The Magnificent and the Gal with the Antelope Eyes

Dear Folk,

Today, September 5, 1566 marks the passing of the greatest of all Sultans of the Turks: Suleyman I – the Magnificent.

Suleyman (or Suleiman) was the only son of Selim I. He was born into the role of ruler, as so many have been; however, he was wise and capable beyond most I have written about. You might remember him as the gentleman leading the Ottoman Turks against Louis II at the Battle of Mohacs. Go back and read that in "Know Mohacs" in the Archives if you do not.

When I say Ottoman Turks, you might think that it was some sort of designation of an area. It wasn't. One family reigned over the Ottoman Empire for seven centuries, and, unlike most dynasties, they ruled in an unbroken line, thirty-six of them altogether, from the 13th century until the 20th century. Of course there were abdications and depositions but never a real break. They were never overthrown by a foreign power and no usurper ever gained the throne. The Western world called them Ottoman, but their Turkish name is Osmanli, taken from the first ruler of the Ottoman state, Osman I (died 1326). What other throne can boast such a lineage?

It seemed amazing at the time, 1453 CE, that this previously obscure clan breached the walls and conquered the Byzantine capital of Constantinople. It was partially the clan's strength and cunning but also that the Byzantine Empire was overripe and rotten. The Mongols had pushed the Empire to its limits, there was no leadership, the Empire was morally and spiritually bankrupt. It took little for the Turks to kick butt. Under Mehmed the Conqueror, the Ottomans rebuilt the devastated city of Constantinople into the fabulously wealthy capital they renamed Istanbul, with large warehouses, the Covered Bazaar, Topkapi Palace, and several mosque complexes.

It was Sultan Süleyman (born 1494) however, who brought the Ottoman Empire to its zenith. He was the fourth Ottoman sultan to reign, from 1520 until 1566. He presided over the most powerful state in the world spanning three continents. A remarkable military strategist, he more than doubled the Ottoman land holdings he inherited from his father.

He also brought a profusion of elegant mosques, baths, schools, fountains, and gardens to Istanbul. A virtual renaissance occurred in literature, the arts, the sciences, and he set a new standard of jurisprudence. . The Turks called him "The Lawgiver." So brilliant was Süleyman that it was actually the Europeans who added the sobriquet "the Magnificent" to his name. "I know no State which is happier than this one," reported the Venetian ambassador in 1525; "it is furnished with all God's gifts. It controls war and peace; it is rich in gold, in people, in ships, and in obedience; no State can be compared with it. May God long preserve the most just of all Emperors."

Races and religions coexisted under his rule. Muslim, Christian and Jewish families lived together in the Ottoman capital of Istanbul, and Christians and Jews freely practiced their religion, customs, and laws. Officers to Suleyman's court were appointed by merit and not by birth. What a strange concept!

He ruled over everything and everybody but was nevertheless restricted to a daily expense allowance of two purses, one of gold, the other silver. What he did not distribute by the day's end, he generously shared among his pages. He himself was skilled in poetry and the arts and was trained as a goldsmith. On various occasions lavish spectacles were organized lasting weeks and featuring acrobatics, juggling, fireworks, and the reenactment of battles and sieges in shadow play. He lived his life in balance and moderation, according to his sacred book, The Koran.

The sultan used to consult theologians on crucial decisions. He attached importance to justice and fairness. For example, he returned an overpayment in Egypt's taxes. How about that, modern politicians? He was just, letting no corruption or injustice go unpunished. But he sometimes acted before he had all the facts. And he could be influenced as can we all.

There were palace intrigues and backstabbings going on in his court. What medieval court was free of them? Some of them centered around the beautiful Roxelana, a Russian slave girl whom he married out of his harem when he became Sultan. You don't think that set some tongues to wagging? Hey, Suleyman dug her! he wrote of her in a poem, "She has antelope eyes." Okay, it sounded better in Turkish, trust me. His wife and her son-in-law, The Grand Vizier Rustem Pasha, so poisoned his mind against his eldest son, Mustafa, that Suleyman had him strangled in 1553. There then ensued a conflict between the sons of Roxelana: Selim and Bayazid. The latter took up arms and was later killed due to a payment made by Suleyman.

For a warlike Sultan, Suleyman ruled for a remarkably long reign of 46 years. He led his army in person. He had ten campaigns against the Europeans and three in Asia. He realized how vital Hungary was to securing his borders, hated the Habsburgs, and never conquered Vienna, though not for want of trying.

Besides invasions and campaigns, Suleyman was a major player in the politics of Europe. He pursued an aggressive policy of European destabilization; in particular, he wanted to destabilize both the Roman Catholic church and the Holy Roman Empire. When European Christianity split Europe into Catholic and Protestant states, Suleyman poured financial support into Protestant countries in order to guarantee that Europe remain religiously and politically destabilized and so ripe for an invasion. Several folk who study such have argued that Protestantism would never have succeeded except for the financial support of the Ottoman Empire. How about that, intrigue-oriented folk?

Suleyman died in a battle September 5, 1566 at the siege of Szigeth in his last campaign against the growing Habsburg influence in the region. Upon Süleyman's demise, the gradual decline of the Ottoman Empire began, finally ending completely three hundred years later in 1924 when Kemal Ataturk abolished the Muslim caliphate and founded the Republic of Turkey. It is strange, historians still argue as to what happened. Selim II, Suleyman's son, had an undistinguished and alcoholic career. And things just slid downhill from there. Some folk think it was that the Turks gave up on the practice of killing rival claimants to the throne and just started imprisoning them. Hey, if they were still alive, their forces could always try a coup. You tell me.

Anyway, what have we learned? Wise rulers base offices on merit rather than birth? Even folks not of your faith can have worth and wisdom? The enemy of my enemy is sometimes my friend (and strangely so)? Never trust the Grand Vizier? How about beware of making slave girls your wife?

Hey, if you are out there painting miniatures, peeling pomegranates, or just killing a few Europeans, and the urge comes upon you to forward these missives by caravanserii or email, please keep my name and sig. attached.

Wishing Suleyman were running for Prez,
J. Ellsworth Weaver

SCA – Sir Balthazar of Endor
AS – Polyphemus Theognis
TRV – Sebastian Yeats