasha and the sons of Gulbekhar planned to take the life of the padishah and seize the throne by placing Mustafa on him!
The intriguer knew well where and how to strike - the mythical "conspiracy" was quite plausible: in the East during the time of the sultans, bloody palace coups were the most common thing. In addition, Roxalana cited as an irrefutable argument the true words of Rustem Pasha, Mustafa and other "conspirators" that the daughter of Anastasia and the Sultan heard. Therefore, the seeds of evil fell on the fertile soil of the extreme suspicion of the despot, who vigilantly guarded his power!
Rustem Pasha was immediately taken into custody, and an investigation began: Pasha was terribly tortured. He may have slandered himself and others under torture. But even if he was silent, this only confirmed the padishah in the actual existence of the "conspiracy." After being tortured, Rustem Pasha was beheaded. The young daughter of Roxalana became the widow of a state criminal, but her mother did not care at all!
She longed to get rid of Mustafa and his brothers as soon as possible - they were an obstacle on the way to the throne of Roxalana's firstborn, red-haired Selim, and therefore they simply had to die! Constantly instigated by his wife, Suleiman was forced to agree and gave the order to kill his children! The Prophet forbade shedding the blood of the padishahs and their heirs, so Mustafa and his brothers were strangled with a green twisted silk cord. Gulbehar went mad with grief and soon died.
But the Eastern "Lady Macbeth" was not enough of this blood! In principle, all the dirty tricks of the struggle for power have traditionally been repeated at all times by any people. Turkey of the 16th century was no exception: the intelligent and educated padishah Suleiman eventually became a toy in the hands of an insidious, cunning and bloodthirsty woman. True, she was surprisingly beautiful in appearance, but terrible evil takes on any guise, while continuing to remain a terrifying evil.
Even the beggars of Istanbul did not believe in the guilt of Rustem Pasha, who was loyal to the throne. The cruelty and injustice of the son struck the valide Hamse, the mother of the padishah Suleiman, who came from the family of the Crimean khans Girey. At the meeting, she told her son everything that she thinks about the "conspiracy", the execution and her son's beloved wife Roxalana. There is nothing surprising that after this Valide Hamse, the mother of the Sultan, lived less than a month: the East knows a lot about poisons! And it was better for Lisovskaya not to stand across the road! She would not have spared her own mother, not only her mother-in-law!
Finally, everything conceived almost came true - Roxalana was declared the first wife, and Selim the heir to the throne. And then, in order to gain complete confidence that power would not slip out of the hands of her son, Roxalana ordered to kill his brothers, that is, her other sons! Usually, unwanted pretenders to the throne of the padishahs were drowned in the Bosphorus - the blood of the sultans was not shed on the sinful earth.
Thirsty for new guarantees of power, the sultana went even further: she ordered that other sons of Suleiman, who were born by wives and concubines, be found in the harem and throughout the country, and all of them should be killed! As it turned out, the sons of the Sultan found about forty people - all of them, some secretly, some openly, were killed on the orders of Lisovskaya. Is there another such bloodthirsty and deadly woman in history as Roxalana idealized by Ukrainian writers and filmmakers - Anastasia Lisovskaya?! There is no other such woman who committed so many murders in the history of any country! Even the famous Chinese Empress Qi-Xi is just a pathetic girl next to Lisovskaya.
Roxalana was the wife of Suleiman the Magnificent for forty years. For a long time and skillfully she created for herself the glory of the patroness of the arts and the most educated woman of the Muslim East. The hypocritical and cruel sultana died a natural death, leaving her husband a widower. She no longer managed to see how her son ascended the throne, becoming Sultan Selim II. He reigned in the Brilliant Port after the death of his father for only eight years - from 1566 to 1574 - and, although the Koran forbids drinking wine, he was a terrible alcoholic! His heart once simply could not stand the constant excessive libations, and in the memory of the people he remained as Sultan Selim the drunkard!
Such is the true story of the life of Roxalana - Anastasia Lisovskaya, whom some are now trying to pass off as a model of virtue ...
with the VKontakte community (new series with one-voiced translation)
and also watch dubbed from the first series
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The third season of the series will last up to episode 102 inclusive, the end date of the 3rd season of the Magnificent Age is approximately June 5, 2013. Continuation - Season 4 of the Magnificent Century - in September 2013.
It was officially announced that the series will consist of four seasons. The finale of the series "The Magnificent Century" is scheduled for 2014.
Having ascended the throne as the 10th ruler of the Ottoman Empire, Suleiman (the biography of the Sultan will be discussed later) lived only a quarter of a century before this event. However, he unexpectedly deceived the expectations of the Ottoman elite and, despising the vicious lifestyle, spent almost his entire reign personally leading military campaigns in Europe, Africa and Asia. He died, already being seriously ill, leading the Hungarian campaign. Of all the lands for which he fought, he could not conquer only Vienna in Europe, the island of Malta in the Mediterranean, as well as Yemen in the Arabian Peninsula and Ethiopia in eastern Africa. His reign was the peak of the power and prosperity of the Ottoman Empire, which stretched (with small free enclaves) from the northwestern tip of North Africa to Iran and from Vienna to Ethiopia.
What can be said about the biography of Sultan Suleiman Khan Khazret? He was considered fair. Being the caliph of all Muslims and the Great Padishah of the Turks, he did not oppress other religions, and especially Christianity. Under him, trade and art flourished, fair laws were introduced and, most importantly, observed, it became easier for ordinary people to live, which, in fact, is a unique situation for empires waging constant wars.
Brief history of the Ottomans before Sultan Suleiman I
The Ottoman Empire existed for more than 6 hundred years, disintegrating only as a result of World War I. The family and biography of Sultan Suleiman Khan Khazret Leri will be discussed a little lower. In the meantime, the first nine Ottoman sultans:
- The founder of the dynasty, Osman Gazi (1288-1326), assumed the title of "sultan" a year before the end of the 13th century. He made the small town of Melangia his capital.
- Orhan I (1326-1359) continued his father's policy. He annexed the Dardanelles to his lands, stopped submitting to the Mongols and, having taken Brusa, renamed them Bursa and made them his capital.
- Murad (1359-1389), unlike his father, fought more in Europe, reducing the once great Byzantium to a piece of land around Constantinople. Moved the capital to Adrianople. Killed in the famous Battle of Kosovo.
- His son Bayazet (1389-1402) won this battle and became the 4th Ottoman sultan. He conquered almost the entire Balkan Peninsula and was already preparing to conquer Byzantium, when the Great Timur came from the east and utterly defeated the army of Bayazet I, capturing him.
- Dual power began, as Suleiman in Adrianople (1402-1410) and Mehmed I (1403-1421) declared themselves sultans, who, after the death of Suleiman and the victory over his brother, again became the only sultan. He fought very little, but he suppressed unrest and uprisings energetically and harshly.
- His son Murad II (1421-1451) fought quite successfully, capturing part of Albania, but his grandfather's dream - to capture Constantinople - was realized only by his heir.
- Mehmed II the Conqueror (1451-1481). In 1953, he fulfilled the century and a half dream of the Ottoman Turks and took Constantinople, making it the capital of the Ottoman Empire. He also finally completed the conquest of the Balkans, captured the islands of Lesbos, Lemnos and many others. He forced the Crimean Khan to accept his protectorate, and also expanded the borders in the East.
- His son Bayezid II (1481-1512) put a stop to the magnificent history of continuous victories, as he constantly suppressed unrest and uprisings, and was of a peaceful disposition. Another reason was that he was pursued by military failures.
- Selim I the Severe (1512-1520) - the 9th sultan of the Ottomans and the father of the hero of our article. He was a zealous Sunni and destroyed Shiites throughout the empire. Fighting with Iran and Egypt, he took Mosul, Damascus and Cairo.
Sultan Suleiman Khan Khazret Leri: biography, family
The future 10th Sultan of the Ottomans and the 89th Caliph of all Muslims was born six years before the onset of the 16th century in the family of the governor of Trabzon and the future Sultan Selim I the Terrible. He became the long-awaited first-born among boys. His mother (a very beautiful woman) Khafize Aisha was the daughter of the Crimean Khan. After the death of Suleiman's grandmother, whom he loved very much, it was she who single-handedly raised her son. Sultan Suleiman, whose biography and personal life is full of amazing events, grew up surrounded by eminent teachers and, surprisingly, studied jewelry art. Subsequently, he was known not only as a connoisseur of jewelry, but also as a good blacksmith, even personally participated in the casting of cannons.
Interesting! Suleiman's father Selim received the sultan's power as a result of a fierce struggle with his father Bayezid II and (for the first time in the history of the Ottomans) the latter's voluntary resignation of his sultan's powers.
We continue to study the biography of Sultan Suleiman Khan Khazret Leri. After the accession of his father, at a very young age he became the ruler of Manisa, and subsequently of two more provinces. Thus, he gained management experience as a governor.
Appearance and character of Suleiman the Magnificent
Describing the biography of Sultan Suleiman Khan the Magnificent, and that was his name in Europe, the ambassador of Venice noted his long neck and aquiline nose, as well as the pale (he even put it more sharply - deathly pale) appearance of his skin. He was unusually strong, which cannot be said by looking at Suleiman for the first time. Hot-tempered and proud, like all Ottomans, he was at the same time melancholic, complacent and generous. And, importantly, he was not a fanatic, like his father.
In their family it was a tradition to write poetry and favor various arts. During his military life, Suleiman I wrote more than 2,000 works, mostly lyrical, which are still in demand today.
Ascension to the throne
The biography of Sultan Suleiman Khan is quite interesting. Suleiman inherited the Magnificent throne without the horrors of fratricide, since all his brothers died much earlier. On his accession to the throne, as an act of goodwill, he sent the Egyptian captives home. He zealously fought corruption, introduced (and monitored their strict observance) fair laws that worked properly until the 20th century, and really cared about the welfare of his subjects, especially the not very rich, which earned him the nickname “Fair” among them.
Meanwhile, he was not perfect. If we consider the biography, Sultan Suleiman violated his own vow, which was that the friend of his youth, Ibrahim Pasha Pargaly, would live while Suleiman himself lived. However, on the orders of the Sultan, he was strangled, however, during the dream of Suleiman himself (a miserable scholastic trick). By his own order, his son Mustafa was strangled, allegedly intending to become a sultan ahead of schedule.
Military victories
The first big military success in the biography of Sultan Suleiman is the conquest of Algeria and the capture of Belgrade, which happened in the fifth and sixth years of his reign (before that, there were also victories, but local ones - on the Danube and the island of Rhodes). Hungary and Austria paid tribute to him, all the khanates of the former Golden Horde recognized themselves as vassals. In the thirties of the XVI century, he captured Western Georgia, Baghdad, Basra and Bahrain.
Harem and family of Suleiman I
The first concubine of Sultan Suleiman Khan Khazret Leri became, as soon as he was 17 years old, the same young Fulane (later her son Mahmud died of smallpox). A similar story happened to the second concubine, Gulfem Khatun, who, no longer being his mistress, remained his friend and adviser for half a century. In 1562, on the orders of Suleiman, she was mercilessly strangled. The third favorite, Mahidevran Sultan, did not become an official wife either. For more than two decades, she was an influential figure in the palace, but left with her son Mustafa to the province he headed, where he was subsequently executed.
The only legal wife of Suleiman I
And then she came - Roksolana, as she was called in Europe. Who she is and where she came from is not exactly known. The Slavic slave - a beautiful, intelligent and rather cynical young girl - immediately fell in love with Sultan Suleiman Khan Khazret Leri, and he was crazy about her until her death. The concubine, who became the official wife (the marriage was concluded in 1534) and the mother of the next sultan - Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Haseki Sultan, rested in a mausoleum and tomb specially built for her. After her death, Suleiman the Magnificent did not officially marry.
She was always cheerful, smiling, danced well and played musical instruments, which is why she received the nickname Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska, which means "laughing." She gave birth to the Sultan's daughter Mihrimah and five sons. Naturally, she also participated in palace intrigues, influenced politics both through her husband and children, and through her son-in-law Hirvat Rustem, whom she helped to become the Grand Vizier.
Death of Suleiman the Magnificent
Sultan Suleiman Khan Khazret Leri died at the age of 72 and was buried next to the tomb of his wife Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Haseki Sultan in the second largest mosque in Istanbul - Suleymaniye, built by him. Many legends and mysteries accompany the death and funeral of Suleiman the Magnificent. Immediately, as soon as he died, all his doctors were killed so that his son Selim would be the first to enter the capital: this automatically made him a sultan. Before his death, Suleiman allegedly asked to be buried with open hands, as if showing that the Great Sultan could not take anything with him. And there were many such rumors.
Sultan Selim (son of Suleiman): personal biography
Selim II, the son of Suleiman the Magnificent and Roksolana, ruled until 1574, having lost a bit of his father's inheritance. He was the eleventh Ottoman sultan and the first to be born and die in Istanbul. But all its differences from its predecessors did not end there:
- He was blond (apparently, the genes of his Slavic mother affected), for which he was nicknamed Sary Selim.
- He personally did not participate in military campaigns, but increased the territory controlled by the Great Porte by 2% - up to 15.2 million square kilometers (Tunisia, Cyprus were conquered, Arabia was finally subjugated and Yemen was a breakaway).
His father trusted him so much that in 1548, leaving for the Persian campaign, he left Selim as regent in Istanbul, and in 1953 declared him his first heir.
In his youth, Selim was a rare reveler and drunkard, even getting the nickname Ayash, but on the throne he began to abuse this much less, and according to one version, he very abruptly put an end to bad habits, which, according to his doctor, even harmed his health.
Observing traditions, Selim II also wrote poems, but he dedicated them only to his beloved wife Nurban, whose son Murad became the 12th sultan.
Results
In modern Turkey, Suleiman I the Just was chosen as a role model. He is sympathetic and often referred to by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. And this is not surprising, since the father of all Turks, Kemal Ataturk, advocated a secular society and, although he restored the country, but not the empire.
So, we examined the family and biography of the Sultan. Suleiman Khan Khazret Leri the Magnificent - "the shadow of Allah on Earth" - showed such a tolerant attitude towards religious denominations and was so monogamous in relation to his legal wife Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Haseki Sultan that in those distant times it aroused surprise not only Muslims, but even Christians.
Sultan Suleiman went down in history as a great commander and legislator. During his reign, the Ottoman Empire achieved unprecedented glory and power, it caused not only fear throughout the world, but also respect. Being a brave warrior and a skilled politician, he managed to significantly expand the boundaries of his empire, for which the Europeans began to call him the Magnificent.
Sultan Suleiman biography
Sultan Suleyman was from the Ottoman dynasty. He came to power after the death of his father Selim I the Terrible and began his reign with the release of Cairo scientists forcibly held in Constantinople, the execution of several criminals and the abolition of the import of goods from Persia.
Suleiman entered the international political arena with a proposal from Hungary to cancel the raids by paying tribute to the Hungarian state. The Hungarians refused and, disfiguring the face of the envoy of the Sultan, sent him back. In response, the enraged Sultan declared war and won it.
The internal policy of the Sultan led to fundamental changes in society. As a result of the codification of Ottoman law, subjects were divided into Muslims and non-Muslims, and in connection with this, rights and obligations were introduced. It is important to note that the new changes affected all spheres of life and a huge role in their implementation was played by Roksolana the prisoner of the Sultan and later his only wife. A lot of efforts were made to amend the legislative framework, which made it possible to more effectively combat crime and bribery. The guilty were executed, regardless of position in society and merit. They began to call him kanuni (legislator), and sometimes even called Suleiman the Second, meaning Solomon (in Turkey, Solomon is called Suleiman).
Thanks to the wise rule of Suleiman the Magnificent, the empire began to develop and prosper rapidly. Comprehensively educated, fond of art and fluent in several languages, he paid much attention to the development of art and education within the country and patronized scientists, writers, artists and architects. Under him, the greatest architectural structures began to be erected. The most famous was the Suleymaniye Mosque, built by the local architect Sinan, in which the Sultan himself was later buried with his beloved wife Roksolana (Hyurrem Sultan).
The inconsistency in character made Suleiman an extraordinary and unpredictable person. He could be harsh and at the same time merciful, cruelty was replaced by sentimentality, and tyranny by benevolence. He could be ruthless to his enemies and at the same time he could mourn the young king of Hungary who died in battle with his troops. He was beside himself with grief when his young son died, and, years later, his other son was killed on his orders. His majesty allowed him to listen to representatives of foreign countries, turning away and not uttering a word, while at other times he could afford, dressed in beggarly clothes, to walk around the city, listening to people's conversations.
Sultan Suleiman was a great ruler, but, unfortunately, after his death, the once Great Empire fell into complete decline.
Real portraits of Sultan Suleiman and his relatives and friends
Sultan Suleiman (Sultan the Magnificent)
The series was released in January 2011 and literally from the release of the first series, many viewers realized that this series really deserves attention. Gorgeous costumes, beautiful locations reflecting life and, of course, actors who play their roles convincingly from the very beginning. The combination of all these factors influenced the fact that this particular series became one of the most popular not only in the country of production - but throughout the world.
Reviews of historians about the series
However, along with good reviews about the series, historians came to the conclusion that many facts were simply distorted, and Sultan Suleiman was not portrayed at all as he really was. But such facts, seemingly imperceptible to an ordinary viewer, can show people a story that is not what it really was. Let's try to figure out what were the differences between the real Sultan Suleiman and his screen prototype.
The Europeans called Sultan Suleiman none other than "The Magnificent", but at the same time in Turkey he was called the "Legislator". It was during his reign that the Ottoman Empire became an invincible state: the army of Sultan Suleiman was so huge that not one power could resist the empire. The army captured more and more new territories, but this was done to a greater extent not to expand the borders of the Ottoman Empire, but in order to show the whole world the strength of Sultan Suleiman and his power.
The image of Sultan Suleiman in the series was romanticized
Do not forget that the image of Sultan Suleiman in the series is built to a greater extent on romance, and the lion's share of screen time is devoted not to campaigns and battles at all, but to the relationship between Sultan Suleiman and his beloved woman - Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Hatun, she is also Roksolana. In real life, Sultan Suleiman spent more time on campaigns, because he believed that his army could lose the war if he was not around. Yes, and the relationship between Roksolana and Sultan Suleiman could hardly be called romantic.
For the ruler of the Ottoman Empire, such a thing as “romance” was alien: he was really a great commander, followed by people without thinking about his own life, but in the series his image is romanticized, although in reality Sultan Suleiman was not a romantic.
Mahidevran Sultan was never the wife of Sultan Suleiman
Also in the series Mahidevran Sultan is shown as the wife of Sultan Suleiman, who was very jealous of the ruler for Roksolana. However, this woman was not really his wife. She was his favorite, and as Sultan Suleiman's "favorite" was then called. He singled her out among all the concubines of his harem. Mahidevran Sultan had great privileges compared to other concubines. The ruler gave her gifts, the woman had power, and later, having given birth to Sultan Suleiman's heir - a boy named Mustafa, she was completely able to take a special place in the life of the ruler.
But with the advent of Roksolana, Makhidevran realized that she could not defeat this competitor - between Sultan Suleiman and Roksolana there was such a strong attachment that it could only be broken by the death of the girl. Mahidevran attempted to poison her rival, but Roksolana managed to survive. And if in real life Sultan Suleiman sent Mahidevran Sultan to live out his life in the old palace, and never saw her again, then in the series the woman was forgiven, and remained to live in the courtyard next to Sultan Suleiman. If we draw analogies with the series, then everything was so.
Information about Suleiman's children who died after birth
According to some reports, Suleiman had several children with other women before Mustafa was born. But these children could not survive: during the reign of the Ottoman Empire, there were many diseases that medicine could not cope with due to the low level of development of this industry. But in the series they decided not to attach importance to this, and the audience simply decided not to show it. Moreover, this is an unreliable fact, which means that this could not have happened.
Sultan Suleiman loved only one woman all his life
What in the series, what in life, the heart of the ruler of the Ottoman Empire all his life belonged to his beloved - Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Sultan. While still a very young girl, Anastasia Lisovskaya (that's what, according to historians, Roksolana was called) got into the harem of Sultan Suleiman, whom she hated with all her heart. She was taken away from her homeland by force, and since then, apart from hatred, Anastasia has not experienced any feelings for the ruler. But as soon as they met once, Anastasia fell in love with Sultan Suleiman. In the series, everything is shown that way, so it's hard to disagree here. It was Sultan Suleiman who gave Anastasia a new name - Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska.
In the series "The Magnificent Century" Sultan Suleiman is shown as a man who is head over heels in love with Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Sultan, who allowed her to command not only them, but the state as a whole. The scriptwriters and directors of this project tried to show the Sultan not only as a tough ruler, but also as a romantic, kind nature, although the real Sultan Suleiman was not at all a soft-hearted sensual romantic.
Valide Sultan and her influence on Sultan Suleiman
The mother of Sultan Suleiman occupied a special place in the palace. In real life, Valide Sultan could influence the decision of her son Suleiman, who listened to her in many ways. But as for the series, everything was shown a little differently here: although Sultan Suleiman respected his mother and her opinion, he almost always acted as he saw fit, and Valide could not change her son's point of view. Even with all her dislike for Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Sultan, Valide had to practically endure the girl in the palace for the sake of her son.
The script was built around a romantic relationship
The scriptwriters did not rely at all on making the characters of the series look like historical figures, the plot was based on the relationship between Sultan Suleiman and Roksolana, because the series was designed by and large only for women, which means that you can only attract them to watch the series due to romantic relationships and beautiful love, which the fair sex loves so much in TV shows and films. And the scriptwriters did not fail: almost immediately the series fell in love with the female audience, for which it was designed, but historians who watched the series for the sake of analysis and comparison with real historical characters have repeatedly argued that, in addition to clothes that were really similar, with history there is nothing in common.
Campaigns and wars
In the series, Sultan Suleiman is in the palace almost all the time, solving important issues, issuing laws and decrees. But in fact, for all his 46 years of reign, Sultan Suleiman was more often on campaigns than he remained in the palace. The thing is that Suleiman was a very superstitious person, and once he told his army that when he was not around, they lose, and when he leads them along, they win. Therefore, Sultan Suleiman, purely physically, could not devote so much time to his beloved Roksolana, and most often wrote letters to her with his own poems for her. But in the TV series “The Magnificent Century”, of course, Sultan Suleiman was most often at home, in the palace, because if the scriptwriters followed the canon and did everything as it really was, then the audience would never have seen the development of such a beautiful love between the ruler of the Ottoman Empire and an ordinary concubine girl, who was destined to become not only the ruler of such a powerful state, but also to win the heart of the impregnable Suleiman.
The directors of the series "The Magnificent Century" never claimed that this film would have one hundred percent resemblance to real historical events. You need to understand that this is still not a documentary, but a feature film, so the scriptwriters reserved the right to invent various storylines, add characters to the series that never existed in the palace. It is unlikely that anyone would have watched this series if it had been filmed in exactly the same way as it was in real life. Spectators would have to look at the endless campaigns of Sultan Suleiman's troops, wars and murders. However, historians were involved in the filming of the series, who happened to re-read a huge number of books that described the events of that time.
For example, a doctor of historical sciences named Erkhan Ayfondzhi said that before starting to write the script, he read many articles, books, records of various ambassadors who came to these territories during the reign of the Ottoman Empire and described everything that happened.
But the personal life of Sultan Suleiman remained a big mystery even for historians. In addition to relations with Mahidevran Sultan and Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Sultan, nothing was known about his novels. Therefore, the scriptwriters had to come up with various characters that were associated with Suleiman, such as Firuze-khatun, a girl who was able to displace Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Hatun, and even fall in love with Sultan Suleiman. But the writers just came up with this personality to make interesting plot twists. The directors of the series did not hide the fact that they thought out many of the girls who were Sultan Suleiman's mistresses themselves.
What was Sultan Suleiman really like?
Sultan Suleiman, according to historical data, was a very cruel and bloody ruler. He was suspicious and never trusted anyone with his life, fearing that at any moment he could be betrayed. However, in order not to shock the viewers, in the series the characters were exaggerated and romanticized, and were very different from the real Sultan Suleiman and Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Sultan.
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