#kill that it's rather a 1600s message

[randomnameless]

I've seen a post on redshit saying deghinsea was racist and I don't understand how people even came to that conclusion. The fandom isn't ready to Tellius remakes

Are you sure it was on redshit and not here anon? lol

If it's about the branded issue, Deghinsea received a very crappy hand to deal with - and we sure as hell don't see what happens or how the Branded are dealt with in Hatari, save for a meaningless "kumbaya" because the Tellius verse completely falls on its head with this question -

Tellius is all about discriminations and how stupid it is - only to, uh, biologically, tell you one race is "superior" to the other because the other "dies" when both races mix to make a baby.

Ergo, if beorcs and laguz "coexist" peacefully and make tons of babies, the laguz will cease to exist - because each time a branded is born (or even just conceived?) the laguz parent ceases to be a laguz.

In a context of racial tensions (Tellius isn't very clear on the details, but there used to be a war where laguz enslaved beorcs, then beorcs enslave laguz?) revealing this to the public meant ultimately yes, Laguz were going to go extinct unless they got rid of beorcs.

In a way, I find it very different from the manakete - dragon stone - problem, because Manaketes still can access to their power through a device, but they are still manaketes. In the Archanea verse at least (but it's suggested even in Elibe?) the dragon parent doesn't lose their power, even if they have a dragon stone, when they hold hands with a human to make a baby, Nah exists, the Nini siblings exist (and iirc it's implied their mom was a dragon when she went "missing"?) etc etc.

But in Tellius?

Lehran wanted to kill himself because he wasn't a "laguz" anymore, he can't sing, he can't hear the voice of the Goddess, he can't transform - he is not a laguz anymore, but he isn't a beorc either.

In an era where people genuinely thought Claude "killed the CEO of racism" and don't even want to think more than 12 seconds about the Nabateans and what revealing the truth about them may create as a result (it's a egg hunt, but this time, humans are hunting chocolate eggs for easter, they hunt living beings to vivisect them to create more shiny weapons or magic milkshakes to gain a longer life and superpowers), Tellius remakes and the kind of themes and discussion brought by this duology are completely inaudible.

(and especially since Tellius's main lead doesn't give a fuck about the world or the consequences of his and the general party's actions as he fucks off to another continent with his besties, letting everyone else piece back and rebuild the continent)

What was Deghinsea supposed to do? Reveal to Laguz that yes, coexistence is impossible because they are bound to disappear if they coexist too much with Beorcs? How would the Laguz react? Lash out against Beorcs and exterminate them to make sure the Laguz, as a race, will continue to exist? And how would the Beorc react? Feel even more superior because whatever happens the "punished" parent for branded unions will forever be the Laguz and not the Beorc, and thus will start to call Laguz "subhumans" even more recently than they do in canon?

What was the solution? His lie sure led branded to be shunned and outright despised - but let's be real, if he revealed the truth, wouldn't branded still be despised by Laguz, who would see them as symbols and reasons why "their race" loses to Beorcs ?

I've seen some fics try to dance around the question by saying, more or less, Laguz are seen as giving their powers to the baby and it's a gesture of affection - but still, why should the Laguz be the only to "pass on" something to the baby when the Beorc can just, you know, get said baby without "losing"/"passing on" anything ?

I really don't know what IS was thinking when they made this "rule" - especially coupled with Yune's insane "teehee it was never intended it just happened like that!" that made Stefan weep, at Deghinshea's lie, of course, but in general, at the entire "Branded issue" ; ffs the Goddess (or one half of the goddess) said Laguz and Beorcs cannot coexists, and it wasn't something that was planned, it just happens.

I honestly consider this message "race A is superior to race B because race B ceases to exist if it breeds too much with race A" as bad as Fodlan's "imperialism good akshually" and honestly don't know why IS went through this route.

To add more drama maybe, but damn if this is a stinky message to have in a series about acceptance and coexistence - especially coming after Elibe and the heavily implied (as of FE7) dragon hybrid hero (of FE6).

[chateau7afra]

Folklore in Fargo

Spoilers ahead, Sailor.

One of the things I loved about Fargo this season so far, is the incorporation of Folklore, suberstition and God. We meet Ole Munch (Sam Spurrell) in the first episode. He seems to be a regular hitman of sorts, who is set on Dorothy (Juno Temple) He comes across a bit excentric and the way he talks and dresses seem very anachronistic. We also learn, that Dot is not the regular homemaker and loving mum, she seems to be. Munch and his handyman set out to kidnap Dot. Munch and his handyman aren't able to capture her and the handyman was killed in the process. We get to know Roy Tillman (John Hamm) who was the one who sent Munch on his mission, but because he failed the task, Roy is not paying Munch, which sets off a rather bleak storyline in which Roy and his son Gator (Joe Keery, my love) try to kill him. He escapes! The most intriguing thing about Ole Munch is one, the ritual he performs at the Tillman Farm. He kills a goat, covers himself in it's blood and leaves a message for Roy over his Daughter's beds. And two, the flashback to Wales in 1522. See now, this is where it gets weird. And where I had to google some stuff.

We see a character, dressed in what seems to be clothes of the lower class, entering a house full of upper class people who are in mourning, dressed in black and weaping. We have a funeral on our hands here. The poor person looks like Ole Munch. Is it him? Is it an ancestor of his? We dont know. On the belly of the deseiced is a plate with food. When Munch enters the house, there is a tense energy in the room. Munch walks up to the dead body and consumes the food offered on the plate in an almos animalistic fashion. The people in the room gasp, some of them disgusted, some of them afraid. Or both. Before Munch leaves, he gets two silver coins. Which must have been a lot of money back in the day, I did not research that. But we clearly witnessed some sort of ritual happening. It turns out, sin eating was a practice rich people took part of in Wales, Ireland and England in the 1600s. A willing poor person was invited to literally eat the sins of the deseaced person, so they could be welcomed at the pearly gates, with a clean record. All the sins are transferred, to the person who ate the food. A grewsome fate for people at the time, but hey, a mans gotta eat. The world is bleak, so I don't go with the rational reason in fiction, ever. I like to think that Ole Munch ate so many sins, that he became a spirit, that can not die, who is forced to wander around the earth forever, and for some reason chose america. His very beautifully written monologues would suggest that. They almost sound shakespearian.

But how does this play into the bigger theme of Fargo S5? Well, if you think about it, the whole season is about unpaid depts and consequences. Dot ran away from Roy and the farm, because of domestic violence. In Roy's book, she owes him, because she made a pledge to him, when they got married. Ole Munch sees a debt not paid, because he didn't receive paymant for "eating the sin" of kidnapping Dot. Dot's husband's mother, who is a very rich lady played by the brilliant Jennifer Jason Leigh points out "What is the point of being a billionaire, if you can't get someone killed.", while on the phone with an ex-president, apparently Bill Clinton, if I remember right. It's like, we never got over the sin eating, because with money and power, you can pay your way out of any circumstance, be it kidnapping or murder. There is always going to be someone who needs the money more than their soul. And there is always going to be someone who takes advantage of that. Roy Tillma, quotes the bible a lot. He thinks of himself as a right and just man and leader, even though he likes to bend the law to his will. He does not give a flying fuck about the law as it is "dictated by washington" and funds a right wing militia with taxpayer money. He is the law of the land. These scenes sent shivers down my spine.

Anyway. All of the storylines in this show are so amazing and worth writing about. Go watch it, you won't regret a second.

[infernal-fire]

Love, At First Sight

Warnings: some extreme fluff, strong language/ swearing

Pairing(s): Ransom x you

Summary: Love, at first sight, doesn’t exist. And Ransom has never been proven otherwise.

Word Count: 1600

I was inspired to write this after reading “It Was Only A Kiss” by the Queen of fluff, smut, angst and everything in between: @navybrat817  :)

(This GIF does not belong to me)

Love at first sight. 

That is the most ridiculous thing Ransom had ever heard. And he has heard some bullshit. 

The only thing he could tell from looking at someone for the first time was whether they were of any use to him or not. So when Meg was rambling on about love, that too, at first sight, Ransom scoffed at the idea. He bit into his overpriced biscuit with a roll of his eyes, pausing the conversation that he was unwilling to entertain any longer. 

“You know what Ransom, I’m not surprised you’re dismissing the idea without even hearing it,” Meg challenged.

“Oh yeah? And why’s that?” he retorted, a bit amused by her slight outburst.

“If your parents bothered with you, maybe you would understand what it’s like to be loved by someone.”

Although he didn’t show it, it struck a chord in him. It wasn’t something he dared to complain about anymore, but there was a time he would have done anything for their affection. 

“Okay then, let’s hear this horseshit you’re spewing,” he replied, not breaking the façade of smugness.

“When you meet someone, your subconscious and unconscious mind pick up patterns in their behaviour, little mannerisms and anything it can get its hands on. Your conscious mind interprets that as vibes. So you get a bad vibe from someone, it’s ‘cause your mind recognizes it from somewhere else, someone you don’t like.” 

“And what does this have to do with love at first sight?” Ransom impatiently tapped his foot. 

“I have a theory that love, at first sight, is possible if you’re in tune with your intuition. You feel good vibes from someone, you ride with it. And there’s a possibility you’ll override the rational part of your brain that tells you that you can’t love someone right after meeting them,” she concluded. “But then again, this only works if you’re capable of loving someone. Otherwise, your brain has no one to reference,” she added. 

Ransom’s jaw clenched before he took in a breath.

“Like I said. Just a bunch of horseshit,” he said, getting up to leave. 

He called it horseshit but he couldn’t stop thinking about it. It irked him that no matter how many girls he pulled, not one of them could make him feel the love had Meg described. He concluded that he was incapable of love because, of course,  that was the only plausible explanation.

It was a friend’s birthday. To say the least, he was not looking forward to it. He was in a rare mood to stay home and call it a night instead of getting his dick wet. Unfortunately, his presence was promised - he would rather not hear about this later so he did his future self a favour and got ready. 

His black pants were paired with a maroon sweater that cost a little less than his king-sized bed. A rose-gold watch adorned his wrist and he threw on his signature tan coloured coat. He didn’t want to go but he that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t miss out on the opportunity to advertise his status. 

Walking into the party, he regretted his decision to come at all. The corners were brimming with drunk people, though it had been only 1 hour since the party started. Shrill and irritating voices rung through the air. As usual, girls of no substance clung to every word of the fabricated tales boys told. Despite this, the unsavoury circumstances invited him, called his name even. After all, this was the lifestyle he lived for. 

Taking in the scene before him, he strode down the room. His presence alone demanded respect and attention, both which he got a surplus of at these events.

His stride was abruptly halted when a figure crashed into him, spilling wine down his chest. Sure, it blended in with the sweater, but he was still pissed. Someone didn’t notice him, which caused them to bump into him and that rubbed him the wrong way. 

“Won’t you look where your going, for god fucking sake this is worth more than you,” he snapped at the unsuspecting girl. 

You had a mess of your own to take care of. Wine slipped down your dress, between your cleavage and onto your stomach. You were going to apologize but you heard his comment, paused your sentence to look up at him. 

Laughter echoed in the background and people called Ransom’s name but it was long forgotten when he saw you. 

Love, at first sight.

It didn’t seem so ridiculous anymore. 

The mere sight of you was a harsh contrast to the cruel world he has dealt with his entire life. It was like the universe wrapped and presented you as the embodiment of a second chance for his life. To think that love, at first sight, was ridiculous. 

Your beauty wasn’t something he understood. It wasn’t like the beauty he sought during the lonely hours of night, when he simply required a bedwarmer to ease the ache. It was memorable, almost like a blend of warm vibrancy; a feeling resembling that of the summer’s sun, kissed his skin ever so delicately. 

He thought he was dying for a second. His hands were tingly and would not ease up no matter how much he clenched and unclenched them. His heart dove straight to his stomach, refusing to come up for air as long as he continued to look at you.

You on the other hand, you were conflicted. You were going to give him a piece of your mind for talking to you like that but one look at him and you wanted to run away. It was too intense for you. 

His piercing stare mirrored the moon, melted and poured into the mould that he called eyes. His aura radiated coldness. Yet, you just knew that his hands would be as warm as a bonfire during a snowstorm. Being around him would be like the slight sting that you felt when winter’s breeze grazed your skin. That sting, no matter how painful, is rewarding when you consider his arms that would envelope you as a blanket. 

Momentarily looking into each others eyes, both of you knew. You just knew. You were both thinking the same thing. It felt like eons had passed since the wine spill but logically, you knew it had only been seconds.

“Don’t talk to me like that” you finally blurted. No matter how enamored you were with him, you needed to knock him down a few pegs. 

“I-I… I’m” 

“You’re?” you raised an eyebrow at him.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…” he stuttered. He felt like he would never recover from this embarrassment. 

“I-uhm. It’s okay. I just…” you trailed off, realizing you weren’t even sure what to say. 

“Can we get out of here?” he piped up. 

It took you by surprise because you were thinking the same thing. You considered it too bold a thing to say but here he was. 

You held his wrist and led him out. As soon as you marched out the door, he pulled his arm up, and you assumed he was going to take it out of your grasp. He surprised you though, instead, holding your hand. 

The dress and the sweater became irrelevant; all either of you could focus on was the warm grip you both had on each other’s hands as you strolled through the overly extravagant neighbourhood. 

Part of your mind was screaming at yourself, as was his. He could kill you, you thought. Or do worse. And here you are, walking with a complete stranger through a neighbourhood you don’t even know.

“I thought you felt it too,” he confessed. “That’s why I... really, I don’t ever do this.” 

The old Ransom would have said ‘I know you felt it too.’ It hadn’t been ten minutes since you met him and you were already changing him. 

“I've never done this either. I mean frankly, you could be a murderer and here I am, holding you hand,” you joked. 

“I’m not a murderer,” he chuckled, “But I can’t help but feel a little weird about this.” You looked up at the moon-less night, convinced that it wasn’t a coincidence.

“I know… I-... I don’t even know your name,” you giggled and his heart fluttered around his chest. He couldn’t compare the feeling to butterflies - it was more like hummingbirds, refusing to settle.

“I felt something and it’s weird ‘cause I was so scared. I was scared and overwhelmed by this sort of dread. Dread that was like, what if you didn’t feel the same way?” you rambled, only slightly cautiously. You knew nothing of this man, and you were laying out how you felt in the open?

“My name is Ransom,” he stopped the stroll and faced you, picking up your other arm. 

“Y/N” you meekly responded, having difficulty meeting his eyes. You had never felt such a burn in your cheeks, yet right now, you felt like your face was on fire. 

“Hey, hey” he softly tilted you chin up. “Can we run with this? Whatever this is?” He would get on his knees and plead if he had to. Because you were right; he felt like he would die if you didn’t feel the same way. 

“Please. Let’s run with this. Whatever this is, let’s just run with it,” you agreed and nodded lightly, not breaking out of the stare.

“What is this?” he uttered under his breath and rested his forehead onto yours. 

You closed your eyes and breathed in the same air as him. His warmth and scent reminded you of sugar cookies and pine trees. 

He took in a breath and felt the aroma of vanilla and fresh roses evade his senses.

“I don’t know. But I like it,” you breathed. 

He cupped your face and pulled away to look at your face again. He planted a delicate but firm kiss to your forehead as you encased his waist with your arms, naturally gravitating towards him. He tenderly held your face as he pulled away. One look and you were a goner, but now, you’re utterly floored by the mere thought of him. 

Love, that too, at first sight.

Wasn’t horseshit after all.

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[not-using-this1]

Accepting

Would you look at that finally a Yelena Belova oneshot?! Yes, I decided it was time to upload her on here again so she’s back :) 

This oneshot is actually from my wattpad (AssassinEssa) where I upload mostly all the time so if you want go check it out!

Hope you all enjoy this one ;)

Y/n tells Yelena that she likes women because she feels safer with her than her own family who she knows for a fact won't accept her. Yelena reveals her secret.

Warnings: mention of abuse, mention of torture, swearing (I think theres like only one in there)

Word Count: around 1600 words 

She couldn't hide this anymore, but she had to. Her family wouldn't accept her at all so there was really no point in telling anyone. She knew for a fact her father would practically disown her (not that he already hadn't) and her mother would just scream at her for hours and then try to set her up with multiple men. Of course she could withstand those things due to her past and the abuse she had recieved the whole of her childhood...but this could likely get her killed (her fathers ex-millitary and her mother and her don't even get along).

Thank fuck she was able to get away from her family due to a program...but that only put her through more torture until she became the woman she is today...although she is still fearful of her parents.

The only person she could trust and even feel safe around was Yelena Belova, although she is rather intimidating, the two women grew quite close during the whole program and after leaving it behind started to stay with one another.

Despite what other people thought of the blonde russian, Y/n knew her more than anyone else, including the black widow Natasha Romanoff. That's when she decided that enough was enough and practically ran over to Yelena' apartment in the rain without even calling or texting her first.

Yelena is her only home.

Y/N' POV

Standing outside of my favourite person' apartment, I hesistated for a moment. I don't understand why...I felt safe with her. Maybe it was the fact that I was scared even she might not accept me and then leave me all alone and I didn't want that.

No, she wouldn't do that to me and I know it, she may be well guarded and barely show any emotion but she's not evil, she understands me better than anyone just like I do her. Finally knocking on her door, I heard a loud crash and "der'mo" (shit). Before I could even open the door, Yelena had already opened it, a bandage wrapped around her hand. Of course I was worried but before I could even say a word..."Got back from a mission last night, cut my hand during it but it's fine."

Before I could even open my mouth to say a word, Yelena interrupted me as she let me in her apartment "Now, what's wrong Y/n?" I looked down at her hand with the bandage on it, still wanting to know if she is really okay and what happened...drive this conversation away from me and what I'm here for but I somehow don't think that will work. I sat down on her sofa, she followed after me sitting next to me, frowning at me...worried.

"You gave me a scare when you called me last night while I was still on this mission, I would've come to you but I had to finish it." She added. I wanted to say it but I was still so terrified that this could all possibly go wrong and I would lose the one person who has been through so much with me...we helped each other through so much pain, on missions emotionally and physically.

I tried to make sure I wasn't going to cry because well I rarely even cry much anymore, I honestly don't have much tears to cry because half my childhood I cried, because of how horrible it was...hence why I'm the way am I now with my ability to fight, spy skills and some very deadly moves.

I froze in place, didn't know what to say or do.

Yelena noticed immedietely that something was wrong, she grabbed my hand with her not-injured hand, I tensed up for a few seconds until I looked up at her, she gave me a small smile and that damn smile just made me calm down and ease up.

"Its okay Y/n, you're alright here." Yelena was clearly encouraging me but also reassuring me at the same time which is exactly what I needed right now. "I can tell you everything 'Lena but this...this might change things for us." I spoke truthfully. The thing is not only am I attracted to women but I'm in love with the blonde sat next to me. The woman who has stuck beside me since we were teenagers and when I was taken to the GRU (black widow program).

Yelena had never been easy to get along with at the start, she was willingly in the program and just wanted to be somebody...I understood that and then from their I guess our rocky friendship grew. But I knew back then that we loved each other...like we still do now and I want today to be the day to tell her.

Because her existence means the world to me.

"Look Y/n, I don't think what you're going to tell me would change anything. I won't hate you. I know these earlier memories of us are horrific but I remember you never giving up on being my friend during the program, you drove me absolutely crazy to the point we even fought phyiscally but at the end of the day we'd always patch each other up. What I'm saying is no matter what I could never hate or leave you not after what we've been through together." There was this soft tone in her voice, it was so calming and so soothing, she really did know how to make me feel safe, wanted and needed.

"Yeah I remember, I've mostly blocked out the bad memories to be honest but sometimes they come back up and I think that you'd react the same." Yelena nodded her head, she understood where I was coming from and that was clear. She knew that all she needed to do was be here and listen and that's exactly what shes doing.

"Do you remember when you and I got a little curious back in the dorms and we kissed?" I asked her, she looked at me and nodded knowing full well what I meant. "Yeah, I remember. It got you sent for a punishment." Yelena added, she frowned at me not looking very happy I bought up that one particular memory.

"Well that was because all my life I've known that I have liked women more than men since I was younger. In fact I've never even liked men. I have tried so hard to but I feel like I'm broken like there's something wrong with me." I finally got that part out of my system but the next part was going to be the hardest...if she accepts me.

Yelena gave me a smile and squeezed my hand ever so slightly, her thumb gently rubbing my hand in the process "You're not broken Y/n and there's nothing to be fixed. You are unique the way you are and besides no one is stopping you this is the 21st centuary my darling." Yelena spoke giving me a smile at the end, her voice soft as she let out a slight chuckle.

"I know but no one in my family would accept me and-

"They're assholes if they can't see that you're still you just because you are attracted to women, it doesn't make a difference and don't you ever put yourself down like that ever again. And besides you always have a place in my world and by my side." I cringed at that a little and laughed at how cheesy that was for the blonde because she's never like this that much.

"That's cheesy even for you Belova" I laughed, she looked at me and rolled her eyes removing her hand from mine "And I thought we were having a moment".

"Wait we were I just-" I panicked just a bit and grabbed her hand but in the process she dragged me down on top of her as she fell back on the sofa we were originally sat on. She playfully wrapped her legs around my waist and I couldn't help but whimper at the slight contact of me pushed against her. "Y/n?" Yelena asked sounding all serious for a moment.

"Do you maybe want a redo?" She asked me. I looked at her confused for a good few seconds not exactly getting the message "what do you mean by redo?"

The smirk on her face, however, told me everything. It was because of the fact I bought up that one memory. But I wasn't expecting her to say that to me. I didn't know how to exactly respond to her but even before I could even say another word she managed to flip us over on the sofa effortlessly and now she was on top of me, my legs wrapped around her waist this time.

"I really like you Y/n. Now kiss me before I change my mind." She states.

With that being said I wasted no time in pulling her down for a kiss, arms wrapped around her neck as she makes the kiss deeper, slipping her tongue in.

"How" she whispers as she pulls away but then kisses me again "would you" she adds bringing back in for another quick kiss "like to move in with me?" I was about to say 'yes' but I couldn't even say anything as she pulled me back in for another kiss.

"Yes of course."

"I'm so happy you told me that you liked women and I'm so proud of you. Because as do I." Yelena adds as she finally lets me sit up. "I'm happy to. Now can we sit and watch movies?" I asked her.

"Yes, but we won't be watching much." Yelena winked at me, I rolled my eyes at her but agreed.

I'm just so happy that I decided to finally tell her, it was worth it. She really does mean so much.

[scripttorture]

I have no idea if you can help me, but I am working on a short story that starts after a Sami girl is recovering from being tortured by Christian police after her father is put on trial for witchcraft. This is during the witch trials in Norway. I wanted to focus on recovery in the community and her animistic religion. However, I don’t know what kind of torture she could realistically be recovering from and if, aside from punishment, it should religiously motivated. Do you have any English links?

I put this one off for a long time hoping that the virus situation would improve enough for me to a) have less stress at work and b) be able to access the university library in my town. It doesn’t look like that’s going to happen.

 Norwegian history in the 1600s isn’t my strong suit. So my focus here is going to be advice on how to research this. I’ll also include the bits I found and some tortures so common that you can throw them in to virtually any setting without it standing out or being inaccurate.

 Before I get any further I don’t know anything about Sami culture. I’d strongly recommend trying to find Sami sensitivity readers if you haven’t already. Because it can be bloody hard to get accurate information on some of Europe’s oppressed minorities and I’d say the Sami fall squarely into that category.

 Historical research is fraught with pitfalls and when you’re starting out it can be really difficult to figure out which sources to trust. This only becomes worse when you’re working across a language barrier. And when the focus is torture it gets even more difficult.

 Torture has always been a hot button issue.

 The fact that virtually every culture has a history of torture doesn’t change that. Cultural ideas about what was ‘more painful’ or ‘more brutal’ or ‘shaming’ have all played a role in what was deemed ‘acceptable’ cruelty. So has the idea of who is an ‘acceptable’ or ‘deserving’ victim.

 And that means that misrepresenting the typical tortures of different countries, cultures, religious groups or past regimes has been part of political practice for literally hundreds of years. It is a very easy way to direct people’s hate and elicit an emotional response.

 I can’t stress enough how important it is to consider an author’s motivations, biases and abilities when you read historical sources.

 Think about whether an author was actually there for the events they describe. Think about their political and religious positions and what they may have to gain by pushing a particular message.

 Apologies if some of this comes across as teaching you how to suck eggs, but I know a lot of people don’t get this lesson in their history classes. So sources-

 Historical sources can be broadly categorised into primary and secondary sources. A primary source is something produced at the time. A secondary source is something produced later.

 Both can be untrustworthy/biased but a primary source gives you information about how events/practices were interpreted at the time, while a secondary sources tells you how they were remembered later.

 Primary sources can be things like diaries, court records of witch trials and objects produced in areas like Finnmark (northern Norway where most of the witch trials took place) at the time. Secondary sources might be things like how the witch trials are discussed in Norwegian history books and local history or stories about the witch trials that are told today.

 By reading about this in English you’re mostly being limited to secondary sources. The danger here is that secondary sources can misrepresent the time period they’re describing, deliberately or not. Authors make assumptions about how historical people lived, thought, what their actions meant and how their beliefs influenced their actions.

 Primary sources can also misrepresent what happened (deliberately or not) but with primary sources they are at least displaying the biases and concerns of the time.

 Generally historical research is about the collation and interpretation of primary sources. Which is a lot of work, requires a degree of expertise and often demands fluency in several languages.

 That level of work and knowledge appeals to some authors of historical fiction. But it isn’t for everyone. There’s nothing wrong with choosing to rely on history textbooks and the like instead of digging through transcriptions of things written back in the 1600s.

 Here’s the problem when you’re doing that for another country: English language sources are often very very biased in favour of other English language sources.

 This means if some bored academic in the 1930s made up a bunch of fan theories based on very little evidence it will probably still be used as a source today.

 And without having another language (with access to other sources it provides) it can be really difficult to spot that kind of fuckery.

 I am not saying that you need to learn Norwegian and believe me as someone with only one spoken language I understand how tackling a new one can be crazy intimidating.

 But I think you do need to know Norwegians. Particularly Norwegians with an interest in history.

 That’s all general stuff about researching historical periods in different countries.

 For torture in particular… I’m not gonna lie it’s a sack of angry snakes.

 Both primary and secondary often have considerable motivation for lying about torture. Historical accounts routinely downplay or outright lie about the damage different tortures cause. They are heavily judgemental about victims.

 And they run in to exactly the same issues we have trying to study use of different tortures today with the added difficulty that accounts from torturers are preserved far more frequently then accounts from survivors.

 It’s only once you start getting to the 1900s that you really start to see multiple survivor accounts of events. For the 1600s as a general period I can think of witness accounts and multiple accounts from torturers or their bosses in various countries. But the testimony of survivors is very very rare.

 This is an issue because we know from modern research that torturers routinely lie about what they do.

 There were laws in most European countries in this period that cover torture. They tend to define a sort of ‘accepted practice’: what torturers were supposed to do and for how long. And don’t get me wrong these are useful historical sources.

 But we know from comparing similar torture manuals used in the 1930s (and indeed more recently) to multiple accounts from torture survivors that torturers do not follow their own rules. I see no reason why torturers today would be less likely to follow ‘the rules’ then their historical predecessors.

 Looking up the laws of the land at the historical time period you’re interested in is a good place to start. But it won’t actually tell you everything that torturers did and it may not represent the most common tortures.

 It will give you a list of things that were definitely used at the time in that place though. Which isn’t a bad place to start.

 Look for history books that cover crime and punishment. If you can’t find one broad enough to do that (or give you a helpful summary of laws at the time) then I’ve found that accounts of specific historical figures in the relevant area/time often contain some of that information.

 The next major pitfall when researching historical torture is the bane of my existence: euphemisms.

 A lot of historical sources use vague or euphemistic terms for different tortures and then leave it up to the reader to figure out what they mean. This was probably perfectly clear at the time but now… less so.

 To use an example from something I’ve been trying to research for a while now I can tell you that the Ancient Egyptians definitely used torture. They say as much in surviving accounts of their justice system. They used it to punish, force confessions and attempt to gain information.

 They definitely beat people with sticks. They say they did, in multiple accounts. There are also wall carvings and paintings that show prisoners of war and enslaved people being menaced with sticks.

 However, I can’t find any definite suggestion that they used falaka, ie beating the soles of the feet with those sticks.

 Did they just hit people at random? This seems unlikely from a practical viewpoint as that’s a very easy way to kill someone. Did they ignore the feet and concentrate on other areas of the body? Did they use falaka and also beat other areas? Do I bring too much bias into this question because I’d love to find a historical point of origin for a torture that’s common throughout the Middle East today?

 Historical sources often just don’t contain the details we need to be certain about what torture they’re describing. Terminology is often vague. Descriptions can be contradictory. Often the only way to be certain is to come across an illustration or surviving device and even then this does not necessarily represent common practice and either piece of evidence could be contemporary propaganda rather then something that was actually used.

 When you’re talking about historical torture it is essential to find multiple sources and make sure they agree.

 Vague terminology like ‘water torture’ can cover a host of different sins. Finding a vague term or euphemism multiple times doesn’t even tell you if this was the same practice carried out in different areas or different practices with superficial similarities.

 If a source doesn’t give you enough information to be sure don’t use it. If a source suggests the meaning of a euphemism based on no clear evidence from the time period don’t use it.

 What I’ve found in my own small collection of books on witchcraft is very sparse on details.

 One of the older books I have suggests that there were almost no witch hunts or witch trials in Scandinavia which is complete bollocks. The book was published in 1959, so I’d suggest being wary of English language sources from that date and earlier.

 A much more recent (2017) Oxford University Press book on the subject gives an estimated 400-500 executions for witchcraft in Norway during the period of 1601-1670.

 This might seem like a small number compared to the thousands that were executed throughout the Holy Roman Empire but it seems a significant number given that the Norwegian trials were so concentrated in a small, sparsely populated region.

 Unfortunately this book is a very general overview of the perception of witchcraft and magic throughout Europe from the ancient world to the present. So it doesn’t really give any details of the kinds of tortures a Norwegian accused of witchcraft might endure.

 The author of the chapter on the witch trials was Rita Voltmer, University of Trier in case that’s helpful. She has published several papers on witch trials and the use of torture and at least one on witch trials in Norway. However a lot of her work is in German.

 These two papers/chapters in particular may be of interest: the english language document on torture and emotion in witch trials and the German paper on Norwegian and Danish witch trials.

 Several of the books I’ve got access to confirmed that Norway burnt witches and provided stories focused on shapeshifting and causing storms at sea. They also confirmed the use of torture in witch trials but nothing so helpful as the kind of tortures employed.

 I found multiple references to ‘water torture’. One of these implied that the particular torture was waterboarding alla the historical Dutch method. But the same source said this caused vomiting or possibly diarrhoea which seems to imply pumping.

 At a guess I’d say pumping is less likely because waterboarding can cause vomiting and so far as I know pumping wasn’t common anywhere in Europe during this period. However absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

 ‘Water torture’ could also potentially refer to: a temperature torture, near drowning, a method of sleep deprivation or even dehydration. Without more detail it’s really hard to say which of these is being referenced.

 I found one mention of ‘burning torture’ a reference that I think referred to tearing the flesh with hot pincers based on the description of a torn wound. However given I only found this referenced once and I’m unsure of the source I found it in, I would not say this is a good one to pick.

 Which leaves me with common tortures.

 Whatever the time period, whatever the place, beatings the most common torture. Easily.

 If your character gets repeatedly hit, whether it’s clean or not, you are not being historically inaccurate. And I’ve got a lot of posts on beatings generally and clean beatings that can help you write that.

 Starvation and dehydration are also both really common regardless of culture and time period. So are temperature tortures or exposure though I think different countries have favoured different methods at different times.

 Torturous cell conditions were incredibly common across Europe historically. Lack of sanitation, wet cells, inadequate bedding, over crowding and conditions amounting to a temperature torture were all really common. They were also often happening alongside starvation.

 I have a masterpost on starvation and tags covering temperature tortures, exposure and prisons. I think the ‘prisons’ tag should give you most of the posts covering poor cell conditions, ‘historical torture’ and ‘historical fiction’ may also be helpful to you.

 I’m sorry I couldn’t come up with anything more specific.

Available on Wordpress.

Disclaimer

Edit: So this should be my week off the blog but I’ve seen a lot of the responses to this. Most of them are extremely helpful, thank you to everyone who knows Norwegian that is offering to help.

However: if your instinct is to say that any torturer, historical or recent, is ‘honourable’ and follows a code of conduct then this blog is not the place for you. I don’t tolerate that kind of apologia or people using my work to spread it. 

[reallifesultanas]

Portrait of Mehmed III / III. Mehmed portréja

Origin and childhood

Mehmed was born in May 1566 as the great-grandson of Sultan Suleiman I, and as the first-born son of later Mehmed III and his favorite concubine, Safiye. At his birth, the statesmen were quite worried about the future of the dynasty, for in the autumn of 1566 Sultan Suleiman died and was followed by his son Selim, whose only one heir was Murad and infant Mehmed. Because of this, the sultan himself was eventually forced to produce sons. However, Mehmed was not left without brothers for long either. His half-brother Selim followed him in 1567 and then his full-brother Mahmud in 1569.

Mehmed's childhood was fairly calm, his father being the only true heir to the empire, so they did not have to worry about strife. Mehmed and his siblings lived in peace with their parents in Manisa until 1574. Then in 1574 Sultan Selim passed away and Mehmed's father ascended the throne. With this, the life of the family turned upside down as they soon moved to Istanbul. There Mehmed's life was complicated by the power struggle between his mother, Safiye, and his grandmother, Nurbanu Sultan. This struggle may have only subsided for a few months when they mourned Prince Mahmud, who died in 1580.

In 1582, at the age of 16, a huge circumcision ceremony was held for the prince, organized by his aunt, Esmehan Sultan. The circumcision was performed by Cerrah Mehmed Pasha, who was the husband of Mehmed’s other aunt, Gevherhan. Maybe just after the circumcision, maybe even earlier, Mehmed got very close to Gevherhan and her husband. Perhaps the balanced couple brought some consolation to Mehmed’s life, who, being a sensitive soul, was certainly worn out by the political struggle in the harem.

Deterioration of his relationship with his father

Mehmed was extremely committed to his mother, so he defended Safiye with his full heart in her fight with Nurbanu. However, Sultan Murad was at least as committed to his own mother as Mehmed, so it was only a matter of time before the battle between the two women would destroy the relationship between the sultan and Mehmed also. Soon Safiye Sultan was exiled to the Old Palace in late 1582, or early 1583, along with her daughters. Mehmed begged his father not to humiliate Safiye for false accusations, but Murad was dismissive.

It is not known whether Mehmed was as angry with his grandmother as he was with his father, but it is certain that his grandmother tried to protect Mehmed. Nurbanu was already very ill by 1583, but she spent her last months trying to reconcile father and son. To this, she also managed to cover up a huge sin of Mehmed, which would easily cause a death penalty. Mehmed - perhaps to anger his father - had sex with one of his father's concubines, who got pregnant. The princes were forbidden to have sex and procreation until they were given their own province, and sexual intercourse with a member of the sultan’s harem was essentially a betrayal that the prince could have easily lost his life if Murad would found out. However, as soon as Nurbanu learned of the incident, she killed the concubine so that no trace of Mehmed's actions remained.

Mehmed left Istanbul in December 1583 to get his own province. This event usually involves a huge ceremony, with the Sultan personally giving his blessing to his son, escorting him out of the city. Before he left, Mehmed went to his father's usual audience where he asked him to go to the Old Palace together to ask for his mother's blessing before he leaves. And he also said Murad that he should forgive Safiye and marry her to restore her ruined honor. Murad immediately distracted his son and refused to show up for his farewell either. With this, Murad was the first sultan ever, who did not appear when his son left the capital. Mehmed was still stationed in the suburbs for days, waiting for his father, but Murad did not attend. In the end, on her death-bed, Nurbanu could convince her son to have better insights. The dying valide asked her son to swore that he would not hurt Mehmed and that he would settle his relationship with him.

The young prince

Mehmed certainly left the capital depressed, which was not helped by the fact that extremely cold winter weather was there so that they reached Manisa only by January 1584 with great difficulty. Then finally the prince could start his own life, start building his own circles. When he was circumcised, Mehmed had received plenty of presents, all of which he had taken with him to Manisa. These included several concubines, the most valuable of which he received from Gevherhan Sultan, who gave Mehmed a young Bosnian concubine of her own upbringing. The concubine was named Handan and soon she gave birth to children for Mehmed. Most historians see her as the mother of Mehmed's firstborn child, Prince Selim, who was born in February 1585.

Unfortunately, the princely harem of Mehmed is very poorly documented, so it is not known exactly which children were born from which concubines. Mehmed had two main concubines in Manisa, Handan, and Halime, but it is not certain that all the children came from these two women. Shortly after Prince Selim, a boy named Suleiman was born, but not much is known about him. In 1587/88 another son, Mahmud was born, who was undoubtedly the son of Halime; then he was followed in 1590 by Ahmed, the son of Handan. Most likely, more children were born during the princelyhood of Mehmed, but less is known about them. In addition to his sons, he also had at least three daughters, Hatice certainly from Halime; Ayşe probably from Handan; and his daughter, Şah, maybe from Halime.

But not only the Manisa harem was vivid with the ever-swelling family, great changes took place in Istanbul's harem as well. In 1585 (or sooner) Sultan Murad forgave Mehmed's mother and even married her. Thanks to this, Safiye was always there next to the sultan, so she again had the power to protect her son. Safiye eventually successfully balanced between Sultan Murad and his son, Mehmed, because it seems that the relationship between Murad and Mehmed has stabilized somewhat. However, Murad was afraid of his son for the rest of his life, for Mehmed began to become very popular in the eyes of the soldiers.

His accession to the throne

Murad died in 1595, and Safiye Sultan immediately sent a message to her son to come to Istanbul. An attempt was made to keep the sultan’s death as a secret, as Murad had produced plenty of boys over the past 15 years. True, they were all children, and their mothers did not have any power that could have endangered Mehmed's accession to the throne. Nonetheless, Safiye warned those around her to be careful and instead of sending a vizier to Mehmed with the news, he sent the chief gardener without any particular escorts. However, the news of Murad's death somehow leaked, according to several ambassadors, the situation became very dangerous in the capital, as they feared a rebellion. Dozens of people from the harem were thrown into the sea every night. Safiye and her supporters tried to maintain order and get rid of anyone who could have acted against them until Mehmed arrived.

Finally, Mehmed arrived eleven days later and ascended the throne. His accession to the throne can be considered historic in several ways. For he was the last sultan to ascend the throne, after ruling in a province and gain experience. In addition, the law of fratricide at the time of his accession started to be a dramatic, unnecessary event for the people of Istanbul and the statesmen. This is why the practice happened the last time in an official form at his accession. Upon Mehmed's arrival, he immediately ordered the execution of his younger brothers, during which nineteen princes were torn from their mother's arms and strangled. The next day at the funeral, nineteen small coffins followed the sultan's coffin. The people of Istanbul were shocked, and public opinion - although not condemning Mehmed for his deed (since he only followed the laws) - was changing clearly against the law of fratricide.

Like Mehmed's father, he ascended the throne at a relatively young age, being only 29 years old, about as many as Murad III or Suleiman I were when they ascended the throne. Mehmed was a promising candidate and tried to prove his abilities. Under pressure from his Veziers, he went on a campaign in person in 1596, which was quite unusual, since neither Murad III, nor Selim II lead a campaign. The purpose of the Viziers was to win the love of the soldiers and the recognition of the people.

His reign

So Mehmed himself led the campaign against the Kingdom of Hungary in 1596 and successfully occupied the castle of Eger. However, the occupation of the castle alone did not make the campaign successful, as they failed to win on several fronts and the war was not over. Although Mehmed earned the Gazi (conquerer) prefix for his name, he failed to win the love of the soldiers. The sultan behaved rather cowardly during the campaign, at one point, at the field of Mezőeresztes, on the advice of the chief eunuch Gazanfer Agha, he almost fled the battlefield.

Returning to Istanbul, although the glorious sultan was received with a huge ceremony and his popularity began to rise, his joy did not last long. In 1597, his eldest son Selim and a younger son, Suleiman, also died as a result of an epidemic so do one of his consorts and others from the palace. With this, the issue of inheritance has also become uncertain. Unlike her father, however, he did not start foolishly the reproduction. The fact is, however, that at least two sons were born during this period, probably both from Halime. Prince Cihangir was born in the late 1590s and died in 1602; Prince Mustafa was born in 1600 or 1601, as the last child of Mehmed.

It is clear that Mehmed tried to be different from his father in every way possible, so in addition to the campaign, he also tried to rid the palace of his father's people, his dwarves, his mutes, and other things which he considered unnecessary, but which his father found amusing. Mehmed forcibly wanted to win the love of the people and the soldiers by being different from his father, but it was his loving and beloved mother, Safiye, who hindered him the most in this. Mehmed gave his mother enough power to go beyond even his own father. Safiye's dominance is well exacerbated by the fact that returning home after the Eger campaign, Mehmed could not appoint the one he wanted to be Grand Vizier, but made his brother-in-law, former Grand Vizier Ibrahim Pasha as the new Grand-vizier, under pressure from his mother.

Mehmed was thought to be his mother’s puppet, which, objectively examined, also seems a legitimate accusation. It is not known for sure whether Mehmed was unfit to rule and his mother, therefore, tried to forcibly dominate Mehmed or Safiye was led by a simple hunger for power. Unfortunately, little is known about Mehmed, so his private life and personality are less known, which makes his judgment difficult. The sultan loved to spend most of his time in the harem, he loved to play chess with the daughter of one of the leading harem servants, he never argued with his mother or viziers, never executed anyone for fun. Mehmed seems more like a retreating, slightly ninny man, mom’s little boy who did anything for his mother, than a real strong man. True that as a prince, he opposed the sultan which would suggest he was maybe brave, but he did it for the sake of his mother, and as a sultan, he also gave her everything she wanted, so it seems there was only one thing that made Mehmed brave, and that was the doing something for his mother, Safiye. For her, even the ninny boy confronted anyone.

Conflicts

Mehmed's brief reign was accompanied by many rebellions. The reason for this was not primarily Mehmed’s person, but his mother Safiye, who put her own men in every possible position with which they build a corruption network that spanned the entire empire. And as a faithful child, Mehmed complied with all of his mother's requests. The resentment of the people finally culminated in 1600 during a Sipahi rebellion. In March, after Mehmed distributed the soldiers' fee among the statesmen, the Sipahis demanded the heads of every rich, corrupt statesman (and woman) from the sultan. It was the first really serious rebellion against Mehmed, but after a long rampage, he finally managed to convince the soldiers that he would change and will remove his mother from the vicinity of state affairs. So Mehmed’s fear eventually led him to repeat his own father’s deed: he exiled Safiye to the Old Palace. However, the exile was certainly only to reassure the soldiers as Safiye returned soon. In addition, after this uprising, for the first time in his life, he rejected a wish from his mother. During the rebellion, his mother's close friend, Esperanza Malchi, was murdered, and Safiye demanded revenge for the woman and demanded that his son replace two of his viziers, who she said did not protect Esperanza enough. However, Mehmed was so afraid of the rebellion that he rejected his mother harshly and briefly.

Not learning from the threat from the soldiers, Safiye and her men continued the corruption, and Mehmed could not (or did not want to) do anything about it. Thus, it is perhaps not surprising that in 1601 another revolt shook the capital. Then, on March 21, the Sipahis revolted again and sent a delegation to the sultan, demanding that he surrender several of his statesmen, if he did not give in to their demands, he could easily be the victim of dethronement. In fright, Mehmed agreed to extradite everyone on the list, but eventually, Safiye, Grand Vizier Damad Ibrahim Pasa, and Yemişci Hasan Pasa convinced the sultan that he could not betray his loyal men. The head mufti, Sunullah Efendi - who, by the way, secretly supported the uprising - eventually convinced the soldiers to calm down, changes would come.

Of course, no change took place, so in January 1603 there was another revolt against Mehmed, in which not only the Sipahis and the Ulema, but the Janissaries were included as well. On January 6, they captured Gazanfer Agha along with the chief black eunuch, Osman, and dragged them out of the palace, all the way to Topkapi’s third gate, where both were beheaded in front of the crowd and the sultan. According to eyewitnesses, the sultan began to sob as Gazanfer Agha was very close to him. The insurgents eventually were fine with the execution of Gazanfer, Osman Agha, and other less significant individuals and the uprising ended.

Another significant uprising associated with Mehmed’s reign was the Celali uprising, which spread throughout Anatolia and kept the empire on fire for decades to come. There have also been wars on several fronts between the Ottoman Empire and its neighbors. This much strife, of course, did not start only because of the person of Mehmed and Safiye but as the geopolitical situation also changed a lot, facilitating the development of rebellions and wars. However, the fact is that the Sultan’s person did not help the situation also.

Last drop

By 1603, Mehmed had only three living children left, Mahmud, Ahmed, and Mustafa. Since Mehmed did not have Haseki, he did not have a favorite concubine, the people did not know which son Mehmed himself favored. That is why everyone could hardly wait to send his sons to the province. After all, one could have guessed from the provincial classification to which son was the closest to Mehmed. However, events slowly showed the Sultan’s feelings on their own.

While Mehmed’s popularity was in ruins, his eldest living son, Mahmud, was popular very much. The Janissaries and Sipahis all supported the young prince, which caused strife between father and son. Mahmud repeatedly acted very recklessly in the presence of his father, for example, asking his father to give him an army to defeat Celalis; at other times he urged his father to give him province at last. For a sultan who experienced 3 rebellions in 3 years, these words could have been extremely frightening. Especially considering that Mahmud was very popular among the rebel soldiers, thanks to the fact that he spoke openly against Safiye several times. He claimed that his grandmother’s activities were very detrimental to the empire and that his father was essentially a puppet in the hands of the valide.

However, Mehmed even overlooked Mahmud's recklessness and support, as he never appointed Ahmed, perhaps the one he liked more, as heir to the throne against Mahmud. However, according to legend, Mahmud's mother Halime, in 1603 sent a letter to a seer to ask if her son would ever rule this empire. However, Safiye grabbed the reply letter and suspected Halime and Mahmud that they had conspired against the sultan. In addition, there were rumors circulating in the capital that Mahmud and his mother wanted to poison the sultan so that Mahmud could occupy the throne. This was already too much for Mehmed, so Halime and Mahmud were accused of treason, and their servants were tortured until they testified against them. And in the knowledge of these confessions, Mehmed sentenced his own son, Mahmud, to death, the sentence was carried out on June 7, 1603. All the ambassadors present during the events in the capital believed that Safiye was behind Mahmud's execution.

His death

The execution of Mahmud certainly had a negative effect on Mehmed's health, especially if he made the decision only under pressure from his mother, as the ambassadors suggested. Mehmed had been obese for years at the time, which was so heavy that he could not ride a horse, but he had no known illnesses or malaise. He was also relatively young, so the issue of inheritance was not so important in the eyes of the commoners. Shortly after Mahmud's death, however, Mehmed appointed Ahmed as heir. He wanted to refer to this by appearing at a state ceremony, where Safiye took Prince Ahmed to watch the state ceremony together. In addition, Mehmed arranged for Ahmed to accompany him wherever he went. Thus, from the summer of 1603, there was the new heir apparent to the throne, the sick, quiet Prince Ahmed.

Then, on the night of December 20, 1603, Mehmed died suddenly, certainly due to a heart attack, at the age of thirty-seven. His overweight and the much stress he suffered during his brief reign certainly contributed to the fatal heart attack. And the next morning he was succeeded on the throne by his thirteen-year-old son, the first sultan who never ruled in the province but ascended the throne without any experience. Mehmed was buried at Aya Sofia.

Used sources: C. Finkel - Osman's Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire; L. Peirce - The imperial harem; M. P. Pedani - Safiye's household and Venetian diplomacy; G. Börekçi - Factions and favourites at the courts of Sultan Ahmed I (r. 1603-17) and his immediate predecessors; Necdet Sakaoğlu - Bu Mülkün Kadın Sultanları; G. Börekçi - A Queen Mother at Work: On Handan Sultan and Her Regency during the Early Reign of Ahmed I; Kayaalp-Aktan - The Atik Valide Mosque Complex: A testament of Nurbanu’s prestige, power and piety; P. Kayaalp - The Empress Nurbanu and Ottoman Politics in the Sixteenth Century Building the Atik Valide; S. Faroqhi - The Ottoman Empire and the World around it; C. Imber - The Ottoman Empire 1300-1650; D.A. Howard - A History of the Ottoman Empire

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Származása és gyermekkora

Mehmed, 1566 májusában született Szulejmán szultán dédunokájaként, a leendő III. Mehmed és kedvenc ágyasa, Safiye elsőszülött fiaként. Születésekor az államférfiak meglehetősen aggódtak a dinasztia jövője miatt, ugyanis 1566 őszén Szulejmán szultán elhunyt, helyét fia, Szelim vette át, akinek egyetlen egy örököse volt, Murad. Muradnak pedig egyetlen fia, Mehmed. Emiatt végül a szultán maga rá lett kényszerítve, hogy fiakat nemzzen. Azonban Mehmed sem maradt sokáig testvérek nélkül. Féltestvére Szelim 1567-ben követte őt, majd 1569-ben édesöccse, Mahmud.

Mehmed gyermekkora meglehetősen felhőtlenül telt, apja volt a birodalom egyetlen igazi örököse, így nem kellett aggódniuk a trónviszályok miatt. Mehmed és testvérei egészen 1574-ig békében éltek Maniszában szüleikkel. 1574-ben aztán Szelim szultán elhunyt és Mehmed apja lépett a trónra. Ezzel a család élete alaposan felfordult és hamarosan Maniszát hátrahgyva Isztambulba költöztek. Itt Mehmed életét megnehezítette édesanyja, Safiye és nagyanyja, Nurbanu szultánák hatalmi harca. Ez a harc talán csak néhány hónapig enyhült, amíg az 1580-ban elhunyt Mahmud herceget gyászolták.

1582-ben, 16 éves korában hatalmas körülmetélési szertartást rendeztek a herceg számára, melyet nagynénje, Esmehan szultána rendezett. A körülmetélést Cerrah Mehmed Pasa végezte, aki Mehmed másik nagynénjének, Gevherhannak volt a férje. Talán épp a körülmetélés után, talán már előbb is, Mehmed nagyon közel került Gevherhanhoz és férjéhez. Talán a kiegyensúlyozott házaspár hozott némi vigaszt Mehmed életébe, akit érzékeny lélek lévén minden bizonnyal megviselt a háremben zajló politikai harc.

Apjával való viszonyának megromlása

Mehmed, az anyja iránt végletekig elkötelezett volt, így teljes mellszélességgel védte Safiyét a Nurbanuval vívott harcában. Murad szultán azonban legalább annyira elkötelezett volt saját anyja iránt, mint Mehmed, így csak idő kérdése volt, hogy a két nő csatározása a szultán és Mehmed viszonyát is megkeseríti majd. Safiye szultánát 1582 végén, vagy 1583 elején száműzte a szultán lányaival együtt a Régi Palotába. Mehmed kérlelte apját, hogy ne alázza meg hamis vádak miatt Safiyét, Murad azonban elutasító volt.

Nem tudni, hogy Mehmed nagyanyjára is hasonlóan dühös volt e, mint apjára, az azonban bizonyos, hogy nagyanyja igyekezett óvni Mehmedet. Nurbanu 1583-ban már nagyon beteg volt, azonban utolsó hónapjait azzal töltötte, hogy igyekezett kibékíteni apát és fiút. Ennek érdekében egy halált érő bűntettet is sikerült eltussolnia. Mehmed ugyanis - talán, hogy bosszút álljon apján - szexuális kapcsolatot létesített apja egyik ágyasával, aki teherbe is esett tőle. A hercegek számára tiltott volt a szex és gyermeknemzés, amíg nem kapnak saját provinciát, emellett a szultán háremének tagjával való szexuális együttlét lényegében felségárulás volt, amiért akár halállal is lakolhatott volna a herceg, ha Murad rájön. Nurbanu azonban amint tudomást szerzett az esetről megölette az ágyast, hogy ne maradjon nyoma Mehmed tettének.

Mehmed 1583 decemberében hagyta el Isztambult, hogy saját provinciát kapjon. Ez az esemény általában hatalmas ünnepséggel jár, a szultán személyesen adja áldását fiára, kíséri ki őt a városból. Távozása előtt Mehmed a szokásos audienciára ment apjához, amikor újra megkérte őt, hogy menjenek el együtt a Régi Palotába, hogy anyja áldását kérhesse távozása előtt, valamint apja egyébként is bocsásson meg Safiyének és vegye őt feleségül, hogy helyreállítsa lerombolt becsületét. Murad azonnal elzavarta fiát, és nem volt hajlandó megjelenni a búcsúztatásán sem. Ezzel Murad volt a valaha élt első szultán, aki nem jelent meg fia távozásakor, hogy áldását adja rá. Mehmed napokig állomásozott még a külvárosban, várta apját, Murad azonban nem ment. Jobb belátásra végül csak Nurbanu szultána tudta bírni a szultánt, halálos ágyán. A haldokló valide megeskette fiát, hogy nem fogja bántani Mehmedet, és hogy rendezi vele kapcsolatát.

Az ifjú herceg

Mehmed minden bizonnyal lehangoltan hagyta el a fővárost, melyen nem segített az a tény sem, hogy extrém hideg tél dúlt éppen, így csak nagy nehézségek árán érték el Maniszát 1584 januárjára. Ekkor végre a herceg fellélegezhetett, elkezdhette saját életét, elkezdhette kiépíteni saját köreit. Mehmed körülmetélésekor már rengeteg ajándékot kapott, melyeket mind magával vitt Maniszába. Ezek közé több ágyas is tartozott, melyek közül a legértékesebbet Gevherhan szultánától kapta, aki egy saját maga által nevelt fiatal bosnyák származású ágyast adott Mehmednek. Az ágyas a Handan nevet kapta és hamarosan gyermekeket szült Mehmednek. Legtöbb történész neki tulajdonítja Mehmed elsőszülött gyermekét, Szelim herceget, aki 1585 februárjában született.

Sajnos Mehmed hercegi háreme igen rosszul dokumentált, így nem tudni pontosan, mely gyermekek mely ágyasoktól születtek. Mehmednek két fő ágyasa volt Maniszában Handan és Halime, azonban nem bizonyos, hogy minden gyermek ettől a két nőtől származott volna. Szelim herceg után nemsokkal egy Szulejmán nevű fiú is született, akiről azonban nem sokat tudni. 1587/88-ban újabb fiú, Mahmud jött világra, aki kétség kívül Halime fia volt; majd őt követte 1590-ben Ahmed, Handan fia. Nagy valószínűséggel további gyermekek is születtek Mehmed hercegsége során, ám róluk kevesebbet tudni. Fiai mellett legalább három lánya is volt, Hatice bizonyosan Halimétől; Ayşe pedig valószínűleg Handantól; Şah nevű lánya pedig talán Halimétől.

Ám nem csak Maniszában zajlott az élet az egyre duzzadó háremmel, Isztambulban is nagy változások következtek be. 1585-ben (vagy már hamarabb) Mehmed fellélegezhetett, ugyanis édesapja megbocsájtott édesanyjának, sőt feleségül is vette. Ennek köszönhetően Safiye ott volt mindig a szultán mellett, így újra volt hatalma megóvni fiát. Safiye végül sikeresen egyensúlyozott Murad szultán és fiuk, Mehmed között, mert olyabá tűnik, hogy Murad és Mehmed kapcsolata valamelyest stabilizálódott. Murad azonban élete végéig tartott fiától, amiért Mehmed igen népszerűvé kezdett válni a katonák szemében.

Trónralépése

Murad 1595-ben elhunyt, Safiye szultána pedig azonnal üzent fiának, hogy jöjjön Isztambulba. A szultán halálhírét igyekeztek titokban tartani, hiszen Murad rengeteg fiút nemzett az elmúlt 15 évben. Igaz mind gyermek volt még csupán, anyjaik pedig nem rendelkeztek semmiféle hatalommal, ami veszélyeztethette volna Mehmed trónralépését. Ettől függetlenül Safiye óvatosságra intette a körülötte lévőket és ahelyett, hogy egy vezírt küldött volna Mehmedhez a hírrel, a főkertészt küldte különösebb kíséret nélkül. Azonban Murad halálhíre valahogyan mégis kiszivárgott, több követ beszámolója szerint a helyzet igen veszélyessé vált a fővárosban, lázadástól tartottak ugyanis. A háremből pedig minden éjszaka több tucat embert vetettek a tengerbe. Safiye és támogatói igyekeztek fenntartani a rendet és megszabadulni mindenkitől, aki ellenük tehetett volna, amíg Mehmed megérkezett.

Végül Mehmed tizenegy nap múlva megérkezett és elfoglalta a trónt. Trónralépése történelminek tekinthető több szempontból is. Ő volt ugyanis az utolsó szultán, aki úgy került trónra, hogy előtte saját tartományt igazgatott, melyben felkészülhetett az uralkodásra. Emellett a testvérgyilkosság törvénye az ő trónralépésekor verte ki a biztosítékot Isztambul népe és államférfijai között, így ő gyakorolta utoljára hivatalos formában. Mehmed megérkezésekor azonnal elrendelte öccsei kivégzését, melynek során tizenkilenc herceget téptek ki anyjuk karjából és fojtották meg őket. Másnap a temetésen tizenkilenc kicsi koporsó követte a szultán koporsóját. Isztambul népe pedig sokkot kapott, a közvélemény - bár nem ítélte el Mehmedet a tettéért (hiszen csak a törvényeket követte) - egyértelműen a testvérgyilkosság törvénye ellen kezdett formálódni.

Mehmed apjához hasonlóan viszonylag fiatalon lépett trónra, hiszen csak 29 éves volt, körülbelül annyi, mint III. Murad vagy I. Szulejmán voltak, mikor elfoglalták a trónt. Mehmed ígéretes jelölt volt, és igyekezett is bizonyítani rátermettségét. Vezírei nyomására 1596-ban személyesen indult hadjáratra, ami meglehetősen szokatlan volt, hiszen sem III. Murad, sem II. Szelim nem vezettek szultánként hadjáratot. A vezírek célja az volt, hogy elnyerjék a katonák szeretetét és a nép elismerését.

Uralkodása

Mehmed tehát maga vezette az 1596-os Magyar Királyság elleni hadjáratot és sikerrel foglalta el Eger várát. Azonban a vár elfoglalása önmagában nem tette a hadjáratot sikeressé, hiszen több fronton nem sikerült győzedelmeskedniük és a háború nem ért véget. Mehmed bár kiérdemelte a Gazi (hódító) előtagot nevéhez, nem sikerült kivívnia a katonák szeretetét. A szultán ugyanis meglehetősen gyáván viselkedett a hadjárat során, egy ponton, Mezőkeresztesnél a főeunuch Gazanfer Aga tanácsára majdnem kocsin menekült el a csatatérről.

Isztambulba visszatérve bár hatalmas ünnepséggel fogadták a dicső szultánt és népszerűsége emelkedni kezdett, öröme nem tartott sokáig. 1597-ben legidősebb fia Szelim és egy kisebb fia, Szulejmán is elhunytak egy járvány következtében, akárcsak egyik ágyasa és sokan mások is a palotából. Ezzel az öröklés kérdése is bizonytalanná vált. Apjától eltérően azonban nem kezdett esztelen gyermeknemzésbe. Tény azonban, hogy legalább két fia született ebben az időszakban, valószínűleg mindketten Halimétől. Cihangir herceg az 1590-es évek végén született és 1602-ben el is hunyt; Musztafa herceg pedig 1600-ban vagy 1601-ben jött világra, Mehmed utolsó gyermekeként.

Jól látható, hogy Mehmed igyekezett minden létező módon különbözni apjától, így a hadjárat mellett a palotát is próbálta megszabadítani apja kegyeltjeitől, törpéitől, némáitól és más általa feleslegesnek megítélt dolgoktól, melyeket az apja szórakoztatónak talált. Mehmed kényszeresen szerette volna elnyerni népe és katonái szeretetét, azzal, hogy más lesz, mint apja volt, azonban ebben épp szerető és szeretett édesanyja, Safiye gátolta a legjobban. Mehmed akkora hatalmat adott anyja kezébe, mellyel még saját apján is túl tett. Jól pédázza Safiye dominanciáját az a tény, hogy az egri hadjárat után hazatérve Mehmed nem nevezhette ki azt akit akart nagyvezírré, hanem anyja nyomására kényszerből nevezte ki sógorát, a korábbi nagyvezír Ibrahim Pasát.

Mehmedről úgy tartották, hogy édesanyja bábja, ami objektíven vizsgálva az eseményeket is jogos vádnak tűnik. Nem tudni biztosan, hogy Mehmed alkalmatlan volt e az uralkodásra és anyja ezért igyekezett erőszakosan dominálni Mehmedet vagy egyszerű hatalom-éhség vezette Safiyét. Mehmedről sajnos keveset tudunk, így magánélete, személyisége is kevéssé ismert, mely megnehezíti megítélését. A szultán szerette ideje nagyrészét a háremben tölteni, szeretett sakkozni az egyik vezető háremszolga lányával, sosem került szembe anyjával és olyan esemény sem maradt ránk, amik alapján vérengző szultán képe rajzolódhatna ki előttünk. Mehmed inkább tűnik egy visszahúzódó, kissé mulya férfinak, anyu kicsi fiának, aki az anyjáért bármit megtett, mintsem valódi erős férfinak. Igaz, még hercegként szembeszállt a szultánnal, ami azt sugallhatná, hogy bátor volt, ám ezt is édesanyja érdekében tette, majd szultánként mindent megadott neki, amit csak akart, így úgy tűnik, egy dolog volt csak, ami mátorrá tette Mehmedet, mégpedig, ha az anyja kedvére kellett tennie. Érte ugyanis még a mulya fiú is szembe szállt bárkivel.

Viszályok

Mehmed igen rövid uralkodását sok sok lázadás és viszály kísérte. Ennek oka elsődlegesen nem Mehmed személye volt, hanem édesanyja Safiye, aki saját embereit ültette minden pozícióba, mellyel az egész birodalmat átívelő korrupciós hálózatot építettek ki. Mehmed pedig hűséges gyermekként anyja minden kérését teljesítette. A nép ellenérzései végül 1600-ban csúcsosodtak ki egy szpáhi lázadás során. Márciusban, miután Mehmed, a katonák jussát az államférfiak között osztotta szét, a szpáhik minden gazdag, korrupt államférfi (és nő) fejét követelték a szultántól. Ez volt az első igazán komoly lázadás Mehmed ellen, ám hosszas tombolás után végül sikerült meggyőznie a katonákat arról, hogy változtatni fog, anyját pedig eltávolítja az államügyek közeléből. Mehmed félelme tehát végül odajuttatta őt, hogy saját apja tettét ismételte meg: száműzte Safiyét a Régi Palotába. A száműzetés azonban minden bizonnyal csak a katonák megnyugtatását szolgálta hiszen Safiye hamarosan visszatért. Emellett ezen felkelés után utasította el nagyjából életében először anyja egy kívánságát. A lázadás során ugyanis anyja közeli barátját, Esperanza Malchit meggyilkolták, Safiye pedig bosszút követelt a nőért és követelte fiától, hogy váltsa le két vezírét, akik szerinte nem óvták eléggé Esperanzát. Mehmed azonban annyira félt a lázadástól, hogy anyját ridegen és röviden elutasította.

Nem tanulva a katonák fenyegetéséből, Safiye és emberei tovább folytatták a nagylábon élést és korrupciót, Mehmed pedig nem tudott (vagy nem is akart) tenni ellene. Így talán nem meglepő, hogy 1601-ben újabb lázadás rázta meg a fővárost. Március 21-én aztán a szpáhik ismételten fellázadtak és delegációt küldtek a szultánhoz, követelve, hogy mondassa le több államférfiját is, ha ugyanis nem enged követeléseiknek, könnyen trónfosztás áldozata lehet. Mehmed ijedtében beleegyezett, hogy kiadat mindenkit aki a listán szerepelt, de végül Safiye szultána, a nagyvezír Damad Ibrahim Pasa és Yemişci Hasan Pasa meggyőzték a szultánt, hogy nem adhatja ki hűséges embereit. A főmufti, Sunullah Efendi - aki egyébként titokban támogatta a felkelést - végül meggyőzte a katonákat, hogy nyugodjanak meg, változások fognak következni.

Természetesen nem történt semmiféle változás, így 1603 januárjában újabb lázadás történt Mehmed ellen, melyhez a szpáhik és az ulema mellett a janicsárok is csatlakoztak. Január 6-án elkapták Gazanfer agát a fő fekete eunuchal, Osmannal együtt és kirángatták őket a palotából, egészen a Topkapi harmadik kapujáig, ahol a tömeg és a szultán szeme láttára mindkettőt lefejezték. Szemtanúk szerint a szultán zokogni kezdett, hiszen Gazanfer Aga igen közel állt hozzá. A felkelők végül megelégedtek Gazanfer, Osman Aga és más kevésbé jelentős személyek kivégzésével és a felkelés véget ért.

Másik jelentős felkelés, ami Mehmed uralkodásához kötődik, a Celali felkelés volt, ami Anatólia szerte terjedt és még hosszú évtizedekig tartotta lángokban a birodalmat. Emellett több fronton zajlott háború is az Oszmán Birodalom és szomszédai között. Ez a sok viszály természetesen nem csak Mehmed és Safiye személye miatt indult el, hiszen a geopolitikai helyzet is sokat változott elősegítve a lázadások és háborúk kialakulását. Azonban tény, hogy a szultán személye nem segített a helyzeten.

Utolsó csepp

1603-ra Mehmednek csupán három élő gyermeke maradt, Mahmud, Ahmed és Mustafa. Mivel Mehmednek nem volt Haszekije, nem volt kiemelt kedvenc ágyasa, nem tudta a nép, hogy Mehmed maga mely fiát favorizálja. Épp emiatt alig várta mindenki, hogy fiait tartományba küldje. Hiszen a tartomány-beosztás alapján lehetett volna sejteni, hogy melyik fia iránt hogyan érez a szultán. Azonban az események lassacskán maguktól is megmutatták a szultán érzéseit.

Míg Mehmed népszerűsége romokban volt, legidősebb élő fia, Mahmud népszerűsége az egekben. A janicsárok és a szpáhik mind támogatták az ifjú herceget, ami viszályt okozott apa és fia között. Mahmud többször is igen meggondolatlanul viselkedett apja jelenlétében, így például kérte apját, hogy adjon neki sereget, hogy legyőzhesse a szultán ellen lázadó Celalikat Anatóliában; máskor sürgette apját, hogy adjon neki tartományt végre. Egy szultánnak, aki 3 év alatt 3 lázadást tapasztalt meg, ezek a szavak rendívül ijesztőek lehettek. Különösen ha figyelembe vesszük, hogy Mahmud a lázadó katonák között igen népszerű volt, hála annak, hogy többször szólalt fel nyíltan Safiye ellen. Azt állította, hogy nagyanyja tevékenysége igen káros a birodalomra és, hogy apja lényegében egy báb a valide kezében.

Mehmed azonban még elnézte Mahmud meggondolatlanságát és támogatottságát is, hiszen sosem jelölte ki Mahmud ellenében az általa talán jobban kedvelt Ahmedet trónörökösnek. Azoban a legendák szerint Mahmud anyja Halime, 1603-ban levelet küldött egy látnoknak, hogy megkérdezze, fia uralkodni fog e valaha a birodalomban. A válaszlevelet azonban Safiye kaparintotta meg és meggyanusította Halimét és Mahmudot, hogy azok összeesküdtek a szultán ellen. Emellett pedig a fővárosban olyan pletykák keringtek, hogy Mahmud és anyja meg akarja mérgezni a szultánt, hogy Mahmud elfoglalhassa a trónt. Ez már Mehmednek is sok volt, így Halimét és Mahmudot megvádolták árulással, szolgáikat addig kínozták, míg nem vallottak ellenük. Ezen vallomások ismeretében pedig Mehmed halálra ítélte saját fiát, Mahmudot és az ítéletet 1603. június 7-én végre is hajtották. Minden követ, aki jelen volt az események során a fővárosban úgy tartotta, hogy Mahmud kivégzése mögött Safiye állt.

Halála

Mahmud kivégzése minden bizonnyal negatívan hatott Mehmed egészségére, különösen ha csak anyja nyomására hozta meg a döntést, ahogy a követek sugallták. Mehmed ekkor már évek óta el volt hízva, mely olyansúlyos kereteket öltött, hogy lóra sem tudott ülni, emellett azonban nem volt ismert betegsége, nem voltak rosszullétei. Fiatal is volt, így a trónöröklés kérdése nem volt olyan fontos a köznép szemében. Nemsokkal Mahmud halála után azonban Mehmed kijelölte Ahmed fiát örököséül. Erre egy állami ceremónián való megjelenéssel akart utalni, ahová Safiye vitte el Ahmed herceget az Aranyszarv-öbölbe, hogy együtt nézzék meg az állami ceremóniát. Emellett Mehmed elrendezte, hogy akárhová megy, Ahmed elkísérje. Így tehát 1603 nyarától meg volt az új trónörökös, a beteges, csendes Ahmed herceg.

1603. december 20-án éjjel aztán Mehmed hirtelen elhunyt, minden bizonnyal szívrohamban, harminchét évesen. Túlsúlya és a sok stressz, ami rövid uralkodása alatt érte minden bizonnyal elősegítette a végzetes szívrohamot. Másnap reggel pedig tizenhárom éves fia követte a trónon, az első szultán aki sosem uralkodott tartományban, hanem minden tapasztalat nélkül lépett trónra. Mehmedet az Aya Sofyiában helyezték végső nyugalomra.

Felhasznált források: C. Finkel - Osman's Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire; L. Peirce - The imperial harem; M. P. Pedani - Safiye's household and Venetian diplomacy; G. Börekçi - Factions and favourites at the courts of Sultan Ahmed I (r. 1603-17) and his immediate predecessors; Necdet Sakaoğlu - Bu Mülkün Kadın Sultanları; G. Börekçi - A Queen Mother at Work: On Handan Sultan and Her Regency during the Early Reign of Ahmed I; Kayaalp-Aktan - The Atik Valide Mosque Complex: A testament of Nurbanu’s prestige, power and piety; P. Kayaalp - The Empress Nurbanu and Ottoman Politics in the Sixteenth Century Building the Atik Valide; S. Faroqhi - The Ottoman Empire and the World around it; C. Imber - The Ottoman Empire 1300-1650; D.A. Howard - A History of the Ottoman Empire

[absurdjustice]

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Send me ✔ and I will bold my preferences for your muse! || @eliminatorleck || No longer accepting

My muse(s): Nagamasa Azai

Do I know your muse(s): yes | no | a little | tell me about your muse

Setting: our verse | my verse | your verse | modern | alternate universe | other

Pre-established relationships? yes | no | depends on the relationship

Possible relationships: friends | classmate | co-worker | roommate | family, real or adopted | dating or blind date | married | friends with benefits | unrequited love | lending a hand | teacher - student | rivals | allies | partner-in-crime | enemies | protecter - guarded | business partners | spy - infiltrated | manipulator - manipulated | star-crossed | first meeting | other

I’m in the mood for: fluff | angst | horror | romance | humor | crime | hurt / comfort | action | supernatural | slice of life | crack | dark threads | light threads | any genre | multi-para | shorter para | one-line | any length | plotted threads | unplotted threads | other

Feel free to: message me ooc | message me ic | tell me your ideas | write a starter | answer one of my opens | send a meme | reblog this with your preferences - let’s find common interests!

Extra: At this point, I think there’s a 50-50 chance that Leck and Nagamasa could be on good terms or bad terms, mostly because of how gullible Nagamasa can be. XD You mentioned in Leck’s bio that he’s cunning and knows when to behave politely, so if he decides to act polite around Nagamasa, it wouldn’t be too difficult for Leck to start gaining Nagamasa’s trust. Despite the fact that Nagamasa and Leck are so different, what they do have in common is that they dislike being cheated or being lied to. Also, even if Nagamasa somehow found out later that Leck is an Eliminator, that wouldn’t necessarily make him want to cut all ties with Leck / end a potential friendship or alliance with Leck. Assassination, espionage, and surprise attacks are pretty common where Nagamasa comes from (although they’re usually carried out by ninjas rather than samurai like Nagamasa), and although Nagamasa isn’t a fan of such tactics since they go against his ideals of being honest and just, he very grudgingly acknowledges that they have a place in society. Because of his ideals, I think it’d be very unlikely that Nagamasa would hire Leck as an eliminator, because Nagamasa would have an attitude of, “if I want someone dead, I’ll kill them myself!” By the way, even without knowing Leck, Nagamasa would totally rescue him if he felt he needed to. He’s a self-proclaimed hero of justice, so he’ll rescue any stranger without asking too many questions, if they’re in big trouble. XD

Nagamasa would also want to learn more about outer space, the Ferengi, and Leck’s stories, if he’s willing to share. Nagamasa’s never met anyone who isn’t from Earth, and since he’s from late 1500′s / early 1600′s Japan, he hardly has any concept of what an extraterrestrial is. He doesn’t really know about other planets, let alone other solar systems / galaxies / etc., and the only extraterrestrials he can think of are both Japanese legends (the rabbit pounding mochi on the moon, and Princess Kaguya, also from the moon). I’m not sure how much of an interest Leck has in human history, especially what I imagine would be very old human history by his standards, but Nagamasa would happily share tales of his upbringing as a samurai and the battles he’s fought in, in return for Leck’s stories about space.

On the other hand, if Nagamasa learned about Leck’s true nature, he’d immediately label him “evil” and want to kill him. That having been said, Nagamasa is a (mostly) normal human without any weapons, and I imagine Leck is stronger than him and a lot more experienced with fighting, so even with the five small explosions a day that Nagamasa’s been given, I think he’d die pretty easily if he tried to fight Leck right now. He wouldn’t be a fun challenge for Leck at all. XD In addition, since Nagamasa’s whole deal is about seeking out evil and eliminating it, no matter who he angers or what kind of trouble it lands him in, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone hires Leck to eliminate Nagamasa someday.

[teddyshoney]

So, in celebration of posting my 50th fic on AO3 this morning, I decided to make a masterpost of all my fics so far. I’m quite excited to get all of them in one place on Tumblr! I have written some stories that I recognize might squick some people out, so I will put those beneath the cut. Clicking on the title of the work or series will take you to the story or series on AO3. Each of my stories is posted on FF.net, too. Clicking on FF.net at the end of each description will take you to the story or the first story in the series for each series listed. (FF.net is rather infuriating in that there is no good way to mark stories in a series. If you have questions about series order on FF.net, feel free to message me, and I’ll help you out.) So, without further ado, here we go!

One-Shots:

It Was All Your Fault (9988 words) --  Finn and Puck are getting married! Mike and Kurt, their two best men, have put together a weekend excursion to celebrate the upcoming wedding, but they may not be the only ones planning something. (This really ended up being a Klaine story despite what the summary makes it sound like.) FF.net

Respect and Obey (8443 words) --  Blaine has always had a little trouble with his anxiety, and the pandemic is causing an attack. His Dom tries to help, but sometimes it's hard to shut off the voices in your head. (This is a D/s story with Dom!Kurt and sub!Blaine.) FF.net

Take a Chance on Me by Abba (1760 words) --  Blaine takes Kurt on a surprise outing that doesn't go as planned. (Written for Klaine Valentine’s Day Challenge 2019 but is a standalone work.) FF.net

I Could Fall in Love by Selena (1530 words) --  Blaine has had feelings for Kurt since the day that they met, but he doesn't think Kurt is in love with him. A few comments from Wes go to his head, and Blaine gets a surprise he didn't count on. *This story takes place while Kurt and Blaine are attending Dalton Academy and does not completely comply with cannon events. (Written for Klaine Valentine’s Day Challenge 2019 but is a standalone work.) FF.net

Whenever You’re Away From Me by Olivia Newton John (2921 words) --  Kurt's in New York, and Blaine is still in Lima. When Sam invites him to drive to New York with he and his dad, Blaine accepts, planning a surprise for Kurt. (Written for Klaine Valentine’s Day Challenge 2019 but is a standalone work.) FF.net

This Is the Time by Billy Joel (1009 words) --  Kurt and Blaine are supposed to be writing their wedding vows separately. But they're really struggling, and they both need just a little bit of comfort. (Written for Klaine Valentine’s Day Challenge 2019 but is a standalone work. I did not upload this work to FF.net. If I choose to in the future, I’ll add the link here.)

Christmas Cookies (2000 words) --  Kurt's headed back to work from the bakery when he bumps into a very upset Blaine. He decides his time is better spent taking care of his sad husband than at work, so they go home to work out Blaine's problem. (Written for Glee Potluck Big Bang Advent 2019 but is a standalone work.) FF.net

Series:

In Every Lifetime (314,220 words) -- This is a series that I’m writing with @jayhawk-writes. There are currently eight stories in this series, and we have plans for several more. We’ve been taking turns writing stories for the ‘verse. The series summary is:  A series of connected AUs inspired by this line from Blaine's proposal: "It's always felt like I was remembering you from something. As if, in every lifetime you and I have ever lived, we've chosen to come back and find each other and fall in love all over again. Over and over for all of eternity." 1. The Unknown (864 words by me) -- Kurt and Blaine have a choice to make... FF.net 2. Domus Civita (62,612 words by jayhawk-writes) --  While on vacation to a city he's never been to, Kurt Hummel finds himself in a place that he recognized from his dreams. The person he always sees in those dreams is there, too, and they spot him and ask, “Is it really you?” FF.net 3. It Only Took an Hour (19,072 words by me) --  Kurt's been set up on a blind date at a bar that he hates. And the blind date is a no-show. There is this really cute boy that walks in, though, and Kurt can't stop watching him dance and flirt. The whole story takes place over the course of an hour with the exception of the prologue. FF.net 4. The Writing on My Skin (35,530 words by jayhawk-writes) --  Soulmates, when the younger of the two turns 16, both get a unique mark somewhere on their skin that will have or has had some meaning to them. They can write to each other back and forth by writing on their skin. Kurt Hummel has been waiting for his soulmate to finally turn 16 so that he would have someone to talk to about all of the things he can't tell his dad or other friends. Nobody really knows how bad the bullying has gotten at McKinley. He hopes that his soulmate can help him get through this tough time, but he has no way of knowing that Fate, and Noah Puckerman, will lead him right to his soulmate. FF.net 5. Nothing Can Keep Us Apart (44,467 words by me) --  Blaine is a Prince...well, he used to be. Now, he's just a lowly Peasant living in the city of Hucal, a kingdom under the rule of the man who ordered his father to be killed. Unexpectedly, Blaine falls in love with a boy, a boy who should be far, far out of his reach. And just as he thinks that things are looking up for him, Hucal goes to war, and Blaine must fight. Will he make it home? Will he get to marry his soulmate? Will they have their happily ever after? FF.net 6. The Silver-Scaled Mark (52,737 words by jayhawk-writes) --  Blaine is a half-elf living in a town of full-blooded elves. He doesn’t fit in and is bullied almost daily for his heritage. One day Blaine finds solace in the library and later finds a book that talks about the magic in his world. He is drawn to it and wants to learn all he can. After Blaine has consumed all of the books in his town, he goes off to college to become a wizard so that he can help protect those that are not able to adequately defend themselves. Once he has graduated, he finds that he and several companions are part of a prophecy that will help unite the races in his world. FF.net 7. When Worlds Collide (currently 70,521 words by me) --  Kurt Hummel and Blaine Anderson are soulmates and fairies; they have a wonderful little family, and Kurt is a successful author. When his daughters beg him to read his new book to them for a bedtime story, Kurt and Blaine relieve their pasts, and we learn exactly how they became soulmates and lovers in a most unconventional and unlikely way. (There are two or three chapters left to post of this story.) FF.net 8. Guarding the Shadows (currently 28,417 words by jayhawk-writes) --  Too distracted by their love for each other to make their own choices, Kurt and Blaine are thrust into an adventure they know almost nothing about. Born in mid-1600 London, they must overcome many obstacles including their financial barriers and their desire to find true love. However, there's a hidden piece of the puzzle they know nothing about: vampires. (This story is currently updating weekly on Saturdays.) FF.net

The Adventures of Josh, Jasper, and Liza (25,779 words in 3 works) -- In the first story of this series, Kurt and Blaine adopt three kids: Josh, Jasper, and Liza. This story is based on the movie Instant Family. The following two stories in that series recount a few days in their lives following the adoption. I plan to write more stories for this series. FF.net

Engaged for Graduation (8189 words in 2 works) -- This is a canon divergent series in which Kurt proposes to Blaine on the night of his high school graduation at the end of season 3. I have more stories planned for this series. FF.net

The Ander-Hummel Family (14,023 words in 6 works) -- This series is a continuation of canon. Rachel is Kurt and Blaine’s surrogate; we follow them through the pregnancy and some adventures after the baby is born. I am writing more stories for this series as well as finishing the last story posted in this series. FF.net

Klaine Is My Favorite Hallmark Movie (3320 words in 2 works) -- I didn’t intend for this to be a series but as I was trying to work on some stories for the Glee Potluck Big Bang Advent prompts, this series was born. In the first story, Kurt and Blaine talk about what they think their Hallmark movie would be like. Then, in the next story, they do a bit of roleplay for their Hallmark movie. I don’t know if there will be more stories in this series or not. FF.net

Blaine Has Fibromyalgia (4757 words in 2 works) -- I didn’t intend for this to be a series either. I wrote the first story about how Blaine got fibro in order to deal with my feelings surrounding the possibility that I might have fibro as well. The second story, which I just posted this morning, was born out of needing to deal with another situation related to fibro. I don’t know if there will be more stories in this series or not. FF.net

Below the cut is a list of my series that have some themes others might be squicked out by. 

Puckurt Ageplay (25,736 words in 4 works) -- In this series, Puck starts dating Kurt and their relationship morphs into an ageplay relationship with Kurt as the little following Burt’s election to Congress. I have plans to add more works to this series. FF.net

Puckurt Needs Blaine (14,943 words in 1 work) -- This is a spinoff series in which Blaine joins the Puckurt relationship as a little. I have more works planned in this series. FF.net

Klainofsky (36,331 words in 4 works) -- In this series, Blaine calls Dave up one night out of the blue and tells him that he and Kurt are having problems in their relationship. This leads into an ageplay relationship with Dave as the Daddy and Kurt and Blaine as the littles. I have more stories planned for this series. FF.net

Blaine and Kurt (9376 words in 4 works) -- This is an ageplay series in which Blaine is the Daddy and Kurt is the little. I have plans for more stories in this series. FF.net

Kurt and Blaine (44,091 words in 6 works) -- This is an ageplay series in which Kurt is the Daddy and Blaine is the little. The first few stories are an introduction to their dynamic, but the third story, A Visit to Grandma and Grandpa’s, is where the series really starts to head in a specific direction, and we see the addition of Finn and Sam in a Daddy/little relationship as well. I plan to finish the last posted story and still have more stories planned for the series. FF.net

You and Me Plus Puckerman Spells Family (42,120 words in 5 works) -- This ageplay series follows Puck as the little and Kurt and Blaine as Papa and Daddy. Their dynamic begins when Puck shows up drunk at Burt and Carole’s. He’s recently broken up with Quinn again and due to his drinking has lost all his pool cleaning jobs. Having promised Finn before his passing that they would look out for Puck, Kurt and Blaine fly in from New York to bring Noah home with them to start his new life. I have plans for more stories in this series. FF.net

[a-cai-jpg]

it's startlingly easy for the line between reality and fantasy to blur

(hold on tight, don't lose your grip.)

glossary:

S. - novel by Doug Dorst and J.J. Abrams Ship of Theseus - fictional novel by V.M. Straka S. -  character in Ship of Theseus "S" - collective of writers Ekstrom, Durand, Summersby - part of "S" Filomela - editor for V.M. Straka Signe Rabe - daughter to Ekstrom and Durand (contested!) Desjardins - Straka scholar, married to Signe Rabe

For the past few days, I've been reading and re-reading a book titled S.

S. is a novel co-written between Doug Dorst and J.J. Abrams. (I believe Dorst did most of the writing and Abrams came up with the idea.)

I was taken by the novel when I first saw it because of the handwritten notes in the margins and the inserts.

(I don't know if y'all remember those huge, flip books in Costco that would have inserts and pop-ups about dragons and faeries and stuff. I used to spend hours standing in that aisle flipping and perusing through all of them.)

But damn, S. is so much more than margin-notes and fake post cards.

S. is a novel with three different storylines.

When you first take the physical book out of its booksleeve, it's a book titled Ship of Theseus by V.M. Straka, a novel published posthumously by Straka's editor, Filomela, after his untimely death in 1946.

Within this 456-page book, you become privy to the lives of three groups of people. Firstly, there is the protagonist of Ship of Theseus, a amnesiac man simply named S. Then, there are the authors of the margin-notes, Jen and Eric, two students at Pollard State University trying to discover the secret behind the mysterious and elusive author of Ship of Theseus, V.M. Straka. Lastly, there is the story of Straka himself.

(I feel like I can't talk about the book without explaining what I found in the book, so heavy spoiler alert.)

After some extensive note-taking and reading, I've more or less figured out the three storylines. I will allude to two of them, but the following is an in-depth-ish synopsis of Ship of Theseus itself. 

In Ship of Theseus, S. wakes up in an unnamed town known only as The Old Quarter, washed up from shore. He hears voices of those suffering, and he meets a girl who introduces herself as Sola. She is reading a novel titled The Archer's Tales. This is a real book (real, in the sense that it exists in the second level, the Jen and Eric level), written by Sobreiro. In Spanish, it is El Libro de Ese (The Book of S).

S. is kidnapped and wakes up on a ship, which is later revealed to have the name Sobreiro etched on its hull. After a storm, he ends up in a town called B--- and finds himself amidst a worker's rebellion against a factory. He sees a woman who looks similar to Sola, but goes by the name Szalómé, and in his pursuit of her, he realizes that there is a man planning to bomb the factory and kill the workers. He hesitates between warning them and following Sola, and ultimately retraces his steps back to the factory, but he is too late.

He and four crucial persons of the rebellion survive the blast and escape. In the getaway, the four are killed by the Detectives who work for Vévoda, the malicious owner of the factory hiding a dangerous secret. S. jumps off a cliff into the ocean. Somehow, he ends back up on the ship. It looks different, a patchwork of different types of wood, but he knows its the same ship. 

Something interesting to note about the ship is that the sailors have their lips sewn shut. There is a rotation system, where one sailor at a time goes to the orlop, but S. is never allowed to go there.

(i didn't know wtf an orlop is, but apparently, it's the lowest deck of a ship lol)

S. searches for his identity through writing and scrawls his stories into the wooden walls of the ship with a nail. When the ship approaches land again, he is rowed to shore by a crewmember. He follows a guide on the land through a town, El H---, and realizes that decades have passed since he last stepped foot on shore. In El H---, he arrives at a library/museum where the residents are packing up art and literature to protect from an impending invasion by the Agents, who are the evolved version of the Detectives. There, he sees a portrait of a woman who looks like Sola, but is told her name is Samar. He is given a valise and then told to return to the ship. The invasion arrives, but he successfully makes it back to the ship with the help of a person that he believes is Sola.

The valise is filled with material and notes on how to make various poisons and a stack of 57 photographs of individuals.

The next time he arrives on shore, the crewmembers haul boxes and boxes of cargo from the ship into a warehouse for safekeeping. He climbs a volcano and meets a very old woman who shows him a book of the Ship of Theseus. She tells him to make a decision, and that the question of Sola is always there. He races back to the ship, enters the orlop, and sees a solitary writing desk, ink, reams of paper, and boxes identical to the ones currently being packed into the warehouse. He sits down and begins to write. 

(It's clear that when the sailors go to the orlop, they too, are writing.)

The sailors return and sew his mouth shut. 

S. embarks on his new mission, having made the decision the old woman had presented him. He begins his journey to kill each and every one of the 57 people photographed, who are Agents of Vévoda. With every person killed, a page of a book is tucked into his or her pocket. In Vévoda's retaliation, a similar signature is used. 

In a mission to kill the governor, another one of Vévoda's people, he recognizes the governor as one of the original four who had escaped with him from the rebellion. Not only does he realize he's been betrayed by someone who believed in the cause even before he did, the guides who are with him are killed, and he thinks he sees Sola and his younger self.

After a stint in the Winter City, S. finally meets Sola, who travels with him to the château to kill Vévoda and his guests, who are all powerful statespeople and businesspeople from around the world. During the operation, which is to poison the black wine that Vévoda has created, he realizes that this is not what he wants. He asks himself if it matters what he wants, and makes the decision for the very first time that yes, it matters. So he doesn't kill them.

Instead, he persuades Vévoda's heir to drink the wine, and the young man ends up spilling the intentions of the Vévoda powerhouse, which is to create the opportunities and provide the resources for power-hungry people around the world to have their way, utterly disregarding the powerless. 

At the end, there is a vision where S. and Sola return to the ship and, as they sail, spot another ship that he says is "one of theirs."

Just Ship of Theseus by itself, ignoring the other two storylines, is packed with allegories and metaphors.

The novel itself is difficult to get through and vaguely existential, but I think Straka's message ultimately distills to the notion that the struggle against greed is both overwhelming and relentless. To join in the fight is to lose your identity and free will, but sometimes, it is the decision that you have to make.

S., therefore, is not a singular person, but rather, one link in an ongoing "tradition" starting with perhaps Sobreiro, in the 1600s (I quote "tradition" here because it is the term used in the book). He wakes up with no memory and is pushed into and along this revolution against the growing power of Vévoda, likely like the many people before him and the many after him (the younger S. that appears with Sola). 

(Hence why he has no name, but instead, a placeholder, because this is a story that will be lived many, many times by those who hear and answer to the calls of the suffering.)

(I write about S. in a very passive manner, because he is just that.)

The Ship of Theseus is a thought-experiment exploring whether or not the ship is the same ship if you replace all of its original parts. The answer presented in the novel is a conflicted one. The author argues that the next Vévoda, the heir to the corporation, may or may not be the same as his father. Furthermore, the author writes an S. that deviates from the original plan--who chooses Sola over the tradition. Both Vévoda and S. are placeholders for two ideas--the former being the corrupt and greedy, and the latter being the opposing force. Using the Ship of Theseus as the title implies that each iteration of Vévoda and S is identical, yet the author challenges that notion in the last chapter.

Why would the author do that, you may ask?

BECAUSE the message Dorst and Abrams tries to bring with S. is much more nuanced. 

NOW.

NOW IT'S TIME TO BRING IN THE NEXT LAYER.

WHO IS V.M. STRAKA?

That is the question asked in the foreword written by Filomela, the editor, but also the question Jen and Eric try to answer throughout the book. 

There is one compelling theory that I love very much, which is V.M. Straka is ultimately a figurehead for a movement started by a collective of radical literary scholars who are trying to uncover the corruption and greed of businesses and governments around the world, sometimes with very extreme methods like murder.

This is true. To a certain extent. (The group is known as "S.")

(Yes. I know.)

(Guess what their signature is? A page of a Straka book tucked in the pocket of the corpse.)

But, Straka was also a person.

(This is where Dorst and Abram's novel grows beyond Ship of Theseus.)

In the original Ch. 10 that Straka writes, Sola and three others die, and he returns to sea feeling like he has failed the people he's tried to protect. At the ocean, the point-of-view suddenly shifts, and the reader begins seeing through the lens of an unnamed young man.

The young man boards the ship.

WHAT BEGINS AT THE WATER SHALL END THERE, AND WHAT ENDS THERE SHALL ONCE MORE BEGIN.

See, Ship of Theseus is semi-autobiographical, regardless of how much Eric tries to argue that you can't assume everything a writer writes is about him/herself. Ship of Theseus is Straka's final reckoning with the movement in which he's immersed himself. This is why it’s titled Ship of Theseus.

In Straka's original manuscript, with S. standing in as himself, he writes that he's failed his fellow comrades. He despairs that the next generation will similarly be both humbled and tortured by the fight.

Because this original manuscript is lost after Straka's death, Filomela writes a happier ending, in which S. loses neither Sola nor the fight. S. and Sola continue the "tradition," along with numerous others after them. This is the ending she wishes for them, because she was in love with Straka, but the ending Straka never dared to choose.

Ugh, and that's what's so fucking powerful about S. It is a conversation amongst three S.'s and three Solas. There's the original S. and Sola in the novel, where S.'s preoccupation with the "tradition" ends in Sola's death. There's Straka and Filomela, where Straka's fear of choosing Filomela ends in his own death and a missed opportunity with Filomela. Then, there's Eric and Jen, where they choose each other AND Ship of Theseus.

They choose to continue embarking on this journey to prove who Straka is together, possibly outing the powerful corporation the “S” was fighting against in Straka’s time, and ultimately, reconciling the indecision of S. and the fear of Straka.

Before I leave you, there is one other thing Ship of Theseus discusses that makes my heart skip a beat when I think about it.

S. writes. His crewmembers write. Their writings are protected in a warehouse. They no longer have the ability to speak, but their power comes through the words that they write and leave for the next generation.

(Eric was right to be fixated on the "generation" theme.)

When S. is on the Territory (where he kills the governor), Vévoda's people are blasting mountains carved with images of the Old Village's history for natural resources to build formidable, destructive weapons.

The erasure of indigenous stories for the benefit of the greedy and powerful and the erasure of stories in general is a prominent theme throughout Ship of Theseus.

(similarly, our world is plagued by the same problem, both in the past and today. see: cultural terrorism. but also colonialism and imperialism in general lol.)

However, what is striking is the black stuff that Vévoda is manufacturing. This black stuff is the puddle of grotesque liquid that burns through the flesh at the top of the mountain when S. and his comrades flee from B---, it is the exquisite wine Vévoda saves for his most important guests and markets as his greatest weapon, and it is ink.

His most powerful weapon is ink. What all the rich and powerful want is the power to write the past, present, and future.

After Vévoda's son drinks the wine, he has a choice to make. He can continue on the Vévoda tradition and bring destruction about the world under the guise of creating something greater, or he can rewrite the future. He chooses the latter. (and unfortunately dies.)

BUT.

Straka writes, 

"He passes a barrel on which no mark is visible, as its contents have leaked through a split stave and blackened the wood below....He kneels down and touches a finger to it, and all at once, the mad chorus of voices in his head goes silent. 

Silent.  

Settled. Returned to the earth and settled. Voices and narratives, re-absorbed into the ground on which we walk. And this is the key, he realizes, the thing that makes the purpose of all that work on the ship and in El-H--- and on the Obsidian Island and in Budapest, Edinburgh, Valparaíso, Prague, Cape Town, Valletta, the Winter City, and a thousand others come into focus. All that ink, all that pigment, all that desperate action to preserve that which had been created--it is valuable because story is a fragile and ephemeral thing on its own, a thing that is easily effaced or disappeared or destroyed, and it is worth preserving. And if it can't be preserved, then it should be released and cycled. To write with the black stuff is to create and, at the same time, to resurrect. We write with what those who've come before us wrote.

Everything rewritten. Part o' the tradition."

We all have the power to write our own stories and the story of the world around us. We all have the power to choose to destroy or create. Destruction is not a necessary precursor to creation.

(I lied, I'm not leaving yet.)

There is very, very important note that Jen writes in the book. She says that for every person who betrays the "S," there is someone who is their ally. This applies to the collective "S" and S., the character.

I think the most irresistible part of S., this larger novel written by Dorst and Abrams, is the "S"--this collective of radical writers (the pen is mightier than the sword!) dedicated to bringing about a just world. 

I--

Oh my god.

Many of the members of "S" are parallels to the characters in Ship of Theseus (and this is the most exciting part with Jen and Eric's research, as they match each real life person with the characters).

There is one person in particular, Durand, for whom my heart sings. After her lover, Ekstrom, passes away (possibly due to Straka's carelessness), she writes and researches relentlessly. Before dying, she is determined to fight for women's voting rights and to untagle the stories of history so they are not forgotten. 

And then there is Filomela, who singlehandedly tries to rewrite the accepted "tradition." She falls in love with a person through the words, never meeting him, but dedicates ten years of her life to waiting for him. She isn't part of the "S," but she's part of the "S" because like how Sola has The Archer's Tales at the beginning of Ship of Theseus, the "tradition" is passed to Filomela, unbeknownst to her. But she fucking kills it.

I mean, she even fakes her own death and manages to live until over 100.

In her parting letter to Eric and Jen, she writes, 

"Please remember, though, not every question must be answered. Matters of the past may be allowed to remain in the past; matters of the present and future may be allowed to go unexplored. The world will not end in any case....I will tell you what matters most (although you must know this already, as you know my story): it is love. When you fall in love, friends, let yourself fall. It is my fondest wish that this note finds you both happy, healthy, and falling."

As Straka's editor, she must know that "falling" is a prominent theme in Ship of Theseus. As privy to part of the "S," she must also know that falling is ultimately how many of the members find their end. And yet, she uses and repeats this word, because falling is terrifying and negative and unwanted, but falling in love shouldn't be feared. 

I like that last line, but I really, really, really like, "...not every question must be answered. Matters of the past may be allowed to remain in the past; matters of the present and future may be allowed to go unexplored."

See, V.M. Straka is a person with flesh and blood, with history, with emotions. 

But he is also something greater than that. He is a collection of writings influenced and contributed to by a number of skilled authors and scholars with a singular vision. He is a fight against the corrupt and evil.

So, when Filomela fell in love with the words written, whom did she fall in love with?

Jen is convinced that she fell in love with the person, Vaclav Straka, who disappeared after a suicide attempt by drowning in 1910 and had his future erased to become V.M. Straka.

But, I think she was in love with the person who embodies a revolutionary spirit. She suspects who Straka is, she must have after so many years working with him, but she's okay with not knowing and loving the ideal in her mind, especially after Straka dies. 

(maybe i'm just projecting)

There's another arc in the storyline that I love very much, which is that of Signe Rabe.

In the "Interlude" chapter, Filomela writes a question to V.M. Straka into the text, asking, "Who is Signe Rabe?"

Jen and Eric ultimately discover Signe Rabe to be the wife of Desjardins, a Straka scholar, but also, the daughter of Durand.

The identity of Signe's father is contested. Some people think it's Straka, others think it is Summersby (another member of the "S"), but I like more answer more.

Signe Rabe is the daughter of Durand and Ekstrom, raised by Summersby and Straka (there's a margin-note where Eric talks to Summersby's lawyer's daughter, who mentions a little girl whose parents were killed and chased around the world by bad people so she's raised by two uncles).

I love that--I love it so much more than Signe being raised by her real father and his friend. 

(that's awful, i know but shh)

Because, the "S" is more than just a collective of radicals--it is a family bound together by their vision for a better world, a greater ideal. And Straka--Vaclav--who was like a son to Ekstrom, who was saved from ending his life by Ekstrom in 1910 to live this extraordinary life, atones for his sins and raises Signe, who forgives him.

WHAT BEGINS AT THE WATER SHALL END THERE, AND WHAT ENDS THERE SHALL ONCE MORE BEGIN.

UGH.

Ok, I'm done.

-ish.

(My favorite character is Desjardins, who is first described as "too old + senile to take on students" by Eric.

But God, imagine. This man who marries a woman he loves, a woman who dies far too young and leaves him with a secret about who she is. And because he loves her so much, he looks for Filomela for twelve years, possibly decoding everything in Ship of Theseus just like Jen and Eric did, and hands her the final chapter that Straka wrote. 

And he continues to pursue the question of "Who is V.M. Straka?" for the rest of his life, embroiled in this larger conspiracy for the simple reason that he fell in love with Signe Rabe.

And he ultimately dies, falling out of a window in the same hotel Ekstrom, his father-in-law, died in.)

(I HURT.)

( Filomela describes him as a nice, polite man "moving with great sadness.")

(I imagine him to be a wily, tall, young man who falls in love, who becomes sad and serious, who begins to hunch over as the years pass him, who finds someone--Eric--to continue on his work, who is okay with dying after passing his documents to Eric because someone will continue the tradition.)

(Ok, now I'm really done.)

(Thank you for reading. Farewell. Next time I will not write so much.)

daily song rec:  任贤齐 - 天涯 (cover by 任贤齐 & 刘宇宁)

(sometimes i hear liu yuning’s voice and i’m like oh yes this is why girls wore wedding dresses to his concert)

[clan-sayeed-fic]

Let me earn your trust (Kamilah Sayeed & MC)

Previous chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Book: Bloodbound (property of Pixelberry Studios) Pairing: Kamilah Sayeed & MC: Amy (I do not own those characters, they're the property of Pixelberry Studios as well) Warnings: angst, sorrow Rating: Mature Author's note:  I'm not a native English speaker, I'm sorry for any mistakes (feel free to correct me).

In this chapter, I focused more on Amy and her feelings. 

~ 1600 words

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Chapter 7

Everything moved extremely fast for Amy. The pungent scent of blood filled the room when Adrian walked in from the elevator. He carried a young woman with long, purple hair, barely breathing.

Amy quickly spread the blanket on the couch, where Adrian gently laid down her friend.

Amy's heartbeat stopped as she kneeled beside Lily, resting her hand on the girl's bandaged arm. Amy calmed her own breathing to listen to Lily's. She observed a friend's chest merely lifting. Lily's eyes were still closed like she was in a sweet sleep. Sweat, bruises, and dried blood all over her body.

"God, Lily," Amy said with a weak voice. "I'm so sorry for dragging you into this shit."

She noticed a small move of girl's eyelid. A hint of hope traveled through Amy's body. Adrian sensed it as he spoke, stating a fact.

"She lost too much blood," the vampires stood behind Amy's back, "I thought you should have a chance to at least say goodbye."

This is not happening, we are talking about Lily here, Amy's thought's argued with each other inside her mind. She hid her head in the soft material of Lily's uniform. She inhaled intensely, stopping tears from escaping her eyes. Amy could smell Lily's perfumes beyond the blood.

How could she possibly deal with her death? It was not fair, it shouldn't have been happening. Lily was the most innocent in all of this.  

She should have another chance, Amy thought. A cold shiver crossed her body when she realized what she came up with. Amy knew how selfish it was of her to even consider this idea.

"Please," Amy lifted her head, eyes focused on Lily's chest, slowing dangerously it's movement, "turn her."

"What?" Kamilah frowned immediately. "You can't require us to do this."

"She is the most important person in my life," Amy turned to them, her hand resting on Lily's shoulder as if she was too afraid to let her go even for a second. "She is my only family. I can't live without her. I can't let her die."

"She would be dead either way," Kamilah's eyes darkened in anger.

Adrian stood there, speechless. He remembered too well how it felt to lose a loved one. Flashbacks raced through his mind.

"I'm begging you," Amy didn't give up. She knew exactly, what would make them change their mind, "I will do everything for you. It's an opportunity for you to find out more about Bloodkeepers."

Kamilah has already made her mind. She was against turning someone without their agreement. She was against turning anyone at all. The only chance Amy had was Adrian. She reached out for his hand, catching his eyes. A pleading expression wrote all over her face.

They looked at each other for another long second, until Adrian made his decision.

He came closer to Lily's body, kneeling before her. He bit his own wrist. Blood poured out of the wound.

"Adrian," Kamilah's warning voice, "you know it's not how it should be done. You will have to explain it later to the Council."

Adrian gasped, making Amy afraid that he would hesitate. Then, he neared his wrist to Lily's mouth, making blood run down her throat.

"I know," he swallowed nervously, "My only hope is that she is worth it."

These last words he spoke while looking at Amy.

Amy felt a little more reassured that her friend will be alright. At the same moment, she knew what it meant to her own existence.

I made a deal with a devil, she thought, swallowing nervously.

***

After a few minutes, they arrived at Raines Corporation. Sun was slowly rising since it was about 7 a.m. They drove in Kamilah's car, which windows had protection against UV and were darker than usual.

During the ride, Adrian explained to Amy that they needed to put Lily in the sarcophagus. That's the procedure preventing newly turned vampires from becoming ferals. Amy found out from them that ferals were technically vampires, but their only desires were to feed and kill. Keeping Lily's body in the dark, enclosed space for at least 6 hours should be enough to stop her from turning into feral.

"What if she will become feral?" Amy asked after they closed the sarcophagus with Lily in it.

"Then we will have to kill her," Kamilah always breaking bad news.

"There is a good chance that she won't turn into feral," Adrian gave some hope. "Anyway, we have six hours to find out."

***

They left catacombs of Adrian's company. At the moment they step out of the elevator to his office, Amy felt increasing guilt in her chest.

How could she wait there for another six hours?

Amy looked over Adrian's office while he and Kamilah walked further from her talking silently. She placed her fingers on the table. No dust at all, the same as at Kamilah's penthouse. Was it a vampire thing?

"She shouldn't be here when Lily wakes up," Adrian's whispered.

"Why shouldn't I?" they forgot about her sensitive hearing. "Yeah, I can hear you."

Kamilah smirked for a second, barely noticeable.

"If Lily turns feral, you know that we will have no choice," Kamilah said, "You would rather not look at this."

"And if she will not?" Amy crossed her arms, her eyes looking confidently at Kamilah's.

"Then, she will be remarkably hungry," Adrian answered, making her look into his direction. "Smell of your blood under the skin will affect her enough to drive her crazy. As newly turned, she will be nearly as powerful as Kamilah," the woman raised her eyebrows doubtfully. "As I said, nearly," Adrian prevented the argument. "She will be as strong, as I'm for sure. If she drinks your blood, her power will be increased. It would leave us no other choice than to kill her."

That was everything Amy needed to hear, to make a decision. If her presence could cause Lily's death, she wouldn't risk it.

"Okay," she said and wrote down her phone number on a piece of paper that she found on Adrian's desk. "Text me when she wakes up."

Both of the vampires stared at her, confused. Speechless.

"You know how to use phones, right?" Amy wondered for a second.

"Of course, we do," Kamilah frowned. "I don't understand, for what reason should we do that when you are already beside us."

"I won't be," Amy left her note on the table and made her way towards Adrian's private elevator.

"Amy," Adrian stepped in front of her. "Where are you going?"

"I'm pretty sure that Lili would like to change her clothes, at least," she remembered blood over her shirt. "I have to pay our rent, and take care of plants in the apartment."

"We had our deal," Kamilah reminded.

"Yeah, I know," Amy clicked the button with a sigh when Adrian stepped on the side of it. "I'm going to follow your rules when you uphold your end of the bargain. Lily's not turned yet, and since I can't trust you entirely. I need leverage."

Amy entered the elevator and turned herself to face them.

"By the way, let me live this six hours as Amy," she let out a breath," not Bloodkeeper."

When the elevator went down, both of the vampires looked at each other.

"She is smart," Adrian grinned widely, surprised.

"I agree," Kamilah rolled her eyes, "and stubborn as hell."

***

Amy stepped into her apartment. She looked around the dining table, where usually she saw Lily sitting on her laptop.

You acted like a nerd sometimes, Amy smiled at this memory.

She looked over this small space. The living room combined with the dining room and kitchen. Three doors led to the bathroom and each of the girl's rooms. Their flat was utterly cozy and messy. Nothing here would suggest that one of its residents was a supernatural human, and the other one was going through a transition of becoming the vampire.

Amy headed to her own room and picked up a backpack from under her bed. She started packing her own clothes and some useful little things that she would need within days. Then, she moved on to Lily's room and did the same with her wardrobe.

It was hard to believe and understand what was happening with Amy's life right now. Her hand began to tremble when she traced her fingers over one of Lily's clothes.

Her best friend was dead. It hit Amy.

She sat down on the bed, hiding her face with hands. Those were the facts. Kamilah was right, turning Lily into a vampire, would never return her life. Even if Lily survives the transition, she could be mad at Amy for taking this decision from her. What if she would never want to talk to her again?

It was hard for Amy. Losing the closest person in her life was like losing the meaning of life. All the memories returned to Amy's head. Times when she and Lily met. Both lost and unwanted. Lily was the only one that she trusted, the only one that could cheer her up. Amy would easily trade places with her if she only had a chance to do so.

Get a hold of yourself, Amy, she thought angrily.

Amy stood up and wiped away tears from her eyes. She had another 4 hours to pass. She began cleaning the apartment, getting lost in her thoughts.

***

Sometime later, Amy changed her clothes. She was wearing simple jeans and a light, rosy hoodie.

Amy stood in the bathroom washing her face when she heard her phone ringing, she looked at it to see the text message from an unknown number.

"It's done." 

Next chapter: 8

----------------------

tag list: @onyxgaytrash

[thedefinitionofwarlock]

‘Headcanons’ - Other Recurring Canon Characters

Dr. John Heimdall Watson

human

somewhere in his 30′s

typically considered average in appearance, though some think his moustache unattractive

soul-blade:  Ossifer  (shard of bone, barely larger than a toothpick)

was sent to the Battle of Maiwand in Afghanistan, where he ended up shot through the left shoulder; contracted ‘enteric fever’ from the filthy conditions of the hospital at Peshawar, lost a dangerous amount of weight; once he recovered he was discharged from the army

ended up back in London, nearly penniless and in desperate need of employment, proper nourishment, and a permanent place to live; his old school acquaintance Stamford introduced him to Warlock Holmes  (or more like, pushed Watson onto Warlock so he could move out of 221B and be ‘freed’ from Warlock’s unusual company)

Watson agreed to move in, especially upon learning he would only have to pay one sovereign, once, for the entirety of his rent - as well as move in at exactly midnight and walk in backwards over the threshold

was given the far larger of the two bedrooms, while Warlock occupied the almost closet-sized other

he noticed several strange things occurring around Warlock but ignored them, until the latter received a ‘message’ from Moriarty’s entrapped soul and a letter from Inspector Grogsson both talking about a murder case; Watson tagged along and ended up being an immense help; since then, he’s gotten more and more involved in cases and dealing with the supernatural/magical world

Mrs. Hudson

human

in her 70′s

barely 4 feet tall, wears battered pink house slippers; was “a tough old spinster, as advanced in age as she was regressed in height and interpersonal skills”, with “the eyes of a weasel, the heart of a shrew, and a scowl to rival any of the grand inquisitors who had so troubled Spain in the 1400s”

would sometimes appear unannounced outside the door to their rooms, staring with supreme disapproval at whoever first opened it

was a very avid collector of French smut novels, which she attempted to conceal around the house

Warlock and Watson agreed to only rely on her for the washing of dirty dishes - though even these would sometimes be returned in pieces, as if broken out of spite

Inspector Vladislav Lestrade

vampire

true age unknown; appears to be in his mid-50′s

small, pale, and hunched, with beady eyes, a Romanian accent, and a wide maw of overlapping fangs (usually speaks in a tight-lipped fashion to hide his teeth)

often has a complaint for every occasion

holds ‘annihilist’ views - believes there should be nothing, would happily destroy all of creation (even himself) if given the power - yet still quietly values being considered a friend

an Inspector of the London police force, has risen to the position through his knowledge of blood and assistance from Warlock and Grogsson - though his success is resented among his Scotland Yard peers

Inspector Torg Grogsson

ogre

age unknown

stands at least 7, even 8 feet tall; difficult for suits to fit his thickly-muscled body; has coarse brown body hair and sandpapery stubble on his chin

often has his fists wrapped in cloth like a prizefighter’s, also wears a battered bowler hat (dented from repeatedly hitting his head against doorframes he walks through)

has an intense admiration for gentle and graceful people

speaks basic English

has a tasteful eye for interior decoration

often easily falls for women, especially if they’re pretty and kind-hearted

an Inspector of the London police force, rose to his position through his skill at intimidating criminals into confessing and assistance from Warlock and Lestrade - though his success is also resented among his Scotland Yard peers

Irene Adler

human

likely in her late 20′s/early 30′s

rather attractive; has piercing green eyes and quite short brown hair (to make it easier to wear wigs in her disguises)

‘adventuress’ and a vaunted contralto

grew up poor and orphaned, taken in by Moriarty in her youth, but has now gone her own way and has her own aims

current possessor of both the Heart and the Cruciator, after murdering Godfrey Norton

has become a sort of nemesis to Watson, as she sometimes foils his plans or is involved in cases

seeks “the answer to the human question ... How can we make ourselves happy? Fulfilled? How can we win this strange game we find ourselves thrust into?”

Professor James Moriarty

sorcerer

age unknown

used to appear as an austere, black-clad man with small dark eyes; current appearance changes, as his soul/concept possesses various people

soul-blade:  Kullek  (blade roughly the size of a butter knife)

mastermind of various criminal enterprises, often gives his agents magical artifacts to further facilitate such deeds

seeks a form of immortality - wants to exist at every point in history, in every dimension; can’t bear not to know a thing and doesn’t want to miss out on any of it, including dying in various ways; simply put, he wants omniscience

was Warlock’s ‘master’ back in the mid-1600s for a while; abandoned him after the fifth ley line was opened beneath Baskerville Hall in 1643; took him on to not only teach some control but to learn how to turn base metals into gold, abused and maltreated Warlock when the boy was repeatedly unable to properly explain the process

had his physical body killed by Warlock’s soul-blade some time later, cast down into a deep well; his soul/self-concept survived, though, and for a long time was entrapped within the threads of Warlock’s own soul

when the soulbinder Milverton died (murdered by Irene Adler), enough threads vanished for Moriarty’s ‘soul’ to escape and continue his nefarious work - largely by possessing various people/creatures

Mary Morstan

human

entirely average in appearance - height, build, face, with plain hair and drably colored/cut clothes

believes she is owed whatever she wants due to being an orphan, continues trying to use that fact to her advantage despite being a grown adult

worked as a governess for the Forresters until being soul-bound and unhappily married to Watson (due to Warlock’s interference, as he wanted to lessen Watson’s involvement with Moriarty and Irene Adler in particular, since Warlock could sense the doom encroaching upon his friend ever since meeting Adler)

thanks to her portion of the Agra treasure and marriage to a now-established doctor, she enjoyed a comfortably lavish lifestyle and took full advantage of that

was possessed by Moriarty at one point, who used her frequent social gatherings as a cover to coordinate with his agents; ended up being pulled into a deep chasm in a ‘magicless’ area of Switzerland

[mrpenguinpants]

BNHA Monster AU aka Chisaki/Overhaul is a really bad vampire that doesn’t know how to do his job HC

I guess this is a series now. It’s actually really hard to think these up surprisingly. Or I’m just picky. Probably that. Anyways

Vampire: One whom drinks the blood of others, be it animal or human. Not to be confused with cannibalism or sarcophagy as no tissue is consumed.

It’s not that Chisaki is bad at being a vampire. He has the intimidation going for him. But..he can’t stand the process of drinking blood. Blood is fine. No worries. But the thought of sinking his fangs into something, usually unwillingly, as they squirm or fight him off it always gets messy. He may be a vampire but he’s germophobic. Imagining the blood getting on his skin and clothes makes his skin crawl. 

His best bet is to just waltz into a hospital and get a couple blood bags. Except, he doesn’t like drinking blood from a bag. Who knows what it has touched. Being extracted by needles and all. He knows that everything SHOULD be clean but it still makes his skin crawl. 

Plus, he’s picky. He wants it from the source but he can’t exactly walk up to a stranger and say “Hey, I’m a vampire but I hate getting blood on me. So could you do me a solid and just hold still as I suck your blood out and hopefully not kill you?”

Chisaki will NEVER drink from animals. The only animals he can find are rats and stray pets and he is NOT going to put his mouth ANYWHERE near them. Unless Hari is force feeding him he’s not going to do it even if it kills him. Which it will. 

So count his fucking blessing when he finds you. He honestly doesn’t know where you came from or how idiotic you are. He’s just happy he can finally get a decent drink without breaking out in hives each time. 

He had met you when he went feral from not drinking for so long. You had passed him as he was huddled in an alleyway growling and spazzing out. You thought he was having a seizure so you quickly ran over to see if he was okay pulling your phone out to call an ambulance (don’t @ me on the details) only to have him pounce on you and bite your neck drinking until you passed out. 

You woke up later in a strange room to see the same man in the alleyway explain to you he was a vampire and he apologized for his behavior and how he almost killed you as if you and he were at a meeting. He didn’t even look sorry in the least bit. 

Being the sensible person you were, you fainted. You woke up an hour later to a displeased Chisaki. After you calmed down and got over the whole vampire thing you asked him why he was stuck in an alleyway looking as if he was in pain.

“To put it simply. I don’t like drinking blood. It’s messy and I hate being dirty.” 

The look on your face just screamed: “Are you fucking kidding me?”. That prompted you asking if he wanted to just drink from you. He was surprised. Just like that? You explained that you rather not see someone else be attacked and almost killed that didn’t have the same “stable” mental state as you. 

So that leads to you and Chisaki forming a weird relationship. He would message you or come to you. Drink your blood until you told him to stop so he didn’t suck you dry. Then he would go home and you wouldn’t see each other until the time he needed blood. 

You never asked and he never demanded. You stayed out of his life and he stayed out of yours. It was quick and easy. 

You know I’m lying, right? While he didn’t directly affect your life, his status and who he was sure did. He was a motherfuckin vampire and the leader of the yakuza. When people found out that the vampire Chisaki was visiting a human the entire supernatural race blew up. 

So to your surprise when you get a knock on your door at 3 in the goddamn morning, you tiredly look through the peephole to see a group of people you didn’t know. 

Now you were awake. You silently crept away from the door pretending that you were still asleep as the knocks became pounds. You quickly fled to your room to grab your phone and call Chisaki. He was a vampire and they don’t sleep anyways. 

“Y/n? Why are you calling me?” 

“Look, I know we had a whole conversation, on the whole, don’t call me business. But there’s a couple guys at my door trying to break in and I’m 99.9% sure this has something to do with you.”

“That is your problem, now don’t call me.”

The fucking nerve of this guy. He wasn’t helping. Okay Plan B: Girl power. You held the phone using your shoulder as you tried to open your window. Fuck, you lived on the second story and while the fall wouldn’t kill you, it sure as hell would hurt. 

“Excuse you “that is your problem” bullshit. If I didn’t come by and try and help your sorry ass you would have been back to finding things to drink and I wouldn’t be stuck in this mess!” 

You never got to hear Chisaki’s response because the door to your room got kicked open. Your phone fell from your shoulder as you spun around to see the same group of guys that were at your door.

"Now. Now. We just want to talk to you. There's no reason for us to do anything rash."

Well. It was now or never. You flipped them off and jumped out your window bracing for the impact.

Only to feel arms wrap around you as your fall was cushioned to see Chisaki peering down at you holding you in his arms

"C-Chisaki? What are you doing here?"

"Did you not say someone was trying to break in?"

"But you said that it was my problem...I thought you were gonna let me die"

"I was already on my way as soon as you called me. My enemies tend to track my calls and what I say. It was for your safety."

"Oh. Okay aha. You scared me.."

Chisaki blinked. There it was again. The same feeling he gets when he drinks blood. The rush of euphoria. He knew what it was and deep down he was scared. He was a vampire. He's had his fair share of lovers. Each of them either leaving him or dying because of him being a vampire. 

“Y/n. Are you a virgin?”

“Excuse me what?” 

“If I drink the blood of a virgin I can turn them into a vampire.”

“Okay first of, we need to seriously upgrade your vocab. Second, I am not in the market to be a bloodsucker.” 

“That’s alright. I can wait for you to be ready. Anyways, I should deal with your break-ins.” 

Chisaki slowly lowered you onto your feet before cracking his neck before turning back to you

“Oh, and I’ve already made arrangements for you to live with me. I want my future bride to be comfortable with her living space.” 

And with that, he jumped up and climbed into your window and proceeded to beat the ever loving shit out of your- wait 

“WE ARE NOT IN THE 1600′S YOU CAN DO THAT CHISAKI!!”

[glatisants]

Albion: The Legend of Arthur (Part XII of XIII)

Part XII: The Shadow Falls

Well, we all know what’s coming.

***

Owain is getting a fort together in the North. A soldier reports that the Black Army has continued to attack Gododdin, and there’s a rumor that any man still loyal to Lewdwn will be killed; what’s more, the survivors they’ve encountered have said there’s a high-born Briton leading the Army in battle, a man the Picts call Mordred. Owain immediately sends Griff out with a message to Arthur so he can have his revenge on Medraut.

Griff reaches Arthur and delivers the message, and Arthur makes plans to join Owain at the northern border, inviting Cynon to join them if he’s well enough to come. As Arthur prepares to leave, Gwen observes that his wound from the Battle of Badon still plagues him, though he claims he can still hold a sword. She’s not so sure, but she knows there’s no persuading him to stay behind with her, and just tells him to be careful. He tells her to be careful, too, for the baby’s sake. She asks him to give Owain her regards, and reminds him that Owain’s always been loyal to him. He says he won’t be gone long, and she just hopes that will be true.

Cynon and Rhun are staying behind for the time being. Cynon thinks the new conflict could be a second opportunity for him to do away with Arthur, and he believes he’s gone too far to back off from his plans now.

Arthur and Griff arrive at the fort. Owain tries to make small talk and congratulate Arthur on his wedding, but Arthur is impatient to reach the Picts and Medraut. Owain reports that Medraut has not yet shown his face, but the Picts have been conducting raids along the border, and he believes they’ll strike the fort shortly. He was able to get some of Lewdwn’s men to provide reinforcements by claiming to have an order from Arthur, as they wouldn’t listen to him alone; Arthur is startled to hear this, and Owain reminds him that the people love him, even as far as Gododdin (he adds that it’s easier to do when they don’t know Arthur as he does), and are more willing to do things when they know it’s in Arthur’s name. Arthur tells Owain that he’s done a good job, and Owain tries to let Arthur know that he was happy for him, but Arthur barely acknowledges this.

Meanwhile, Griff is attempting to help a soldier who was trampled by an aurochs (note: this is a species of wild cattle/oxen that went extinct in the 1600s), a herd of which roam nearby, when another soldier tells him there’s an old beggar at the gate asking for Owain and Arthur. Griff just sighs.

A messenger informs Owain and Arthur that a band of Picts is approaching, and should arrive in a matter of hours. It’s unknown if Medraut is with them, but they do know that Tulloch of the Severed Heads leads from the front (Owain is not terribly impressed by the epithet). Griff brings Myrddin to them, and while Owain is eager to see him, Arthur obviously has no idea who he is.

Myrddin tells them that he has found the answer to the riddle: Morgan of Ynys, enchantress with the Black Army, is Anna of Gododdin. The pair are in disbelief, particularly Arthur. Myrddin says it’s obvious, as the enchantress is a high-born princess who has recruited the people of Gododdin who did not approve of Ambrosius’ rule. He tells them how she had Lewdwn thrown into the sea, as he cast her (Merlin adds that he shall not return as she did, though); Arthur is skeptical, but Owain encourages him to listen.

Arthur says that they’ll simply have to try harder to get rid of her, but Myrddin thinks that dying once is enough for her. Increasingly annoyed, Arthur asks Owain who the hell Myrddin even is, but Myrddin cuts in and says that he’s nobody, at least to Arthur. Arthur confidently states that if it’s just an army he’s looking at, he can handle it, and Merlin agrees—“just as he crushed the Saxons at Badon, no doubt.” Merlin goes on to say that perhaps the Arthur that did that deed can defeat the Black Army, but it would take more than just brute force. Owain asks what it would take to stop them, and Myrddin replies that Morgan of Ynys is “a creature born of despair, and despair is her currency,” while theirs must be hope. 

The walls have been fortified and the men are inside the fort, preparing their defense. Arthur gives the order to mobilize all their forces nearby, while Owain thinks they should keep some men in reserve. Arthur encourages his men, and they spot the black banners approaching, just as the stories said; there are at least 3,000 men in the Black Army, while the Britons only number at around 400. Regardless, Arthur wants to go out to meet them in a phalanx formation, and Owain protests that they won’t be able to have the kind of victory they had at the Battle of Badon; he asks that they hold the wall and use the land against their enemies, and Arthur reluctantly acquiesces. Looking closer at the approaching Black Army, Owain and Griff are disturbed to see that the men look as if they are dead. Following Morgan/Anna’s lead, the Black Army shouts that they will only bring death to the Britons.

Myrddin joins Arthur and Owain and announces that he will face their enemies alongside them. Arthur is skeptical, but Merlin snaps that it would hardly be his first battle. Seconds later, he runs off, shouting that he’s going to recruit some reinforcements and to just trust him, much to the irritation of the pair.  Shortly after, the archers begin to fire at the approaching Picts, but as more of them come, the warriors have to draw their swords to drive back their enemies.

As he’s on the move to the field with the herd of aurochs, Myrddin takes pity on the Black Army—they are an army of phantoms, but also of lost souls. Regardless, the Black Army’s soldiers keep closing in, wave after wave, and it looks like the fort is weakening.

All of a sudden, the Pictish ranks are broken; Owain and Arthur watch in astonishment as a great many bulls stampede their enemies, with a chortling Merlin leading the charge.

***

At last, Medraut’s unit approaches, and Arthur decides they must go out to meet them on the field. Owain points out that their enemies still greatly outnumber them, but Arthur overrides him, saying that his order is final, and asks Owain to allow him to lead his men to victory this time; Owain relents. As he prepares to make the charge, Arthur gives an impassioned speech to embolden his men, and the gate is opened.

The men advance, and Medraut is pleased as he watches his enemies approach. Morgan/Anna assures him that her men have been ordered not to touch Arthur, and that Medraut shall have his revenge. He thanks her before he rides out, but once she’s alone she calls him a fool, and hopes that they will perish together.

The battle rages on, and Arthur, unwavering in his determination to kill Medraut, strays from the others. Owain attempts to keep their soldiers in formation and calls for Arthur to come back, but then Medraut approaches. He tells Arthur he’s been looking forward to this for a long time, and as Arthur challenges Medraut to fight him, they lock blades. Medraut hammers against his defense, shouting that the land is his, and knocks him to the ground (at least, that’s what I’m guessing happens). Arthur tells Medraut that he’ll never rule, that no matter what happens to him, his people will hunt him down; Medraut replies that only time will tell, and in the meantime he “will simply have to console [himself] with [Arthur’s] death.” He strikes the sword from Arthur’s hand and deals him a heavy strike (again, just my guess), and announces that he “shall mount [Arthur’s] head above [his] gate for all the world to see.”

As he raises his blade to deal the final blow, Owain intervenes, striking him back. Medraut says he doesn’t mind killing them together; in fact, he thinks it’s “rather sweet,” and says he’ll “see that [they’re] buried in the same grave.” Owain yells back that he’ll “see that [Medraut] is left for the crows” as he runs Medraut through with his sword, and the latter falls down dead. Owain, himself weakened and injured, softly calls out Arthur’s name as he collapses to the ground. 

Morgan/Anna tries to command her men to keep fighting, but they’ve scattered, and Myrddin approaches her to say that her spell over them has been broken, as there are “limits to belief in the face of steel,” and he believes they have lost their faith in her. He helps her onto his horse, reassuring her that he means no harm, and he tells her that she believed too deeply in her own legend, only to find it no protection. He tells her who he is, and says that he has defeated her sorcery with some of his own.

In the distance, Griff calls out for Arthur and Owain. Alone together on the battlefield, they are weak and hurt, and Arthur is mortally wounded. Owain tries to reassure Arthur that it’s all right; Arthur is only able to say that he’s sorry, and Owain shakily tells him to try not to speak. In a weak whisper, Arthur starts to speak, “Owain, I-“ before he falls silent.

Griff finds them. Owain tells him that he couldn’t save Arthur, and he couldn’t cheat death a second time. Griff asks if he’s injured, and Owain thinks he can walk, but he breaks down, asking why he couldn’t have died in Arthur’s place. Griff tells Owain to stay with Arthur while he goes to get help. Alone, Owain quietly cries, and keeps repeating Arthur’s name.

Griff watches as some of Arthur’s surviving men find Rhun and reinforcements riding up to the fort. Rhun says Cynon gave him orders to find Arthur if he was alive, and assume command if not, and they tell him that neither Arthur nor Owain has been found yet. As such, Rhun takes command, and when one man protests that no man of Arthur’s would take orders from a man of Cynon’s, Rhun strikes him dead. He demands to be taken to Arthur’s body.

Griff returns to Owain and urges him to escape, telling him that Rhun does not wish to find him living. Owain says they must stop him, but he is gravely hurt, and Griff tells him that they have no choice but to get away from this place. However, Owain refuses to leave Arthur’s body; Griff says he’ll see what he can do. 

Myrddin and Anna watch the fort from higher ground, and Myrddin believes “it’s the whelp baring its teeth,” and he says that he fears for his young warrior. Anna asks him if he means Arthur, and Myrddin says no. They see a figure fleeing, and Anna wonders if it could be Myrddin’s warrior; Myrddin doesn’t know, but he hopes they get away, whoever they may be.

She asks where he will be taking her, and what will become of her. He tells her that he will be taking her “away from the world of men, for a while,” but he has no idea what will become of either of them; he only knows that they will not be safe if they stay, for “the shadow [he] feared has fallen.”

***

A messenger from Rhun sends word of the victory to Cynon. Alone, he bursts into a fit of deranged laughter as he realizes Arthur is finally dead, and Albion is his.

[tumblunni]

Oh fuck i cant stand this

Ive already almost used up my damn mobile data again and i only bought it yesterday. Fuck i want to go home. You guys are like the only comfort i have here and i dunno what im gonna do when i cant message you again

Fuckin hell stupid shit day! I was supposed to go to a therapy class thing today but the stupid bus went past where my abusive father lives and i had a MASSIVE FREAKOUT and had to go home and then ofcourse to go home you have to go back on the stupid same bus!! I fuckib failed and wasted the doctor's time and he had to grab me to stop me from running off the bus crying and back to fuckin hell dad's house because im shit and i deserve everything he ever did to me

AND THEN fuckin same doctor continues the relentless constant tide of everyone misgendering me and making crass transphobic jokes

"You see you've gotta understand the other opinion" he says, as if trans people werent fuckin raised SURROUNDED by cis people's predjudiced opinion of us and taught it was fact. As if it didnt take me SO MUCH WORK to even become confident enough to stand up for myself! I've gotta see the 'other opinion' that "yknow well families and children use public bathrooms and theyre scared trans people will molest their children so its understandable they want to kick you out or even act violent to you". Yknow the OTHER OPINION that MY OPINION DOESNT MATTER and also MY ENTIRE EXISTANCE IS A CRIME but i'm the one being predjudiced for not accepting that OPINION, right?! Im here trying to tell him that no that isnt rational because there have been LITERALLY NO RECORDED CASES of trans people molesting children in public bathrooms, or even "evil men faking being trans" to do the same thing. There's been more cases of actual cis men breaking into women's bathrooms to drag women out for merely LOOKING trans. More cis women have been harassed because of anti trans laws than they ever did before! But hey "respect that other opinion", right? And also "at least its not as bad as russia" and "but gay pride is everywhere now, that one footballer had rainbow shoelaces." Hey wow i never noticed that not only was homophobia totally over but also transphobia was remotely related to that! Wow! I seriously had to bring out the fuckin 1600s historical investigation on pre-british olde englishe that showed the existance of a gender neutral pronoun before the word "he" ever existed, and the existance of transgender pride and pronoun discussions in the 1800s before the word transgender was even popularized. I cant believe i fuckin had to do a 'show your sources that queer people existed before the internet' IN REAL LIFE. WITH A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL. I can point at the damn NHS website but nooooo!

Oh and yknow what got me the most? YKNOW WHAT GOT ME THE MOST?? "We have sick people here, you cant expect them to remember stuff like that. Dont ruin their recovery by bringing up stuff like that." Like..fuckin..IM A FUCKIN PATIENT TOO. I wasnt even asking the other patients to stop hurting me i was asking you the staff to maybe consider it! And seriously you want me to be so super ultra perpetually prepared and perpetually rational and able to keep my existance secret and out of every conversation yet theyre too ill to learn about lgbt people existing? Just a sentence would be too painful? And me living every day being misgendered doesnt impact my ability to recover at all, eh? Fuckin shitting fuck hell.

And i hate it i HATE IT because he's being nice so i'll be the bad guy if i complain. Likehe fuckin..doesnt even know he's being rude and doesnt want to consider the idea. He says 'i dont like your tone' if i suggest the concept and FUCK in that moment i was so fuckin scared he was gonna hit me like my dad did. Or at tge very least kick me out of the hospital if i dont cooperate with him. He just fuckin..thinks he's perfectly unbiased and accepts everyone and "oh but i like to make fun of everyone equally". And i even fuckin raised the subject that people who say that often only make fun of minorities and never themselves, the majority, or major power structures. And he's just like 'yeah yeh i hate people like that'. Whoosh. Rigjt over the head. God i wasnt even TRYING to be passive aggressive i was trying tk outright tell him why what he said was upsetting me but NOPE. Trying to explain how its just so hard and tiring to have to verrrrrry patientlyyyyy explain yourself to EVERYONE EVERY DAY CONSTANTLY while they sling loads of rude words at you and it should be just allowed because they 'dont know better'. Like you ask me to educate you but at the same time im rude if i actually tell you?? And god i also tried to explain how the fuckin bathroom violence thing isnt an example of 'educating another opinion' AGAIN by saying like... If someone just asked me to explain being transgender i would. If someone just said they were uncomfortable i would leave. That's 'another opinion'. Reacting with slurs and violence to a trans person existing and not doing anything to you is not 'another opinion' and its not someone who 'just didnt know'. He was seriously trying to argue that it WASNT BIGOTED it was just someone rationally being afraid for their children because of a danger that doesnt exist, and rationally reacting with extreme violence rather than doing anything else. Rationally. RATIONALLY. oh just MISTAKENLY committing a hate crime! Cos they just didnt know trans people exist! Not cos they hate us! Oh no! Yeah sure we totally have a fucking DUTY to educate these POOR UNKNOWING PEOPLE while theyre attacking us, and its our damn fault if we didnt...

And just fucking FUCK i hate how someone can say all that stuff and still be "nice" and still not hate me personally? Like its so messed up?? He's not anti trans or anything he just has so much more damn sympathy for cis people than trans people, and puts all the onus on us to somehow prevent our own murders. And he thinks that "i dont have a problem with trans people" means doing LITERALLY NOTHING to change your behaviour to make trans people feel accepted. They should just magically know that your jokes are jokes when theyre surrounded by so many people saying it honestly, in CONSTANT FEAR OF THAT EXACT THING LEADING TO VIOLENCE. And like in order to be "a guy who has no problem with trans people" he has to do nothing, while in order for me to be not bigoted against HIM it means i have to never get offended by his jokes and also never talk about myself and also constantly educate him about things because he doesnt want to learn, even though he works in a hospital thats supposed to have an anti discrimination policy. Like fuckin just NOT HURTING LGBT PEOPLE doesnt make you discrimination free, shit like telling me to misgender myself because my pronouns would confuse the other patients is kinda fuckin fucked up. Also "that's a question for later" is all i CONSTANTLY get when it comes to talking about legal name changes or therapy or even just talking to an lgbt support group. I have to wait until i stop being depressed because oh no im talking about too many mental illnesses at once. Its been seven years and i havent fuckin stopped being depressed, bitch! Ever consider a fuckin symptom of gender dysphoria is a big ol fat depression!!! And just gahhhhh he was so fuckin baffled and angry that i would dare to get emotional about the subject?? Like he just saw DEBATING WHETHER TRANS PEOPLE ARE REAL and WHETHER PEOPLE WHO MURDER THEM FOR USING THE BATHROOM ARE JUSTIFIED as a perfectly normal casual discussion that a Non Transphobic Man could have with his transgender friend. Why oh why would i cry about this casual hypothetical discussion? Hey its not like it fuckin affects me directly! "Well its never happened to you right?" A Ha Ha Ha Ha. Also fuckin "so which bathroom do you use?" and "well you're not really transgender if youre not getting the surgery-oh wait you do want the surgery? How does that work then?" I swear i could just see the gears turning in his head and he was about to say "do you want both down there". Gahhhhhh *cringes myself into a tiny tumbleweed and blows away*

Also the entire time he kept calling being trans a sexuality and also asexuality. "No youre not trans youre asexual right?" Yeah sure ive just been saying im trans and saying im not a girl and wearing a chest binder and talking this entire conversation about my experiences as a trans person in public bathrooms just to pull an elaborate prank on you. And like i know what he meant is that he thought the word for nonbinary was asexual (has asexuality REALLY made so little progress towards getting into the sex ed curriculum in the entire 25 years of my life?) But like seriously he was like "youre not really trans if youre nonbinary". And then fuck dude i dont wanna explain how surgery works to you!! And especially not also my entirely unrelated sexuality that has entirely different equally upsetting predjudices!

Ans gahhhh fuck i just got no sympathy for crying and he acted as if it was just some wildly unexpected occurance he never could have predicted. And i hate it cos he's nice to me whenever the subject is about anything else. I cant get any symoathey from ANYONE because he's A NICE GUY and why dont i just understaaaaaand other opinionnnnnns

I wanted to fuckin quit this whole thing on the spot and go home. Only reason i cant is because my support worker is off work until thursday auauauaughhh

Fuck at least one positive i guess is that ive made progress in the social anxiety or at least gotten better at giving the impression im making progress. Cos i want to LEAVE AS FAST AS POSSIBLE. And also fuck all my other worries seem less suicide-inducing when im actually getting the closest ive ever been to killing myself on a daily basis because of a stupid other thing that i never could have predicted. Go here for one form of self hate, come home with another! Yayyyyy

And fuck i havent even made a single bit of progress on drawing or writing anything and i cant practise making ganes cos my laptop cant run rpgmaker and i havent even started reading my giant pile of books cos they fuckin LOOK THROUGH THE WINDOW EVERY SINGLE HOUR TO MAKE SURE YOU AINT KILLED YOURSELF. i have no fuckin pribacy and its making me wanna kill myself even more!! I just live constantly on edge looking at the fuckin door window and i cant even do anything to distract myself because im too scared of them looking at me!! Or barging in at no notice to tell me i have to do some big stressful thing RIGHT NOW because i dont even get advance notice of anything aaaa! And fuck i dont have anywhere to go to even calm down from a panic attack cos i have no privacy so at least im getting over being scared of going outside cos outside is the only place i can go to cry. Fuckin strangers in the crowd at least wont cause shit if they see me.

Fuck i want to go home. Fuck i wish i had enough money to keep buying mobile internet. Its like fuckin 750mb a day to run tumblr but its all ive got to talk to any person who doesnt hate me or patronize me or think im faking a bunch of shit or whatever the fuck. And im not even any fun to be around when im like this so im probably just ruining your day too. And im probably gonna vanish again soon and then just go back to crying alone and getting worse and probably never being able to leave

I knew it was gonna be stressdul but i didnt predict any of this.. I just wanna fuckin die. I wanted to jump out the car and go to my old dad's house and have him pull open the door and slap me around a bit. Like call me a fucking dyke, call me a sick retard, be honest about your feelings! I'd fuckin take being abused over this "oh youre the bad one for being mad because i had goooood intentions" reverse psychology bigotry from hell. Either these people are evil geniuses or theyre even more stupid like me. Fuckin shit dad please manifest in my room and slap me, killing me instantly. I feel like being scared of you would at least be a faster emotion than this nebulous sensation of confusing unease and dysphoria 24/7 for 6 fuckin months. One week done, haha! Hahahabahahahahahahahahahahahahshahahahahahshshshahshahahahhahahaaaa

[reallifesultanas]

Death and funerals/Halál és temetés

Death was also a very important part of the life of Ottoman Empire, especially because violent death was extremely common among male members of the dynasty. We are all familiar with the law of fratricide, which has led to the death of hundreds of princes (in many cases infants, children) by being strangled with a silk string. In my post today, however, I would rather talk about those for whom the cause and time of death are not so clear. I brought you some interesting, possibly suspicious deaths, and tried to gather everything about the causes of death of each sultan, prince, and sultana; and I also brought a brief history of the funerals: who was buried where, when there were unusual changes in funeral habits…

In general, very little is known about the deaths of the sultans of the early period. In many cases, we are left with guesses about the cause of death. However, the death of Murad I. (r. 1362-1389) is, for example, a refreshing exception, as several descriptions of his death have been made. He was killed by a Serbian nobleman during or before the Battle of Rigómező (1389). “… Absolutely unexpectedly, Milos Obilic who, out of cunning and intrigue, said he had adopted Islam, asked us to (…) kiss the shining lord’s foot, but instead of doing so, he inevitably stabbed a poisoned knife hidden in his dress into the glorious body of the lord, and seriously wounded him, and drank him with the serbet of the martyrs.” Of course, it is not certain that everything happened as described, but it is certain that he was victim of murder by the hands of Milos Obilic.

The death of Bayezid I (r. 1389-1402) himself is also interesting. Some believe that he committed suicide in the captivity of Timur Lenk (r. 1370-1405) after Timur humiliated his wife, Maria before his eyes. Others say he was poisoned during captivity.

Either way, the deaths of the sultans always marked the beginning of something new. If the sultan died, there was no time to mourn. For their wives, concorts, and chief pashas had a different matter after death: to immediately notify the crown prince, or the prince whom they themselves wanted to see on the throne. The sultan became the one who reach the capital first and ascended the throne. In the early days, sultans often died during a campaign away from their home - the imperial capital - so it was their pashas who informed the princes about the situation. The princes did everything they could to get to the capital first. In many cases, they also received help from the pashas who supported them. For example, Bayezid II (r. 1481-1512), who had previously married his daughters to influential pashas. His sons-in-laws did everything they could to slow down Bayezid’s biggest rival, one of his brothers, on the road to Istanbul. They succeeded and Bayezid ascended the throne, so the pashas received their reward for it.

Unlike Bayezid II, at the death of Sultan Süleyman I (r. 1520-1566), there was no longer a competitor to his son, Selim II (r. 1566-1574). Yet Süleyman still died at a very bad moment - right in the middle of a battle - caused by the health problems by his gout. To avoid rebellion and loss of soldier's motivation, the grand vezir, Sokollu Mehmed Pasha concealed the sultan's death. He clothed servants in the sultan's robes, he dictated commands written by similarly handwritten scribes on behalf of the sultan until Selim II finally arrived to the camp and became a sultan.

In later periods, after his death the sultan's consorts played the main role, not his pashas, as the sultans died more and more often in the capital. One particularly interesting example of this is Selim II's death, which he suffered after slipping in the bath and which his wife, Nurbanu Sutan (⁓1525-1583), shared only with the Grand Vizier, and secretly sent a message to Nurbanu's son Murad (r. 1574-1595) to come to the capital. This was necessary because Murad's younger brothers were in the capital at the time of Selim's death.

The sultans were always buried in the current imperial capital. Bursa, as a former capital, played an important role even after the conquest of Constantinapole, as the princes who had been executed or died by natural causes were buried there. Of course, there were exceptions, during the reign of Süleyman I (r. 1520-1566) there was two. His favorite son, Mehmed (1521-1543), died of illness in Manisa, but breaking with customs, Süleyman not only buried him in the capital instead of Bursa, but had made a mosque to him, which vied with the mosques of the sultans. His other son, the rebellious Bayezid (1525-1562) was less fortunate. Because he was executed near the Iranian border, Süleyman even refused him the Bursa funeral so he was buried with his sons near to the Iranian border. His youngest son, who was an infant and could not flee to Iran with his him, was buried in Bursa among other princes of similar destiny.

Before we scrutinize the sultanas, here is a brief summary of the period of the “Sultanate of women” and the period immediately preceding it, about the causes of death of the sultans and princes, without claiming completeness*:

Bayezid II (b. 1447): 24 April 1512, most probably poisoning or natural causes

Selim I (d. 1470): 22 September 1520, most probably tumor or anthrax but plague is also an option

Süleyman I (b. 1494): 7 September 1566, gout but some sources suggest stroke also beside the gout

Şehzade Mahmud (b. 1512): 29 October 1521, smallpox or plague

Şehzade Musztafa (b. 1515): 6 october 1553, strangled

Şehzade Mehmed (b. 1546): 10 october1553, strangled

Şehzade Ahmed (b. ?): 1552, illness

Şehzade Murad (b. 1519): 12 October 1521, smallpox or plague

Şehzade Mehmed (b. 1521): 6 November 1543, smallpox or plague

Şehzade Abdullah (b. ⁓1525): c. 1527, maybe smallpox or plague

Şehzade Bayezid (b. ⁓1525 ): 23 July 1562, strangled

Şehzade Orhan (b. ⁓1543): 23 July 1562, strangled

Şehzade Osman (b. ⁓1545): 23 July 1562, strangled

Şehzade Abdullah (b. ⁓1548): 23 July 1562, strangled

Şehzade Mehmed (b. ⁓1544): 23 July 1562, strangled

Şehzade Murad (b. ⁓1556): 23 July 1562, strangled

Şehzade ? (b. ⁓1560/1): July 1562, strangled

Şehzade Cihangir (b. 1531): 27 November 1553, chronical illness and some kind of acut desease

Selim II: 12/15 December 1574, head injury after slipping

Şehzade Mehmed (b. ⁓1570): 1573/74, illness

Şehzade Szulejmán (b. ⁓1570): 22 December 1574, strangled

Şehzade Abdullah (b. ⁓1570): 22 December 1574, strangled

Şehzade Ali  (b. ⁓1572): 1572, soon after his death

Şehzade Oszmán (b. ⁓1573/4): 22 December 1574, strangled

Şehzade Cihangir (b. ⁓1573/4): 22 December 1574, strangled

Murad III (b. 1546): 16 January 1595, natural causes

Şehzade Selim (b. 1567): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Mahmud (b. 1568): c. 1581, illness

Şehzade Süleyman, Cihangir, Ahmed died after their birth

Şehzade Abdullah (b. 1585): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Mustafa (b. 1585): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Bayezid (b. 1586): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Cihangir (b. 1587): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Abdurrahman (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Alemşah (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Aleaddin Davud (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Ali (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Hasan (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Hüseyin (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Ishak (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Murad (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Oszmán (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Ömer (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Şehzade Yusuf (b. ?): 28 January 1595, strangled

Mehmed III (b. 1566): 21 December 1603, natural causes but some suggest he died because of health problems caused by his overweight

Şehzade Selim (b. 1585): 1597, illness

Şehzade Mahmud (b. 1587): summer of 1603, strangled

Şehzade Süleyman (b. ?): 1597, illness

Şehzade Cihangir (b. ?): 1602, illness

Ahmed I (b. 1590): 22 November 1617, typhus or gastric bleeding

Şehzade Mehmed (b. 1605): 12 January 1621, strangled

Şehzade Bayezid (b. 1612): 27 July 1635, strangled

Şehzade Kasim (b. 1614): 17 February 1638, strangled

Şehzade Süleyman (b. 1615): 27 July 1635, strangled

Şehzade Hasan, Orhan, Selim, Hüseyin, Cihangir and possibly others also died an infants or young children

Mustafa I (b. ⁓1600): 1639, natural causes most probably, but epilepsy os also an option

Osman II (b. 1604): murder

Şehzade Ömer (b. 1621): 1622, there are more than one options: accident, shock, murder, illness

Murad IV (b. 1612): 8 February 1640, cirrhosis and other chronical illnesses

He had lot of sons, but all of them died as infants. Evliya Celebi suggest that all of them were born with a bad health and they died soon. This suggests an extreme situation, poisoning or genetical desease are also options.  

Ibrahim I (b. 1615): 18 August 1648, strangled

Şehzade Murad, Osman, Bayezid, Cihangir died as infants caused by illness

Şehzade Selim (b. 1644): 1669, most probably by illness

Mehmed IV (b. 1642): / November 1693, natural causes

Süleyman II (b. 1642): 22 June, 1691, his body got swollen then he fall into coma and later died.

Ahmed II (b. 1643): 6 February 1695, natural causes or stress-caused stroke/heart-attack

It is especially rare when the exact cause and date are both available for the sultanas. We know their lives primarily from registers that list their possessions and salaries. Thus, in many cases, we can only conclude that when they disappeared from the registers, they may have died. However, these registers are often incomplete, sometimes missing for several years, decades, and they can even be fragmentary. In addition, the cause of death was recorded even less frequently. To this we can usually deduce from if there was a child born, or there was a fresh marriage immediately before the time of death, or  possibly was there a huge epidemic at the time of death? About the influential sultanas, the historians and ambassadors have occasionally recorded the supposed cause of death. However, this is quite rare, as will become clear from reading the list at the bottom of the chapter.

The burial of sultans has always evoked double feelings in the people, because on the day of the funeral, the ascension of the new sultan was celebrated and meanwhile the new sultan's brothers were executed by the new sultan so the people moruned them. In contrast, the mourning and funeral customs of the sultanas were much calmer, receiving more attention in this sense. At the time of their death, the needy were often given alms and food for the sake of the sultana's soul. For example, the burial of Handan Valide Sultan (⁓1570-1605) after her death on November 9, 1605, the Venetian ambassador recorded the vast amount of alms distributed among the people. In addition, the death and burial of a valide sultan was always associated with a public mourning, as the people could express their sympathy for the sultan, who had lost his mother at that time. After the death of Ayşe Hafsa (⁓1475-1534), the mother of Süleyman I, for example, the city mourned for several days. Süleyman’s mother Hafsa Sultan had been an honored member of the royal family. In describing her funeral, the royal chancellor and historian Celalzade Mustafa honored her with a long series of formulas of praise, among which are the most exalted that can be applied to a Muslim woman, likening her to the Prophet Muhammad’s first wife Khadija, his daughter Fatima, and his third and favorite wife ‘A’isha: “[S]he was a woman of great ascetism and a lady of righteous thought, queen of the realm of chastity and the Khadija of the capital of purity, builder of charitable foundations and doer of pious deeds, the Fatima of the era and the ‘A’isha of the age.”

In the case of sultanas, instead of violent death, childbirth was the leading death-cause. Many died in labour and childbirth... Although the palace’s doctors and midwives were the bests in the world, childbirth was a dangerous activity in those days. The fact is, however, that far fewer women from the dynasty of the Ottoman Empire died of childbirth compared to the western empires. The most famous birth-related death belongs to Esmehan Kaya. Kaya Sultan (1633-1658) was the daughter of Murad IV (r. 1623-1640), and she inherited the nature of her father, this is why she was considered by many to be Murad’s most worthy child. Legend has it that Esmehan Kaya was predicted that she would die in childbirth, which is why she did not allowed her husband close to her for years. However, over time true love developed between her and her husband, which of course was fulfilled physically. Esmehan Kaya gave birth to two children, so perhaps he had already forgotten the prophecy and breathed a sigh of relief. However, there were complications at the birth of her third child. The placenta did not detached, even though the midwives tried various tortures, so a few days after giving birth, she died by sepsis after horrible sufferings. Her little daughter didn't live too long either. One of Kaya’s sisters, Safiye (⁓1540-1580), also died during childbirth.

However, not Kaya and her sister were the only ones who died during childbirth, Two daughters of Selim II (r. 1566-1574) died in a similar way: Fatma Sultan (1558-1580), who died along her daughter after giving birth, at a fairly young age; and Esmehan Sultan (⁓1545-1585) who died of complications after the birth of his fourth child. Her son survived her just with a month. In her case, the complications may also have been related to the fact that she gave birth in a relatively old age compared to the customs of the period, at about forty years of age. It is interesting, by the way, that Selim's other daughter, Şah (1544-1580), also died at a relatively young age due to illness, so of Selim's daughters, only Gevherhan (⁓1545-1622?) was the one who died in old age and presumably by natural causes.

According to legends, Murad III's (r. 1574-1595) favourite consort, Safiye Sultan(⁓1550-1620?), also almost died in one of her miscarriages, but as we know she eventually survived and was able to rule for many, many more years. The less fortunate Mahfiruze Hatun (⁓1590-1608 / 12?), concubine of Ahmed I, and the mother of his eldest son, presumably also died in childbirth, although in her case several alternatives arose as to the cause of death, including epidemic also.

Interestingly, among the sultan’s favorites, we know even fewer cases where a concubine died during childbirth. However, the reason for this is presumably not that this has not happened ever… The reason is that when the concubine died in childbirth she was simply forgotten. After all, the average concubine did not give birth to a large number of children, especially as long as the one-concubine-one-son rule was followed. Thus, in all likelihood, when they died during childbirth, they either had no other children or only daughters, so they were less important persons, their names were recorded less, and then they disappeared from the public consciousness.

From the period of the “Sultanate of women” I also collected the causes and dates of the death of the most famous sultanas, without claiming completeness, as many sultanas were left out of the list because neither the year nor the reason of their death is known and in many cases not even their names *:

Ayşe Hafsa Sultan (b. ⁓1475): 19 March 1534, illness, most probably stroke or cancer since she suffered for months

Beyhan Sultan (b. ⁓1492): c. 1559, most probably natural causes

Hatice Sultan (b. ⁓1491): ?

Fatma Sultan (b. ⁓1493): 1557, most probably natural causes or illness

daughters of Selim I

Hafsa Sultan (b. ⁓1495/1500): 10 July 1538, most probably illness

Şah-i Huban Sultan (sz. ⁓1500): 1572, natural causes

Hürrem Sultan (b. ⁓1503): 15 April 1558, most probably cancer and maybe malaria also

Mihrimah Sultan (b. 1522): 25 January 1578, most probably natural causes or illness

Ayşe Hümaşah Sultan (b. 1541): 1594, natural causes or illness

Şehzade Mehmed’s daughter

Hümaşah Sultan (b. 1543): 1582, natural causes or illness

Fatma Hanimsultan (b. 1567): 29 July 1588, illness or complications during childbirth

Raziye Sultan (b. ⁓1515): October 1521, smallpox or plague

Mahidevran Hatun (b. ⁓1500): 3 February 1581, natural causes

Mahidevran Hatun’s granddaughters:

Fatma Sultan (b. ⁓1545): 1577, illness or childbirth

Nergiz-Şah Sultan (b. ⁓1536): c. 1592, natural causes or illness

Gülfem Hatun (b. ⁓1495): 1562, natiral causes or execution

Nurbanu Sultan (b. ⁓1525): 7 December 1583, most probably a sudden illness, or stroke/heart-attack, but poisoning is also an options

Esmehan Sultan (b. ⁓1545): 8 August 1585, complications after childbirth

Şah Sultan (b. 1544): September 1580, illness

Gevherhan Sultan (b. ⁓1545): after 1604, maybe in 1622, natural causes

Selim II’s daughter, Fatma Sultan (b. 1558): September 1580, after childbirth (maybe complications after a still-birth)

Safiye Sultan (b. ⁓1550): c. 1520, natural causes

Ayşe Sultan (b. ⁓1565): 15 May 1605, most probably illness

Hümaşah Sultan (b. ⁓1565): after 1580, illness or childbirth

Fatma Sultan (b. ⁓1565): c. 1620, natural causes

Murad III’s daughters:

Fahriye Sultan (b. ⁓1588): after 1641, natural causes

Rukiye Sultan (b. ⁓1593): c. 1623, most probably illness or childbirth

Handan Sultan (b. ⁓1570): 9 November 1605, gastric problems

Halime Sultan (b. ⁓1570): after 1623, ?

Kösem Sultan (b. ⁓1590): 2 September 1651, strangled

Hanzade Sultan (b. ⁓1609): 23 September 1650, illness or natural causes

Ayşe Sultan (b. ⁓1605/7): c. 1657, most probably natural causes

Fatma Sultan (b. ⁓1606): c. 1670, most probably natural causes

I. Ahmed’s daughters

Gevherhan Sultan (b. ⁓1605): 1660, natural causes

Abide Sultan (b. 1618): c. 1648, most probably illness (or she lived longer just retired and became forgotten)

Atike Sultan (b. ⁓1614): c. 1670, most probably natural causes

Ayşe Sultan (b. ⁓1610): c. 1680, natural causes

Esmehan Kaya Sultan (b. 1633): 1658, complications after giving birth

IV. Murad’s daughters:

Safiye Sultan (b. 1635):1680, complications after giving birth

Rukiye Sultan (b. ⁓1640): 1696, most probably natural causes

Hanzade Sultan (b. 1631): 1675, most probably natural causes

Turhan Hatice Sultan (b. ⁓1627): 1683, natural causes by some chronical illness.

Fatma Sultan (b. 1642): 1657, illness

Ibrahim I’s daughters:

Gevherhan Sultan (b. 1642): 21 September 1694, long illness

Beyhan Sultan (b. 1645): 5 March 1701, natural causes

Hatice Muazzez Sultan (b. ⁓1627): 12 September 1687, heart attack or stroke

Saliha Dilaşub Sultan (b. ⁓1627): 4 December 1689, long illness maybe cancer

Telli Hümaşah Sultan (b. ⁓1630): c. 1672, most probably illness

Emetullah Rabia Gülnüs Sultan (b. ⁓1642): 6 November 1715, illness

 A short discussion about the history and customs of funerals

For a long time, the sultans were the only "inhabitants" of their tomb. In this Murad III made a change, burying his executed siblings next to his father, Selim II. But over time, Murad broke another tradition when he buried his mother, Nurbanu, next to his father in his tomb. For in the past centuries the wifes and consorts of the sultans had not been placed in a tomb with their master, and for a long time not even in their mosque. An early exception to this was Süleyman I's mother Ayşe Hafsa, who was buried in Süleyman I's father's mosque. Over time, Süleyman buried his only wife, Hürrem, in his own mosque in a separate tomb. And later Nurbanu was the first woman to rest right next to her husband in the same tomb. Importantly, however, Murad had already done a similar thing before Nurbanu. When Mihrimah Sultan passed away, knowing how close she was to his father, Murad buried her in Süleyman’s tomb, right next to her father. This is particularly interesting because Mihrimah’s husband Rüstem also had a mosque where Mihrimah could have been buried, but the mosque of Mihrimah’s brothers, the Şehzade Mosque, would also have been suitable for her. All indicate that Murad buried Mihrimah next to his father with a reason, as he later did with his mother and father.  

Back to Nurbanu, in her case, another tradition was broken. It was not only in life but in death as well that Nurbanu Sultan enjoyed extraordinary honors. Contrary to the custom whereby the sultan remained in the palace during a funeral, Murad accompanied his mother’s coffin on foot, weeping as he walked, to the mosque of Mehmed the Conqueror, where funeral prayers were said. The choice of the Conqueror’s mosque, the most distant of the sultanic mosques from the imperial palace, ensured both a maximum number of bystanders’ prayers for Nurbanu’s soul and maximum appreciation by the capital’s residents of this display of royal piety and respect for the valide sultan. According to the historian Selaniki, the “whole world” crowded into the mosque for the funeral prayers. For forty days high-ranking statesmen and religious officials were required to pay their respects at the valide sultan’s tomb, while the Qur’an was read continuously. The extraordinary nature of this funeral is suggested by the fact that in the extensive collection of the Topkapı Palace Library, the only miniature that depicts an event in the life of a female member of the dynasty is one illustrating the emergence of Nurbanu Sultan’s funeral cortège from the imperial palace.

 *PS: The dates in the lists are not always widely accepted. There are dates of birth and death that historians are still debating to this day. In these cases, I have mentioned the dates I consider most plausible.

 Used sources: Leslie Peirce – The imperial harem, Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire; Leslie Peirce – Empress of the east; Colin Imber – The Ottoman Empire, 1300-1650; Günhan Börekçi – Factions and Favorites at the courts of Sultan Ahmed (r. 1603-17) and his immediate predecessors; Douglas A. Howard – A History of the Ottoman Empire.

*     *     *

A halál is nagyon komoly részét képezte az Oszmán Birodalomnak, különösen mert rendkívül gyakori volt az erőszakos halál a dinasztia férfitagjai között. Mindannyian ismerjük a testvérgyilkosság törvényét, mely okán több száz herceget (sok esetben csecsemőket, gyermekeket) fojtottak meg a selyemzsineggel. Mai posztomban azonban inkább azokról szeretnék szólni, akik esetében nem ennyire egyértelmű a halál oka, ideje. Néhány érdekes, esetleg gyanús halálesetet hoztam el számotokra, illetve megpróbáltam összeszedni mindent az egyes szultánok, hercegek és szultánák halálának okairól; valamint a temetkezés rövid történetét is elhoztam: kiket hová temettek, mikor álltak be rendhagyó változások a temetkezési szokásokban…

Az általánosságban elmondható, hogy a korai periódus szultánjainak haláláról igen keveset tudunk. Nagyon sok esetben csak találgatások maradtak ránk a halál okáról. I. Murad (u. 1362-1389) halála azonban például egy üdítő kivétel, esetében ugyanis több leírás is készült haláláról. Egy szerb nemes gyilkolta meg tőrrel a Rigómezei csata (1389) alatt vagy előtt. „… teljesen váratlanul egy bizonyos Milos Obilic, aki ravaszságból és cselszövésből azt mondta, hogy felvette az iszlámot, arra kért bennünket, hogy (…)megcsókolja a fénylő nagyúr lábát, ahelyett, hogy ezt tette volna, elháríthatatlanul ruhájába elrejtett mérgezett kést szúrt a fénylő nagyúr dicső testébe, s súlyosan megsebezvén megitatta őt a mártírok serbetjével.” Természetesen nem bizonyos, hogy minden a leírtak szerint történt, az azonban biztos, hogy gyilkosság áldozata lett Milos Obilic keze által.

I. Bayezid (u. 1389-1402) halála maga szintén érdekes, egyesek úgy vélik, hogy öngyilkos lett Timur Lenk (u. 1370-1405) fogságában, miután az, szeme láttára alázta meg feleségét Mariát. Mások szerint megmérgezték a fogság idején. Akárhogyan is, a szultánok halála mindig valami új kezdetét jelentette. Ha a szultán meghalt, nem volt idő gyászolni. Asszonyaiknak, feleségeiknek és a főbb vezíreinek ugyanis más dolga volt a halál beállta után: azonnal értesíteni a koronaherceget, vagy azt a herceget, akit ők maguk a trónon akartak látni. A szultán ugyanis az lett, aki először ért a fővárosba és foglalta el a trónt. A korai időszakban a szultánok gyakran az otthonuktól – a birodalmi fővárostól – távol, hadjárat során hunytak el, így vezíreik voltak azok, akik értesítették a hercegeket a helyzetről. A hercegek pedig mindent megtettek, hogy egymás előbb érhessenek a fővárosba. Ebben pedig sok esetben segítséget is kaptak az őket támogató pasáktól. Így kerülhetett például trónra II. Bayezid (u. 1481-1512) is. Lányait korábban befolyásos pasákhoz adta nőül, vejei pedig mindent megtettek, hogy Bayezid legnagyobb vetélytársát, egyik testvérét lelassíthassák az Isztambulba vezető úton. Sikerrel jártak és Bayezid elfoglalta a trónt, ők pedig megkapták érte jutalmukat.

II. Bayeziddel ellentétben, I. Szulejmán szultán (u. 1520-1566) halálakor nem volt már vetélytársa fiának, II. Szelimnek (u. 1566-1574). Azonban Szulejmán mégis nagyon rossz pillanatban – épp egy csata kellős közepén – hunyt el a köszvénye okozta egészségügyi problémákban. Hogy elkerülje a lázadást és a katonák motivációjának elvesztését, a fővezír a szultán halálát eltitkolta. Szolgálókat öltöztetett be a szultán ruháiba, hasonló kézírású írnokokkal íratott parancsokat a szultán nevében, amíg II. Szelim megérkezett végre a táborba és szultánná lett.

A későbbi periódusokban már a szultán asszonyaié volt a főszerep, hiszen a szultánok egyre gyakrabban hunytak el a fővárosban. Erre egyik különösen érdekes példa II. Szelim halála, mely egy fürdőben történő elcsúszás után érte, és amit felesége Nurbanu szultána (⁓1525-1583) csak a nagyvezírrel osztott meg, és titokban üzentek Nurbanu fiának Muradnak (u. 1574-1595), hogy igyekezzen a fővárosba. Erre azért volt szükség, mert Murad gyermeköccsei a fővárosban tartózkodtak II. Szelim halálakor.

A szultánokat mindig az éppen aktuális birodalmi fővárosban helyezték örök nyugalomra. Bursa, mint korábbi főváros egyébként Isztambul elfoglalása után is fontos szerepet őrzött, ugyanis a kivégzett vagy természetes módon elhunyt hercegeket itt helyezték örök nyugalomra. Természetesen ebben is akadt kivétel, I. Szulejmán (u. 1520-1566) uralkodása alatt rögtön kettő is. Kedvenc fia, Mehmed (1521-1543) betegségben halt meg Manisában, ám a szokásokkal szakítva Szulejmán nem csak, hogy a fővárosban temette el Bursa helyett, de egyenesen szultánokéval vetekedő mecsetet építtetett fia számára. Másik fia, a lázadó Bayezid (1525-1562) kevéssé volt szerencsés. Mivel az iráni határ mellett végezték ki, Szulejmán még a Bursai temetést is megtagadta tőle, és az iráni határ mellett lelt örök nyugalomra fiai mellett. Legkisebb fia, aki csecsemő volt és nem tudott apjával együtt Iránba menekülni, kivégzése után Bursába lett eltemetve a többi hasonló sorsú herceg között.

Mielőtt tovasuhannánk és a szultánákat vennénk górcső alá, itt egy kis összefoglaló a „Nők szultánátusának” időszakából és az azt közvetlenül megelőző időszakból, a szultánok és hercegek halálának okairól, a teljesség igénye nélkül*:

II. Bayezid (sz. 1447): 1512. április 24, feltehetőleg mérgezés, de a természetes halál is felmerül

I. Szelim (sz. 1470): 1520. szeptember 22, feltehetőleg daganatos betegség vagy lépfene, de a mérgezés és pestis is opció

I. Szulejmán (sz. 1494): 1566. szeptember 7, köszvény, de ráadásnak az agyvérzés is felmerült

Şehzade Mahmud (sz. 1512): 1521. október 29, himlő vagy pestis

Şehzade Musztafa (sz. 1515): 1553. október 6, megfojtás

Şehzade Mehmed (sz. 1546): 1553. október 10, megfojtás

Şehzade Ahmed (sz. ?): 1552, betegség

Şehzade Murad (sz. 1519): 1521. október 12, himlő vagy pestis

Şehzade Mehmed (sz. 1521): 1543. november 6, feltehetőleg himlő

Şehzade Abdullah (sz. ⁓1525): c. 1527, talán himlő vagy pestis

Şehzade Bayezid (sz. ⁓1525 ): 1562. július 23, megfojtás

Şehzade Orhan (sz. ⁓1543): 1562. július 23, megfojtás

Şehzade Osman (sz. ⁓1545): 1562. július 23, megfojtás

Şehzade Abdullah (sz. ⁓1548): 1562. július 23, megfojtás

Şehzade Mehmed (sz. ⁓1544): 1562. július 23, megfojtás

Şehzade Murad (sz. ⁓1556): 1562. július 23, megfojtás

Şehzade ? (sz. ⁓1560/1), 1562. július ?, megfojtás

Şehzade Cihangir (sz. 1531): 1553. november 27, krónikus betegségek és valamilyen fertőzés

II. Szelim: 1574. december 12/15, elesést követő fejsérülés

Şehzade Mehmed (sz. ⁓1570): 1573/74, betegség

Şehzade Szulejmán (sz. ⁓1570): 1574. december 22, megfojtás

Şehzade Abdullah (sz. ⁓1570): 1574. december 22, megfojtás

Şehzade Ali  (sz. ⁓1572): 1572, születése után

Şehzade Oszmán (sz. ⁓1573/4): 1574. december 22, megfojtás

Şehzade Cihangir (sz. ⁓1573/4): 1574. december 22, megfojtás

III. Murad (sz. 1546): 1595. január 16, természetes okok

Şehzade Szelim (sz. 1567): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Mahmud (sz. 1568): c. 1581, betegség

Şehzade Szulejmán, Cihangir, Ahmed és feltehetőleg más hercegek is: születésük után egyből

Şehzade Abdullah (sz. 1585): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Musztafa (sz. 1585): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Bayezid (sz. 1586): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Cihangir (sz. 1587): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Abdurrahman (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Alemşah (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Aleaddin Davud (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Ali (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Hasan (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Hüseyin (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Ishak (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Murad (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Oszmán (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Ömer (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

Şehzade Yusuf (sz. ?): 1595. január 28, megfojtás

III. Mehmed (sz. 1566): 1603. december 21, természetes okok (egyesek szerint túlsúlyhoz köthető egészségügyi problémák)

Şehzade Szelim (sz. 1585): 1597, betegség

Şehzade Mahmud (sz. 1587): 1603, megfojtás

Şehzade Szulejmán (sz. ?): 1597, betegség

Şehzade Cihangir (sz. ?): 1602, betegség

I. Ahmed (sz. 1590): 1617. november 22, feltehetőleg tífusz vagy gyomorvérzés

Şehzade Mehmed (sz. 1605): 1621. január 12, megfojtás

Şehzade Bayezid (sz. 1612): 1635. július 27, megfojtás

Şehzade Kasim (sz. 1614): 1638. február 17, megfojtás

Şehzade Szulejmán (sz. 1615): 1635. július 27, megfojtás

Şehzade Hasan, Orhan, Selim, Hüseyin, Cihangir és feltehetőleg más hercegek is csecsemőként agy gyermekként

I. Musztafa (sz. ⁓1600): 1639, természetes okok (de az epilepszia is felmerül)

II. Oszmán (sz. 1604): brutális gyilkosság

Şehzade Ömer (sz. 1621): 1622, több opció is létezik: baleset, gyilkosság, betegség, sokk

IV. Murad (sz. 1612): 1640. február 8, májzsugor és feltehetőleg egyéb krónikus betegségek

Rengeteg fia született, ám Evliya Celebi szerint mindannyian gyenge egészséggel születtek, majd haltak meg nem sokkal később. A háttérben egyesek mérgezést sejtenek, de lehetett genetikai betegség is, amely a fiúkat érintette.

I. Ibrahim (sz. 1615): 1648. augusztus 18, megfojtás

Şehzade Murad, Osman, Bayezid, Cihangir gyermekként elhunytak betegség következtében

Şehzade Selim (sz. 1644): 1669, feltehetőleg betegség

IV. Mehmed (sz. 1642): 1693. november 6, természetes okok

II. Szulejmán (sz. 1642): 1691. június 22, teste felduzzadt, kómába esett majd meghalt valamilyen betegségtől

II. Ahmed (sz. 1643): 1695. február 6, természetes okok, de a stressz okozta szívroham/agyvérzés is opció

Különösen ritka, mikor a pontos ok és időpont is rendelkezésünkre áll a szultánák esetében. Az ő életüket elsősorban feljegyzésekből ismerjük, melyek a tulajdonaikat és fizetéseiket listázzák. Így sok esetben csak következtetni tudunk rá, hogy amikor eltűntek a feljegyzésekből, akkor hunyhattak el. Azonban ezek a feljegyzések gyakran hiányosak, előfordul, hogy több évre, évtizedre sincsenek meg, esetleg töredékesek. Emellett a halál okát még ritkábban jegyezték fel. Erre általában onnan tudunk következtetni, hogy született e gyermek, volt e friss házasság a halál idejét közvetlenül megelőzően, volt e esetleg hatalmas járvány a halál ideje alatt? Valamint a befolyásosabb szultánák esetében a történetírók, követek előfordult, hogy feljegyezték a halál feltételezett okát. Ez azonban meglehetősen ritka, ahogy a fejezet alján található listát olvasva is egyértelművé válik.

A szultánok temetése mindig kettős érzéseket váltott ki az emberekből. Egyrészt a temetés napján új szultán trónra lépését ünnepelték, és az új szultán kivégzett testvéröccseit gyászolták. Ezzel szemben a szultánák gyászszertartásai és temetési szokásai sokkal nyugodtabbak voltak, nagyobb figyelmet kaptak ilyen értelemben. Halálukkor a nincsteleneknek gyakran osztottak lelki üdvükért alamizsnát, ételt. Erre például Handan valide szutána (⁓1570-1605) 1605. november 9-i halálát követően temetése remek példa. A velencei követ feljegyezte, hogy milyen hatalmas mennyiségű alamizsnát osztottak szét az emberek között. Emellett egy valide szultána halála és temetése mindig nyilvános gyászszertartáshoz volt köthető, hiszen a nép így ki tudta fejezni együttérzését a szultánnal, aki édesanyját veszítette el ekkor. Ayşe Hafsa (⁓1475-1534), I. Szulejmán édesanyjának halála után például a város több napra gyászba borult. Mindemellett a temetését leíró Celalzade Mustafa serint nagyon hosszú imákkal búcsúztatták, amelyben a legtiszteltebb muszlim asszonyokhoz tették őt hasonlatossá, mint például Mohamed próféta első felesége Hatice, leánya Fatma és harmadik, egyben kedvenc felesége Ayşe: „Nagyon vallásos asszony volt, az igazlelkű cselekedetek asszonya, a tisztaság királynője, korának Haticéje; jótékony intézetek alapítója, korának Fatmája és Ayşéje.”

A szultánák esetében az erőszakos halál helyett a gyermekszülés volt vezető halálok. Sokan a szülésbe haltak bele, mert bár a palota orvosai és bábái a világ legjobbjai voltak, a szülés veszélyes tevékenység volt azokban az időkben. Tény azonban, hogy a nyugati birodalmakhoz képest jóval kevesebb asszony halt bele a szülésbe vagy gyermekágyi lázba az Oszmán Birodalom dinasztiájából. A leghíresebb szüléshez kapcsolódó halál Esmehan Kayáé. Kaya szultána (1633-1658) IV. Murad (u. 1623-1640) leánya volt, aki örökölte apja természetét, sokan őt tartották Murad legméltóbb gyermekének. Legendák szerint Esmehan Kayának megjövendölték még fiatal korában, hogy a szülésbe fog belehalni, emiatt évekig nem engedte közel magához a férjét. Férjével azonban idővel igazi szerelem alakult ki, mely természetesen testileg is beteljesült. Esmehan Kaya két gyermeknek is életet adott, így talán már el is felejtette a jövendölést és fellélegzett. Harmadik gyermeke születésekor azonban komplikációk léptek fel. A placenta nem akart leválni, hiába próbálkoztak különféle tortúrákkal a bábák, így a szülést követően néhány nappal vérmérgezésben elhunyt, borzalmas szenvedések után. Kislánya sem élte túl sokkal. Kaya egyik testvére, Safiye (⁓1540-1580) szintén gyermekszülésbe halt bele.

Azonban nem Kaya és húga volt az egyetlen, hasonló módon halt meg II. Szelim (u. 1566-1574) két leánya is: Fatma szultána (1558-1580), aki kislánya születésébe halt bele a gyermekkel együtt, meglehetősen fiatalon; Esmehan szultána (⁓1545-1585) pedig negyedik gyermeke szülése után fellépő komplikációkba halt bele, fia alig egy hónappal élte túl csupán. Esetében a komplikációknak köze lehetett ahhoz is, hogy a kor szokásaihoz képest viszonylag későn, nagyjából negyven évesen szült. Érdekes egyébként, hogy Szelim másik leánya, Şah (1544-1580) is viszonylag fiatalon hunyt el betegség következtében, így Szelim leányai közül egyedül Gevherhan (⁓1545-1622?) volt az, aki megérte az időskort és feltehetőleg természetes okoktól hunyt el.

Legendák szerint egyébként III. Murad (u. 1574-1595) kedvese, Safiye szultána (⁓1550-1620?) is majdnem belehalt egyik vetélésébe, ám mint tudjuk ő végül túlélte és még sok-sok évig uralkodhatott. Kevésbé volt szerencsés Mahfiruze Hatun (⁓1590-1608/12?), I. Ahmed ágyasa, és legidősebb fiának anyja, aki feltehetőleg szintén a szülésbe halt bele, igaz esetében több alternatíva is felmerült halálának okával kapcsolatban, így többek között a járvány is egy opció esetében.

Érdekes, hogy a szultán kedvencei között még ennél is kevesebb esetet ismerünk, amikor egy ágyas halt bele a szülésbe. Ennek oka azonban feltehetőleg nem az, hogy ilyen nem történt… Hanem az, hogy ha az ágyas belehalt a szülésébe egyszerűen feledésbe merült. Hiszen az átlag ágyasok nem adtak életet nagyszámú gyermeknek, különösen, amíg az egy ágyas – egy herceg szabályt betartották. Így nagy eséllyel, ha belehaltak a szülésbe, akkor vagy nem volt más gyermekük vagy csak leányuk, így kevésbé voltak fontos személyek, kevesebb feljegyzésbe került bele a nevük, majd eltűntek a köztudatból.

„Nők szultánátusának” időszakából szintén összegyűjtöttem a legismertebb szultánák halálának okait és idejét, a teljesség igénye nélkül, hiszen sok szultána kimaradt a listából, mert esetükben sem az évszám, sem az ok nem ismert, sőt sok esetben még neveik sem*:

Ayşe Hafsa szultána (sz. ⁓1475): 1534. március 19, betegség, feltehetőleg agyvérzés vagy daganatos betegség

Beyhan szultána (sz. ⁓1492): c. 1559, valószínűleg természetes okok

Hatice szultána (sz. ⁓1491): ?

Fatma szultána (sz. ⁓1493): 1557, természetes okok vagy betegség

I. Szelim leányai

Hafsa szultána (sz. ⁓1495/1500): 1538. július 10, feltehetőleg betegség

Şah-i Huban szultána (sz. ⁓1500): 1572, természetes okok

Hürrem szultána (sz. ⁓1503): 1558. április 15, feltehetőleg daganatos betegség, maláriával nehezítve

Mihrimah szultána (sz. 1522): 1578. január 25, természetes okok vagy hasonló betegség, mint édesanyjánál

Ayşe Hümaşah (sz. 1541): 1594, természetes okok

Şehzade Mehmed leánya

Hümaşah szultána (sz. 1543): 1582, természetes okok vagy betegség

Fatma Hanimsultan (sz. 1567): 1588. július 29, betegség vagy szülés során fellépő komplikációk

I. Szulejmán kislánya, Raziye szultána (sz. ⁓1515): 1521 októbere, himlő vagy pestis

Mahidevran Hatun  (sz. ⁓1500): 1581. február 3, természetes okok

Mahidevran Hatun unokái:

Fatma szultána (sz. ⁓1545): 1577, szülés vagy betegség következtében

Nergiz-şah szultána (sz. ⁓1536): c. 1592, természetes okok vagy betegség

Gülfem Hatun (sz. ⁓1495): 1562, természetes okok vagy gyilkosság

Nurbanu szultána (sz. ⁓1525): 1583. december 7, mérgezés vagy valamilyen hirtelen természetes ok (talán agyvérzés, szívroham)

Esmehan szultána (sz. ⁓1545): 1585. augusztus 8, gyermekszülést követő komplikációk

Şah szultána (sz. 1544): 1580. szeptember, betegség

Gevherhan szultána (sz. ⁓1545): 1604 után, lehetséges, hogy 1622, természetes okok

II. Szelim leánya:

Fatma szultána (sz. 1558): 1580. szeptember, gyermekszülés (valószínűleg komplikációs koraszülés)

Safiye szultána  (sz. ⁓1550): c. 1520, természetes okok

Ayşe szultána (sz. ⁓1565): 1605. május 15, feltehetőleg betegség

Hümaşah szultána (sz. ⁓1565): 1580 után, feltehetőleg betegség vagy szülés

Fatma szultána (sz. ⁓1565): c. 1620, természetes okok

III. Murad leánya:

Fahriye szultána (sz. ⁓1588): 1641 után, természetes okok

Rukiye szultána  (sz. ⁓1593): c. 1623, feltehetőleg betegség vagy gyermekszülés

Handan szultána (sz. ⁓1570): 1605. november 9, emésztőrendszeri problémák

Halime szultána (sz. ⁓1570): 1623 után, ?

Kösem szultána (sz. ⁓1590): 1651. szeptember 2, megfojtás

Hanzade szultána (sz. ⁓1609): 1650. szeptember 23., betegség vagy természetes okok

Ayşe szultána (sz. ⁓1605/7): c. 1657, feltehetőleg természetes okok

Fatma szultána (sz. ⁓1606): c. 1670, feltehetőleg természetes okok

I. Ahmed leányai

Gevherhan szultána (sz. ⁓1605): 1660, természetes okok

Abide szultána (sz. 1618): c. 1648, feltehetőleg betegség

Atike szultána (sz. ⁓1614): c. 1670, feltehetőleg természetes okok

Ayşe szultána (sz. ⁓1610): c. 1680, természetes okok

Esmehan Kaya szultána (sz. 1633): 1658, szülés után fellépő komplikációk

IV. Murad leányai

Safiye szultána (sz. 1635):1680, szülés után fellépő komplikációk

Rukiye szultána (sz. ⁓1640): 1696, valószínűleg természetes okok

Hanzade (sz. 1631): 1675, valószínűleg természetes okok

Turhan Hatice szultána (sz. ⁓1627): 1683, természetes okok, feltehetőleg betegség következtében

Fatma szultána (sz. 1642): 1657, betegség következtében

Ibrahim leányai:

Gevherhan szultána (sz. 1642): 1694. szeptember 21, hosszas betegség

Beyhan szultána (sz. 1645): 1701. március 5, természetes okok

Hatice Muazzez szultána (sz. ⁓1627): 1687. szeptember 12, feltehetőleg szívroham

Saliha Dilaşub szultána (sz. ⁓1627): 1689. december 4, betegség

Telli Hümaşah szultána (sz. ⁓1630): c. 1672, feltehetőleg betegség

Emetullah Rabia Gülnüs szultána (sz. ⁓1642): 1715. november 6, hosszas betegség után

A temetésekről néhány szó végezetül

A szultánok hosszú ideig türbéjük egyedüli lakó voltak. Ebben III. Murad hozott változást, aki kivégeztetett testvéreit is apja mellé temette. De idővel újabb tradíciót szegett meg Murad, amikor édesanyját, Nurbanut apja mellé temette annak türbéjébe. Korábban ugyanis a szultánok asszonyai nem kerültek a szultánjukkal közös türbébe, sőt sokáig még annak mecsetjében sem temethették el őket. Erre egy korai kivétel I. Szulejmán édesanyja Ayşe Hafsa volt, akit Szulejmán apja mecsetjébe temetett el. Idővel Szulejmán egyetlen feleségét, Hürremet is a saját mecsetjében helyezte örök nyugalomra egy különálló türbébe. Ezekután Nurbanu volt az első asszony, aki közvetlenül férje mellett nyugodhatott. Fontos azonban, hogy Murad már Nurbanu előtt is tett hasonlót. Amikor Mihrimah szultána elhunyt, tudva, hogy a szultána mennyire közel állt édesapjához, Szulejmán türbéjébe temette el, közvetlenül édesapja mellé. Ez különösen érdekes, mert Mihrimah férjének Rüsztemnek is volt mecsetje, ahová Mihrimaht temethették volna, de Mihrimah testvéreinek mecsetje a Şehzade mecset is alkalmas lett volna a szultána számára. Minden jel arra mutat, hogy Murad okkal temette apja mellé Mihrimaht.

Nurbanuhoz visszatérve, esetében még egy tradíció megszakadt. Nurbanu ugyanis nem csak életében viselhetett különleges jogokat, de halálakor is különleges tiszteletben részesült. Fiával való szoros kapcsolata jól ismert mindenki számára, ennek pedig tökéletes megnyilvánulása volt, amikor holtteste elhagyta a Topkapi Palotát. A hagyományok szerint a koporsót befolyásos pasák vitték és kísérték az imahelyre, a szultán pedig ez alatt a palotában maradt gyászolni. Murad azonban nem akarta édesanyját egyedül elengedni, ezért maga ment a koporsó előtt és zokogott. Nurbanu gyászszertartásának helye is érdekes volt, ugyanis Hódító Mehmed mecsetjét választották e célra, ami a legtávolabb feküdt a birodalmi palotától. Ennek célja az volt, hogy a legtöbb ember láthassa a temetést és imádkozhasson a valide szultána lelkiüdvéért. A történész Selaniki szerint az „egész világ” odacsoportosult a mecsetbe a temetési imára. Negyven napig olvastak érte fel a Koránból és negyven napig jártak magas rangú pasák a türbéjéhez. Érdekesség – és ez is jelzi Nurbanu befolyását –, hogy a Topkapi Palota könyvtárában megtalálható az egyelten olyan miniatúra, ami a dinasztia egy nőtagját ábrázolja, ez a miniatúra pedig Nurbanu temetéséről szól.

*UI: A listákban szereplő dátumok nem minden esetben egyezményesek. Vannak olyan születési és halálozási dátumok, melyek esetén a történészek is vitatkoznak mind a mai napig. Ezekben az esetekben az általam leghihetőbbnek vélt dátumot tüntettem fel.

Felhasznált források: Leslie Peirce – The imperial harem, Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire; Leslie Peirce – Empress of the east; Colin Imber – The Ottoman Empire, 1300-1650; Günhan Börekçi – Factions and Favorites at the courts of Sultan Ahmed (r. 1603-17) and his immediate predecessors; Douglas A. Howard – A History of the Ottoman Empire.

[ournervousstudentnut-blog]

Windows 10 vs Windows 8.1: which is best for you?

IT's been more than four years after the Windows 10 released, and though many users initially resisted the shift, it is most certainly here to remain. As always though, there are a number of die-hard fans of prior operating systems that have to make the leap.

Its mix of a far enhanced desktop experience, more intuitive integration of touchscreen features, a plethora of new programs and much better functionality makes it a very clear upgrade over its predecessor.

With loads of new features, improved, integral hardware service and enhanced performance it is also a worthy update for Windows XP and Windows 7 consumers also.

Windows 10 vs Windows 8.1 time

We have found no clear difference in boot times between both OS, not on the 2 computers we employed for this evaluation: a Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon plus a Microsoft Surface Guru. Both notebooks flashed to the login screen in 2 minutes, under either Windows 8.1 and Windows 10; using just fractions of a second's difference between the boot times of the 2 OSes on each machine. 1 characteristic that could shave a couple of seconds off real-world boot instances is Windows 10's facial recognition instrument, which permits an individual to be logged at the moment they sit in the front of the PC. This characteristic, however, takes a particular Intel RealSense 3D camera and won't work with a normal webcam. Together with fingerprint readers, these cameras are now relatively common in high-end laptops, which provides Windows 10 a small edge. Winner Windows 10, by a whisker, but only in the event that you count the tiny possible time saving of facial recognition.

The Ideal port for the Ideal apparatus

But ignore all that if you are using a Windows 10 Telephone or tablet-computer, every one of which utilizes a version variant of Windows 10 to show an interface best suited to each display size. Windows 10's tablet-style, in reality, seems an awful lot like Windows 8 Start screen. Microsoft attempted to market Windows 8 as a working system for every single device, however, it did so by forcing the exact same interface across tablet computers and PCs--just two quite different device types. Windows 10 tweaks the formulation, allowing a PC is a PC and also a tablet computer to be a tablet computer, and it is vastly better for this. And if you've got one of these fancy two-in-one hybrids? Windows 10's Continuum mode has you covered. Except, because of Windows 10's shared heart and universal programs Windows 10 Telephones can even mime appropriate Windows 10 PCs when linked to an external screen.

However, what about gambling?

Here is more guarantee for Windows 10 on the gambling side. DirectX 12, in matches that apply it, should observe healthy improvements. However, in games that don't utilize DX12, it is likely going to be a whole lot closer.

As an instance, I conducted Tomb Raider on our PCWorld zero-point system. It's an Intel Core i7-4770K, 16GB of DDR3/1600, along with a GeForce GTX 980. I used exactly the exact same Nvidia drivers using both OSes. Be aware that I conducted Windows 10 construct 10162 instead of the current construct 10240, as that's the previous ISO of Windows 10 previews that Microsoft made accessibly --no amount of coaxing would get Microsoft's servers to kick anything newer. My tests reveal a certain, if modest, advantage for Windows 10. Here is Tomb Raider for one to gawk in: Other evaluations gave a bit more of a triumph for Win10, but that will not set the world on fire like DX12 is anticipated to games that support you're outside. We are planning a more comprehensive look at Windows 10 gaming functionality, so stay tuned.

Personalization

Back in Windows 8, large icons and easy options were in the forefront. The Start screen enabled one to easily organize and resize live tiles, boosting their performance and ease of use. Together with Windows 10, the timeless tiled and desktop UI are no more different interfaces. Rather, elements of these exist and highly configurable. Live tiles are incorporated in the Start menu, instead of inside their interface, in which they may be transferred, the place to reveal rapid info, or launching apps. Programs can be immobilized or transferred to the menu for simple access.

Start Screen vs. Start Menu

The one most significant addition to Windows 10 is that the yield of the Start Menu, especially for routine desktop computer and regular no-touchscreen-use consumer. The Start are full of Screen of Windows 8 never made sense when using a mouse and keyboard and mercifully Microsoft has addressed this. Rather, Windows 10 includes a Start Menu that integrates the Live Tiles of this Windows 8 Start Screen and it may be made to match the entire screen. It is far more intuitive and makes with a mouse/trackpad and keyboard easier. If you mostly use the background computer in Windows then Windows 10 will make you a lot happier.

Edge Browser and Virtual Desktops

I have listed these both together as they're caught up attributes. The Edge browser (that is still a characteristic restricted at the start ) is Microsoft's effort to claw momentum out of Chrome. Edge works considerably faster than Internet Explorer and is only available on Windows 10. Besides this Windows 10 eventually adds Virtual Desktops such as those seen on Linux and Mac OS X. These enable users without multi-monitor installations to make multiple virtual desktops that are useful for dividing utilization between leisure and work, work into jobs or whatever you need. It is a fantastic feature.

You adore Windows Media Center

Microsoft has revamped plenty of items in Windows 10, replacing a lot of its heritage desktop apps with universal programs. By way of instance, Windows Photo Viewer is dead, replaced with the newest Photos app. However, while you may get Windows Photo Viewer back into Windows 10, you can not get Windows Media Center back. As it has gone, together with DVD playback service. For all, this is not a massive loss -- most people flow instead of seeing DVDs, after all, as well as Microsoft,  has been attempting to kill Media Center because of Windows 8. However, for a few, it might be a deal breaker. If you are a Media Center enthusiast -- or in the event that you desperately enjoy some other heritage features that don't now exist in Windows 10 -- afterward Windows 10 might not be for you personally.

Cortana

Another key new feature of Windows 10 not accessible Windows 8 is Cortana - Microsoft's semantic electronic assistant. A sort of super-Siri, which may engage you in the dialog. Over simple speech recognition, Cortana constantly scours the web for advice to notify its interactions with you. Plus it learns from the behavior, contacts and so forth, to be able to better fit your needs. Cortana on Windows Phone is fairly good, and it is currently on iOS and Android. Therefore that the addition of Microsoft's digital helper is a large boost over Windows 8.

Windows 10 vs Windows 8.1: Pairing

Though it was the largest overhaul of this OS since Windows 95, Windows 8 has been unusually secure and bug-free from the get-go. Really we had it operating on regular work programs six months prior to launch. Windows 10 was, to put it charitably, a bit wobblier. Microsoft is frequently issuing updates for your applications, but these updates frequently lead to difficulties. It looks like every couple of months, there are reports of accidental file deletions, glitches, crashes and other various errors. General stability is definitely better than it had been, but the simple fact that these mistakes persist is bothersome. Thus far, we have not seen any bugs that we would believe sufficient to justify downgrading to a previous version of Windows, however, it must be stated that reliability is not Windows 10's strong suit - and it does not seem like it ever is. On the flip side, Windows 10 Enterprise users may cut out a good deal of the hassle - that we will discuss more in a moment - meaning it is not so much of a problem.

Action Center

Windows 8 Windows Store programs might not have been a joy to use on appropriate PCs, but one crucial benefit they stored rocked my socks: System-wide notifications. Where conventional desktop software will become self-explanatory silos, Windows Store programs will take you a pop-up telling at the upper-right corner of the display when, say, you receive a new email or some fresh direct message from Twitter. If you visit them, that is. Following a notification pops up in Windows 8, then it disappears into the ether, never to be viewed or summoned. It's true that you could theoretically view missed notifications in their programs' individual Live Tiles on the beginning screen, but that hangs out there? Windows 10 cures the ailing with the debut of its new Action Center, which looks in the right-hand facet of the taskbar. Missed notifications will live there until you discount then huzzah! . You will also find quick-action buttons that enable you to quickly manage Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, input Tablet Mode, and much more.

Windows 10 appears to provide essentially no appropriate performance benefit over Windows 8 mainstream evaluations, but let us not be overly negative--since there is no reason to be. Together with Windows 7, Microsoft updated the schedule for the way the OS coped with CPUs, which guaranteed improvements and battery lifetime economies for both Intel and AMD CPUs. That was not a check-off thing for Windows 10. Since Windows 8.1 performances were very great.

There are also some improvement from 8.1 to win10 with backup and previous version which you can restore you deleted file more easily. When you didn’t turn on the backup, try this tip how to recover deleted files windows 8 and hope you have a good luck!

And, let's not forget that Windows 10 ushers at DirectX 12, which should very much yield substantial performance increases in games that support it.