#ayse sultan daughter of ahmed i

[ottomanladies]

Hello,sorry for bothering I saw the topic about the daughters of Sultan Ibrahim,I would like to ask your opinion about who was or were the daughter(s) of Turhan Sultan? Actually did she even have daughters? Hammer mentions that Turhan had tried to save the lives of her sons in laws Sari Kenan Pasa and Haseki Mehmed Pasa from the wrath of Koprulu Mehmed Pasa,but couldn't save their lives due to their participemce in the opposite faction and also because of his corruption deeds which were large too(about Haseki Mehmed Pasa). I read this in the Croatian translation of Hammer's History of Ottoman empire V6(page 458). Whoever were the identitites of(Atike or Gevherhan)of the princess who was wife of Sari Kenan Pasa,and the wife of Haseki Mehmed Pasa(Ayse or Beyhan)seems to be probably daughters of Hatice Turhan Sultan? Also J.Dumas mention in Les perles de nacre sultanate in page 83 Ayse is buried along either to her father Ibrahim or either along Mustafa I. There is also found notebook:Ayşe Sultan’ın Cihaz (Çeyiz) Defteri in name Ayse Sultan about items and jewelry for her dowry in 1682 found in the archives by researchers,who is identified as most likely sister of Mehmed IV. But maybe she was not his sister,but possibly his daughter? Also J.Dumas mention in Les perles de nacre sultanate page 496 mention that Atike(daughter of Ibrahim I) was married 4 times:firstly to Cafer Pasa,secondly to Sari Kenan Pasa,thirdly to Mostarli Ismail Pasa and forthly to Cerah Kasim Pasa. There is also article about Rabia Sultan(Haseki of Ahmed II)-Kuzguncuk Asiye Sultan ve Haseki Rabia Sultan Yalilari,which mentiones that Gevherhan Sultan(daughter of Ibrahim I),had left her lands and mansions to the haseki of Ahmed II-Rabia Sultan and his daughter Asiye Sultan. Ragusian sources also mention Kaya Sultan(daughter of Ibrahim I)as Safiye Sultan dated in 1662 as widow of Haydaragzade Mehmed Pasa in Per favore de la soltana in page 113. Hammer also claims that Kaya Sultan was sister of Suleiman II(according to the Croatian translation that they shared same mother this is it mentioned in page 431 accordring to Croatian translation). In your opinion did Atike(daughter of Ibrahim I) existed after all and if she didn't who was the sister said by contemporary sources to be own sister of Mehmed IV? Also in the Croatian translation(page 494)of Hammer' History of Ottoman empire V6,that Turhan Sultan had took under her care and raised the orphan son of some man named Ali. Do you know who was that man Ali excatly and how was he clouse to Mehmed IV? Once again sorry for bothering and for the many questions.

Hello and no problem, you’re not bothering!!

So, I can’t read your citations because I use the French version of Hammer’s work and I can’t find what you’re talking about because I think the books are divided differently. Volume 6 of the French version goes from 1547 to 1574.

Anyway, the issue here is: was Turhan Hatice protecting those men because they were the husband(s?) of her daughter(s?) or was she doing it as the valide sultan, the custodian of the dynasty, after receiving those princesses’ appeals? It’s the same issue we have with Ayşe Hafsa trying to stop Ferhad Pasha’s execution. Did she do it because Beyhan was one of her daughters or only as the valide sultan?

The thing is foreigners didn’t separate between sisters and half-sisters, so it is almost impossible to understand who the princesses’ mothers were.

I’ve already talked about Gevherhan binti Ibrahim and Atike binti Ibrahim here and as of now I have nothing to add. There is a clear problem with Ahmed I’s, Murad IV’s, and Ibrahim’s daughters because they all seem to have the same names and we don’t have precise dates of their births and deaths. The fact that these sultans lost many children is another issue, as their mausoleums are overcrowded and it is difficult to identify all the caskets.

As for Dumas’ family tree, I think she followed Alderson and therefore accepted his sources (mainly von Hammer). If you read the ask I linked above, you’ll see there is a lot of confusion with Gevherhan’s husbands because they seem to parallel Atike’s, but Atike binti Ibrahim was never mentioned by Ragusian diplomats, who called that princess Gevherhan instead.

Let’s move onto “Bir Sultanın Mücevherleri. Ayşe Sultan’ın Cihaz (Çeyiz) Defteri”, an essay by Gülser Yardım.

So, the author says that the Ayşe Sultan in question is most likely a sister of Mehmed IV because Turkish sources never mentioned a daughter of Mehmed IV called Ayşe. On this blog, though, we know that a Ayşe Sultan binti Mehmed IV really existed because the Venetian ambassador Giacomo Querini reported in 1676 that Mehmed IV’s favourite Gülbeyaz gave birth to a princess in Babadağ two years earlier:

“Ora tiene due figliuoli maschi e due femmine. […] La figliuola Aidè si ritrova in età di sette anni e resta collocata in matrimonio a Culoglù Musaip, favorito […] L'altra piccola figliuola si chiama Attigiè, cioè Sparaviere, nata ultimamente a Babà Daghi [Babadağ, Romanian city] dalla Tulbeias [Gülbeyaz], cioè Rosa Bianca, e tuttochè si trovi in età di due anni, resta promessa in matrimonio a Carà Mustafà Caimacan in età avanzata di 60 anni.”

He confused the two princesses: Hatice is the older one who will marry Musahib Mustafa Pasha, while Ayşe is the younger one, born from Gülbeyaz. Moreover, Hammer clearly states that the daughter of “the little Haseki” (Gülbeyaz) is betrothed to Kara Mustafa Pasha:

la fille de la petite Khasseki destinée en mariage au kaïmakam Kara Moustafa (Histoire, vol. 11, p. 419)

According to Uluçay, “the little princess” was married to Kara Mustafa Pasha during Hatice’s wedding to Musahib Mustafa Pasha. Hammer doesn’t mention this but says that Musahib Mustafa Pasha had gifts for the sultan, the Valide Sultan, the eldest prince, the Haseki, his fiancée (Hatice), and the daughter of the “little Haseki”. During the festivities, though, Kara Mustafa Pasha received sable fur for being the second son-in-law of the sultan. I think this was some kind of betrothal, not a wedding.

Anyway, back to Ayşe. It is interesting that Bir Sultanın Mücevherleri. Ayşe Sultan’ın Cihaz (Çeyiz) Defteri says that most of the jewels Ayşe received were then given to other women:

A diamond crest was given to Ümmi Sultan in 1698-99

A set of diamonds was given to Emetullah Kadın (Ahmed III’s consort) in 1703-04

A garnets bracelet was given to Afife Kadın in 1693-94

A diamonds bracelet was given to Alicenab Kadın in 1697-98

and so on.

Now, I think that Ayşe Sultan died very young if one of the bracelets in her dowry was given to Afife Kadın as early as 1693. Also, Kara Mustafa Pasha was executed in 1683 so the dowry prepared in June 1682 wasn’t needed anymore anyway.

About Kuzguncuk Asiye Sultan ve Haseki Rabia Sultan Yalilari. It was common for sultans to bestow mansions and other properties to their favourites and daughters. If I remember correctly, Murad IV had bestowed a garden to Kaya Ismihan even though she was a child. That Asiye Sultan received a mansion even though she was a baby was quite normal. Gevherhan had died in 1694 so her properties were bestowed to Rabia and her baby daughter Asiye.

Gülnüş had received properties belonging to Fatma Sultan binti Ahmed I after the princess’ death.

Let’s move onto Kaya Sultan binti Ibrahim.

Hammer says that Kaya married Haydarağazade Mehmed Pasha:

Vers cette époque eurent lieu les noces de la fille du dernier Sultan Ibrahim, Kia Sultane, avec Haïdaragazadé Mohammed (Histoire, vol. 10, p. 241)

Sicill-i Osmani, though, doesn’t indicate Haydar Ağazade Mehmed Pasha as a damad, nor is Kaya Sultan listed.

I couldn’t find anything about her mother. Unfortunately I couldn’t find your citation in Hammer.

I honestly have no idea who Mehmed IV’s own sister was… I truly have no opinion about this.

[haticesultanas]

Sorry to bother you in this account, I would have a question about Ümmügülsüm Sultan, the possible daughter of Ahmed I. The relazione of Angelo Alessandri from 1637, Page 649 says: "Ha il Gran Signore di congionti per sangue quatro sorelle ancora, ma fuori di seraglio, essendo tutte maritate in visiri." And since I am not really speaking italian, I am not sure if "per sangue quatro sorelle" means full-sister or just a way to say sister (and so can mean half sister too). One of my followers - who says he speaks italian - says it means full-sister and confirms that beside Ayse, Fatma and Hanzade there was another full-sister of Murad IV. I mean while I have my doubts, Alderson also lists one Ümmügülsüm (wife of Halil Pasha) based on harem registers, who had the same amount of salary in 1639 as Ayse, Fatma and Hanzade, the daughters of Kösem (and some other women - possible daughters of Murad III had the same amount, while Atike and one Hatice possibly daughters of Ahmed I had less salary). Also, there is the known other register that you also mentioned on ottomanladies page, based on Tezcan: “A privy purse register from 1622 gives the names of five unmarried princesses, who may be daughters of Ahmed, Osman II, and even Mehmed III: Umm-i Külsum, Hanzade, Halime, Fatma, and Akile.” The fact that there was one Ümmügülsüm in 1622 who was still unmarried, and then in 1639 she had the same amount of stipend as Ayse, Fatma, Hanzade and the relazione mentioning that 4 (full)sister thing, maybe suggests that Kösem and Ahmed MAY had another daughter together, Ümmügülsüm? What do you think?

Hello! I guess my askbox on ottomanladies is still closed.

So, your follower is right; what Angelo Alessandri says in his relazione is that Murad IV has four full-blooded sisters who all live outside the palace because they are married. When I read this part, I simply assumed that the fourth princess was Gevherhan but we don’t have any information about her after Recep Pasha’s death in 1632. Then, I assumed he was wrong because it wouldn’t be the first time a European ambassador mistook half-siblings for full-blooded siblings.

About Ümmügülsüm, I have always assumed he was a daughter of Mehmed III’s or Murad III’s. I have never paid attention to her, as I’m sure you know from my posts on ottomanladies.

But you made me curious so I spent some time looking into this.

First, I think you meant Dumas when you mentioned that list based on harem registers because I have found it in Les Perles de Nacre du Sultanate. Alderson doesn’t list an Ümmügülsüm Sultan among Ahmed I’s daughters (unless I somehow missed it).

Secondly, I think there is a problem with this source: on page 62, the register is from February 1649 to February 1650. In Annex A, though, (page 461), she says that the same register is dated February 1639. So what is the truth? February 1639, because the register keeps saying “Şevval 1048”, and that’s February-March 1639 (you can google it). The mistake on page 62 is… weird, though.

Moreover, the list above is somewhat different from the transliteration she put in Annexe A. For example, on page 463 she says that the register says “Hümaşah Sultan merhum Nakkaş Hasan Pasha”, but on the list she put on page 62, the same Hümaşah Sultan is married to one Hüseyin Pasha. I don’t understand why she changed the source without addressing it— or is it just a typing mistake? I hope it is because I think Hümaşah Sultan was truly married to Nakkaş Hasan Pasha: Nakkaş Hasan Pasha was identified as married to one of Ahmed I’s aunts by the Baron de Selignac, and a letter dated 6 October 1642 by a Ragusian diplomat lists among Ibrahim’s aunts one “Humascie sultana moglie di Hasan Pascia [Hümaşah sultan wife of Hasan Pasha]”. In another letter, this one dated 7 July 1648, Hümaşah is identified as “moglie di Nachasc Hasanpascia Humasce sultan vedova [Hümaşah sultan, widow of Nakkaş Hasan Pasha]”.

If Dumas voluntarily changed Hasan Pasha into Hüseyin Pasha then I don’t know why she did it because contemporary evidence suggests that this princess called Hümaşah was Ahmed I’s aunt and therefore Ibrahim’s great-aunt (I won’t fault the Ragusian diplomat for not stating the difference because it wasn’t done often at the time), and was married to Nakkaş Hasan Pasha, who is called “merhum” in the harem register because he was deceased at the time.

Similarly, on page 462, it is listed one “Kameri Sultan merhum Sofi Bayram Pasha”, but on the list on page 62, she is called Fahri. Again, what prompted Dumas to change the wife’s name? Is it because Öztuna says that Fahri/Fahriye Sultan (daughter of Murad III) was married to Sofu Bayram Pasha? Then again, why was she called Kameri in the register? Is it a mistake from the clerk or did she have multiple names? Or did Dumas transliterate her name wrong? Or did she change the princess’ name into Fahri because that’s what Öztuna says? Interestingly, in the family trees in Annex B, she’s called Fahri again. The same Ragusian diplomat above also lists the wife of Bayram Pasha: “Vanni sultana moglie di Soffi Bariam Pascia”; unfortunately I cannot say what Vanni should be because it doesn’t sound like Kameri at all. It could sound like Fahri but… it’s a stretch.

Beyhan Sultan, Safiye Sultan, and Mihrimah Sultan are widows too but it’s difficult to identify them because their husbands are one “Mustafa Pasha”, one “Mehmed Pasha”, and a “Mehmed Pasha from Kefe”. I tried to google this Mehmed Pasha from Kefe and everyone says he was married to Mihrimah Sultan, daughter of Murad III. The problem is the sources of this claim (on those websites) do not say this. The Ragusian letter talks about a Beyhan Sultan married to a “Mustai Pascia” which could be Mustafa Pasha, but this is all I have to say.

I also would like to highlight that the princesses listed in the Ragusian letter are those who received gifts from the Ragusian diplomat so there could have been more, especially aunts.

As for “Atike Sultan Kenan Pasha” (who receives 9,900 aspers per month): she seems to be Ahmed I’s daughter Atike (also confirmed by the Ragusian letter, who lists her among Ibrahim's sister).

Now, about “Ümmügülsüm Sultan Halil Pasha” (who receives 12,900 aspers per month): I still personally maintain that she was an aunt and not a sister. I could not identify her, nor her husband Halil Pasha, but we have to keep in mind that we don’t have all the names of Mehmed III’s daughters. In the Ragusian letter dated 1648, there’s one “moglie di Hersechli Ahmet Pascia Iumi sultan [wife of Hersekli (? it could mean that he comes from Herzegovina) Ahmed Pasha, Iumi Sultan” (Iumi kind of sounds like Ümmi). It’s basically ten years later Dumas' list so she could have changed husband in the meantime but unfortunately, I couldn’t identify “Hersechli Ahmet Pascia”— if someone else has information about him, please do not hesitate to share (with sources, please).

I’m sorry this was so long and unhelpful, I was carried away :(((

EDIT: I have found the Ragusian letters in V. Miović - Per favore della Soltana: Powerful Ottoman Women and Ragusan Diplomats

[reallifesultanas]

Lets talk about Ümmügülsüm Sultan

There is a chance, that Kösem and Ahmed had another daughter together: Ümmügülsüm.

I am so glad, that with Anonymous sender and Ottomanladies, the truth came to light. Ottomanladies answered very long and very detailed about Ümmügülsüm, she shared her thoughts about the topic, now, here, you can find a conclusion from me:

What we know:

A privy purse register from 1622 gives the names of five unmarried princesses, who may be daughters of Ahmed, Osman II, and even Mehmed III: Umm-i Külsum(=Ümmügülsüm), Hanzade, Halime, Fatma, and Akile. Hanzade and Fatma were Kösem's daughters; Akile is possibly mistaken for Atike or Abide; Halime might be Mehmed III's daughter, named after her mother, Halime. But Ümmügülsüm was less clear.

The relazione of Angelo Alessandri from 1637 says that Murad IV had four FULL-sisters. We know three of them: Ayse, Fatma, and Hanzade. But who could be the fourth? Gevherhan was already dead, Atike was well-knownly not a full-sister and also not Abide. Maybe Ümmügülsüm?

There are some decisions and letters of Murad IV, where he mentions Ümmügülsüm as a sister of his. He uses the same wording that he used for Ayse, who undoubtedly was his full-sister, suggesting Ümmügülsüm was also a full-sister of his.

The 1638/39 harem registers mention one Ümmügülsüm Sultan who received the highest payments besides the three already known daughters of Kösem (Ayse, Fatma, Hanzade) and two daughters of Murad III. This means she could be either the daughter of Murad III or Ahmed I. But since Ahmed I's other daughter, Atike - who was not Kösem's - got a lesser stipend, if Ümmügülsüm is Ahmed I's daughter, she had to be Kösem's daughter too and so she is the fourth full-sister of Sultan Murad IV.

In 1648 the Raguzan envoy also mentions her (possibly her as they use the name Iumi), as the wife of Ahmed Pasha, governor of Herzegovina. They probably married ~1642 until the pasha's death in 1648. This was her second marriage, her first husband was one Halil Pasha, with whom she married before 1638.

In book ''Whisper of the cities'' one Ümmühan Sultan is mentioned as she met with the English ambassador's wife. Based on her, Ümmühan was said to be the aunt of deposed Mehmed IV and sister of Ibrahim I. This happened in 1690, so she still was alive then.

There are still questions:

Why no historian ever discovered this information as none of the evidence is new?

Why Ümmi is not mentioned among Ahmed I's children?

Where is she buried? *

When was she born? *

Why Ibrahim did not force her to serve Telli Hümasah (his wife) when he did it to all of the other daughters of Kösem?

To be honest the burial place of Ahmed I is quite a mess. For example there are two sarcofagies for 'Zeynep' daughters of Ahmed I. One of the sarcofagies stands for an adult woman. There was no daughter of Ahmed, called Zeynep who reached adulthood. So maybe the name is mistaken and that Ümmügülsüm. Maybe she was buried somewhere else as she lived a quite long life, survivin everyone around her and her grave is not idetified yet.

Considering the known children of Kösem and their birth date, the most possible for Ümmügülsüm is that she was born during the late reign of Ahmed I. In 1605 Kösem gave birth to Mehmed; in 1606 or 1607 to Ayse; then in 1607 or 1608 to Fatma; in 1609 to Hanzade. While I see that there is a gap here for one more child (if Kösem got pregnant extremely rapidly), she cannot be older than Fatma, as she was also not married off in 1622 yet, and also since we know quite precisely the sequence of these daughters, I do not think another one was born here but no one knows about her. It would be strange. Then in 1612, she gave birth to Murad, but between him and Hanzade there was time for another child - let it be Selim who was born in 1611 or Ümmügülsüm. Then Kasim followed Murad quite quickly, he was born in 1614, and then Ibrahim came in 1615, so there was no time for anyone else between Murad and Ibrahim. After 1615 there is another chance for the birth of Ümmügülsüm. So she either was born after Hanzade (~1611), or after Ibrahim (~1616). Either way - considering she was not just still alive in 1690, but was surely not suffering, dying since she was involved in the diplomacy meeting - she possibly died in the 1690s, she very probably reached 80 maybe even more in the end.

[misssylvertongue]

woman that i love: [2/5]

↠  emetullah rabia gulnus sultan

↠ haseki & valide sultan of the ottoman empire

Born around 1642 under the name Evmania Vorya, popular folklore says that she was the daughter of an Orthodox bishop, descendant of the Verzzini family who founded the town of Rethmyno in Crete.

According to tradition, she and her two sisters were captured at the start of the Cretan War, around 1646. Her two sisters were bought by Pasha at the Istanbul market, while Gulnus was sold for the imperial harem

Educated in the harem, which renamed her (perhaps) Emetullah Rabia Gülnus, she became, at an unknown date, Mehmed's concubine. The Venetian ambassador described her as a tall, slender woman with black curly hair and blue eyes.

She gave him her first child: a daughter, Hatice, around 1660, then her first son, Mustafa, in 1664. Of a total of five children, four will reach adulthood (only Ayse died in childhood)

After Mustafa’s birth, Gülnus was named Haseki Sultan. She was the only (or one of the very few) haseki to accompany her husband on military campaigns, and far from the battlefields, she was known to join him on his hunting parties. Mehmed insisted each time, to take her with him. Subject of contemporary European engravings, she was drawing riding a horse. His son, Ahmed, was the first sultan born outside of Turkey, in the present-day Bulgaria, in December 1673.

A myth on Ottoman empire was the possibly rivalry between Gülnus and the concubine Gülbeyaz and possibly lead the murder of that concubine. If rivalry was largely possible, murder seem exagerate or invented.

Following the deposition of Mehmed IV, Gülnus was exiled in the old palace and separated from his sons. Afife Kadin wrote in her poems that she regularly heard Gülnus screaming and crying between the walls of her room.

After the reigns of Ahmed II and Süleyman II, in 1695, Gülnus became Valide Sultan for his eldest son. Unfortunately, it is deposed in 1703 and Gülnus confirms the deposition. Ahmed succeeds his brother. To calm the people angry with the Valide Sultan, he exiles him briefly to the Old Palace.

In 1711, it was she who persuaded Ahmed to declare war on Russia after two years of propaganda in favor of an alliance with the Swedish king Charles XII. Gülnus persuaded his son that the king was a man worth taking a risk.

Emetullah Rabia Gülnus died of illness in 1715, possibly at the age of seventeen.

[sevgilisultana]

Seniha Sultan (5 December 1851- 15 September 1931)

Daughter of Abdulmejid I and Nalandil Hanim

Wife of Mahmud Celaeddin Pasha

Mother of Sultanzade Sabahddin Bey and Sultanzade Ahmed Lutfullah Bey.

Sister of Sultans Murad (half), Abdul Hamid II (half), Mehmed V (half), and Mehmed VI.

Aunt of Sehzade Mehmed Selaheddin, Hatice Sultan (Murad), Fehime Sultan, Fatma Sultan (Murad), Aliye Sultan, Sehzade Mehmed Selim, Ulviye Sultan, Zekiye Sultan,Sehzade Ahmed Nuri, Naime Sultan, Sehzade Mehmed Abdulkadir, Naile Sultan, Sehzade Mehmed Burhaneddin, Sadiye Sultan, Ayse Sultan, Refia Sultan, Sehzade Abdurrahim Hayri, Hatice Sultan (Abdul Hamid II), Sehzade Ahmed Nureddin, Sehzade Mehmed Abid, Samiye Sultan, Sehzade Mehem Ziyaeddin, Sehzade Mahmid Necmeddi, Sehzade Omer Hilmi, Fenire Sultan, Ulviye Sultan (Mehmed VI), Sabiha Sultan, and Sehzade Mehmed Ertugrul.

Mother-in-law of Tabinak Hanım

[fatihdaily]

Hi 🌸 I wanna know more about Beyazid II like his life as a prince and as a sultan, his wives and children (besides Selim I of course)

Thank you for your question. We want to give you an answer that is as accurate as possible, so we double-check all our sources, and due to how comprehensive this answer is going to be, we decided to split it up. I will start with his wives and Joanna, Lina and Veronica will work on the rest, so we kindly ask you to come back in a couple of days for that.

Gülbahar Hatun

Her name and her identity as a whole is disputed—it’s difficult to determine whether Gülbahar and Ayşe were two different wives or not. The oldest source on this, as well as Babinger and Alderson, identify Ayşe as Selim I’s mother, however, according to Sicill-i Osmanî, her name is Gülbahar.

Gökbilgin and Danişmend support the theory that Ayse, daughter of the Bey of Dulkadir, was Bayezid’s lawfully wedded wife and Selim’s mother, and Gökbilgin claims that Ayşe might have been Gülbahar. Sakaoğlu, however, states that there is no further information on Ayşe and proposes that one source of confusion could be that Bayezid’s own mother was also called Gülbahar. He writes that there is no doubt that Ayşe was lawfully wedded to Bayezid, but that there is no indication of her being Selim’s mother, and he notes that it is curious that, when Selim had Ayşe’s father—and therefor, if she was indeed his mother, his grandfather—executed, chroniclers did not mention this fact.

Therefor she might have been Maria, the daughter of a Pontic Greek priest, or Ayşe, the daughter of Alaüddevle Bozkurt Bey

In keeping with the former, she supposedly was captured during the conquest of Trabzon and given to Bayezid

She gave birth to Selim I when Bayezid was still a şehzade and later accompanied Selim to Trabzon and Samandıra

Selim had the Hatuniye Külliyesi built in her name

She died before her son ascended the throne, and is buried in the Gülbahar Hatun Camii in Trabzon that was built in honor of her

According to Halil Edhem Eldem, archaeologist, the inscription of her tomb reads: “May Bânû-yı Rûm, who has turned her face from the world towards eternity, sit on the throne of Heaven and may God bless her”

Nigar Hatun

Her vakfiye reads “daughter of Abdullah”, this indicates that she was a slave concubine who converted to Islam upon entering the harem

She gave birth to Fatma Hatun, Ayse Hatun and Şehzade Korkut when Bayezid himself was still a şehzade

When Mehmed II died and Bayezid ascended the throne, she accompanied him to Constantinople

As expected of her, she went with Korkut when he was sent to Manisa and Antalya to govern

After Selim I had his brother executed, she returned to Antalya

Hüsnüşah Hatun

Some sources identify her as the mother of one Nasuh Bey, however, Sakaoğlu says that this is incorrect since she’s referred to as Hüsnüşah, daughter of Abdullah (see above)

She was the mother of Şehzade Şehinşah and Sultanzade Hatun

She corresponded with Selim I on behalf of Mevlana Pir Ahmed Çelebi, a scholar who had been at her sons court, and who was neglected when the members of the prince’s household were assigned new posts

She had the Hatuniye Mosque Complex built in Manisa, one of the “most beautiful” ones

Şirin Hatun

Her vakifye also describes her as “daughter of Abdullah”, so she too would have been a converted slave concubine

She gave birth to Bayezid’s first son, Şehzade Abdullah, when he was still a şehzade, and was the mother of Aynışah Hatun

Şirin accompanied Abdullah when he was sent to govern Manisa and Karaman

After her son’s death, she went to Bursa and later had a tomb built for him, where she would be buried

Sakaoğlu states she also had a mosque built in Trabzon

Gülruh Hatun

Mother of Şehzade Alemşah and Kamerşah Hatun

Alemşah was sent to govern Manisa, and Gülruh accompanied him

She put much effort into protecting her son, whose conduct Bayezid seems to have found unsatisfactory, as he ordered her to discipline him

In a letter to Bayezid she states “I have done everything I can to preserve order“ and Peirce writes “[she] goes on to present her case against seven members of her son’s suite—including his tutor (lala), his doctor, and his preceptor—to whom she attributes responsibility for the problems“ and expresses concerns about her son’s health

I will include an excerpt of her letter below:

My fortune-favored padishah, heed my cry for help,… rid us of [my son’s] tutor, teacher, and doctor. They are masters of corruption…. Send us good Muslims, because our situation has been pitiful since these persons arrived. They have deprived me of my mother’s rights…. If these seven do not go, they will utterly destroy the household of my son, your servant.

According to Uluçay, she had a mosque and a soup kitchen built in Akhisar, Aydın Güzelhisar and Duraklı

She died in the early days of Süleyman’s reign

Bülbül Hatun

Mother of Şehzade Ahmed and Hundi Hatun

Bayezid favored their son Ahmed as his successor, who was Selim’s principal rival

Sakaoğlu describes her as “benevolent”; she had built and endowed a religious college in Bursa, and a mosque and a soup kitchen in Ladik

In Amasya, she had another mosque, a school and a fountain built

She also had a tomb built for Ahmed, in which she was buried at her death

Ferruhşad/Ferahşad Hatun

Mother of Şehzade Mehmed

According to Sakaoğlu, Bursa’s registry refers to her as Muhterem Hatun; he suggests that she might have carried the double name Muhterem Ferruhşad

After her son’s death, she retired to Bursa

She established a foundation in Silivri in 1521

Mühümaz Hatun

Alderson names her as the mother of Şehzade Korkut and states that Fisher says he was the full-brother of Selim, and therefor son of Ayşe/Gülbahar

However, Uluçay corrected Şehzade Korkut’s mother as Nigar Hatun (see above), likewise  Sicill-i Osmanî does not mention a Mühürnaz/Mihrinaz among Bayezid’s wives

Therefor her existence/identity is disputed

Unnamed Hatun

Uluçay does not list her at all; Sakaoğlu refers to H. Hüsameddin, who writes that Bayezid’s first wife was the oldest daughter of Emir Bey

Alderson lists her as the mother of Şehzade Mahmud and Gevheri Muluk

Sources:

Alderson, Anthony Dolphin: The Structure of the Ottoman Dynasty, Greenwood Press, 1982

Binous,  Jamila:  Early Ottoman Art: The Legacy of the Emirates, Museum With No Frontiers, 2002

Peirce, Leslie: The Imperial Harem. Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire, Oxford University Press, 2010

Sakaoğlu, Necdet: Famous Ottoman Women, Avea, 2007

Sakaoğlu, Necdet: Bu Mülkün Kadın Sultanları. Valide Sultanlar, Hatunlar, Hasekiler, Kadınefendiler, Sultanefendiler,  Basım Yayım Dağıtım San. ve T ic. Ltd. Şti, 2015

Uluçay, Mustafa Çağatay: Padişahların kadınları ve kızları, Ankara, Ötüken. 2011

[fauzhee10069]

The four Haseki and their relationship with beloved Mothers-in-Law

We'll come closer to the end of Kösem sultan and her magnificent story :,(. Now let me present these four ambitious hasekis in different time but lived below the same sky (don’t ask me why I included Ayşe, just keep reading it! ;-) and why I don’t include Hürrem vs Valide Ayşe Hafsa because mainly I forgot their story XP). Hürrem started this "opposing your mother-in-law" continued with Nurbanu to Turhan sultan (only in MY and MYK dear, not historically), but how their stories differ? Let's see...:

Afife Nurbanu Sultan:

Her mother-in-law was Hürrem sultan, Hürrem wanted her to be a smart but obedient daughter-in-law, she became a gozde (favorite) to sehzade Selim (later Selim II). Iirc, Nurbanu's conflict with Hürrem started when Hürrem refused to protect & defend her after she had fight with Hurichihan (Hatice sultan's daughter) & caused her death. Afraid to the consequence of her deed, she threatened Hürrem to show her letter about ordering Nurbanu to kill Suleyman I's other gozde, Nazenin hatun, from this onwards their conflict began. Other factor that driven Nurbanu is her ambition to support Selim to be the successor, next sultan after Suleyman I, especially after she found that Hürrem was supporting her other son, sehzade Bayezid. Her conflict with Hürrem mainly to prevent and foiled her to support Beyazid. Even after Hurrem's death, Nurbanu was still occupied with Beyazid's remaining supporters (including Mihrimah & Rustem->though Rustem would betray later via Gracia Mendes' seduction (LOL)).

Mahpeyker Kösem Sultan:

Her actual mother-in-law was Handan sultan, but her nemesis (in the show) was Safiye sultan, Handan's mother-in-law & the grandmother of Kosem's spouse Ahmed I. Similar with Hürrem, Safiye intended to present Kösem to Ahmed and use her to influence & control his power. Their conflict started when Safiye, unable to control Kösem anymore, decided to kill her father. Feeling betrayed, Kösem decided to avenge her father's death (while being a heroine too) by leading Safiye's daughter, Fahriye sultan to her death. Safiye repaid it with Yasemin hatun (Kösem's sister)'s death and Kösem paid it back with Iskender/sehzade Yahya (Safiye's missing son)'s death. Also Kösem being heroine wanted to protect Ahmed and the state from her, especially when Safiye did the coup d'etat, causing chaos in the palace. Not long after, Ahmed died, leaving Kösem with her little children fighting Safiye (and later Halime) alone.

Ayşe Sultan:

Her mother-in-law was Kösem sultan and her spouse was sultan Murad IV. Like Hürrem and Safiye, Kösem too expected that Ayşe would be an obedient, helpful & easily controlled by her. I think during the very first episode of season 2, there would be a rivalry and conflict between Ayşe and Kösem, how Ayşe said that she wished to support Murad and keep him away from the influence of his mother in ruling the state. Ayşe also said that she refused to follow every Kosem's orders and be obedient to her. Too bad this rivalry concept got thrown out and replaced with her fake rivalry with Farya as Mahidevran 2.0. Ayse's story here would be mainly fanon:

After Kösem's ten years regency, Murad became the sultan officially (I mean, the time when Murad was able to govern the state independently), but with Kösem's influence in the government, viziers & jannisaries, they were already familiar and support her and the people greatly trust her. Murad was struggling to gain the trust and recognition from his people. Everyone (including viziers and jannisaries) still doubted this young sultan's capability to rule, they always compared him to Kösem. Murad wanted to step out from his mother's shadow, he tried to limit Kosem's power and influence, he wanted his mother as valide sultan back to her initial duty, managing the harem. As loyal spouse and his most beloved woman, Ayşe supported Murad and helped him to be able to rule independently by trying to dispel and keep him away from his mother's influence, she also managed to seek the support from the people including some viziers. Ayşe chose to be a good wife and queen/haseki who supported her spouse the sultan in government rather than being used and controlled by his mother. Thus her conflict with Kösem sultan began. Besides her conflict with Kösem, Ayşe also had her own problem, she was struggling to provide Murad a healthy sehzade who would have his chance to survive adulthood and become the heir for Murad's throne. Murad's relationship with his mother was gradually strained. Seeing her son's insubordination to her, Kösem decided to get rid of Ayşe as the mastermind of the destruction of their family relationships. Their rivalry was fierce until Murad's death came. Ayşe who had lost her greatest support (and love) Murad and lost her sehzade who could be made an heir, lost her power, influence and purpose completely. She was immediately removed by Kösem and sent away to live in the Old Palace.

Turhan Hatice Sultan:

Her mother-in-law was also Kösem sultan and she was the spouse of Ibrahim I. Turhan had learned all the tales of the powerful sultana in Ottoman and had her own ambition. She saw Kösem as her role model and at the same time she wanted to be like her. Kösem still expected her to be easily controlled and obedient to her but Turhan thought that being obedient and passive won't make her a powerful figure. She found that to fight her mother-in-law, she had to get her sultan's support. Observing her situation and circumstance, getting the support from her spouse seemed difficult since Ibrahim had numerous gozde that he loved, he even appointed his eight gozde (including her) as his haseki. Turhan could become the Baş Haseki had been a lucky one for her since she had Ibrahim's oldest sehzade Mehmed. The odds of getting support from her spouse are getting smaller as he brought new gozde again and this gozde became his legal wife (Telli Humaşah). Thus, rather than wage an open war to Kösem, she decided to gain the trust for her. By being the closest person to Kösem, she could observe everything, from how Kösem gains her supports to find a chance to overthrow her. During this time, Turhan managed to gain the trust of viziers, but Kösem still had the most influence in jannisaries. Turhan also tried her best to secure her son and protect him as the next heir after Ibrahim's death. When Ibrahim died, Mehmed the oldest sehzade succeeded him. But as long as Kösem still alive, her struggle was not over yet. Kösem who had many experience as regent thought that inexperienced Turhan wasn't competent enough to rule the state, Kösem was preventing her to be in charge of state affairs. Turhan disagreed since she felt entitled as the mother of Mehmed IV. Kösem later went to far by attempting to remove Mehmed and replaced him with sehzade Suleyman (the son of supposedly more obedient haseki Saliha Dilasub). Driven by her will to protect her son's life, Turhan decided to get rid Kösem completely and her men successfully murdered her. Eventually, Turhan became regent and rule the state together with her son. My fanon is that the previous haseki sultan Ayşe wanted have her revenge with Kösem, so she temporarily helped Turhan behind the scene.

Summary:

Many young sultana during their time as queen consort (haseki) had strained relationship with her mother-in-law, the queen dowager (valide sultan), they had similar ambitions but they had their different motivation and situation.

In Nurbanu's case, she was a favorite of Selim II during his sehzade years. There was sehzade Beyazid as threat who challenged Selim's way to be the heir. Being supportive to her spouse, Nurbanu made sure that Selim will success it. Nurbanu's main focused was how Selim would take the throne.

In Kösem's case, she initially was driven by revenge. But later when she found that Ahmed I her spouse's life was also in danger, she fought to protect him. Safiye's failed attempt to control Ahmed drove her to led a coup d'etat. Ahmed with the help of Kösem successfully weakened Safiye's power and influence. But not long after that, Ahmed died and Kösem lost her greatest support. Kösem became alone surrounded with many dangerous snakes especially Safiye and Halime, though in the end she was able to get rid of them.

In Ayse's case, Murad became a sultan who just been deemed worthy to rule by his own. Ayşe helped Murad to gain the trust and to be recognized by his people, she wanted him to get out from Kösem's shadow. Ayşe also had another burden since Murad didn't have an apparent heir yet. In the end Murad died without heir and his brother Ibrahim was the one who succeeded him. Ayşe lost her position and had to spend her life in the Old Palace according to the custom.

In Turhan's case and during her time, Ibrahim I had his eight harem girls as the haseki. Turhan happened to bore him the oldest sehzade Mehmed thus she became the Baş haseki. Turhan had to face her many harem rivals including the greatest threat who was Telli Humaşah, the girl Ibrahim brought and became his legal wife. Turhan was not really loved by Ibrahim (as she was not his most favorite). After Ibrahim's death, Turhan had her power struggle with Kösem sultan. She wanted to be regent ruling independently but her reign always overshadowed by Kösem. Their conflict became worse when Kösem wanted to get rid of Turhan's son and replaced him with her other grandson, thus leading to Kosem's death by Turhan's men hands.

 TL;DR

All had their conflict with their MiLs but Nurbanu was haseki of sehzade whereas Kösem, Ayşe and Turhan were haseki of sultans. All supposedly outlived their MiL but canon MYK!Ayşe died before Kösem. Although Kösem had her conflict with her actual MiL Handan, her main nemesis was Safiye sultan, her MiL's MiL (or should I say grandmother-in-law). Nurbanu's spouse Selim I outlived his mother but Ahmed I (Kosem's spouse), Murad IV (Ayse's spouse) and Ibrahim I (Turhan's spouse) died before their mothers (and grandmother in Ahmed's case). Nurbanu, Kösem and Turhan had their surviving sons took his fathers' throne whereas Ayşe didn't. Nurbanu, Kösem and Ayşe were loved and greatly supported by their spouses whereas Turhan was not really (but canon-MYK!Ayşe instead was greatly abused and hated by him), Ibrahim might loved Turhan but she was not his most beloved one. Nurbanu, Kösem and Turhan succeeded in becoming valide sultan and became the most powerful sultana in their respective era whereas only Ayşe who couldn’t make it since she didn’t have a sehzade (the prince), the most important asset for every women as royals.

Conclusion:

Powerful and ambitious women in MY and MYK always expect their daughters-in-law to be the obedient and easily-controlled. Unbeknownst for them, they became the role models of their younger generations. Thus, instead having the obedient DiL, they got their own reflection: the DiL that exactly the same with their younger selves. These DiL won’t easily submit to them just like themselves in their younger days.

Also I wonder when Turhan’s hair color was mentioned as blonde, There is no popular culture that show Turhan with blonde hair. Mahpeyker: Kösem Sultan’s Turhan was brunette and  Muhteşem Yüzyıl: Kösem‘s Turhan is dark haired (likely black). I’m sorry with my shitty bad quality editing but I want my Turhan’s blonde XD, I’m not expert.

[ottomanladies]

reallifesultanas Thank you very much for your answer! Yes I meant Dumas not Alderson sorry for that! Is there a reason for the illogical amount of salaries? I mean the earlier salary lists of registers clearly help us to indentify the sultanas. The 1555-1556 registers are 100% logical; the 1603-1604 registers are still logical: Safiye, Handan, aunts of Ahmed, great-aunt of Ahmed, great-great aunt's daughter (Ayse Hümasah), cousin of Mehmed III, far relatives. But then there is this one.. highest salary for the full sisters of the sultan is logical, but then what does the daughters of Murad III doing there? Fahri/Kamer and Hümaşah/Rukiye* are surely Murads and so Ümmügülsüm could be also Murad's... For the lesser salaries Beyhan, Safiye, Hatice I could imagine they were Mehmed III's, maybe Beyhan's Mustafa was Mirahur Mustafa? But these stipends are just not logical... (*Murad III's daughte Rukiye was said to be married to Nakkas Hasan not Huma). And for Ümmügülsüm there is that one report from 1688 (Katherine Trumbull) when it is said she developed a relationship with Sultana Ümmühan, the aunt of the deposed Sultan Mehmed IV, through visits to the harem. This Ümmühan could be Halil Pasha's wife and so Murad III's/Mehmed III's daugher, or is it more likely not an aunt but sister/cousin? Or she truly can be Ahmed I's daughter? There is this 85 numaralı Mühimme defteri that provide some informations suggesting suggesting Ümmügülsüm was sister of Murad IV. Sadly I dont have the book so I cannot check how true is this claim...

I hope you don't mind if we continue here on ottomanladies.

I know the harem register doesn’t seem to make sense from the point of view of hierarchy but we must remember that the hierarchy could be broken on the basis of favouritism. Maybe those aunts were more favoured than the others.

In this table we can see Gevherhan Sultan, a great-aunt of Ahmed I’s, the reigning sultan. Dumas mistakenly identifies her as a daughter of Murad III’s and a concubine of non-haseki rank, but the reality is she’s first because she’s the most senior princess alive. If you look closely at the second category — “Frais de bouche” — she receives the same amount as Ayse and Fatma, Safiye’s daughters. Gevherhan was quite favoured by Ahmed I because she had trained Handan in her household. Also, her late husband Cerrah Mehmed Pasha had performed Ahmed I’s circumcision. Borekçi says that she was the only recipient — apart from Handan and Safiye — of sable fur:

“A register preserved in the Topkapı Palace Archives gives further details of the gifts Gevherhan Sultan received from her great grand-cousin. At the beginning of this register, there are records of the furs and robes of honor sent by the new sultan to his larger family right after his enthronement on December 27, 1603. Here, Gevherhan Sultan is listed as a recipient of a sable robe (semmûr kaplu nimtâne) and recorded as the third female member of the dynasty after the retiring queen mother, Safiye Sultan, and the new queen mother, Handan Sultan, and before all other living sisters and daughters of Murad III and Mehmed III -- a clear indication of her privileged position. Later, on February 6, 1604, she again appears in the register, this time as the only female family member apart from Handan Sultan to receive a fur-trimmed silk robe.”

(I believe the 6 şehzâdegân are unmarried princesses that Ahmed still had to matchmake but this is another story)

I know it’s Rukiye that Öztuna says has married Nakkaş Hasan Pasha but he could be wrong tbh, it wouldn’t be the first time. Also, neither Sakaoğlu or Uluçay confirm this; they give no information about Rukiye except for the identity of her mother. Unfortunately Öztuna never gives his sources so we don’t know where he found that Rukiye was married to Nakkaş Hasan Pasha. I would trust the harem register and contemporary sources (the ragusian diplomat, in this case) more tbh… both say that Nakkaş Hasan Pasha was married to a princess called Hümaşah…

About Beyhan… the problem is the wife of Mirahur Mustafa Pasha went on to marry Cigalazade Sinan Pasha’s son Mahmud Bey in 1612, and died before 1620, the date of Mahmud Bey’s second wedding, which means she shouldn’t have been alive in 1638-39. The Ragusian letter date 1648, though, lists a Beyhan Sultan widow of “Nideli Mustafa Pasha”— unfortunately, I can’t say who this man is or what “nideli” means.

I do agree with you, though. I think that Beyhan, Safiye, and Hatice are daughters of Mehmed III. We know that seven princesses were married in the summer of 1613, after all. A letter dated July 1613 by a Ragusian diplomat, furthermore, says that “at the present there are fifteen sultanas”.

About Katherine Trumbull, I guess you mean this:

“While in Istanbul, Katherine had developed a relationship with Sultana Ümmühan, Mehmed IV’s aunt and sister to Ibrahim II. On 14 July 1688, Katherine met with Ümmühan for the first time, and the two women continued to meet in the imperial harem throughout Trumbull’s residence in Istanbul. During these visits, Katherine must have been accompanied by someone with knowledge of spoken Turkish, or else it is unclear how she would have been able to communicate with the women she met in the harem. At any rate, when she returned to the embassy, she brought to Trumbull news of things taking place in the Ottoman court.” — Ghobrial, John-Paul A, 'Overcoming Distance in Everyday Communication', The Whispers of Cities: Information Flows in Istanbul, London, and Paris in the Age of William Trumbull (Oxford, 2013; online edn, Oxford Academic, 23 Jan. 2014)

Unfortunately, William Trumbull’s diaries were not published, they’re in the British Library. I always like to cross-check my sources and the fact that I can’t read the original kind of annoys me. Ümmühan is quite an unusual name for an Ottoman princess: Ümmi means mother and Han sovereign, it kind of sounds like “valide sultan”, which is why I thought it was a title for a moment but I couldn’t find anything to confirm this. It is kind of interesting, though, that Öztuna says that Ibrahim’s eldest daughter was called Ümmügülsüm, who could have been named after another Ümmügülsüm (the one that in 1622 was unmarried? Who knows)

The Mühimme defteri is not a book but a collection of copies of all the imperial decrees or decisions taken in the imperial council. They’re numbered and the number 85 refers to the years 1630-31. You can find the PDF for free on the website of the Turkish National Archives but, well, it’s in Ottoman Turkish.

(This is one of them)

So I can’t really read it even though I have it.

[haticesultanas]

How do you imagine MCkosem, had they kept Anastasia for as long as they planned to? Or even the original Mahfiruz?

hi! this is actually something i’ve been thinking about for so long, i even wrote notes about it lmao

basically, i would have kept anastasia for at least kosem’s first pregnancy. kosem was so young when she had her first child, so having anastasia portray it would have sent a strong message imo. those concubines were really young and i think it would have been quite accurate to show (beren really looked too old compared to ekin koç at the beginning)

i would have shown her first pregnancy, done a timejump to show the girls (ayse, fatma, hanzade/gevherhan) and changed actress to give birth to murad-- he’ll be an ottoman sultan, after all

i would have personally ended s1 with ahmed’s death and kosem leaving topkapi palace with her daughters (the exact same scene in ep 25, that was good)

as for mahfiruze... i actually liked the second actress, but at the same time i wish they hadn’t killed her off like that. i think they could have shown that she had more children (maybe gevherhan? or bayezid?). as for her death, i’m quite hesitant because i like leslie peirce’s theory that she was alive till 1620 but that she had been exiled, but baki tezcan’s is good too, that she died of childbirth? basically i would have been content with either of them-- not the show version, though.

did any of this make any sense? i hope so lmao

[ottomanladies]

the daughters of Kösem Sultan

[ottomanladies]

the known grandchildren of Handan Valide Sultan -- requested by anon

[ottomanladies]

Ibrahim Han of the Ottoman Empire + the women in his life

[ottomanladies]

Ottoman Princesses named: Ayşe

Ayşe is the Turkish equivalent of the Arabic name A'isha, famous for being the name of the youngest wife of Prophet Muhammad. It is one of the most common names among Ottoman princesses and consorts.

[ottomanladies]

thanks for the reply

Why did Fatma, Ahmed's daughter, get married later than her sisters? The year of Fatma's birth is 1606 and her first marriage took place in 1626, but the Hanzade, who was born in 1608, got married in 1623. Why did Fatma not marry in 1612 like her sisters Gevherhan and Ayse? I feel like she was kosem youngest daughter, even younger than the Hanzade

It's actually disputed that she first got married in 1626.

According to Uluçay and Sakaoğlu — but I imagine that they're each other's sources — she married her first husband, Admiral Çatalcalı Haşan Paşa, in 1624.

According to Öztuna, on the other hand, her first husband was Kara Mustafa Paşa, and they got married in 1626, but he admits that another theory is that Çatalcalı Haşan Paşa was her first husband and Kara Mustafa her second.

But it's not over: according to Peirce, Fatma's marriage to Çatalcalı Haşan Paşa was dissolved in 1628

In 1628 the sultan moved to sever the damad tie that linked Kösem to the admiral Çatalca Hasan Pasha. husband of her daughter Fatma. Angered by his mother's excessive patronage of Hasan Pasha, Murad had the marriage dissolved. Hasan Pasha had enjoyed the protection of the powerful chief black eunuch as well as that of the valide sultan. — Peirce. The Imperial Harem: Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire

The problem with this claim is that both Uluçay and Sakaoğlu maintain that Fatma's second marriage was celebrated in 1626 (to Kara Mustafa Paşa)... and that seems about right because he was executed by Murad IV in 1628.

Maybe Peirce's 1628 is just a typo 🤷🏻‍♀️

So, actually, if she got married in 1624, it actually makes sense as Murad IV succeeded Mustafa I in September 1623. Bayram Paşa, the Chief of the Janissaries, was awarded Hanzade's hand for the role he had had in his accession, and the two got married in 1623. Fatma got married in 1624 and Ayşe in 1625/6.

As for why Fatma did not get married during her father's reign. It seems to me that Ahmed I was trying to keep things balanced? One damad for Kösem (Ayşe's husband Nasuh Paşa and — after his execution — Şehid Karakaş Mehmed Paşa) and another for Osman II (Gevherhan's husband Kara Öküz Mehmed Paşa). If you notice, Ayşe is the only princess who re-marries during her father's reign: that's because her first husband had been executed— the factions had to be re-balanced out.

Obviously all of this works only if Gevherhan was truly Osman's full sister.

Also, as for her date of birth... basically everyone agrees that she was born in 1606, it's Ayşe's and Gevherhan's that are debatable. For example, Börekçi says that Gevherhan was Ahmed I's eldest daughter; other historians claim that Ayşe was born in 1608 instead.

[ottomanladies]

KÖSEM SULTAN WEEK | day 3: Kösem and her children

There is no general consensus on the number and names of Kösem's children. The number goes from the six suggested by Sakaoğlu to the eleven claimed by Kumrular; other than her sons who became sultan - Murad IV and Ibrahim - Ayşe Sultan (b. 1605/1608), Fatma Sultan (b. 1605/1606) and Şehzade Kasım (b. 1613/1615) are usually considered her children by all historians.

In 2001, Tezcan successfully demonstrated that Şehzade Mehmed (b. 8.03.1605) was Kösem's eldest child, and Hanzade Sultan (b. 1609) was most certainly her daughter as well. While it is not proven that Gevherhan Sultan (b. 1605/1608) was one of Kösem's daughters, she is sometimes considered as such. Some historians (Sakaoğlu, Kumrular and Peirce as well) believe that Şehzade Süleyman was - or may have been - one of her sons, but Finkel thinks that he was, on the contrary, Şehzade Bayezid and Osman II's blood brother. 

In her 2015 book about Kösem Sultan, Kumrular states that Şehzade Selim and Şehzade Orhan should be added to the list of the haseki sultan's children. Both of them are mentioned in a letter sent to Venice on the occasion of Murad IV's ascension to the throne as being currently alive and younger than the new sultan. Historian Erhan Afyoncu suggested that Selim and Orhan may have been Kasım and Ibrahim's second names but Kumrular does not believe that. The absence of the names of Kösem's known sons in that letter hasn't been explained yet, however. 

Sources: Caroline Finkel - Osman's Dream: the History of the Ottoman Empire, Özlem Kumrular - Kösem Sultan: İktidar Hırs ve Entrika, Leslie P. Peirce - The Imperial Harem, Necdet Sakaoğlu - Bu Mülkün Kadın Sultanları

[ottomanladies]

the children of Kösem Sultan + namesakes