The Turkish series "The Magnificent Century", released not so long ago on the screens, stirred up an unprecedented interest in the legendary people who lived in the distant 16th century. Who is Khyurrem Sultan and what the story of her life really was - many would certainly like to know about this.
Historians have different opinions about the origin of Roksolana Khyurrem Sultan. The only thing is that almost no one doubts its Slavic origin. It is believed that Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska was born in western Ukraine, in the family of an Orthodox priest. After 15 years, the young Slavic woman was taken prisoner by the Crimean Tatars and sold on the slave market.
Biography
Hürrem Sultan's life at home for historians remains at the most a mystery. However, the main milestones of her biography as the concubine of Suleiman and his wife, of course, are still known to researchers:
1502 (according to other sources 1505) - date of birth of Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska;
1517 (or 1522) - capture by the Crimean Tatars;
1520 - Shehzade Suleiman becomes Sultan;
1521 - the birth of the first son of Khyurrem Mehmed;
1522 - birth of Mihrimah, the only daughter of Roksolana;
1523 - the birth of Abdullah, the second son of Khyurrem (died at the age of 3);
1524 - the birth of Shehzade Selim.
1525 - the birth of Shehzade Bayazid;
1534 - wedding of Suleiman the Magnificent and Khyurrem Sultan;
1536 - execution of the worst enemy of Roksolana Ibrahim Pasha;
April 18, 1558 - death of Khyurrem Sultan.
The biography of the great Haseki, the wife of Sultan Suleiman, nicknamed the Legislator in his homeland, and Magnificent in Europe, was, of course, full of other important events. However, for obvious reasons, it is not possible to find out about them. Almost no exact historical information about Roksolana has survived.
Anastasia Lisovskaya: truth and fiction
It is believed that in the homeland of Khyurrem Sultan, whose history has been exciting the minds of the inhabitants of both Europe and Asia for many centuries, her name was Anastasia Lisovskaya. Perhaps it was so. However, historians are still inclined to think that Anastasia or Alexandra Lisovskaya is a fictitious name. The fact is that this was the name of the heroine of the popular novel about the Ukrainian woman Roxalan from the city of Rohatyn, published in Europe the century before last. The exact same historical information about the name of the legendary Haseki has not been preserved. Apparently, the author of the novel himself invented the name Anastasia Lisovskaya. The researchers managed to find out only that Khyurrem Sultan was born, most likely in 1502. It was captured by the Crimean Tatars, according to legend, at the age of 14-17 years.
The Slavic slave woman did not give her name to either the Tatars or the owners who bought her from them. In the subsequent harem, no one was able to learn about her past either. Therefore, the new slave of Suleiman received the name Roksolana. The fact is that this is how the Turks traditionally called the Sarmatians, the ancestors of the modern Slavs.
How Roksolana got into the Sultan's harem
How exactly Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska got to Suleiman's palace is also not known for certain. It is only known that his friend and vizier Ibrahim Pasha chose the Slavic slave for the Sultan. Most historians believe that Roxolana was bought by him in the non-voluptuous market with his own money as a gift for the Lord. From that time, the rich life of Khyurrem Sultan began in the palace. If she had been acquired directly in Suleiman's harem and with his personal funds, he would hardly have been able to marry her. According to Muslim laws, at that time it was allowed to marry only with a donated odalisque.
Life in the palace and children
The title of Haseki, or beloved wife, was introduced by Suleiman specifically for Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska. The influence on the Sultan Roksolana was really enormous. The love of the greatest ruler of that time for his Haseki is evidenced by the fact that after marrying her, he dispersed his entire harem. Roksolana, as in the series, has never really had any rivals. However, with all this, the family of Suleiman the Magnificent, the suddenly ascended slave, most likely, as in the TV movie, still disliked. The sultan's mother, according to historical data, greatly respected Muslim traditions. And the marriage of a son with a slave for her could really be a real blow.
Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska's life in the palace, as in the TV series "The Magnificent Age", was full of dangers. In fact, several attempts were made on her. It is believed that it was her intrigues that led to the execution of Ibrahim Pasha and Mustafa, the son of Suleiman's first wife, Mahidevran Sultan. According to legend, initially Roksolana sought to make her beloved son Bayezid heir apparent. However, the Sultan's army supported her other son, Selim, who, after the death of Suleiman, ascended the throne.
As contemporaries testify, Haseki Roksolana was an attractive, but at the same time, very intelligent woman. The life of Khyurrem Sultan was not only in raising children and in palace intrigues. Roksolana read many books, was interested in politics and economics. She certainly had managerial talent. For example, in the absence of Suleiman, she managed to patch a huge hole in the Sultan's treasury in a rather cunning way, rather traditional for the Slavic rulers. Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska simply ordered to open wine shops in the European quarter of Istanbul.
Interesting facts about Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska
Due to the strong influence exerted on the sultan, contemporaries considered Roksolana a witch. Perhaps suspicions of witchcraft were not in vain. There is even historical information (though not entirely reliable) that Roksolana, already being Suleiman's beloved concubine, ordered all sorts of Wedic artifacts from Ukraine.
The cause of death of Khyurrem Sultan also still remains a mystery to historians. It is officially believed that the great Haseki died from a common cold. Although there is information that she could have been poisoned. Also, some historians believe that the Haseki ended her life due to a disease that doctors of that time called simply fatal. Today this ailment is known as cancer. It was this version that was presented in the series "The Magnificent Age".
