Suleiman I, the tenth sultan of the Ottoman Empire, endowed his state with unprecedented power. The great conqueror became famous also as a wise author of laws, the founder of new schools and the initiator of the construction of architectural masterpieces.
In 1494 (according to some reports, in 1495), a son was born to the Turkish Sultan Selim I and the daughter of the Crimean Khan Aisha Hafsah, who was destined to conquer half the world and transform his native country.
Portrait of Suleiman I.
The future Sultan Suleiman I received a brilliant education for those times at the palace school in Istanbul, spent his childhood and youth reading books and practicing spiritual practices. From an early age, the young man was trained in administrative affairs, having been appointed governor of three provinces, including the vassal of the Crimean Khanate. Even before ascending to the throne, young Suleiman won the love and respect of the inhabitants of the Ottoman state.
The beginning of the reign
Suleiman took the throne when he was barely 26 years old. Description of the appearance of the new ruler, penned by the Venetian ambassador Bartolomeo Contarini, was included in the famous Turkish book of the English Lord Kinross "The Rise and Decline of the Ottoman Empire":
“Tall, strong, with a pleasant expression. His neck is slightly longer than usual, his face is thin, and his nose is aquiline. The skin tends to be excessively pale. They say of him that he is a wise ruler, and all people hope for his good government."
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And Suleiman at first lived up to expectations. He started with humane actions - he returned freedom to hundreds of prisoners chained in chains from noble families of states captured by his father. This helped to renew trade relations with the countries.
Sultan Suleiman I.
The Europeans were especially happy about the innovations, hoping for a long-term peace, but, as it turned out, early. Balanced and fair at first glance, the ruler of Turkey still cherished the dream of military glory.
Foreign policy
By the end of his reign, the military biography of Suleiman I consisted of 13 major military campaigns, of which 10 campaigns of conquest were in Europe. And that's not counting small raids. The Ottoman Empire had never been so powerful: its lands stretched from Algeria to Iran, Egypt and almost to the threshold of Vienna. At that time, the phrase "Turks at the gates" became a terrible horror story for Europeans, and the Ottoman ruler was compared to the Antichrist.
Sultan Suleiman during the third siege of Rhodes.
A year after ascending to the throne, Suleiman went to the borders of Hungary. The Sabac fortress fell under the pressure of the Turkish troops. Victories poured out like a horn of plenty - the Ottomans established control over the Red Sea, took Algeria, Tunisia and the island of Rhodes, conquered Tabriz and Iraq.
The territory of the Ottoman Empire under Suleiman I.
The Black Sea and the eastern Mediterranean have also taken a place on the rapidly growing map of the empire. Hungary, Slavonia, Transylvania, Bosnia and Herzegovina were subordinate to the Sultan. In 1529, the Turkish ruler swung at Austria, storming its capital with an army of 120 thousand soldiers. However, Vienna was helped by an epidemic that claimed a third of the Ottoman army. The siege had to be lifted.
Only on the Russian lands Suleiman did not seriously encroach, considering Russia a remote province, which is not worth the effort and money spending. The Ottomans occasionally raided the possessions of the Moscow state, the Crimean Khan even reached the capital, but a large-scale campaign never happened.
By the end of the reign of the ambitious ruler, the Ottoman Empire had become the greatest and most powerful state in the history of the Muslim world. However, military measures depleted the treasury - according to estimates, the maintenance of an army of 200 thousand soldiers, which also included janissary slaves, ate two-thirds of the state budget in peacetime.
Domestic policy
Suleiman not in vain received the nickname Magnificent: the life of the ruler is filled not only with military successes, the sultan also succeeded in the internal affairs of the state. On his behalf, Judge Ibrahim of Aleppo updated the code of laws that was in force until the 20th century. Mutilation and the death penalty were reduced to a minimum, although criminals caught falsifying money and documents, bribery and perjury continued to lose their right hand.
Bas-relief of Suleiman I.
The wise ruler of a state where representatives of different religions coexisted, considered it necessary to weaken the pressure of the Sharia and made an attempt to create secular laws. But some of the reforms never caught on due to constant wars.
The education system also changed for the better: one after another, elementary schools began to appear, and graduates, if desired, continued to receive knowledge in colleges, which were located within the eight main mosques.
Coin from the time of Suleiman I.
Thanks to the sultan, the architectural heritage was replenished with masterpieces of art. According to the sketches of the favorite architect ruler, Sinan, three luxurious mosques were built - Selimiye, Shehzade and Suleymaniye (the second largest in the capital of Turkey), which became an example of the Ottoman style.
Suleiman was distinguished by his poetic talent, therefore he did not ignore literary creativity. During his reign, Ottoman poetry with Persian traditions was polished to perfection. At the same time, a new position appeared - a rhythmic chronicler, it was occupied by poets who clothed current events in poems.
Personal life
Suleiman I, in addition to poetry, was fond of jewelry, was known as a skillful blacksmith and even personally cast cannons for military campaigns.
Suleiman I and women from his harem.
How many women were in the sultan's harem is unknown. Historians know only about the official favorites who gave birth to children to Suleiman. In 1511, Fülane became the first concubine of the 17-year-old heir to the throne. Her son Mahmud died of smallpox before he was 10 years old. The girl disappeared from the forefront of palace life almost immediately after the death of the child.
Gulfem Khatun, the second concubine, also gave the ruler a son, who was also not spared by the smallpox epidemic. The woman, excommunicated from the Sultan, remained his friend and advisor for half a century. In 1562, Gulfem was strangled by the order of Suleiman.
The third favorite, Makhidevran Sultan, approached the acquisition of the status of the official wife of the ruler. For 20 years she had a great influence in the harem and in the palace, but she also failed to create a legitimate family with the Sultan. She left the capital of the empire with her son Mustafa, who was appointed governor of one of the provinces. Later, the heir to the throne was executed for allegedly going to overthrow his father.
Suleiman I and Khyurrem (Roksolana).
The list of women of Suleiman the Magnificent is headed by Khyurrem. A favorite of Slavic roots, Roksolana, a captive from Galicia, as she was called in Europe, charmed the ruler: the sultan granted her freedom, and then took her as a legal wife - a religious marriage was concluded in 1534.
Roksolana received the nickname Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska (“laughing”) for her cheerful disposition and smile. The creator of the harem in the Topkapi Palace, the founder of charitable organizations inspired artists and writers, although she did not have an ideal appearance - her subjects appreciated the intelligence and cunning of everyday life.
Sultan Selim, son of Sultan Suleiman I.
Roksolana skillfully manipulated her husband, at her behest, the sultan got rid of the sons born by other wives, became suspicious and cruel. Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska gave birth to a daughter Mihrimah and five sons.
Of these, after the death of his father, the state was headed by Selim, who, however, did not differ in the outstanding talent of the autocrat, he loved to drink and take a walk. During the reign of Selim, the Ottoman Empire began to fade. Suleiman's love for Khyurrem did not fade over the years, after the death of his wife, the Turkish ruler never went down the aisle.
Death
The Sultan, who brought powerful states to their knees, died, as he himself desired, in the war. It happened during the siege of the Hungarian fortress Szigetavr. 71-year-old Suleiman has long been tormented by gout, the disease progressed, and even riding a horse was already difficult.
Tomb of Suleiman I.
He died on the morning of September 6, 1566, and did not live a couple of hours before the decisive assault on the fortress. The doctors who treated the ruler were immediately killed so that information about the death would not reach the army, which, in the heat of disappointment, could raise an uprising. Only after the heir to the throne Selim established power in Istanbul, the soldiers learned about the death of the ruler.
According to legend, Suleiman felt the approaching end and voiced the last will of the commander-in-chief. A request with a philosophical meaning is known to everyone today: the sultan asked not to close his hands at the funeral procession - everyone should see that the accumulated wealth remains in this world, and even Suleiman the Magnificent, the great ruler of the Ottoman Empire, leaves empty-handed.
Another legend is connected with the death of the Turkish ruler. The body was allegedly embalmed, and the removed internal organs were placed in a vessel of gold and buried at the place of his death. Now there is a mausoleum and a mosque. The remains of Suleiman rest in the cemetery of the Suleymaniye mosque built by him, near the Roksolana mausoleum.
Suleymaniye Mosque.
Memory
Several feature films and documentaries tell about the life of Suleiman I. The series "The Magnificent Century", which was released in 2011, became a vivid adaptation of harem intrigues. The role of the Ottoman ruler is Halit Ergench, whose charisma is felt even from the photo.
Halit Ergench as Suleiman I in The Magnificent Century TV series.
The image created by the actor is recognized as the best embodiment of the Sultan's power in cinema. The concubine and wife of the ruler is played by Meryem Uzerli, the actress with German-Turkish roots also managed to convey the main features of Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska - spontaneity and sincerity.
