Haseki Sultan Mosque – Istanbul

Of all the Ottoman heritage in Istanbul, the most striking are the monumental imperial mosques. The largest complexes date to the 16th and 17th centuries, although those built in the 18th and 19th centuries are equally significant. Fatih Sultan Mehmed constructed two large mosque complexes in the 15th century, shortly after conquering Constantinople. However, both were later destroyed by earthquakes and fires and subsequently rebuilt. For this reason, the Haseki Sultan Mosque is considered the third oldest surviving major imperial mosque in Istanbul.

 

 

OTTOMAN IMPERIAL MOSQUES

 

Ottoman sultans or members of the imperial dynasty commissioned these monumental complexes. They were usually constructed as külliye, multi-functional complexes centered on a mosque, surrounded by madrasas (theological schools), kitchens, baths and other charitable institutions serving the community.

The great imperial architect Mimar Sinan, master architect of the Ottoman Empire for nearly 50 years, designed many of the still-standing külliye in Istanbul. He set the standard for mosque and complex architecture.

Imperial mosques were also built in other Ottoman cities, including Bursa, Edirne, Konya, Amasya, Manisa and even Damascus.

 

 

 

HASEKI SULTAN MOSQUE

 

Perhaps the most significant monument associated with Hürrem Sultan is the Haseki Sultan Complex. It includes a mosque, madrasa, hospital (darüşşifa), elementary school (mektep) and soup kitchen (imaret).

 

 

Hürrem commissioned and financed the construction of this complex shortly after her marriage to Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, using her dowry.

 

 

What makes it especially notable is that it was the first imperial project of Mimar Sinan, who later became the chief architect of the Ottoman Empire.

 

 

The construction was completed in stages. The mosque in 1539, the madrasa in 1540, the soup kitchen in 1541 and finally the hospital in 1551.

 

 

 

 

Hürrem’s life resembled that of a fairy-tale princess. Captured at a young age and taken as a slave to Topkapı Palace, she rose to become one of the most powerful women in Ottoman history.

Suleiman’s deep love for her led him to break with centuries-old traditions. Their marriage, celebrated in either 1533 or 1534, defied a 200-year-old custom forbidding sultans from marrying their concubines. This unprecedented act elevated Hürrem to the status of legal wife and transformed her position within the imperial household.

She also became the first sultan’s consort to receive the title Haseki Sultan, which elevated her above the Ottoman princesses and gave her a rank equivalent to that of an empress in European courts.

Together, she and Suleiman had six children, including Selim II, who succeeded his father. Yet, Hürrem never bore the title Valide Sultan (queen mother), as she died before her son ascended the throne. Her bearing of multiple sons also broke the harem tradition of “one concubine, one son.”

 

 

Another convention Suleiman overturned for her was the practice of sending princes, and their mothers, to provincial governorships during adolescence. Instead, Hürrem remained in Istanbul, staying at the imperial palace with her youngest son, Cihangir.

She later moved from the Old Palace to Topkapı Palace itself, despite an earlier decree by Fatih Sultan Mehmed that banned women from residing there, as it was the seat of government.

Hürrem Sultan died in 1558 and was buried in a mausoleum adjacent to the Süleymaniye Mosque, a monumental complex commissioned by Suleiman and designed by Sinan.

 

 

The Haseki Sultan Mosque stands in Istanbul’s historic district, near the Cerrah Mehmed Pasha Mosque. Although located outside the city’s most frequented tourist areas, the site holds considerable historical significance.

Nearly five centuries old, the mosque complex stands as a testament not only to Ottoman architecture, but also to the extraordinary influence of one of the most powerful women of the Sultanate of Women era.

 

 

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