Turhan Hatice
Encyclopedia
Turhan Hatice Valide Sultan, Devletlu İsmetlu Turhan Hadice Valide Sultan Aliyyetü'ş-şân Hazretleri (1628? – 1683), was one of the hasekis ("favourite concubine") of the Ottoman
sultan
Ibrahim I
(reign 1640-1648) and the mother of his successor, Mehmed IV
(reign 1648-1687).
Turhan Hatice is prominent for the regency of her young son and her building patronage.
(Ukrainian
) origin. She was captured during one of the raids by Tatars
and sold into slavery. When she was about 12 years old, Turhan was sent to the Topkapı Palace
as a gift to the mother of Sultan Ibrahim, Kösem Sultan. It was probably Kösem Sultan who gave Hatice to Ibrahim as a concubine. On January 2, 1642 Turhan gave birth to a son, the future sultan Mehmed IV. Ibrahim's behaviour sparked talks of deposing the sultan. On August 8, 1648, Ibrahim was dethroned and several days later he was strangled. At the head of the Ottoman empire stood the child sultan, Mehmed IV. With Mehmed's ascendency, the position of Valide Sultan ("mother of the reigning sultan") should have gone to Turhan. However, Turhan was overlooked due to her youth and inexperience. Instead, the sultan's grandmother and the previous Valide Sultan
, Kösem Sultan, was reinstated to this high position. Kösem Sultan was a Valide (mother) under two sons, thus having the more experience of the two women.
However Turhan turned out to be too ambitious a woman to lose such a high position without a fight. In her struggle to become Valide Sultan
, Turhan was supported by the head black eunuch in her household and the grand vizier, while Kösem was supported by the Janissary Corps. Although, Kösem’s position as Valide was seen as the best for the government, the people resented the influence of the Janissaries on the government.
In this power struggle, Kösem planned to dethrone Mehmed and replace him with another young grandson. According to one historian, this switching had more to do with replacing an ambitious daughter-in-law with one who was more easily controlled. The plan was unsuccessful as it was reported to Turhan by one of Kösem’s slaves. Whether Turhan sanctioned it or not, Kösem Sultan was murdered three years after becoming regent for her young grandson.
Turhan’s regency was marred by at least two factors: the war with the Venetians for the island of Crete
, and the financial crisis that arose from the high expenses of waging war. Weak grand viziers did not improve the situation. However, in 1656 Köprülü Mehmed Pasha
was appointed to the position of grand vizier. His condition upon accepting the post was that he be given greater authority than his predecessors.
Thus, Turhan transferred her political power to that of the grand vizier.
Her first building project began in 1658. Perhaps in answer to the Venetian threat, the Valide built two fortresses at the entrance to the Dardanelles. The fortresses, one on the European side and the other on the Asian side, can still be seen today. This project put Turhan in the same league as Mehmed the Conqueror and other sultans who built fortresses in the same area.
However, Turhan’s greatest accomplishment would be built in the capital of the empire, Istanbul. Yeni Mosque
has an interesting story. The initial construction was started by one of Turhan’s predecessors, Safiye Sultan
. She had chosen the commercial quarter of the city, Eminonü as the location of the mosque. This area was inhabited by non-Muslims. By building a new mosque in Eminönü, Safiye wanted to Islamize the area. To build on this site meant that land had to be appropriated from the local non-Muslim residents, an act that had not gone smoothly. In the year 1597, the first stones were laid. At the death of Safiye’s son, Mehmed III
, the construction of the mosque stopped as she was no longer the Valide. The construction was abandoned for 57 years and in 1660 the area was damaged by fire. The mosque received a second chance when Turhan decided to complete what had been started by Safiye Sultan. After its completion in 1665, the complex contained not only the mosque, but also a school, public fountains, a market and a tomb. According to Peirce the Yeni Mosque
. gained the distinction of being the first imperial mosque built by a woman. The mosques in this list are only those of the sultans.
Turhan was the last woman to wield such great power as to act as a regent to a young son. As women were not seen in public in the Ottoman Empire, it was through her patronage of building that Turhan showed herself to her subjects. To defend the entrance to the Dardanelles, Turhan built two fortresses and thus became the guardian of the empire.
Turhan Hatice, Valide Sultan and regent to her young son, Mehmed IV, died in 1683. She was buried in the tomb of the Yeni Mosque
. She lies alongside her son and her descendents.
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
Ibrahim I
Ibrahim I
Ibrahim I was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1640 until 1648. He was born in Istanbul the son of Ahmed I by Valide Sultan Kadinefendi Kösem Sultan, an ethnic Greek originally named Anastasia...
(reign 1640-1648) and the mother of his successor, Mehmed IV
Mehmed IV
Mehmed IV Modern Turkish Mehmet was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1648 to 1687...
(reign 1648-1687).
Turhan Hatice is prominent for the regency of her young son and her building patronage.
From Concubine to Valide Sultan
Turhan Hatice, whose original name is Nadya, was considered to be of RuthenianRuthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
(Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
) origin. She was captured during one of the raids by Tatars
Tatars
Tatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
and sold into slavery. When she was about 12 years old, Turhan was sent to the Topkapı Palace
Topkapi Palace
The Topkapı Palace is a large palace in Istanbul, Turkey, that was the primary residence of the Ottoman Sultans for approximately 400 years of their 624-year reign....
as a gift to the mother of Sultan Ibrahim, Kösem Sultan. It was probably Kösem Sultan who gave Hatice to Ibrahim as a concubine. On January 2, 1642 Turhan gave birth to a son, the future sultan Mehmed IV. Ibrahim's behaviour sparked talks of deposing the sultan. On August 8, 1648, Ibrahim was dethroned and several days later he was strangled. At the head of the Ottoman empire stood the child sultan, Mehmed IV. With Mehmed's ascendency, the position of Valide Sultan ("mother of the reigning sultan") should have gone to Turhan. However, Turhan was overlooked due to her youth and inexperience. Instead, the sultan's grandmother and the previous Valide Sultan
Valide Sultan
Valide Sultan was the title held by the mother of a ruling Sultan in the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish pronunciation of the word Valide is . The title is sometimes translated as Queen Mother, although the position of Valide Sultan was quite different.The position was perhaps the most important...
, Kösem Sultan, was reinstated to this high position. Kösem Sultan was a Valide (mother) under two sons, thus having the more experience of the two women.
However Turhan turned out to be too ambitious a woman to lose such a high position without a fight. In her struggle to become Valide Sultan
Valide Sultan
Valide Sultan was the title held by the mother of a ruling Sultan in the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish pronunciation of the word Valide is . The title is sometimes translated as Queen Mother, although the position of Valide Sultan was quite different.The position was perhaps the most important...
, Turhan was supported by the head black eunuch in her household and the grand vizier, while Kösem was supported by the Janissary Corps. Although, Kösem’s position as Valide was seen as the best for the government, the people resented the influence of the Janissaries on the government.
In this power struggle, Kösem planned to dethrone Mehmed and replace him with another young grandson. According to one historian, this switching had more to do with replacing an ambitious daughter-in-law with one who was more easily controlled. The plan was unsuccessful as it was reported to Turhan by one of Kösem’s slaves. Whether Turhan sanctioned it or not, Kösem Sultan was murdered three years after becoming regent for her young grandson.
Valide and Regent
With the death of her rival, Turhan became the Valide Sultan. As a regent, Turhan wielded great power. She accompanied her son the sultan to important meetings and on several occasions spoke from behind her curtained sitting place. Due to her inexperience, Turhan relied on other members of the government to advise her on political matter. This is evident from her correspondence to the grand viziers.Turhan’s regency was marred by at least two factors: the war with the Venetians for the island of Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
, and the financial crisis that arose from the high expenses of waging war. Weak grand viziers did not improve the situation. However, in 1656 Köprülü Mehmed Pasha
Köprülü Mehmed Pasha
Köprülü Mehmed Pasha , was the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire from 1656 until his death. He was the first leader and founder of the Albanian Köprülü noble dynasty/family.- Life :He was recruited as a part of the devshirmeh system and was trained in the palace school...
was appointed to the position of grand vizier. His condition upon accepting the post was that he be given greater authority than his predecessors.
Thus, Turhan transferred her political power to that of the grand vizier.
Royal Patronage
Leslie Peirce sees the year 1656 as a turning point in Turhan’s life. By providing the grand vizier with “unlimited” authority, Turhan limited her own power on the political stage. However, she channeled her energies into other areas of life. Turhan began to build.Her first building project began in 1658. Perhaps in answer to the Venetian threat, the Valide built two fortresses at the entrance to the Dardanelles. The fortresses, one on the European side and the other on the Asian side, can still be seen today. This project put Turhan in the same league as Mehmed the Conqueror and other sultans who built fortresses in the same area.
Yeni Mosque
The Yeni Camii, The New Mosque or Mosque of the Valide Sultan is an Ottoman imperial mosque located in the Eminönü district of Istanbul, Turkey. It is situated on the Golden Horn at the southern end of the Galata Bridge. It is one of the best-known sights of Istanbul.-History:The construction of...
has an interesting story. The initial construction was started by one of Turhan’s predecessors, Safiye Sultan
Safiye Sultan
Safiyā Valida Sultânā, , née Sofia Baffo, , was the consort of Ottoman Sultan Murad III, the Valida Sultânā and de facto co-regent to her son, Ottoman Sultan Mehmed III.- Biography :She was of Venetian descent...
. She had chosen the commercial quarter of the city, Eminonü as the location of the mosque. This area was inhabited by non-Muslims. By building a new mosque in Eminönü, Safiye wanted to Islamize the area. To build on this site meant that land had to be appropriated from the local non-Muslim residents, an act that had not gone smoothly. In the year 1597, the first stones were laid. At the death of Safiye’s son, Mehmed III
Mehmed III
Mehmed III Adli was sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1595 until his death.-Biography:...
, the construction of the mosque stopped as she was no longer the Valide. The construction was abandoned for 57 years and in 1660 the area was damaged by fire. The mosque received a second chance when Turhan decided to complete what had been started by Safiye Sultan. After its completion in 1665, the complex contained not only the mosque, but also a school, public fountains, a market and a tomb. According to Peirce the Yeni Mosque
Yeni Mosque
The Yeni Camii, The New Mosque or Mosque of the Valide Sultan is an Ottoman imperial mosque located in the Eminönü district of Istanbul, Turkey. It is situated on the Golden Horn at the southern end of the Galata Bridge. It is one of the best-known sights of Istanbul.-History:The construction of...
. gained the distinction of being the first imperial mosque built by a woman. The mosques in this list are only those of the sultans.
Turhan was the last woman to wield such great power as to act as a regent to a young son. As women were not seen in public in the Ottoman Empire, it was through her patronage of building that Turhan showed herself to her subjects. To defend the entrance to the Dardanelles, Turhan built two fortresses and thus became the guardian of the empire.
Turhan Hatice, Valide Sultan and regent to her young son, Mehmed IV, died in 1683. She was buried in the tomb of the Yeni Mosque
Yeni Mosque
The Yeni Camii, The New Mosque or Mosque of the Valide Sultan is an Ottoman imperial mosque located in the Eminönü district of Istanbul, Turkey. It is situated on the Golden Horn at the southern end of the Galata Bridge. It is one of the best-known sights of Istanbul.-History:The construction of...
. She lies alongside her son and her descendents.
See also
- Çınar IncidentÇınar IncidentÇınar Incident is the name of a 17th century rebellion in the Ottoman Empire.- Background :During the Cretan War , military expenditures of the Ottoman Empire increased, and the empire began experiencing economic difficulties...
- Ottoman DynastyOttoman DynastyThe Ottoman Dynasty ruled the Ottoman Empire from 1299 to 1922, beginning with Osman I , though the dynasty was not proclaimed until Orhan Bey declared himself sultan...
- Line of succession to the Ottoman throneLine of succession to the Ottoman throneThe Ottoman Dynasty, which completely excluded females from the throne, had unusual succession practices compared to other monarchies. Those succession practices changed over time, and ultimately the sultanate was abolished in 1922.-Succession practices:...
- Ottoman family treeOttoman family tree-Bibliography:...