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130-506: The word haseki (خاصکي-خاصگی) comes from the Arabic word Khassa (خاصه) which is suffixed with the Persian gi (گی) and means "to attribute something exclusively to". Haseki is, therefore, one who belongs exclusively to the sultan. Sultan (سلطان) is an Arabic word, that indicates "authority" or "dominion". starting from the 16th century, this title was carried by both men and women of

260-796: A century, reflected the great power of imperial consorts, who were former slaves, in the Ottoman court, elevating their status higher than the Ottoman princesses, and making them the equals of the empress consorts in Europe. When the position of valide sultan was vacant, a haseki could take valide's role, have access to considerable economic resources, become chief of the Imperial Harem, sultan's advisor in political matters, and even have an influence on foreign policy and on international politics. These cases happened during Hürrem Sultan , Nurbanu Sultan , Safiye Sultan and Kösem Sultan 's eras. Hürrem,

390-429: A concubine, Roxelana somehow caught the attention of Sultan Suleiman I and he continued to call for her to return to his bed. Roxelana bore her first son, Mehmed, in 1521, after the sultan's first two sons passed away. The couple soon had more children. That Roxelana was allowed to give birth to more than one son was a stark violation of the old royal harem principle of "one concubine mother — one son," and it signaled that

520-425: A finger in every aspect of harem life. Haseki sultan : This was the title reserved for the favorite chief slave consort of the Ottoman sultan. A haseki sultan had an important position in the palace, being the most powerful woman and enjoyed the greatest status in the imperial harem after the valide sultan and usually had chambers close to the sultan's chamber. The haseki had no blood relation with

650-410: A genealogical website, the formal way of addressing a haseki is Devletlû İsmetlu (given name) Haseki Sultân Aliyyetü'ş-Şân Hazretleri . The title “sultan” was often translated to sultana , which does not exist in Ottoman royalty, possibly to distinguished female members of the dynasty from the male sultan. During the early period of the usage of haseki, this title was held by the chief consort of

780-498: A higher and more meaningful position to black eunuchs due to an increase of crime by white eunuchs. Despite all of this, many black eunuchs suffered oppression from white eunuchs because of their physical bodies and race. During the Sultanate of Women ( Kadınlar Saltanatı ), eunuchs increased their political leverage by taking advantage of minor or mentally incompetent sultans. Teenage sultans were "guided" by regencies formed by

910-467: A kind of prince. The best of sultans was elected as khan by people at Kurultai . In a number of post-caliphal states under Mongol or Turkic rule, there was a feudal type of military hierarchy. These administrations were often decimal (mainly in larger empires), using originally princely titles such as khan , malik , amir as mere rank denominations. In the Persian empire , the rank of sultan

1040-467: A new sultan came to the harem with pomp and circumstance and assumed the title of valide sultan or sultana mother upon her son's ascension. She would become a prominent leader, whose power extended over the harem as well as the members of the dynasty. The valide sultan who influenced the political life of the Ottoman Empire during various periods of history (such as the Sultanate of Women in

1170-534: A political institution, where royal women lived and worked at the center of the government. Roxelana completely changed the way in which women were treated within the harem and helped modernize the Ottoman Empire. Ottoman imperial palaces were managed by a legion of special employees and slaves, called eunuchs. Eunuchs were castrated men recruited and trained to serve in the apartments of the princes, also called kafes (cage), as well as women's quarters of

1300-547: A powerful woman was emerging in Suleiman's court. Sometime around 1533–1534, Suleiman declared Roxelana a free woman and married her, violating yet another 300-year-old custom of the Ottoman harem in which sultans were not to marry their concubines. It marked the first time a former harem slave was elevated to the powerful role of spouse. No other children were born to Suleiman from another concubine during his entire reign. Suleiman wrote love poetry and letters to Roxelana while he

1430-467: A suite with a bedroom, throne room, bath, rooms for her servants, a bakery, commissary, and kitchens which were all grouped around the largest court of the harem, known as the Queen Mother's Court. Over the course of the sultans' residences at Topkapı Palace, the harem was first a residence for slave girls, then became an area run by the sultan's favorite wife, and finally a spacious area focused on

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1560-501: A word derived from the Turkish Oda, meaning chamber, was a chamber girl or attendant, but was not a term synonymous with concubine. However, in western usage, the term has come to refer specifically to the harem concubine. The cariye s, often introduced into the harem at a young age, were brought up in the disciplines of the palace. This was the largest group of women in the harem. Inexperienced female slaves who newly entered

1690-487: Is known as Raja Isteri with the title of Pengiran Anak suffixed, should the queen consort also be a royal princess. These are generally secondary titles, either lofty 'poetry' or with a message, e.g.: By the beginning of the 16th century, the title sultan was carried by both men and women of the Ottoman dynasty and was replacing other titles by which prominent members of the imperial family had been known (notably khatun for women and bey for men). This usage underlines

1820-414: Is known to have one haseki, Gülnuş Sultan . Suleiman II didn't have an haseki. His brother Ahmed II had an haseki, Rabia Sultan , who was the last woman to have the title. ( disputed ) ( disputed ) Sultan Sultan ( / ˈ s ʌ l t ən / ; Arabic : سلطان sulṭān , pronounced [sʊlˈtˤɑːn, solˈtˤɑːn] ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it

1950-767: The Ayyubid dynasty ) led the confrontation against the crusader states in the Levant . Views about the office of the sultan further developed during the crisis that followed the destruction of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258, which eliminated the remnants of Abbasid political power. Henceforth, the surviving descendants of the Abbasid caliphs lived in Cairo under the protection of the Mamluks and were still nominally recognized by

2080-800: The Great Seljuks adopted this title after defeating the Ghaznavid Empire and taking control of an even larger territory which included Baghdad , the capital of the Abbasid caliphs . The early Seljuk leader Tughril Bey was the first leader to adopt the epithet "sultan" on his coinage . While the Seljuks acknowledged the caliphs in Baghdad formally as the universal leader of the Muslim community , their own political power clearly overshadowed

2210-474: The Ottoman Empire was the Ottoman sultan 's harem – composed of the wives , servants (both female slaves and eunuchs ), female relatives and the sultan's concubines – occupying a secluded portion (seraglio) of the Ottoman imperial household. This institution played an important social function within the Ottoman court , and wielded considerable political authority in Ottoman affairs, especially during

2340-473: The Sultanate of Women , as the position of main consort eroded over the course of the 17th century, with the main consort losing the title of "sultan", which was replaced by "kadin", a title related to the earlier "khatun". Henceforth, the mother of the reigning sultan was the only person of non imperial blood to carry the title "sultan". In Kazakh Khanate a Sultan was a lord from the ruling dynasty (a direct descendants of Genghis Khan ) elected by clans, i.e.

2470-402: The Sultanate of Women . As the position of the chief consort eroded over the course of the 17th century, the main consort lost the title "sultan", which was replaced by "kadin", a title related to the earlier "hatun". Henceforth, the mother of the reigning sultan was the only person of non-imperial blood to carry the title "sultan". Title haseki carried before or after given name. According to

2600-558: The 1550s further expanded the empire's reach and access to slave caravans. Eunuchs served in the palace from the times of Sultan Mehmed I onwards. They were given the charge of guarding the harem and rose in rank after serving in many positions. The harem eunuchs and the harem organization were under the command of the chief harem eunuch, also called the Master of the Girls ( Kızlar Ağası ) or chief black eunuch . Castration meant they were

2730-446: The 16th and 17th centuries) had the authority to regulate the relations between the sultan and his wives and children. When a prince left the capital for his provincial governorate, he was accompanied by his mother. In this way, she was able to fulfill her duty of directing the prince's domestic household and provide training and supervision of harem inhabitants. At times, the valide sultan acted as regent for her son, particularly in

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2860-646: The 16th century when the Ottoman Empire conquered the Mamluk Empire and became the indisputable leading Sunni Muslim power across most of the Middle East , North Africa , and Eastern Europe . The 16th-century Ottoman scholar and jurist, Ebüssuûd Mehmet Efendi , recognized the Ottoman sultan ( Suleiman the Magnificent at the time) as the caliph and universal leader of all Muslims. This conflation of sultan and caliph became more clearly emphasized in

2990-550: The 19th century during the Ottoman Empire's territorial decline, when Ottoman authorities sought to cast the sultan as the leader of the entire Muslim community in the face of European ( Christian ) colonial expansion . As part of this narrative, it was claimed that when Sultan Selim I captured Cairo in 1517, the last descendant of the Abbasids in Cairo formally passed on the position of caliph to him. This combination thus elevated

3120-472: The Arabic and Semitic root salaṭa "to be hard, strong". The noun sulṭān initially designated a kind of moral authority or spiritual power (as opposed to political power), and it is used in this sense several times in the Qur'an . In the early Muslim world , ultimate power and authority was theoretically held by the caliph, who was considered the leader of the caliphate. The increasing political fragmentation of

3250-475: The British Ambassador to Turkey, allowing her to spend time in the Ottoman Empire and write extensively about her experiences there. In her writings, she explained that the Ottoman women did not lack in their privileges due to their control over property, autonomy in the harem, and sexual liberty through the wearing of veils. Montagu admired Ottoman slave institutions and actively defended them, which

3380-605: The Dolmabahçe Palace. Given that this new site did not have enough space to support the number of women in the imperial harem, it was downsized with wives, unmarried sisters, and servants being moved elsewhere. In 2014 a project began to restore and refurbish the harem chambers at Yıldız Palace and open them to tourism. As part of this project, scholars and others began to research the harem architecture, ornate decor, furnishings, and everyday lives of its inhabitants. Much of this work has yet to be published. The mother of

3510-524: The English should attempt to better understand the Turkish woman. She wrote that the Turkish woman is "proud" and "insists that her dignity be respected." Ellison also spoke extensively on the institution of slavery in the Ottoman Empire and voiced her desire to save the women in the harem. She "longed to break down for them the lattice-work which is always there between them and the sun," and lamented about

3640-410: The Magnificent broke tradition and freed his former concubine Hürrem from slavery, and legally married her elevating her position from favorite consort to Queen consort . A handful of Ottoman Sultanas held the same title after Hürrem, but not necessarily resulting from legal marriage like the case of Hürrem. Nurbanu Sultan, Kösem Sultan and Gülnuş Sultan were legally married by their respective spouses,

3770-517: The Muslim world after the 8th century, however, challenged this consensus. Local governors with administrative authority held the title of amīr ( أمير , traditionally "commander" or " emir ", later also "prince") and were appointed by the caliph, but in the 9th century some of these became de facto independent rulers who founded their own dynasties, such as the Aghlabids and Tulunids . Towards

3900-699: The New palace and 1,500 in the Old Palace, and that there were 1,100 – 1,200 in 1604–1607, but these numbers are likely overestimated. The actual number of women are estimated to have been 49 in 1574 and 433 in 1633. In the 18th- and 19th-century, the official mevacib register is sometimes preserved, and notes that the harem contained 446 slave women during the reign of sultan Mahmud I (r.1730–1754), 720 during sultan Selim III (r. 1789–1808), and 473 during sultan Mahmud II (r.1808–1839). The Ottoman Imperial Harem, like other aspects of Ottoman and Middle Eastern culture,

4030-462: The Ottoman Court." Ellison condemned the act of veiling as form of "slavery". In 1868, Empress Eugénie of France visited the Imperial Harem, which had significant consequences. She was taken by Sultan Abdülaziz to greet his mother, Valide Sultan Pertevniyal Sultan . Reportedly, Pertevniyal became outraged by the presence of a foreign woman in her harem, and so she slapped the empress in

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4160-489: The Ottoman Sultans. After the death of Gülnuş Sultan, no Ottoman Sultan legally married his consort. After nearly 130 years, Sultan Abdulmejid I legally married Rahime Perestu Sultan. Although the title of Haseki Sultan was abolished then, Perestu again was given the official title of legal wife and "Queen consort", though Perestu was not active in politics like her predecessors neither in the reign of her husband nor

4290-425: The Ottoman conception of sovereign power as family prerogative. Western tradition knows the Ottoman ruler as "sultan", but Ottomans themselves used "padişah" (emperor) or "hünkar" to refer to their ruler. The emperor's formal title consisted of "sultan" together with "khan" (for example, Sultan Suleiman Khan). In formal address, the sultan's children were also entitled "sultan", with imperial princes (Şehzade) carrying

4420-422: The Ottoman dynasty. Thus, replacing other titles by which prominent members of the imperial family had been known (notably hatun for women and bey for men). This usage underlines the Ottoman conception of sovereign power as family prerogative. The Ottoman title Haseki Sultan was an equivalent european title of Queen consort . Before Hürrem Sultan , the Ottoman empire never had a titled queen. However, Suleiman

4550-467: The Topkapı harem. Young slave girls inhabited a large dormitory. Women's sexual relations with the sultan determined their living quarters. Once a slave girl had sex with the sultan she received her own chamber, attendants, kitchen maids, a eunuch, and pay. All of these were increased if she became pregnant. If she bore a child she might be moved into an even larger apartment. Sultan Murad III alone tripled

4680-503: The artists who illustrated the Ottoman Imperial Harem, very few actually visited the empire, and all were male, so it is highly possible that these depictions were neither accurate nor authentic. There were quite a few women who traveled to the Ottoman Empire and published their opinions on the harem. Lady Mary Montagu , an early eighteenth century English aristocrat and writer, was one such woman. Her husband served as

4810-471: The beauty and manners of Fatima, a Turkish woman, to that of European women. Fatima would be considered beautiful "either in England or Germany " and could be "suddenly transported upon the most polite throne of Europe nobody would think her other than born and bred to be a queen, though educated in a country we call barbarous." Grace Ellison was another woman who traveled to the Ottoman Empire and wrote of

4940-416: The caliph recognized. Al-Ghazali, for example, argued that while the caliph was the guarantor of Islamic law ( shari'a ), coercive power was required to enforce the law in practice and the leader who exercised that power directly was the sultan. The position of sultan continued to grow in importance during the period of the crusades , when leaders who held the title of "sultan" (such as Salah ad-Din and

5070-416: The caliphate. The adjectival form of the word is "sultanic", and the state and territories ruled by a sultan, as well as his office, are referred to as a sultanate ( سلطنة salṭanah ) . The term is distinct from king ( ملك malik ), though both refer to a sovereign ruler. The use of "sultan" is restricted to Muslim countries, where the title carries religious significance, contrasting

5200-400: The communal and honored aspect of the haram . As the sultan became increasingly sedentary in the palace, his family members, previously dispersed between provincial capitals, were eventually relieved of their public duties and gathered in the imperial capital. The official move of members of the Ottoman dynasty to the harem at Topkapi Palace in the sixteenth century gradually transformed

5330-434: The confidence of the sultan, even when he was away on military campaign, and had unique access to the sultan's bedchamber, including arranging appointments with harem consorts. Some of the eunuch's basic duties were watching over the women in the harem, negotiating and speaking to both the sultan and their relatives, and supervising the palace and keeping everyone safe. Meanwhile, the chief white eunuch ( Kapı Ağası ),

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5460-417: The dynasty to suffer the harshest judgment by history had two things in common: the absence of a valide sultan during most of their career as haseki and an unusually large number of sons. What appears to have earned them their unsavory reputation was their power to influence the fate of the empire by favoring one of their sons over another. The greatest contribution of Kösem during her tenure as haseki possibly

5590-412: The eye of the sultan. In some cases, they were also concubines. They, too, were ranked among one another by the sultan in order of preference. Cariye : These were the slave women who served the valide sultan , ikbal 's, kadin 's and the sultan's children. They could be promoted to kalfa s which meant they earned wages, otherwise they were the property of the sultan and would reside in

5720-420: The face, almost provoking an international incident. The visit of the empress, however, did lead to a dress reform in the harem. Western fashion grew popular among the harem women, who continued to dress according to Western fashion from then on. However, women from the west also started to become more curious about the fashion of the harem women. Lady Montagu was one of the women who became very passionate about

5850-475: The far back of the palace, hidden away from much of the palace population. In the layout of the Topkapi Palace, the harem was located in the right wing just behind the imperial council building. For the first time in history, the imperial harem was central and visible in Ottoman political life. The centralization of the harem's living quarters in Topkapi Palace reflected a changing in power dynamics between

5980-418: The first imperial consort who became haseki sultan, was given several special rights during her tenure, especially after the death of Suleiman's mother, Hafsa Sultan, the first valide sultan, in 1534. Hürrem was allowed to give birth to more than one son, which was a stark violation of the old Imperial Harem principle of "one concubine mother — one son" that was designed to prevent both the mother's influence over

6110-406: The first instance of a sultan marrying one of his slaves. The last haseki was Rabia Sultan , the haseki of the sultan Ahmed II . Over time, the term haseki was no longer used because, it became very apparent that it didn't support the custom of honoring the valide sultan. Kadın : Among the women of the Imperial Harem, the kadın was the slave woman (or women) who had given

6240-654: The first prince's mother to remain in the Sultan's court for the duration of her life. In the Ottoman imperial family tradition, a sultan's consort was to remain in the harem only until her son came of age (around 16 or 17), after which he would be sent away from the capital, accompanied by his mother, to govern a faraway province. Hürrem became Suleiman's partner not only in household, but also in state affairs. Thanks to her intelligence, she acted as Suleiman's chief adviser, and she seems to have had an influence upon foreign policy and international politics. Hürrem's great power signaled

6370-491: The first three – Turhan , Aşub , and Muazzez – each had one son. The presence of more than one haseki was a significant change in the reign of Murad and Ibrahim, signaling that the age of the haseki was coming to an end. With Kösem's strong personality and influence as valide sultan, the title haseki sultan which was held by eight women simultaneously, and all şehzades lost their provincial post during Ibrahim's era and it made title haseki lose its special status. In this period

6500-492: The greater Ottoman world outside of the harem walls. The imperial harem occupied a large section of the private apartments of the sultan at the Topkapi Palace which encompassed more than 400 rooms. The harem had been moved to Topkapi in the early 1530s. After 1853, an equally lavish harem quarter was occupied at the new imperial palace at Dolmabahçe . The structure of the imperial palace was meant to communicate "both

6630-423: The group who came next in rank to the valide sultan . Right below the kadın s in rank were the ikbal s, whose number was unspecified. Last in the hierarchy were the gözde s. During 16th and 17th centuries, the chief consort of the sultan received the title haseki sultan or sultana consort. This title surpassed other titles and ranks of a prominent consort, known as ( hatun and kadın ). When

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6760-529: The harem at Topkapı Palace . At the beginning of the seventeenth century, the corps of Topkapı harem eunuchs numbered between 800 and 1,200. This was, and would remain, the highest number of eunuchs ever employed. These eunuchs were Nilotic slaves captured in the Nile vicinity. The sultans were able to obtain these slaves because of the conquest of Egypt in 1517 , which gave direct access to slave caravans that used those routes. The conquest of northeastern Sudan in

6890-442: The harem varied over time, and the harem itself was regularly renewed as a result of the practice of manumission . Manumission of the previous sultan's concubines was especially common upon the enthronement of a new sultan. Most enslaved girls were Christian and came from various countries, regions, and ethnic groups, including Circassia, Georgia, Russia, and Africa. There was no standard practice that determined what age girls entered

7020-425: The harem, founded on family-based relationships among the women. This family was not limited to blood connections but included the whole royal household, consisting mainly of slaves. Following the evolution of the imperial harem, from the sixteenth century onward, shows that while the organizational structure of the harem was never static and the numbers and roles of servants within the palace was constantly fluid, there

7150-433: The harem. Roxelana became Suleiman's most loyal informant when he was away and after his mother's death. She became a legendary and influential woman of her time. Roxelana established grand foundations to assist the needy, and showed special compassion towards slaves. She also ensured that the talented women of the harem left palace service to marry deserving partners. She transformed the royal harem at Topkapi Palace into

7280-462: The harem. Newly arrived slave girls were called Acemi (novice) and Acemilik (novicitiate), and then Sakird (apprentice). Gedikli were the personal maidservants of the sultan. Cariye-women were manumitted to go after nine years of service, after which a marriage was arranged for them. The number of women in the harem is contested and only possible to estimate during some periods. Contemporaries claimed that in 1573, there were 150 women in

7410-416: The harem. Some arrived as children, while others entered at a later age. This slave trade was formally banned in 1854 but the ban was on paper only. After 1854, almost all court lady-slaves were of Circassian origin. Circassians had been expelled from Russian lands in the 1860s and impoverished refugee parents sold their daughters in a trade that was formally banned but continued in practice. Upon arrival at

7540-459: The harem.Their status was inferior to the preferred concubines. They were also not identified among the family elite of the harem. When court ladies had contact with the outside world it was through the services of intermediaries, such as the Kira . However, such exposure was rare. The harem was intentionally very cloistered and hidden from public view. This inaccessibility was maintained to preserve

7670-399: The identity of the sovereign's residence as the central arena of the empire and the difficulty of obtaining access to the sovereign within that arena." The strategic location and architectural design of the harem quarters within Topkapi Palace reflected a vital shift in the harem's newfound influence and power within the palace. In previous palaces, the harem quarters were always located in

7800-401: The imperial harem into a well-organized, hierarchical, and institutionalized social and political structure, with rigid protocols and training. At the end of the sixteenth century, except for the sultan himself, no member of the royal family, male or female, left the capital. Both children and mothers were permanent occupants of the inner world of the palace. The harem was the ultimate symbol of

7930-531: The imperial harem. In An Englishwoman in a Turkish Harem published in 1915, Ellison sought to "correct" the prejudice and hatred that dominated the British national attitude towards Turkey. She wrote of the beauty and grandeur of the Ottoman Empire and of the great friends she had made there. She spoke highly of the progressive movements in Turkey and claimed that rights for women were increasing. Ellison claimed

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8060-406: The imperial palace were called acemi (novice), and their early period of service and training was known as acemilik (novitiate) before they were eligible for promotions. There was a strict hierarchical system of status and roles within the harem and cariye s. They were promoted according to their capacities, intellect, and skills. The harem was broken into two main groups: those who directly served

8190-541: The largest Shi'a Muslim state of this era, mainly used the Persian title shah , a tradition which continued under subsequent dynasties. The term sultan , by contrast, was mainly given to provincial governors within their realm. A feminine form of sultan , used by Westerners, is sultana or sultanah and this title has been used legally for some (not all) Muslim women monarchs and sultan's mothers and chief consorts. However, Turkish and Ottoman Turkish also uses sultan for imperial lady, as Turkish grammar uses

8320-611: The last woman to be a "Queen consort", and the first and last woman to hold the title of Valide Sultan without being the Sultan's biological mother. After Perestu's death in 1906, No woman held the title of Valide Sultan until the Ottoman monarchy was abolished in 1922. Westerns know the Ottoman ruler as "sultan", but the Ottomans also used Persian terms such as "padişah" (emperor) or "hünkar" to refer to their ruler. The emperor's formal title consisted of "sultan" together with " han " (for example, Sultan Suleiman Han ). In formal address,

8450-480: The late 10th century, the term "sultan" begins to be used to denote an individual ruler with practically sovereign authority, although the early evolution of the term is complicated and difficult to establish. The first major figure to clearly grant himself this title was the Ghaznavid ruler Mahmud (r. 998–1030 CE) who controlled an empire over present-day Afghanistan and the surrounding region. Soon after,

8580-698: The latter. However, from this time on they effectively had no authority and were not universally recognized across the Sunni Muslim world. As protectors of the line of the Abbasid caliphs, the Mamluks recognized themselves as sultans and the Muslim scholar Khalil al-Zahiri argued that only they could hold that title. Nonetheless, in practice, many Muslim rulers of this period were now using the title as well. Mongol rulers (who had since converted to Islam) and other Turkish rulers were among those who did so. The position of sultan and caliph began to blend together in

8710-463: The latter. This led to various Muslim scholars – notably Al-Juwayni and Al-Ghazali – attempting to develop theoretical justifications for the political authority of the Seljuk sultans within the framework of the formal supreme authority of the recognized caliphs. In general, the theories maintained that all legitimate authority derived from the caliph, but that it was delegated to sovereign rulers whom

8840-439: The long period known as the Sultanate of Women (approximately 1533 to 1656). Historians claim that the sultan was frequently lobbied by harem members of different ethnic or religious backgrounds to influence the geography of the Ottoman wars of conquest. The utmost authority in the imperial harem, the valide sultan , ruled over the other women in the household. The consorts of the sultan were normally of slave origin, including

8970-425: The meaning of the title began to shift from a "chief consort" and "single favorite" to something more general like "imperial consort", similar to the earlier hatun . The title haseki sultan was only used for around a century until the 17th century. After that, kadın became highest rank for the imperial consorts again, used with title " First Name " Kadın ( Efendi) . The last woman in Ottoman history who used

9100-513: The men of the palace and the women of the harem. Topkapı Palace served as the royal residence of the Ottoman sultan for four centuries. There is a wealth of sources about this structure making it one of the most fully documented buildings in the Islamic world. The architectural structure of the harem changed over time due to consecutive sultans' renovations. During the time of Murad III , (1574–1595) each of his 40 wives had separate quarters within

9230-418: The men were often painted as darker. The portraits of notable imperial harem women were less sexualized with many of them resembling traditional European portraits in their dress and physical features. Italian artist Titian's paintings of Hurrem Sultan and her daughter Mihrimah Sultan are extremely similar to his popular Portrait of a Lady , with the only notable difference being the Ottoman headdress. Of

9360-482: The more secular king , which is used in both Muslim and non-Muslim countries. Brunei , Malaysia and Oman are the only sovereign states which retain the title "sultan" for their monarchs. In recent years, the title has been gradually replaced by "king" by contemporary hereditary rulers who wish to emphasize their secular authority under the rule of law. A notable example is Morocco , whose monarch changed his title from sultan to king in 1957. The word derives from

9490-535: The most recognizable orientalist artwork based on the imperial harem. The Turkish Bath and Harem , (both pictured), are two such examples. These images were described as constituting the "imaginative geography" outlined in Edward Said's Orientalism . There was a prevalence of nudity in the bath scenes and the depiction of polygyny with multiple women and usually one man in the paintings. The women in these paintings were often portrayed as fair-skinned while

9620-477: The mother of sultans Murad IV and Ibrahim and dominated the Ottoman Empire early 17th century. Osman II has probably an haseki, Ayşe Sultan . Privy Purse registers record the presence of Ayşe as Murad IV 's only haseki, until the very end of Murad's seventeen-year reign, when a probably second haseki appears. Ibrahim had eight hasekis; Turhan , Saliha Dilaşub , Muazzez , Ayşe, Mahienver, Saçbağli, Şivekar and Hümaşah Sultan . Ibrahim's son and successor

9750-467: The mother of the next sultan Murad III . In 1575, just after Murad's accession, Safiye Sultan became the haseki and was given a higher rank than the sultan's own sisters, Şah Sultan , Gevherhan Sultan , Ismihan Sultan and Fatma Sultan . Leslie P. Peirce points out that during Mehmed III 's reign, the title haseki did not came in use. Mehmed's son Ahmed I gave the title haseki to Kösem Sultan , his favourite consort and probably legal wife, who as

9880-448: The natural or divine order," that all other societies must work towards achieving. In particular, European notions of race, sexuality, and gender heavily influenced their perception and depictions of life and politics in the Ottoman empire . The West's assumed social organization was that of "public/commonwealth/male and private/domestic/female." Conversely, in Ottoman society , politics and imperial activity occurred in private. Seclusion

10010-417: The only males allowed and entrusted to be in the presence of the female population of the palace. As eunuchs also had direct access to the sultan and the sultan's family, they had great influence and power in the court and empire. The office of the chief harem eunuch was created in 1574. The chief black eunuch was sometimes considered second only to the grand vizier (head of the imperial government). He had

10140-615: The palace became available to the sultans, their families, and the harem. The imperial harem chambers were placed at the back of Dolmabahçe Palace, and functioned much the same as within Topkapi up until the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire in 1922. The history of the Yıldız Palace begins in 1795 when Selim III built a pavilion there for his mother, marking a moment when valide sultans began managing and inhabiting their own hilltop estates. The complex later became widely known as having been

10270-463: The palace, women and girls began a rigorous transformation process. They were converted to Islam, learned religious precepts through recitation of core Islamic creeds, and were given new Muslim names that matched their physical appearance or personality. They were trained in court manners and activities and taught the Turkish language. As part of this total transition to a new life, the women were prohibited from contacting their families. An Odalisque ,

10400-401: The position of valide sultan was vacant, a haseki could take on the valide 's role, having access to considerable economic resources, and serving as the sultan's advisor in political matters, foreign policy and international politics. Such cases happened during the eras of Hürrem Sultan and Kösem Sultan . Concubines who were not consorts of the sultan became "forgotten women" of

10530-408: The possible mother of a future sultan gave them much influence and power in the harem. Ikbal : These slave women needed not necessarily to have given a child to the sultan, but simply needed to have taken his fancy. Ikbals were women who were chosen to become the new Kadin. Many of these women were referred to as gözde (meaning 'favorite'), or 'in the eye', having done just that: caught

10660-488: The power of prominent male and female members of the imperial household. According to Edward Said , Orientalist paintings , reflected Europe's eroticized view of Islam with luxury, leisure, and lust being common motifs. Similarly, writers focused on slavery and sexuality, and frequently compared Ottoman practices with those of the West. French artists such as Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres and Fernand Cormon painted some of

10790-420: The premises of the harem without the explicit permission of the valide sultan . The power of the valide sultan over concubines even extended to questions of life and death, with eunuchs directly reporting to her. Court ladies either lived in the halls beneath the apartments of the consorts , the valide sultan and the sultan, or in separate chambers. The kadın s, who numbered up to four, formed

10920-477: The privacy and sanctity of the consorts, future sultans, and harem at large. Hurrem Sultan, also called Roxelana , was a female concubine who completely transformed the harem system and left a lasting impact on the Ottoman Empire. Roxelana is believed to have been kidnapped from Ruthenia or "Old Russia" located in modern-day Ukraine. She was renamed Hurrem, "the cheerful one," upon her arrival in Istanbul. As

11050-410: The protocol of the dynastic politics to publicly honor the mother of the son who had yet to achieve public identity. The position of haseki as a true favorite of the sultan was thus incompatible with the practice of agnatic seniority. Kösem Sultan was the last of the influential Ottoman hasekis. The other explanation for the decline of the haseki and the re-emergence of the valide in the first decades of

11180-446: The queen mother ( valide sultan ), the grand vizier and the valide 's other supporters – and the chief black eunuch was the queen mother's and chief consorts' intimate and valued accomplice. Kösem Sultan, mother of Sultan Ibrahim (r. 1640–1648) and grandmother of Sultan Mehmed IV (r. 1648–1687), was killed at the instigation of the mother of Mehmed IV, Turhan Sultan, by harem eunuchs in 1651. Kızlar ağası : The kızlar ağası

11310-401: The reign of her step-son Abdulhamid II, who, out of gratitude that Perestu raised him as her own child after his own mother died while he was still young, gave her the title of Valide Sultan meaning "Queen mother". Perestu became the most powerful woman in the empire, but again was not involved in politics. Perestu was the last woman in Ottoman history to be legally married to an Ottoman Sultan,

11440-405: The reigning sultan but ranked higher than the sultan's own sisters and aunts, the princesses of the dynasty. Her elevated imperial status derived from the fact that she was the mother of a potential future sultan. This term haseki sultan was given to any woman who entered the sultan's bed. Hurrem Sultan was the first to hold this title after she became legally married to Suleiman the Magnificent ,

11570-498: The residence of the Ottoman Sultan Abdülhamid II, beginning in 1880. The palatial complex is demarcated by the Çırağan Palace on the waterfront and extending up to a valley between Besiktas and Ortaköy. After assassination attempts, Abdülhamid II moved his immediate family to the Yıldız Palace to live in a two-story mansion known as the Şale Kiosk. This became the new harem quarters following its location at

11700-412: The rise of the chief imperial consort under the title of haseki. A mother's political role traditionally began with the creation of a separate household for her son. The establishment of her public politic identity entailed her separation from the sultan and his household. As noted above, this kind of functional division appears to have occurred with Nurbanu Sultan, in spite of the fact that she never left

11830-439: The rule. The imperial harem also served as a parallel institution to the sultan's household of male servants. The women were provided with an education roughly equal to that provided to male pages. At the end of their respective educations, the men and women would be married off to one another and "graduated" from the palace to occupy administrative posts in the empire's provinces. There was a distinct hierarchical structure within

11960-533: The same words for both women and men (such as Hurrem Sultan and Sultan Suleiman Han ( Suleiman the Magnificent )). The female leaders in Muslim history are correctly known as "sultanas". However, the wife of the sultan in the Sultanate of Sulu is styled as the "panguian" while the sultan's chief wife in many sultanates of Indonesia and Malaysia are known as "permaisuri", "Tunku Ampuan", "Raja Perempuan", or "Tengku Ampuan". The queen consort in Brunei especially

12090-410: The seventeenth century has much to do with Kösem Sultan's personality and the fact that in 1617 she had ceased being a haseki, and if she were to regain power, she could obtain it only from the position of Valide Sultan. After Ahmed I's death in 1617, the position of Haseki Sultan lost its special status. Osman II had a consort with haseki rank, but all that can be determined about her is that her name

12220-563: The seventeenth century, when a series of accidents incapacitated the sultan. Regencies endowed the valide sultan with great political power. The valide sultan even influenced the way Ottoman sultans waged wars. The ethnic background of the valide sultan was a major determinant of whether a military target would be aimed at North Africa, the Middle East, or Europe. The sultans were likely to be mindful of their matrilineal descent when determining their next conquest. Matrilineal background

12350-417: The size of the Imperial Harem from 1574 to 1595. By the mid 18th century, an imperial hall, also known as the "privy chamber," took on Europeanizing decorations and inscriptions dating from the renovations made by Osman III. This was a spacious, domed hall that overlooked the garden and was the place where official ceremonies and festivities took place. The Queen Mother's quarters during this time consisted of

12480-425: The sultan a child, preferably a son. The kadıns , or official concubines, were individually ranked by the sultan in order of preference. Most sultans kept four kadıns . These women had the social, but not legal, status of wife. The first kadın reported was during the reign of Mehmed IV . Baş kadın : The first/most senior slave consorts were called baş kadın or birinci kadin . The consort who held

12610-458: The sultan and the feuds of the blood brothers for the throne. In 1525 or 1526 (the exact date is unknown), Suleiman married Hürrem in a magnificent formal ceremony, making him the first Ottoman Sultan to wed since Mehmed II (reign 1451–1481), and violating a 200-year-old custom of the Ottoman imperial house according to which sultans were not to marry their concubines (Mehmed's legal wife was a free noble woman, Sittişah Hatun ). Later, Hürrem became

12740-444: The sultan as consorts, and those who worked in the service of the sultan, the dynasic family, and other high-ranking members of the harem. All women and girls would enter the harem as acemi cariyes and work their way up to acemilik. The next step was sakird (apprentices), with the goal of being promoted to a gedikli (directly waiting on the sultan), usta (mistress), or even kadin (consort), if they were lucky. The cariye s with whom

12870-421: The sultan shared his bed became a member of the dynasty and might rise in rank to attain the status of gözde ('the favorite'), ikbal ('the fortunate') or kadin ('the woman/wife'). The highest position was the valide sultan , the legal mother of the sultan who, herself, used to be a wife or a concubine of the sultan's father and rose to the supreme rank in the harem. No court lady could enter or leave

13000-476: The sultan with special status, and surpassed other titles and ranks by which the prominent consorts of the sultans had been known ( hatun and kadin ). A haseki sultan had an important place in the palace, being the second most powerful woman and enjoyed the greatest status in the Imperial Harem after valide sultan and usually had chambers close to the sultan's chamber. Haseki Sultan's position, used for

13130-649: The sultan's children were also entitled "sultan", with imperial princes ( şehzade ) carrying the title before their given name, and imperial princesses carrying it after. Examples include Sultan Suleiman's son Şehzade Sultan Mehmed and his daughter Mihrimah Sultan . Like imperial princesses, the living mothers and main consorts of the reigning sultan carried the title "sultan" after their given names, for example, Hafsa Sultan , Suleiman's mother and first valide sultan , and Hürrem Sultan , Suleiman's chief consort and first haseki sultan. The evolving usage of this title reflected power shifts among imperial women, especially during

13260-425: The sultan's daughters, who were also called sultans. These princesses were admired and could rival their father for popularity and recognition. They were also useful for the political alliances their marriages secured for the empire. These women were known throughout the empire and had important reputations to uphold. Consequently, only a small fraction of the women in the harem actually engaged in sexual relations with

13390-480: The sultan's family run by the Queen Mother . The rank of individuals residing in the harem was reflected in its architecture. Quarters were continuously remodeled according to new requirements and changing fashions. This resulted in harem space being a collection of ever more fragmented units. In 1842, the Dolmabahçe Palace started to be built. It was created for entertainment and "relaxation" purposes. In 1856,

13520-420: The sultan's household like her predecessor Hürrem, the shift in her role, that is, their assumption of candidly political role as haseki may well have coincided with their sons’ assumption of their political posts. Even though it became a great position, haseki was not used during reign of Mehmed III , son of Murad III , which was probably due to the prominent role played by his mother, Safiye Sultan . Haseki

13650-420: The sultan's power. His ownership of women, mostly slaves, was a sign of wealth, power, and sexual prowess. The emphasis on seclusion of the harem and dynastic life away from the public gaze also communicated his power, as only those closest to him had the privilege to interact with him privately. The only person in the harem with "ritual and retinue appropriate to her status," was the valide sultan. The institution

13780-579: The sultan's religious or spiritual authority, in addition to his formal political authority. During this later period, the title of sultan was still used outside the Ottoman Empire as well, as with the examples of the Somali aristocrats , Malay nobles and the sultans of Morocco (such as the Alaouite dynasty founded in the 17th century). It was, however, not used as a sovereign title by Shi'a Muslim rulers. The Safavid dynasty of Iran , who controlled

13910-489: The sultan, as most were destined to marry members of the Ottoman political elite, or else to continue service to the valide sultan. Within the harem, the valide sultan and the sultan's favorite concubine or concubines were effectively able to create factional support for themselves and their sons, creating a bridge between the palace and the outside world. Harem politics revolved around the establishment of matrilineal legacies and finding ways to garner alliances and support from

14040-470: The title baş kadın was in the second rank and most powerful after the valide sultan in the harem. She had a great influence in the harem. Before the creation and after the abolition of the title haseki , the title baş kadın was the most powerful position among the sultan's consorts. A sultan did not have more than four kadin s (the same law used for legal wives in Islam). Their position as

14170-559: The title before their given name, and imperial princesses carrying it after. For example: Şehzade Sultan Mehmed and Mihrimah Sultan , son and daughter of Suleiman the Magnificent. Like imperial princesses, the living mother and main consort of the reigning sultan also carried the title after their given names, for example: Hafsa Sultan , Suleiman's mother and first valide sultan , and Hürrem Sultan , Suleiman's chief consort and first haseki sultan . The evolving usage of this title reflected power shifts among imperial women, especially between

14300-442: The title of "Haseki Sultan" was Rabia Sultan , Haseki of Sultan Ahmed II (reign 1691-1695). The title was first used in the 16th century for Hürrem Sultan , when she was given favor by Suleiman the Magnificent . She was his chief consort and the mother of Selim II . Hürrem Sultan was married to Sultan Suleiman, becoming both his legal wife. The title was next held by Nurbanu Sultan , favourite consort and wife of Selim II , and

14430-434: The ulterior goal of saving her own son from the same fate." This new system meant that potential rulers had to wait a long time in the kafes before ascending the throne, hence the old age of certain sultans upon their enthronement, which made all of the şehzades lose their chance to become ruler of one of the Ottoman province as part of their training to become a worthy heir to the throne. One outcome of all these changes

14560-591: The valide sultan. The Kizlar Agha ( Kızlarağası , also known as the "Chief Black Eunuch" because of the Nilotic origin of most aghas ) was the head of the eunuchs responsible for guarding the imperial harem. The word harem is derived from the Arabic harim or haram , which connotes the sacred and forbidden. The term further emphasizes that only women household members, and some related male family members, were able to enter these areas. The word has also been traced back to meaning "sanctuary," reflecting

14690-413: The white eunuchs, acting as a chief servant and procurer. Valide sultan : The valide sultan was the mother of the reigning sultan and the most powerful woman in the harem, not to mention the empire. She was the absolute authority in the seraglio, and she, with the help of the kapı ağa and the kızlar ağası , often her confidantes, or even men she herself had chosen upon her accession, had

14820-443: The women's ignorance of life outside the harem: "If they stay it is because they wish to stay, and are therefore happy. Their existence, however, seems a most heartrending waste of human life." Her analysis of cruel and antiquated Ottoman practices was not limited to the concubines, as she described her interaction with eunuchs : "It is difficult for me, however, to remember that these poor mutilated anachronisms are great personages at

14950-458: Was Ayşe . As with Osman, very little is known about the concubines of his brother Murad IV . Privy purse registers record the presence of a single haseki, Ayşe , until the very end of Murad's seventeen years reign, when a second haseki appears. It is possible that Murad had only a single concubine until the advent of the second one, or that he had a number of concubines but singled out only two of them as hasekis. Ibrahim had eight hasekis, of whom

15080-414: Was a strong sense of institutional continuity and unchangingly rigid hierarchies within the harem. The valide sultan , the sultan's mother, held power over the harem and this power sometimes extended over aspects of society. She was the custodian of imperial power, and worked to consolidate both her son's rule and continuation of the dynasty. She resided at the top of the female hierarchy. Next in line were

15210-404: Was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun سلطة sulṭah , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who claimed almost full sovereignty (i.e., not having dependence on any higher ruler) without claiming the overall caliphate , or to refer to a powerful governor of a province within

15340-421: Was away at war. He even had grand monuments built to exhibit his love for her. She became known as Haseki, "the favorite," but some accused her of seducing Suleiman with sorcery. Many in the Ottoman court were bewildered by Suleiman's total devotion to one woman and the ensuing radical changes in the harem hierarchy. But Roxelana's great perseverance, intelligence, and willpower gave her the edge over other women in

15470-456: Was depicted by European artists, French artists, writers, and travelers. As Leslie Peirce writes, Europe found that all the power that the Ottoman Empire had was established in the Harem. According to Scott, through their depictions of the Harem, members of European imperial powers imposed their constructions of social organization onto other cultures, assuming their social hierarchies as "part of

15600-576: Was in charge of 300 to 900 white eunuchs as head of the "Inner Service" (the palace bureaucracy, controlling all messages, petitions, and State documents addressed to the Sultan), head of the Palace School , gatekeeper-in-chief, head of the infirmary, and master of ceremonies of the Seraglio, and was originally the only one allowed to speak to the Sultan in private. In 1591, Murad III began to give

15730-459: Was introduced in the Turkish society with adoption of Islam, under the influence of the Arab caliphate , which the Ottomans emulated. To ensure the obedience of the women, many were bought and kept in slavery. However, not all members of the harem were slaves. The main wives, especially those taken into marriage to consolidate personal and dynastic alliances, were free women. This was the exception, not

15860-409: Was not as actively gendered in a strict binary, because the privacy of both male and female members of the imperial family symbolized their power over the rest of society. Western depictions of the imperial harem also worked to gender the meaning of the title sultan. Western tradition made this term synonymous with the male ruler of the empire, while the Ottomans themselves utilized this term to denote

15990-579: Was roughly equivalent to that of a modern-day captain in the West; socially in the fifth-rank class, styled ' Ali Jah . Apparently derived from the Arabic malik , this was the alternative native style of the sultans of the Kilwa Sultanate in Tanganyika (presently the continental part of Tanzania). Mfalume is the (Ki) Swahili title of various native Muslim rulers, generally rendered in Arabic and in western languages as Sultan: This

16120-486: Was so important that a sultan descended from a European mother was more than 70 percent less likely to orient the empire's imperial venture in the West. For the perpetuation and service of the Ottoman dynasty , slave girls were either captured in war, given as gifts to the Sultan and the dynastic family on special occasions, recruited within the empire, or procured from neighbouring countries to become imperial court ladies ( cariyes ). The number of female slaves within

16250-409: Was that the position of haseki lost its traditional logic. A mother's political role traditionally began with the creation of a separate household for her son. The establishment of her public political identity entailed her separation from the sultan and his household. But when under agnatic seniority, şehzades lost access to public adulthood, their mothers lost their public roles as well. It went against

16380-399: Was the chief black eunuch of the Ottoman seraglio . The title literally means 'chief of the girls', and he was charged with the protection and maintenance of the harem women. Kapı ağası : Whereas the kızlar ağası was responsible for guarding the virtue of the odalisques , the kapı ağası was a chamberlain to the ladies. His name means "lord of the door," and he was the chief of

16510-620: Was the native ruler's title in the Tanzanian state of Uhehe. In Indonesia (formerly in the Dutch East Indies ): In Malaysia : In Brunei : In China : In the Philippines : In Thailand : Sultans of sovereign states Sultans in federal monarchies Sultan with power within republics Imperial Harem The Imperial Harem ( Ottoman Turkish : حرم همايون , romanized :  Harem-i Hümâyûn ) of

16640-411: Was the significant modifications in the pattern of succession to the throne from a system of primogeniture to one based on agnatic seniority . She must have realized the personal gain that might stem from the transition to seniority, coupled with the fact that she was no longer haseki but had a son "in waiting". According to Venetian ambassador, Kösem "lobbied to spare Mustafa the fate of fratricide with

16770-592: Was uncommon among British authors at that time. Montagu believed that conditions were worse for women in Europe than they were for women in the harem. In championing the way in which Ottoman women were treated, it appears Montagu may have been trying to bolster the feminist agenda in England. Like other female writers, Lady Mary also focused on the appearance of the women and their homes as markers of social status: ornate decoration, detailed dresses, and an abundance of jewels reflected higher social status. Lady Mary compares

16900-414: Was used again during the reign of Mehmed's son Ahmed I . The career of Ahmed was very much like that of Suleiman. He chose his second or third consort, Kösem , as his haseki. Kösem's career was similar to that of Hürrem in an important respect. Like Hürrem, Kösem is blamed for acting to preserve her own power rather than that of the sultan or of the dynasty. It is certainly worth noting that the two women of

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