Suleiman the Magnificent

"Kanuni" redirects here. For the hompa of Kwangali, seeKanuni (hompa).For the Turkish drillship, seeKanuni(drillship).For the Albanian law texts, seeKanun (Albania).

Suleiman I
Ottoman Caliph Amir al-Mu'minin Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Caesar of Rome Khagan
Portrait of Suleiman byTitian(c. 1530)
Sultan of the Ottoman Empire(Padishah)
Reign	30 September 1520 –6 September 1566
Sword girding	30 September 1520
Predecessor	Selim I
Successor	Selim II
Born	6 November 1494 Trabzon,Ottoman Empire
Died	6 September 1566(1566-09-06)(aged 71) Szigetvár,Kingdom of Hungary,Habsburg monarchy
Burial	Organs buried atTurbék,Szigetvár, Hungary Body buried atSüleymaniye Mosque,Istanbul, Turkey
Spouses	Hürrem Sultan ​ ​ (m.1533; died 1558)​ Mahidevran Hatun
Issue	Şehzade Mahmud Şehzade Murad Şehzade Mustafa Raziye Sultan Şehzade Mehmed Mihrimah Sultan Selim II Şehzade Abdullah Şehzade Bayezid Şehzade Cihangir
Names Süleyman Şah bin Selim Şah Han
Dynasty	Ottoman
Father	Selim I
Mother	Hafsa Sultan
Religion	Sunni Islam
Tughra

Suleiman I(Ottoman Turkish:سليمان اول,romanized:Süleyman-ı Evvel;Turkish:I. Süleyman,pronounced[syleiˈman];6 November 1494 – 6 September 1566), commonly known asSuleiman the Magnificentin Western Europe andSuleiman the Lawgiver(Ottoman Turkish:قانونى سلطان سليمان,romanized:Ḳānūnī Sulṭān Süleymān) in his Ottoman realm, was the longest-reigningsultan of the Ottoman Empirefrom 1520 until his death in 1566.Under his administration, theOttoman Empireruled over at least 25 million people.

Suleiman succeeded his father,Selim I,as sultan on 30 September 1520 and began his reign with campaigns against the Christian powers in Central Europe and the Mediterranean.Belgradefell to him in 1521 and the island ofRhodesin 1522–1523. AtMohács,in August 1526, Suleiman broke the military strength of Hungary.

Suleiman became a prominent monarch of 16th-century Europe, presiding over the apex of the Ottoman Empire's economic, military and political power. Suleiman personally led Ottoman armies in conquering the Christian strongholds of Belgrade and Rhodes as well as most of Hungary before his conquests were checked at thesiege of Viennain 1529. He annexed much of the Middle East in his conflict with theSafavidsand large areas of North Africa as far west as Algeria. Under his rule, theOttoman fleetdominated the seas from the Mediterranean to theRed Seaand through thePersian Gulf.

At the helm of an expanding empire, Suleiman personally instituted major judicial changes relating to society, education, taxation and criminal law. His reforms, carried out in conjunction with the empire's chief judicial officialEbussuud Efendi,harmonized the relationship between the two forms of Ottoman law: sultanic (Kanun) and religious (Sharia).He was a distinguished poet and goldsmith; he also became a great patron of culture, overseeing the"Golden" ageof the Ottoman Empire in itsartistic,literaryandarchitecturaldevelopment.

Breaking with Ottoman tradition, Suleiman marriedHurrem Sultan,a woman from his harem, anOrthodox ChristianofRuthenianorigin who converted toSunni Islam,and who became famous in Western Europe of his time by the name Roxelana, due to her red hair. Their son,Selim II,succeeded Suleiman following his death in 1566 after 46 years of rule. Suleiman's other potential heirs,MehmedandMustafa,had died; Mehmed had died in 1543 from smallpox, and Mustafa had been strangled to death in 1553 at the sultan's order. His other sonBayezidwas executed in 1561 on Suleiman's orders, along with Bayezid's four sons, after a rebellion. Although scholars typically regarded the period after his death to be one of crisis and adaptation rather than simpledecline,the end of Suleiman's reign was a watershed in Ottoman history. In the decades after Suleiman, the empire began to experience significant political, institutional, and economic changes, a phenomenon often referred to as theTransformation of the Ottoman Empire.

Alternative names and titles

Suleiman the Magnificent (محتشم سليمانMuḥteşem Süleymān), as he was known in theWest,was also called Suleiman the First (سلطان سليمان أولSulṭān Süleymān-ı Evvel), and Suleiman the Lawgiver (قانونی سلطان سليمانḲānūnī Sulṭān Süleymān) for his reform of the Ottoman legal system.

It is unclear when exactly the termKanunî(the Lawgiver) first came to be used as an epithet for Suleiman. It is entirely absent from sixteenth and seventeenth-century Ottoman sources and may date from the early 18th century.

There is a tradition of western origin, according to which Suleiman the Magnificent was "Suleiman II", but that tradition has been based on an erroneous assumption thatSüleyman Çelebiwas to be recognised as a legitimate sultan.

Early life

Suleiman byNakkaş Osman.

Suleiman was born inTrabzonon the southern coast of theBlack Seato Şehzade Selim (laterSelim I), probably on 6 November 1494, although this date is not known with absolute certainty or evidence.His mother wasHafsa Sultan,a concubine convert to Islam of unknown origins, who died in 1534.At the age of seven, Suleiman began studies of science, history, literature, theology and military tactics in the schools of the imperialTopkapı PalaceinConstantinople.As a young man, he befriendedPargalı Ibrahim,a Greek slave who later became one of his most trusted advisers (but who was later executed on Suleiman's orders).At age seventeen, he was appointed as the governor of firstKaffa(Theodosia), thenManisa,with a brief tenure atEdirne.

Accession

Upon the death of his father,Selim I(r. 1512–1520), Suleiman entered Constantinople and ascended to the throne as the tenth Ottoman Sultan. An early description of Suleiman, a few weeks following his accession, was provided by theVenetianenvoyBartolomeo Contarini:

The sultan is only twenty-five years [actually 26] old, tall and slender but tough, with a thin and bony face. Facial hair is evident, but only barely. The sultan appears friendly and in good humor. Rumor has it that Suleiman is aptly named, enjoys reading, is knowledgeable and shows good judgment. "

Military campaigns

See also:List of campaigns of Suleiman the Magnificent

Conquests in Europe

See also:Ottoman wars in EuropeandIslam and Protestantism

Suleiman during thesiege of Rhodesin 1522

Upon succeeding his father, Suleiman began a series of military conquests, eventually leading to a revolt led by the Ottoman-appointed governor ofDamascusin 1521. Suleiman soon made preparations for theconquest of Belgradefrom theKingdom of Hungary—something his great-grandfatherMehmed IIhad failed to achieve because ofJohn Hunyadi's strong defense in the region. Its capture was vital in removing the Hungarians and Croats who, following the defeats of theAlbanians,Bosniaks,Bulgarians,Byzantinesand theSerbs,remained the only formidable force who could block further Ottoman gains in Europe. Suleiman encircledBelgradeand began a series of heavy bombardments from an island in theDanube.Belgrade, with a garrison of only 700 men, and receiving no aid from Hungary, fell in August 1521.

The road to Hungary and Austria lay open, but Suleiman turned his attention instead to the EasternMediterraneanisland ofRhodes,the home base of theKnights Hospitaller.Suleiman built a large fortification,Marmaris Castle,that served as a base for theOttoman Navy.Following a five-monthsiege,Rhodes capitulated and Suleiman allowed theKnights of Rhodesto depart.The conquest of the island cost the Ottomans 50,000to 60,000dead from battle and sickness (Christian claims went as high as 64,000 Ottoman battle deaths and 50,000 disease deaths).

As relations between Hungary and the Ottoman Empire deteriorated, Suleiman resumed his campaign in Central Europe, and on 29 August 1526 he defeatedLouis II of Hungary(1506–1526) at theBattle of Mohács.Upon encountering the lifeless body of King Louis, Suleiman is said to have lamented: "I came indeed in arms against him; but it was not my wish that he should be thus cut off before he scarcely tasted the sweets of life and royalty."While Suleiman was campaigning in Hungary,Turkmentribes in central Anatolia (inCilicia) revolted under the leadership ofKalender Çelebi.

Some Hungarian nobles proposed thatFerdinand,who was the ruler of neighboring Austria and tied to Louis II's family by marriage, be King of Hungary, citing previous agreements that theHabsburgswould take the Hungarian throne if Louis died without heirs.However, other nobles turned to the noblemanJohn Zápolya,who was being supported by Suleiman. UnderCharles Vand his brother Ferdinand I, the Habsburgs reoccupied Buda and took possession of Hungary. Reacting in 1529, Suleiman marched through the valley of the Danube and regained control of Buda; in the following autumn, his forces laid thesiege to Vienna.This was to be the Ottoman Empire's most ambitious expedition and the apogee of its drive to the West. With a reinforced garrison of 16,000 men,the Austrians inflicted the first defeat on Suleiman, sowing the seeds of a bitter Ottoman–Habsburg rivalry that lasted until the 20th century. His second attempt to conquer Vienna failed in 1532, as Ottoman forces were delayed by thesiege of Günsand failed to reach Vienna. In both cases, the Ottoman army was plagued by bad weather, forcing them to leave behind essential siege equipment, and was hobbled by overstretched supply lines.In 1533 theTreaty of Constantinoplewas signed byFerdinand I,in which he acknowledged Ottoman suzerainty and recognised Suleiman as his "father and suzerain", he also agreed to pay an annual tribute and accepted the Ottoman grand vizier as his brother and equal in rank.

KingJohn Sigismundof Hungary with Suleiman in 1556

By the 1540s, a renewal of the conflict in Hungary presented Suleiman with the opportunity to avenge the defeat suffered at Vienna. In 1541, the Habsburgs attempted to lay siege to Buda but were repulsed, and more Habsburg fortresses were captured by the Ottomans in two consecutive campaigns in 1541 and 1544 as a result,Ferdinand and Charles were forced to conclude a humiliating five-year treaty with Suleiman. Ferdinand renounced his claim to the Kingdom of Hungary and was forced to pay a fixed yearly sum to the Sultan for the Hungarian lands he continued to control. Of more symbolic importance, the treaty referred to Charles V not as "Emperor" but as the "King of Spain", leading Suleiman to identify as the true "Caesar".

In 1552, Suleiman's forces laidsiege to Eger,located in the northern part of the Kingdom of Hungary, but the defenders led byIstván Dobórepelled the attacks and defended theEger Castle.

Ottoman–Safavid War

Main articles:Ottoman–Safavid War (1532–55),Ottoman–Persian Wars,andHabsburg–Persian alliance

Miniature depicting Suleiman marching with an army inNakhchivan,summer 1554

Suleiman's father had made war with Persia a high priority. At first, Suleiman shifted attention to Europe and was content to containPersia,which was preoccupied by its own enemies to its east. After Suleiman stabilized his European frontiers, he now turned his attention to Persia, the base for the rivalShia Muslimfaction. TheSafavid dynastybecame the main enemy after two episodes. First, ShahTahmaspkilled theBaghdadgovernor loyal to Suleiman, and put his own man in. Second, the governor ofBitlishad defected and sworn allegiance to the Safavids.As a result, in 1533, Suleiman ordered his Pargalı Ibrahim Pasha to lead an army into eastern Asia Minor where he retook Bitlis and occupiedTabrizwithout resistance. Suleiman joined Ibrahim in 1534. They made a push towards Persia, only to find the Shah sacrificing territory instead of facing a pitched battle, resorting to harassment of the Ottoman army as it proceeded along the harsh interior.In 1535 Suleiman made a grand entrance into Baghdad. He enhanced his local support by restoring the tomb ofAbu Hanifa,the founder of theHanafischool of Islamic law to which the Ottomans adhered.

Attempting to defeat the Shah once and for all, Suleiman embarked upon a second campaign in 1548–1549. As in the previous attempt, Tahmasp avoided confrontation with the Ottoman army and instead chose to retreat, using scorched earth tactics in the process and exposing the Ottoman army to the harsh winter of theCaucasus.Suleiman abandoned the campaign with temporary Ottoman gains inTabrizand theUrmiaregion, a lasting presence in the province ofVan,control of the western half ofAzerbaijanand some forts inGeorgia.

Territorial expansion of the Ottoman Empireunder Suleiman, (in red and orange) includingOttoman vassals.

In 1553, Suleiman began his third and final campaign against the Shah. Having initially lost territories inErzurumto the Shah's son, Suleiman retaliated by recapturing Erzurum, crossing the Upper Euphrates and laying waste to parts of Persia. The Shah's army continued its strategy of avoiding the Ottomans, leading to a stalemate from which neither army made any significant gain. In 1555, a settlement known as thePeace of Amasyawas signed, which defined the borders of the two empires. By this treaty, Armenia and Georgia were divided equally between the two, withWestern Armenia,westernKurdistan,and western Georgia (incl. westernSamtskhe) falling in Ottoman hands whileEastern Armenia,eastern Kurdistan, and eastern Georgia (incl. eastern Samtskhe) stayed in Safavid hands.The Ottoman Empire obtained most ofIraq,including Baghdad, which gave them access to thePersian Gulf,while the Persians retained their former capitalTabrizand all their other northwestern territories in the Caucasus and as they were prior to the wars, such asDagestanand all of what is nowAzerbaijan.

Campaigns in the Indian Ocean

Main articles:Ottoman–Portuguese conflicts,1548 capture of Aden,Ottoman expedition to Aceh,andOttoman naval expeditions in the Indian Ocean

Ottoman fleet in theIndian Oceanin the 16th century

Ottoman ships had been sailing in theIndian Oceansince the year 1518. Ottomanadmiralssuch asHadim Suleiman Pasha,Seydi Ali ReisandKurtoğlu Hızır Reisare known to have voyaged to theMughalimperial ports ofThatta,SuratandJanjira.The Mughal EmperorAkbar the Greathimself is known to have exchanged six documents with Suleiman the Magnificent.

Suleiman led several naval campaigns against thePortuguesein an attempt to remove them and reestablish trade with theMughal Empire.AdeninYemenwas captured by the Ottomans in 1538, in order to provide an Ottoman base for raids against Portuguese possessions on the western coast of the Mughal Empire.Sailing on, the Ottomans failed against the Portuguese at thesiege of Diuin September 1538, but then returned to Aden, where they fortified the city with 100 pieces of artillery.From this base, Sulayman Pasha managed to take control of the whole country of Yemen, also takingSana'a.

With its strong control of theRed Sea,Suleiman successfully managed to dispute control of the trade routes to the Portuguese and maintained a significant level of trade with theMughal Empirethroughout the 16th century.

From 1526 until 1543, Suleiman stationed over 900 Turkish soldiers to fight alongside theSomaliAdal Sultanateled byAhmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghaziduring theConquest of Abyssinia.After thefirst Ajuran-Portuguese war,the Ottoman Empire would in 1559 absorb the weakened Adal Sultanate into its domain. This expansion furthered Ottoman rule inSomaliaand theHorn of Africa.This also increased its influence in the Indian Ocean to compete with the Portuguese Empire with its close ally, theAjuran Empire.

In 1564, Suleiman received an embassy fromAceh(a sultanate onSumatra,in modernIndonesia), requesting Ottoman support against the Portuguese. As a result, anOttoman expedition to Acehwas launched, which was able to provide extensive military support to the Acehnese.

The discovery of new maritime trade routes by Western European states allowed them to avoid the Ottoman trade monopoly. ThePortuguesediscovery of theCape of Good Hopein 1488 initiateda series of Ottoman-Portuguese naval warsin the Ocean throughout the 16th century. The Ajuran Sultanate allied with the Ottomans defied the Portuguese economic monopoly in the Indian Ocean by employing a new coinage which followed the Ottoman pattern, thus proclaiming an attitude of economic independence in regard to the Portuguese.

Mediterranean and North Africa

See also:Franco-Ottoman alliance,Hayreddin Barbarossa,Italian War of 1542–46,andGreat Siege of Malta

Barbarossa Hayreddin Pashadefeats the Holy League under the command ofAndrea Doriaat theBattle of Prevezain 1538

France's King Francis I never met Suleiman, but they created aFranco-Ottoman alliancefrom the 1530s.

Having consolidated his conquests on land, Suleiman was greeted with the news that the fortress ofKoroniinMorea(the modernPeloponnese,peninsular Greece) had been lost toCharles V's admiral,Andrea Doria.The presence of the Spanish in the Eastern Mediterranean concerned Suleiman, who saw it as an early indication of Charles V's intention to rival Ottoman dominance in the region. Recognizing the need to reassert naval preeminence in the Mediterranean, Suleiman appointed an exceptional naval commander in the form ofKhair ad Din,known to Europeans asBarbarossa.Once appointed admiral-in-chief, Barbarossa was charged with rebuilding the Ottoman fleet.

In 1535, Charles V led a Holy League of 26,700 soldiers (10,000 Spaniards, 8,000 Italians, 8,000 Germans, and 700 Knights of St. John)to victory against the Ottomans atTunis,which together with the war againstVenicethe following year, led Suleiman to accept proposals fromFrancis I of Franceto forman alliance against Charles.Huge Muslim territories in North Africa were annexed. The piracy carried on thereafter by theBarbary piratesof North Africa can be seen in the context of the wars against Spain.

The siege of Malta in 1565: arrival of the Turkish fleet, byMatteo Perez d'Aleccio

In 1541, the Spaniards led an unsuccessfulexpedition to Algiers.In 1542, facing a common Habsburg enemy during theItalian Wars,Francis I sought to renew theFranco-Ottoman alliance.In early 1542, Polin successfully negotiated the details of the alliance, with the Ottoman Empire promising to send 60,000 troops against the territories of the German king Ferdinand, as well as 150 galleys against Charles, while France promised to attackFlanders,harass the coasts of Spain with a naval force, and send 40 galleys to assist the Turks for operations in the Levant.

In August 1551, Ottoman naval commanderTurgut Reisattacked andcaptured Tripoliwhich had been a possession of the Knights of Malta since 1530. In 1553, Turgut Reis was nominated commander ofTripoliby Suleiman, making the city an important center forpiratical raidsin the Mediterranean and the capital of the Ottoman province ofTripolitania.In 1560, a powerful naval force was sent to recapture Tripoli, but that force was defeated in theBattle of Djerba.

Elsewhere in the Mediterranean, when the Knights Hospitallers were re-established as theKnights of Maltain 1530, their actions against Muslim navies quickly drew the ire of the Ottomans, who assembled another massive army in order to dislodge the Knights from Malta. The Ottomans invaded Malta in 1565, undertaking theGreat Siege of Malta,which began on 18 May and lasted until 8 September, and is portrayed vividly in the frescoes ofMatteo Perez d'Aleccioin the Hall of St. Michael and St. George. At first, it seemed that this would be a repeat of the battle on Rhodes, with most of Malta's cities destroyed and half the Knights killed in battle; but a relief force from Spain entered the battle, resulting in the loss of 10,000 Ottoman troops and the victory of the local Maltese citizenry.

Legal and political reforms

Suleiman I plate at al-Masjid al-Nabawi – Medina

Suleiman the Magnificent receives an ambassador (painting byMatrakçı Nasuh)

While Sultan Suleiman was known as "the Magnificent" in the West, he was alwaysKanuniSuleiman or "The Lawgiver" (قانونی) to his Ottoman subjects. The overriding law of the empire was theShari'ah,or Sacred Law, which as the divine law ofIslamwas outside of the Sultan's powers to change. Yet an area of distinct law known as theKanuns(قانون,canonical legislation) was dependent on Suleiman's will alone, covering areas such as criminal law, land tenure and taxation.He collected all the judgments that had been issued by the nine Ottoman Sultans who preceded him. After eliminating duplications and choosing between contradictory statements, he issued a single legal code, all the while being careful not to violate the basic laws of Islam.It was within this framework that Suleiman, supported by hisGrand MuftiEbussuud,sought to reform the legislation to adapt to a rapidly changing empire. When the Kanun laws attained their final form, the code of laws became known as thekanun‐i Osmani(قانون عثمانی), or the "Ottoman laws". Suleiman's legal code was to last more than three hundred years.

The Sultan also played a role in protecting the Jewish subjects of his empire for centuries to come. In late 1553 or 1554, on the suggestion of his favorite doctor and dentist, the Spanish JewMoses Hamon,the Sultan issued afirman(فرمان) formally denouncingblood libelsagainst the Jews.Furthermore, Suleiman enacted new criminal and police legislation, prescribing a set of fines for specific offenses, as well as reducing the instances requiring death or mutilation. In the area of taxation, taxes were levied on various goods and produce, including animals, mines, profits of trade, and import-export duties.

Highermedresesprovided education of university status, whose graduates becameimams(امام) or teachers. Educational centers were often one of many buildings surrounding the courtyards of mosques, others included libraries, baths, soup kitchens, residences and hospitals for the benefit of the public.

The arts under Suleiman

Ottomanminiature from theSüleymannamedepicting theexecution by elephantof defeated enemy inBelgrade

Tughraof Suleiman the Magnificent

Under Suleiman's patronage, the Ottoman Empire entered the golden age of itscultural development.Hundreds of imperial artistic societies (called theاهل حرفEhl-i Hiref,"Community of the Craftsmen" ) were administered at the Imperial seat, theTopkapı Palace.After an apprenticeship, artists and craftsmen could advance in rank within their field and were paid commensurate wages in quarterly annual installments. Payroll registers that survive testify to the breadth of Suleiman's patronage of the arts, the earliest of the documents dating from 1526 list 40 societies with over 600 members. TheEhl-i Hirefattracted the empire's most talented artisans to the Sultan's court, both from the Islamic world and from the recently conquered territories in Europe, resulting in a blend of Arabic, Turkish and European cultures.Artisans in service of the court included painters, book binders, furriers, jewellers and goldsmiths. Whereas previous rulers had been influenced byPersian culture(Suleiman's father, Selim I, wrote poetry in Persian), Suleiman's patronage of the arts saw the Ottoman Empire assert its own artistic legacy.

Suleiman himself was an accomplished poet, writing in Persian and Turkish under thetakhallus(nom de plume)Muhibbi(محبی,"Lover" ). Some of Suleiman's verses have become Turkish proverbs, such as the well-knownEveryone aims at the same meaning, but many are the versions of the story.When his young sonMehmeddied in 1543, he composed a movingchronogramto commemorate the year:Peerless among princes, my Sultan Mehmed.In Turkish the chronogram readsشهزادهلر گزیدهسی سلطان محمدم(Şehzadeler güzidesi Sultan Muhammed'üm), in which the ArabicAbjad numeralstotal 955, the equivalent in theIslamic calendarof 1543 AD. In addition to Suleiman's own work, many great talents enlivened the literary world during Suleiman's rule, includingFuzûlîandBâkî.The literary historianElias John Wilkinson Gibbobserved that "at no time, even in Turkey, was greater encouragement given to poetry than during the reign of this Sultan".Suleiman's most famous verse is:

The people think of wealth and power as the greatest fate,
But in this world a spell of health is the best state.
What men call sovereignty is a worldly strife and constant war;
Worship of God is the highest throne, the happiest of all estates.

Süleymaniye Mosquein Istanbul, built byMimar Sinan,Suleiman's chief architect.

Suleiman also became renowned for sponsoring a series of monumentalarchitecturaldevelopments within his empire. The Sultan sought to turn Constantinople into the center of Islamic civilization by a series of projects, including bridges, mosques, palaces and various charitable and social establishments. The greatest of these were built by the Sultan's chief architect,Mimar Sinan,under whom Ottoman architecture reached its zenith. Sinan became responsible for over three hundred monuments throughout the empire, including his two masterpieces, theSüleymaniyeandSelimiyemosques—the latter built in Adrianople (nowEdirne) in the reign of Suleiman's sonSelim II.Suleiman also restored theDome of the Rockin Jerusalem and theWalls of Jerusalem(which are the current walls of theOld City of Jerusalem), renovated theKaabainMecca,and constructed a complex inDamascus.

Tulips

Suleiman loved gardens and hisshaykhgrew a white tulip in one of the gardens. Some of the nobles in the court had seen the tulip and they also began growing their own.Soon images of the tulip were woven into rugs and fired into ceramics.Suleiman is credited with large-scale cultivation of the tulip and it is thought that the tulips spread throughout Europe because of Suleiman. It is thought that diplomats who visited him were gifted the flowers while visiting his court.

Personal life

Consorts

Suleiman had two known consorts:

• Mahidevran Hatun,a Circassian or Albanian or Montenegrin concubine,she entered in Süleyman's harem when he was prince in Manisa;
• Hürrem Sultan,known in West as Roxelana (m. 1533), Suleiman's only favorite concubine during his reign, and later legal wife and firstHaseki sultan,possibly a daughter of aRuthenianOrthodoxpriest.

Sons

Suleiman I had at least eight sons:

• Şehzade Mahmud (c. 1513,Manisa Palace, Manisa – 29 October 1520, Old Palace, Istanbul, and buried inYavuz Selim Mosque);
• Şehzade Murad (c. 1515,Manisa Palace, Manisa – 19 October 1520, Old Palace, and Istanbul, buried in Yavuz Selim Mosque);
• Şehzade Mustafa(c.1516/1517, Manisa Palace, Manisa – executed, by the order of his father, 6 October 1553,Konya,buried inMuradiye Complex,Bursa), with Mahidevran;
• Şehzade Mehmed(1521, Old Palace, Istanbul – 6 November 1543, Manisa Palace, Manisa, buried inŞehzade Mosque,Istanbul), with Hürrem;
• Sultan Selim II(30 May 1524, Old Palace, Istanbul – 15 December 1574, Topkapı Palace, Istanbul, buried in Selim II Mausoleum,Hagia SophiaMosque), with Hürrem;
• Şehzade Abdullah(c. 1525,Old Palace, Istanbul –c. 1528,Old Palace, Istanbul, and buried in Yavuz Selim Mosque),with Hürrem;
• Şehzade Bayezid(1527, Old Palace, Istanbul – executed by agents of his father on 25 September 1561,Qazvin,Safavid Empire,buried in Melik-i Acem Türbe,Sivas), with Hürrem;
• Şehzade Cihangir(1531, Old Palace, Istanbul – 27 November 1553,Konya,buried inŞehzade Mosque,Istanbul), with Hürrem;

Daughters

Süleyman had two daughters:

• Raziye Sultan(c.1519 -c.1520, and buried in Yahya Efendi mausoleum);
• Mihrimah Sultan(1522, Old Palace, Istanbul – 25 January 1578, buried in Suleiman I Mausoleum,Süleymaniye Mosque), with Hürrem, marriedRüstem Pashain 1539;

Relationship with Hurrem Sultan

16th-century oil painting of Hurrem Sultan

Suleiman fell in love withHurrem Sultan,a harem girl fromRuthenia,then part ofPoland.Western diplomats, taking notice of the palace gossip about her, called her "Russelazie" or "Roxelana", referring to her Ruthenian origins.The daughter of anOrthodoxpriest, she wascaptured by TatarsfromCrimea,sold as aslavein Constantinople, and eventually rose through the ranks of the Harem to become Suleiman'sfavorite.Hurrem, a former concubine, became the legal wife of the Sultan, much to the astonishment of the observers in the palace and the city.He also allowed Hurrem Sultan to remain with him at court for the rest of her life, breaking another tradition—that when imperial heirs came of age, they would be sent along with the imperial concubine who bore them to govern remote provinces of the Empire, never to return unless their progeny succeeded to the throne.

Under his pen name, Muhibbi, Sultan Suleiman composed this poem for Hurrem Sultan:

Throne of my lonely niche, my wealth, my love, my moonlight.
My most sincere friend, my confidant, my very existence, my Sultan, my one and only love.
The most beautiful among the beautiful...
My springtime, my merry faced love, my daytime, my sweetheart, laughing leaf...
My plants, my sweet, my rose, the one only who does not distress me in this room...
My Istanbul, my karaman, the earth of my Anatolia
My Badakhshan, my Baghdad and Khorasan
My woman of the beautiful hair, my love of the slanted brow, my love of eyes full of misery...
I'll sing your praises always
I, lover of the tormented heart, Muhibbi of the eyes full of tears, I am happy.

Grand Vizier Pargalı Ibrahim Pasha

Suleiman awaits the arrival of hisGrand VizierPargalı Ibrahim PashaatBuda,1529.

Before his downfall,Pargalı Ibrahim Pashawas an inseparable friend and possible lover of Suleiman. In fact, he is referred to by his chroniclers as "the favourite" (Maḳbūl) along with "the executed" (Maḳtūl).Historians state that Suleiman I is remembered for "his passion for two of his slaves: for his beloved Ibrahim when the sultan was a hot-blooded youth, and for his beloved Hurrem when he was mature."

Ibrahim was originally a Christian fromParga(inEpirus), who was captured in a raid during the1499–1503 Ottoman–Venetian War,and was given as a slave to Suleiman most likely in 1514.Ibrahim converted to Islam and Suleiman made him the royalfalconer,then promoted him to first officer of the Royal Bedchamber.It was reported that they slept together in the same bed.The sultan also built Ibrahim a lavish palace on the ancientHippodrome,Istanbul's main forum outside theHagia SophiaandTopkapı Palace.Despite his following marriage and his new sumptuous residence, Ibrahim sometimes spent the night with Suleiman I at Topkapı Palace. In turn, the sultan occasionally slept at Ibrahim's lodgings.Ibrahim Pasha rose toGrand Vizierin 1523 and commander-in-chief of all the armies. Suleiman also conferred upon Ibrahim Pasha the honor ofbeylerbeyofRumelia(first-ranking military governor-general), granting Ibrahim authority over all Ottoman territories in Europe, as well as command of troops residing within them in times of war. At the time, Ibrahim was only about thirty years old and lacked any actual military expertise; it is said that 'tongues wagged' at this unprecedented promotion straight from palace service to the two highest offices of the empire.

During his thirteen years as Grand Vizier, his rapid rise to power and vast accumulation of wealth had made Ibrahim many enemies at the Sultan's court. Suleiman's suspicion of Ibrahim was worsened by a quarrel between the latter and the finance secretary (defterdar)İskender Çelebi.The dispute ended in the disgrace of Çelebi on charges of intrigue, with Ibrahim convincing Suleiman to sentence thedefterdarto death. Ibrahim also supported Şehzade Mustafa as the successor of Suleiman. This caused disputes between him and Hurrem Sultan, who wanted her sons to succeed to the throne. Ibrahim eventually fell from grace with the Sultan and his wife. Suleiman consulted hisQadi,who suggested that Ibrahim be put to death. The Sultan recruited assassins and ordered them to strangle Ibrahim in his sleep.

Succession

Sultan Suleiman's two known consorts (Hurrem and Mahidevran) had borne him six sons, four of whom survived past the 1550s. They wereMustafa,Selim,Bayezid,andCihangir.Of these, the eldest was not Hurrem's son, but ratherMahidevran's. Hurrem is usually held at least partly responsible for the intrigues in nominating a successor, though there is no evidence to support this.Although she was Suleiman's wife, she exercised no official public role. This did not, however, prevent Hurrem from wielding powerful political influence. Since the Empire lacked, until the reign ofAhmed I,any formal means of nominating a successor, successions usually involved the death of competing princes in order to avert civil unrest and rebellions.

By 1552, when the campaign against Persia had begun with Rüstem appointed commander-in-chief of the expedition, intrigues against Mustafa began. Rüstem sent one of Suleiman's most trusted men to report that since Suleiman was not at the head of the army, the soldiers thought the time had come to put a younger prince on the throne; at the same time, he spread rumours that Mustafa had proved receptive to the idea. Angered by what he came to believe were Mustafa's plans to claim the throne, the following summer upon return from his campaign in Persia, Suleiman summoned him to his tent in theEreğli valley.When Mustafa entered his father's tent to meet with him, Suleiman'seunuchsattacked Mustafa, and after a long struggle the mutes killed him using a bow-string.

Ottomansultaniminted during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent

Cihangir is said to have died of grief a few months after the news of his half-brother's murder.The two surviving brothers,SelimandBayezid,were given command in different parts of the empire. Within a few years, however, civil war broke out between the brothers, each supported by his loyal forces. With the aid of his father's army, Selim defeated Bayezid inKonyain 1559, leading the latter to seek refuge with theSafavidsalong with his four sons. Following diplomatic exchanges, the Sultan demanded from theSafavid Shahthat Bayezid be either extradited or executed. In return for large amounts of gold, the Shah allowed a Turkish executioner to strangle Bayezid and his four sons in 1561,clearing the path for Selim's succession to the throne five years later.

Death

See also:Siege of Szigetvár

The body of Suleiman I arrives to Belgrade. (left) The funeral of Suleiman I. (right)

On 6 September 1566, Suleiman, who had set out from Constantinople to command an expedition to Hungary, died before an Ottoman victory at thesiege of Szigetvárin Hungary at the age of 71and his Grand VizierSokollu Mehmed Pashakept his death secret during the retreat for the enthronement ofSelim II.The sultan's body was taken back to Istanbul to be buried, while his heart, liver, and some other organs were buried inTurbék,outsideSzigetvár.A mausoleum constructed above the burial site came to be regarded as a holy place and pilgrimage site. Within a decade a mosque andSufihospice were built near it, and the site was protected by a salaried garrison of several dozen men.

Legacy

See also:Ottoman decline thesis

The Ottoman Empire at the time of the death of Suleiman I

Burial place of Suleiman I at Süleymaniye Mosque

Suleiman's marble portrait in the US Capitol

The formation of Suleiman's legacy began even before his death. Throughout his reign literary works were commissioned praising Suleiman and constructing an image of him as an ideal ruler, most significantly by Celalzade Mustafa,chancellorof the empire from 1534 to 1557.Later Ottoman writers applied this idealised image of Suleiman to the Near Eastern literary genre ofadvice literaturenamednaṣīḥatnāme,urging sultans to conform to his model of rulership and to maintain the empire's institutions in their sixteenth-century form. Such writers were pushing back against the political and institutionaltransformationof the empire after the middle of the sixteenth century, and portrayed deviation from the norm as it had existed under Suleiman as evidence of the decline of the empire.Western historians, failing to recognise that these 'decline writers' were working within an established literary genre and often had deeply personal reasons for criticizing the empire, long took their claims at face value and consequently adopted the idea that the empire entered a period of decline after the death of Suleiman.Since the 1980s this view has been thoroughly reexamined, and modern scholars have come to overwhelmingly reject the idea of decline, labelling it an "untrue myth".

Suleiman's conquests had brought under the control of the Empire majorMuslimcities (such asBaghdad), manyBalkanprovinces (reaching present dayCroatiaand Hungary), and most of North Africa. His expansion into Europe had given the Ottoman Turks a powerful presence in the European balance of power. Indeed, such was the perceived threat of the Ottoman Empire under the reign of Suleiman that Austria's ambassadorBusbecqwarned of Europe's imminent conquest: "On [the Turks'] side are the resources of a mighty empire, strength unimpaired, habituation to victory, endurance of toil, unity, discipline, frugality and watchfulness... Can we doubt what the result will be?... When the Turks have settled with Persia, they will fly at our throats supported by the might of the whole East; how unprepared we are I dare not say."Suleiman's legacy was not, however, merely in the military field. The French travelerJean de Thévenotbears witness a century later to the "strong agricultural base of the country, the well being of the peasantry, the abundance of staple foods and the pre-eminence of organization in Suleiman's government".

Even thirty years after his death, "Sultan Solyman" was quoted by the English playwrightWilliam Shakespeareas a military prodigy inThe Merchant of Venice,where the Prince ofMoroccoboasts about his prowess by saying that he defeated Suleiman in three battles (Act 2, Scene 1).

Through the distribution of court patronage, Suleiman also presided over a golden age in Ottoman arts, witnessing immense achievement in the realms of architecture, literature, art, theology and philosophy.Today the skyline of theBosphorusand of many cities in modern Turkey and the former Ottoman provinces, are still adorned with the architectural works ofMimar Sinan.One of these, theSüleymaniye Mosque,is the final resting place of Suleiman: he is buried in a domed mausoleum attached to the mosque.

Nevertheless, assessments of Suleiman's reign have frequently fallen into the trap of theGreat Man theoryof history. The administrative, cultural, and military achievements of the age were a product not of Suleiman alone, but also of the many talented figures who served him, such as grand viziersIbrahim PashaandRüstem Pasha,theGrand MuftiEbussuud Efendi,who played a major role in legal reform, andchancellorand chronicler Celalzade Mustafa, who played a major role in bureaucratic expansion and in constructing Suleiman's legacy.

In an inscription dating from 1537 on the citadel ofBender, Moldova,Suleiman the Magnificent gave expression to his power:

I am God's slave and sultan of this world. By the grace of God I am head of Muhammad's community. God's might and Muhammad's miracles are my companions. I am Süleymân, in whose name the hutbe is read in Mecca and Medina. In Baghdad I am the shah, in Byzantine realms the caesar, and in Egypt the sultan; who sends his fleets to the seas of Europe, the Maghrib and India. I am the sultan who took the crown and throne of Hungary and granted them to a humble slave. The voivoda Petru raised his head in revolt, but my horse's hoofs ground him into the dust, and I conquered the land of Moldovia.

Suleiman, as sculpted byJoseph Kiselewski,is present on one of the 23 relief portraits over the gallery doors of the House Chamber of theUnited States Capitolthat depicts historical figures noted for their work in establishing the principles that underlieAmerican law.

See also

• List of revolts during Suleiman's reign
• Muhteşem Yüzyıl

References

Printed sources

• Ágoston, Gábor (1991). "Muslim Cultural Enclaves in Hungary under Ottoman Rule".Acta Orientalia Scientiarum Hungaricae.45:181–204.
• Ahmed, Syed Z (2001).The Zenith of an Empire: The Glory of the Suleiman the Magnificent and the Law Giver.A.E.R. Publications.ISBN978-0-9715873-0-4.
• Arsan, Esra; Yldrm, Yasemin (2014)."Reflections of neo-Ottomanist discourse in Turkish news media: The case of The Magnificent Century".Journal of Applied Journalism & Media Studies.3(3): 315–334.doi:10.1386/ajms.3.3.315_1.
• Atıl, Esin (1987).The Age of Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent.Washington, D.C.: National Gallery of Art.ISBN978-0-89468-098-4.
• Barber, Noel(1976).Lords of the Golden Horn: From Suleiman the Magnificent to Kamal Ataturk.London: Pan Books.ISBN978-0-330-24735-1.
• Clot, André.Suleiman the magnificent(Saqi, 2012).
• Garnier, EdithL'Alliance ImpieEditions du Felin, 2008, ParisISBN978-2-86645-678-8Interview
• Işıksel, Güneş (2018). "Suleiman the Magnificent (1494-1566)". In Martel, Gordon (ed.).The Encyclopedia of Diplomacy.pp. 1–2.doi:10.1002/9781118885154.dipl0267.ISBN9781118887912.
• Levey, Michael(1975).The World of Ottoman Art.Thames & Hudson.ISBN0-500-27065-1.
• Lewis, Bernard(2002).What Went Wrong?: Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response.London: Phoenix.ISBN978-0-7538-1675-2.
• Lybyer, Albert Howe.The Government of the Ottoman Empire in the Time of Suleiman the Magnificent(Harvard UP, 1913)online.
• Merriman, Roger Bigelow(1944).Suleiman the Magnificent, 1520–1566.Cambridge: Harvard University Press.OCLC784228.
• Norwich, John Julius.Four princes: Henry VIII, Francis I, Charles V, Suleiman the Magnificent and the obsessions that forged modern Europe(Grove/Atlantic, 2017) popular history.
• Peirce, Leslie P.(1993).The Imperial Harem: Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire.Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-508677-5.
• Peirce, Leslie P.(2017).Empress of the East: How a slave girl became queen of the Ottoman Empire.Basic Books.ISBN978-0-465-03251-8.
• Uluçay, Mustafa Çağatay (1992).Padışahların kadınları ve kızları.Türk Tarihi Kurumu Yayınları.
• Yermolenko, Galina (2005). "Roxolana: The Greatest Empress of the East".The Muslim World.95(2): 231–248.doi:10.1111/j.1478-1913.2005.00088.x.
• "Suleiman The Lawgiver".Saudi Aramco World.15(2). Houston, Texas: Aramco Services Co: 8–10. March–April 1964.ISSN1530-5821.Archived fromthe originalon 5 May 2014.Retrieved18 April2007.

Additional on-line sources

• Yalman, Suzan (2000)."The Age of Süleyman 'the Magnificent' (r. 1520–1566)".Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History.New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.Based on original work by Linda Komaroff.
• Yapp, Malcolm Edward(2007)."Suleiman I".Microsoft Encarta.Archived fromthe originalon 3 October 2008.Retrieved17 April2008.

Further reading

• Finkel, Caroline (2005).Osman's Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1923.New York: Basic Books.ISBN978-0-465-02396-7.
• İnalcık, Halil; Cemal Kafadar, eds. (1993).Süleyman the Second and His Time.Istanbul: The Isis Press.ISBN975-428-052-5.;deals with Suleiman 1494–1566
• Lamb, Harold.Suleiman the Magnificent Sultan of the East(1951)online
• Necipoğlu, Gülru (2005).The Age of Sinan: Architectural Culture in the Ottoman Empire.Princeton University Press.ISBN9780691123264.OCLC1204337149.
• Parry, V. J. "The Ottoman Empire, 1520–1566." inThe New Cambridge Modern History II: The Reformation 1520–1559(2nd ed 1990): 570–594online
• Yermolenko, Galina I., ed.Roxolana in European literature, history and cultureArchived26 December 2022 at theWayback Machine(Routledge, 2016)ISBN9780754667612

External links

• Portraits and Tughra of Suleiman