They lived together: their meals were shared in common; even their beds were in the same room. The Sultan gave his sister in marriage to the sailor's son, and Ibrahim was at the summit of power. Through her charm and guile she managed to catch the eye of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent, displacing his former favorite and eventually becoming his wife. Her son Selim, inherited the empire from his father but proved a disastrous ruler and an alcoholic.
Selim is said to have died in after slipping and banging his head in a hammam while drunk. Its glamorous costumes, sumptuous interiors, and the endless conniving and plotting among the women of the harem have fed the resurgent local interest in the Ottoman Empire. They led me to an inner vestibule, where I was divested of my cloak and shoes and regaled with refreshments.
Presently an elderly woman, very richly dressed, accompanied by a number of young girls, approached me, and after the usual salutation, informed me that the Sultana Asseki was ready to see me.
All the walls of the kiosk in which she lives are covered with the most beautiful Persian tiles and the floors are of cedar and sandalwood, which give out the most delicious odor. At the entrance to the apartment in which the Sultana consented to receive me, the elderly lady who had accompanied me all the time made me a profound reverence, and beckoned to two girls to give me their aid; so that I passed into the presence of the Sultana leaning upon their shoulders.
The Sultana, who is a stout but beautiful young woman, sat upon silk cushions striped with silver, near a latticed window overlooking the sea. Numerous slave women, blazing with jewels, attended upon her, holding fans, pipes for smoking, and many objects of value. She asked many questions concerning our country and our religion, of which she knew nothing whatever, and which I answered as modestly and discreetly as I could.
I was surprised to notice, when I had finished my narrative, that the room was full of women, who, impelled by curiosity, had come to see me, and to hear what I had to say.
When the dancing and music were over, refreshments were served upon trays of solid gold sparkling with jewels. As it was growing late, and I felt afraid to remain longer, lest I should vex her, I made a motion of rising to leave. She immediately clapped her hands, and several slaves came forward, in obedience to her whispered commands, carrying trays heaped up with beautiful stuffs, and some silver articles of fine workmanship, which she pressed me to accept. After the usual salutations the old woman who first escorted me into the imperial presence conducted me out, and I was led from the room in precisely the same manner in which I had entered it, down to the foot of the staircase, where my own attendants awaited me.
I was very glad to observe a lady that had been distinguished by the favor of an emperor, to whom beauties were every day presented from all parts of the world.
But she did not seem to me to have ever been half so beautiful as the fair Fatima I saw at Adrianople; though she had the remains of a fine face, more decayed by sorrow than by time. She wore a vest called donalma, and which differs from a caftan by longer sleeves, and folding over at the bottom. It was of purple cloth, straight to her shape, and thick-set, on each side, down to her feet, and round the sleeves, with pearls of the best water, of the same size as their buttons commonly are.
This habit was tied at the waist with two large tassels of smaller pearl, and round the arms embroidered with large diamonds: her shift fastened at the bottom with a great diamond, shaped like a lozenge; her girdle as broad as the broadest English ribbon, entirely covered with diamonds.
Round her neck she wore three chains, which reached to her knees: one of large pearl, at the bottom of which hung a fine colored emerald, as big as a turkey-egg; another, consisting of two hundred emeralds, close joined together of the most lively green, perfectly matched, every one as large as a half-crown piece, and as thick as three crown pieces; and another of small emeralds, perfectly round.
But her earrings eclipsed all the rest. They were two diamonds, shaped exactly like pears, as large as a big hazelnut. Round her talpoche she had four strings of pearl, the whitest and most perfect in the world, at least enough to make four necklaces, every one as large as the Duchess of Marlborough's, and of the same size, fastened with two roses, consisting of a large ruby for the middle stone, and round them twenty drops of clean diamonds to each.
Beside this, her headdress was covered with bodkins of emeralds and diamonds. She wore large diamond bracelets, and had five rings on her fingers, all single diamonds, except Mr. Pitt's the largest I ever saw in my life. It is for jewelers to compute the value of these things; but, according to the common estimation of jewels in our part of the world, her whole dress must be worth above a hundred thousand pounds sterling.
This I am very sure of, that no European queen has half the quantity; and the Empress' jewels, though very fine, would look very mean near hers. But the magnificence of her table answered very well to that of her dress.
The knives were of gold, the hafts set with diamonds but the piece of luxury that gripped my eyes was the tablecloth and napkins, which were all tiffany, embroidered with silks and gold, in the finest manner, in natural flowers. It was with the utmost regret that I made use of these costly napkins, as finely wrought as the finest handkerchiefs that ever came out of this country.
You may be sure that they were entirely spoiled before dinner was over. The sherbet which is the liquor they drink at meals was served in china bowls; but the covers and salvers were massy gold. After dinner, water was brought in a gold basin, and towels of the same kind as the napkins, which I very unwillingly wiped my hands upon; and coffee was served in china, with gold sou-coupes. I did not omit this opportunity of learning all that I possibly could of the seraglio, which is so entirely unknown among us.
She never mentioned her husband without tears in her eyes, yet she seemed very fond of the discourse. Yet I cannot forget that I was beloved by the greatest and most lovely of mankind.
I was chosen from all the rest, to make all his campaigns with him; I would not survive him, if I was not passionately fond of my daughter. Yet all my tenderness for her was hardly enough to make me preserve my life. When I lost him, I passed a whole twelvemonth without seeing the light.
Time has softened my despair; yet I now pass some days every week in tears, devoted to the memory of my husband. It was easy to see she was in a deep melancholy, though her good humor made her willing to divert me. She asked me to walk in her garden, and one of her slaves immediately brought her a pellice of rich brocade lined with sables. I waited on her into the garden, which had nothing in it remarkable but the fountains; and from thence she showed me all her apartments.
In her bed chamber her toilet was displayed, consisting of two looking-glasses, the frames covered with pearls, and her night talpoc1te set with bodkins of jewels, and near it three vests of fine sables, every one of which is, at least, worth a thousand dollars two hundred pounds English money.
I don't doubt these rich habits were purposely placed in sight, but they seemed negligently thrown on the sofa. The city was restored with a better plan including new dams, aqueducts and fountains, theological schools medrese , caravanserai , Turkish baths , botanical gardens and bridges.
The port of Golden Horn , of which the surveillance was made from Galata Tower , became one of the busiest ports. Some of the important monuments and mosques built during this period are: Suleymaniye Mosque and annexes, Sehzadebasi Mosque and establishments, Sultan Selim Mosque and establishments, Cihangir Mosque, Mihrimah Sultan mosques on both sides of the city dedicated to his daughter, and Haseki establishments and baths built on behalf of Hurrem Sultan , the only loved wife of the Sultan.
Istanbul had a detailed city plan for reconstruction during this time. Migration was prohibited. Building houses around the city wall was prohibited. They largely reached the limitations of their supply lines and infrastructure, leading to a greater focus on internal affairs rather than a pressing need for territorial expansion.
Although later Sultans did conquer more territory, they often found wars to be rather prolonged affairs with multiple fronts and little gain. The empire began a controlled decentralization in response to the need for tax in kind, changes in the nature of warfare, the Little Ice Age , and other transformations in Europe. It was this adaptability—rather than clinging to raw power—that allowed the Ottoman Empire to weather these crises.
Where so many other empires and kingdoms collapsed, the Ottomans survived into twentieth century. The Sultan often reflected in his poetry on the transitory nature of rule, life, and power. His poetry characterizes the world as a trap, filled largely with misery. Given the events of his long reign, he likely felt keenly the repercussions of rule. Despite the pains power caused him, he knew that nothing, including his own reign, lasts forever.
Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the Stanton Foundation. Skip to main content. The Ohio State University. Department of History. Home Topics Africa. Middle East. North America. International Relations Religion Education Sports.
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