According to some experts, the Ottoman women, the sultan’s wives and mothers, which are the subject of countless TV series, movies and books, were one of the factors in the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. These sultans, who used to rule only the harem, became stronger with Hürrem Sultan and had a say in state affairs. The rivalry over which son would take the throne grew with the inclusion of women and accelerated the end of the reign.
Among the female sultans of the Ottoman Empire, the two Sultans who made the most of their names are Hürrem Sultan and Kösem Sultan. These two sultans, unlike other sultans, played an active role in state affairs instead of taking care of harem affairs and giving children only to the sultan. Kösem Sultan is also an extremely important figure in Ottoman history because she is the woman of firsts. Due to his sons who came to the throne at a young age, he ruled the whole empire as the regent. Let’s see the role of this historical figure in the Ottoman Empire and the details of his striking life story through the question of who is Kösem Sultan.
Who is Kösem Sultan? A young girl who stands out with her beauty and intelligence:
We actually have almost no information about the harem section of the Ottoman Empire, the concubines and the sultans. Because there was no such historiography in the Ottoman Empire. However, when the person in question was Kösem Sultan, it is possible to see that he was mentioned even in the ambassador’s records. Unfortunately, there is no definite information about its origin.
According to the countless books, movies and TV series written about Kösem Sultan, he may be of Greek, Bosnian or Circassian origin. As we said, there is no exact information. But according to historian Halil İnalcık, the teacher of the teachers, Kösem Sultan was of Greek origin and even his father was an orthodox priest. What we know about him is that he comes to the Bosnian Beylerbeyi palace.
Anastasya, who came to the Bosnian Beylerbeyi palace, is a young and beautiful girl. Moreover, it is extremely intelligent. Attracting the attention of the Beylerbey in this way, the young girl is sent to the Darüssaade Agha of the palace in Istanbul. When Anastasia enters the Ottoman harem, things are quite complicated.
Events that make Kösem Kösem:
When Anastasia came to the Ottoman harem, Safiye Sultan’s reign was over and she was sent to the old palace. Now the reign of Handan Sultan has begun. The young girl who will become Kösem Sultan in the following years is very affected by these events and she can see what will happen to her when her grandson comes to the throne.
When young Anastasya came to the harem, she took the name Mahpeyker. Kösem is his nickname. There are two rumors about how he got this nickname. She got this nickname because she was a very hairless young girl according to one of them. According to the other, she was named as Kösemen, that is, because she has a strong stance that dominates the environment.
Kösem Sultan becomes Haseki Sultan:
Since Ahmed I, who was on the throne at that time, was the ruler at a young age, all the powers were in the hands of his mother and he was very dependent on his mother. Concubines were constantly sent to the sultan so that he could have a child as soon as possible, but he was not very interested in these issues. Then the death of Handan Sultan changed all the balances. Ahmed I turned into an angry man. At this very moment, Kösem grew up like a knight.
Kösem Sultan filled the void that Ahmed I, who ascended the throne at a young age and was devoted to his mother, fell when his mother died. Even because of Kösem, the shoe of the first wife of the sultan was thrown on the roof. It is not mentioned in an official source, but some ambassador letters and IV. According to a name with Murad’s monogram, Kösem Sultan and Ahmet I were married, just like Hürrem Sultan and Suleiman the Magnificent.
Kösem began to establish his political ties while Ahmed I was alive:
Kösem Sultan had a total of eight children, two of whom died in infancy and two of whom ascended the throne. He married the girls of these children to important or future important people in Ottoman politics. In other words, even when his wife Ahmed I was alive, he started to make plans for the future. Of course, in the meantime, he continues to consolidate his place in the heart of Ahmed I.
We all know the rule that the eldest family member ascends the throne, called the Akbar and ershed system. I . Kösem Sultan also prepared the infrastructure of this system, which was introduced during the reign of Ahmed and changed the fate of the Ottoman Empire. Because Ahmed I has a son named Osman from his first wife, and if he takes the throne, he will kill all of Kösem’s sons. In other words, the reason for this law that changed the Ottoman inheritance system is a mother who wants to protect her children.
Kösem Sultan’s ‘throne’ ascent:
When Ahmed I died in 1617, his brother Mustafa I ascended the throne first. However, since Mustafa I’s mental faculties were not very good, he was replaced by Ahmed I’s son, Mahfiruz Hatice Sultan, II. Osman, the Young Osman as we know him, came to the throne. Young Osman had grown up in the hands of Kösem Sultan, but was disastrously dethroned. Then Mustafa I took his place again and was dethroned again. Finally, Kösem Sultan’s son IV. Murad ascended the throne.
IV. Murad was an 11-year-old boy when he ascended the throne. This meant that the real enthroned was Kösem Sultan. Moreover, this was not an illegal situation because according to tradition, the valide sultan was obliged to rule the state as the regent until her son grew up. Kösem was at her peak at the end of the palace she entered as a concubine.
In our article here, IV. We talked about the Murad period. During this period, Kösem Sultan gave lots of tips and helped everyone even more than they would love him. However, due to his inexhaustible greed for power, he eventually caused the death of his son. Ibrahim, who lived his whole life in fear of death, took the throne.
Kösem Sultan, who constantly offered concubines to the sultan during the first years of the throne because there was no one to ascend to the throne after İbrahim, finally succeeded in bringing many heirs to the throne. However, he could not prevent his son’s insane behavior, or he did not want to be. In the end, Ibrahim was killed and replaced by IV. When Mehmet passed, Kösem Sultan was sent to the old palace.
The first and only valide sultan killed because of her ambitions:
Grandson IV. Kösem Sultan, who was sent to the old palace with Mehmet’s accession to the throne, had not quelled his ambition for power. For this reason, she often entered into an endless rivalry with the new valid sultan, Turhan Sultan. There was only one thing left to do, as the influence of Kösem Sultan still continued in the palace.
In the autumn of 1651, a decision was made, a former valide sultan who was the Valide-i Muazzama would be killed. Lala Süleyman Ağa formed a team and went to the old palace. On the night of September 2, 1651, Kösem Sultan’s room was raided together with the staff of the private chamber, and Kösem Sultan was strangled on the spot. According to experts, the cause of death was not drowning, but greed.
Kösem Sultan’s life was also adapted for television: The Magnificent Century Kösem
- Year: 2015
- Cast: Beren Saat, Anastasia Tsilimpiou, Hülya Avşar, Nurgül Yeşilçay
After the “Magnificent Century” series about the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent through Hürrem Sultan, produced by Tims Productions, the life of Kösem Sultan, an important name in the reign of women, was adapted for television with the TV series Magnificent Century: Kösem. The 60-episode series begins with Ahmed I’s accession to the throne and ends with the historical death of Kösem Sultan. Throughout the series, we see many famous names portraying the different ages of Kösem Sultan.
We talked about his role in Ottoman history and his striking life story through the question of who is Kösem Sultan, one of the most important names of the women’s reign that started with Hürrem Sultan. You can share your thoughts about Kösem Sultan and other sultans in the comments.
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