Safiye Sultan (mother of Mehmed III)

According to Venetian sources, Safiye was of Albanian origin, born in the Dukagjin Highlands.[2]

In 1563, at the age of 13, she was gifted as a slave by Hümaşah Sultan, daughter of Şehzade Mehmed.[3] Given the name Safiye, she became a concubine of Şehzade Murad, the eldest son of Şehzade Selim. On 26 May 1566, after two daughters, she gave birth to Murad's firstson, Mehmed. The same year, Suleiman the Magnificent died and Selim ascended the throne as Selim II.

The husband of "Sāfiya Vālida Sultān," Ottoman Sultan Murad III.

Selim died in 1574 and Murad became the new sultan as Murad III. Safiye and her children immediately traveled to the capital to settle next to Murad. Safiye immediately received the Haseki rank and a salary of 800 aspers per day. However, her new life in Constantinople also meant that Nurbanu Sultan, Murad's mother who was deeply loved and revered by Murad, would be part of their private lives. Nurbanu, as the Valide and head of the harem, ruled over the entire palace and family, and Safiye lived as Haseki under Nurbanu's shadow. For the first few years, even if there were tensions in the harem, there was no open fight between the two women. However, Safiye sought to gain political power, which was a completely logical move as the mother of princes. However, Nurbanu did not appreciate Safiye’s aspirations in political life, nor her attempt to influence Murad; Nurbanu saw Safiye as a threat to her influence over the family and Murad.

Safiye had been Murad's only concubine before his accession, and he continued having a monogamous relationship with her for several years into his sultanate. Nurbanu advised him to take other concubines for the good of the dynasty,[4] which by 1581 had only one surviving heir: Mehmed, Murad's son by Safiye. In 1583, Nurbanu accused Safiye of using witches and sorcerers to render Murad impotent and prevent him from taking new concubines. This resulted in the imprisonment, exile, torture and execution of Safiye's close friends and servants. Also offended by his masculinity, Murad – who tended to believe in witchcraft, astrology, so presumably seriously believed the rumor – finally, in early 1583 (or even in 1582), banished Safiye to the Eski Saray (Old Palace).[5] Murad's sister Ismihan presented him with two beautiful concubines, which he accepted. Cured of his impotence, he went on to father 20 sons and 27 daughters.[6]

Venetian reports state that after an initial bitterness, Safiye kept her dignity and showed no jealousy of Murad's concubines. She even procured more for him, earning the gratitude of the Sultan, who continued to value her and consult her on political matters, especially after the death of Nurbanu. During Murad's latter years, Safiye returned to being his only companion.[6] However, it is unlikely that Safiye ever became Murad's wife; though the Ottoman historian Mustafa Ali refers to her as such, he is contradicted by reports from the Venetian and English ambassadors.[6]

After Nurbanu's death and her return to Topkapi Palace, by then, Safiye had perhaps been disillusioned with Murad and was only interested in gaining power.[7] As Giovanni Moro reported in 1590: with the authority she {Safiye} enjoys as mother of the prince, she intervenes on occasion in affairs of state, although she is much respected in this, and is listened to by His Majesty who considers her sensible and wise. It was during this period that Safiye also built her own all-intertwined relationship system and began to immerse herself in every corner of politics. With the support of the chief eunuch, Gazanfer Aga, she influenced Murad's decisions more and gained more power, which made some Grand Viziers very uncomfortable. Of course, Koca Sinan Pasha, who was Grand Vizier for three terms during Murad's reign, was her supporter.

As much as Safiye could hate Murad's mother, she continued Nurbanu's pro-Venice policy. She also stood openly in front of Murad for the sake of Venice interests as Haseki. Although she was able to influence the sultan in many ways, she did not always manage to shape the events according to her own taste. For example, in 1593, she tried to convince Murad in favor of the English ambassador she had favored. However, Murad hardly listened, already rejecting Safiye’s offer. Thus, although her power and influence grew during Murad’s reign and achieved many of her interests, and the Sultan also set serious boundaries for her.

It is believed that Safiye Sultan had a monogamous relationship with Murad and that she was his only concubine between 1563 and 1580 circa.[8][9][10][11][12]

From Murad, Safiye had at least six children, three sons and three daughters:

• Hümaşah Sultan (Manisa, c. 1564 – Constantinople, after 1606. Buried in Murad III's mausoleum in Hagia Sofia Mosque). Also called Hüma Sultan. She married Nişar Mustafazade Mehmed Pasha (died 1586). She may have then married Serdar Ferhad Pasha (d.1595) in 1591. She was lastly married in 1605 to Damad Nakkaş Hasan Pasha.
• Ayşe Sultan (Manisa, 1565 –Constantinople, 15 May 1605).
• Mehmed III (Manisa, 16 or 26 May 1566 – Constantinople, 21 December 1603); he succeeded his father as Ottoman sultan.
• Şehzade Selim (Manisa, 1567 – before 1580, buried in Hagia Sofia Mosque)
• Şehzade Mahmud (Manisa, 1568 – before 1580, buried in Hagia Sofia Mosque).
• Fatma Sultan (Manisa, 1573 – Constantinople, 1620).

Also, she was also probably, but not certainly, the mother of:

• Mihrimah Sultan (Constantinople, 1579? – Constantinople, after 1625)
• Fahriye Sultan (died in 1656, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque), called also Fahri Sultan. Possibly daughter with Safiye, perhaps born after her mother's return from exile in Old Palace. She married firstly to Cuhadar Ahmed Pasha, Governor of Mosul, married secondly to Damad Sofu Bayram Pasha, sometime Governor of Bosnia.

In addition to these, a European braggart, Alexander of Montenegro, claimed to be the lost son of Murad III and Safiye Sultan, presenting himself with the name of Şehzade Yahya and claiming the throne for it. His claims were never proven and are not believed to be true by modern historians.

Ottoman Sultan Mehmed III, to whom Safiye was a Valide Sultan during 1595–1603.

When Murad died in 1595, Safiye arranged for her son Mehmed to succeed as a sultan, and she became the Valide Sultan—one of the most powerful in Ottoman history. Committed to his mother to the extreme, the new sultan essentially allowed his mother to rule and gain influence. From then on, no one and nothing could set a limit to Safiye’s will. When she became Valide Sultan in 1595, she became more active in internal and foreign affairs, Until her son's death in 1603, Ottoman politics were determined by a party headed by herself and Gazanfer Ağa, chief of the white eunuchs and head of the enderun (the imperial inner palace). She had to handle serious internal struggles and struggles with the army instead of her son. She gave money for the war expenses from her personal account to support her son.[13]

Safiye arranged the highest allowance ever for herself as Valide Sultan. She eventually enjoyed an enormous stipend of 3,000 aspers a day during the latter part of her son's reign.[14] When Mehmed III went on the Eger campaign in Hungary in 1596, he gave his mother great power over the empire, leaving her in charge of the treasury. During her interim rule she persuaded her son to revoke a political appointment of the judgeship of Constantinople and to reassign to the grand vizierate to Damat Ibrahim Pasha, her son-in-law. So no one could do anything in the capital, or even in the whole empire, without Safiye’s permission. She during the 9-year reign of her son has even been accused of corruption in his government and of selling important and lucrative positions at the highest price offered.[15]

During this period, the secretary of the English ambassador reported that while in the palace, Safiye "spied a number of boats upon the river [the Bosphorus] hurrying together. The Queen Mother sent to enquire of the matter [and] was told that the Vizier did justice upon certain chabies [kahpe], that is, whores. She, taking displeasure, sent word and advised [the Vizier] that her son had left him to govern the city and not to devour the women; [thus] commanding him to look well to the other business and not to meddle any more with the women till his master's return."[16]

The greatest crisis Safiye endured as a valide sultan stemmed from her reliance on her kira, Esperanza Malchi. A kira was a non-Muslim woman (typically Jewish) who acted as an intermediary between a secluded woman of the harem and the outside world, serving as a business agent and secretary. Malchi reportedly attempted to influence Safiye (and through her the sultan) negatively in their policy toward the Republic of Venice in conflict with the Venetian spy Beatrice Michiel, which on at least one occasion caused an open conflict at court.[17] In 1600, the imperial cavalry rose in rebellion at the influence of Malchi and her son, who had amassed over 50  million aspers in wealth. Safiye was held responsible for this, along with the debased currency the troops were paid with, and nearly suffered the wrath of the soldiers, who brutally killed Malchi and her son. Mehmed III was forced to say "he would counsel his mother and correct his servants." To prevent the soldiers from suspecting her influence over the Sultan, Safiye persuaded Mehmed to have his decrees written out by the Grand Vizier, instead of personally signing them.[18]

Interior design of Yeni Mosque in Eminönü, Istanbul. The construction began during Safiye's regency.

Safiye was instrumental in the execution of her grandson Mahmud in 1603, having intercepted a message sent to his mother by a religious seer, who predicted that Mehmed III would die in six months and be succeeded by his son. According to the English ambassador, Mahmud was distressed at "how his father was altogether led by the old Sultana his Grandmother and the state went to Ruin, she respecting nothing but her own desire to get money, and often lamented thereof to his mother," who was "not favored of the Queen mother." The prince was therefore a serious threat to her and her son's reign.[19] The sultan, provoked by her, suspecting a plot and jealous of his son's popularity, had him strangled.

Mehmed III was succeeded by his son Ahmed I in 1603. One of his first major decisions was to deprive his grandmother of power—she was banished to the Old Palace on Friday, 9 January 1604. This was the end of her reign, which lasted for 19 years through her husband and son.[20][21] When Ahmed I's brother Mustafa I became sultan in 1617, his mother Halime Sultan received 3,000 aspers as valide sultan although her mother-in-law Safiye was still alive. However, Halime received only 2,000 aspers during her retirement to the Old Palace between her son's two reigns; during the first months of her retirement Safiye was still alive, perhaps a neighbor in the Old Palace, receiving 3,000 aspers a day[1] while the Haseki Sultan of Ahmed I, Kösem Sultan also living in the Old Palace, received 1,000 aspers a day.[22]

All succeeding sultans were descended from Safiye.[12]

The Yeni Mosque in Eminönü, Istanbul. Construction was begun by Safiye Sultan and completed during the regency of Turhan Hatice, the mother of Mehmed IV.

Safiye, like Nurbanu, advocated a generally pro-Venetian policy and regularly interceded on behalf of the Venetian ambassadors, one of whom described her to the senate as "a woman of her word, trustworthy, and I call say that in her alone have I found truth in Constantinople; therefore it will always benefit Your Serenity to promote her gratitude."[23]

Safiye also maintained good relations with England. She persuaded Mehmed III to let the English ambassador accompany him on campaign in Hungary.[24] One unique aspect of her career is that she corresponded personally with Queen Elizabeth I of England, volunteering to petition the Sultan on Elizabeth's behalf. The two women also exchanged gifts. On one occasion, Safiye received a portrait of Elizabeth in exchange for "two garments of cloth of silver, one girdle of cloth of silver, [and] two handkerchiefs wrought with massy gold."[25] In a letter from 1599, Safiye responds to Elizabeth's request for good relations between the empires:

I have received your letter...God-willing, I will take action in accordance with what you have written. Be of good heart in this respect. I constantly admonish my son, the Padishah, to act according to the treaty. I do not neglect to speak to him in this manner. God-willing, may you not suffer grief in this respect. May you too always be firm in friendship. God-willing, may [our friendship] never die. You have sent me a carriage and it has been delivered. I accept it with pleasure. And I have sent you a robe, a sash, two large gold-embroidered bath towels, three handkerchiefs, and a ruby and pearl tiara. May you excuse [the unworthiness of the gifts].[26]

Al-Malika Safiyya Mosque, Cairo (Exterior view)

Safiye had the carriage covered and used it on excursions to town, which was considered scandalous. This exchange of letters and gifts between Safiye and Elizabeth presented an interesting gender dynamic to their political relationship. In juxtaposition to the traditional means of exchanging women in order to secure diplomatic, economic, or military alliances, Elizabeth and Safiye's exchange put them in the position of power rather than the objects of exchange.[27]

An unusual occurrence in Safiye's relationship with England was her attraction to Sir Paul Pindar, secretary to English ambassador and deliverer of Elizabeth's coach. According to Thomas Dallam (who presented Elizabeth's gift of an organ to Mehmed III), "the sultana did take a great liking to Mr. Pinder, and afterward, she sent for him to have his private company, but their meeting was crossed."[28]

Safiye is also famous for starting the construction of Yeni Mosque, the "new mosque" in Eminönü, Constantinople, in 1597. Part of Constantinople's Jewish quarter was razed to make way for the structure, whose massive building costs made Safiye unpopular with the soldiery, who wanted her exiled. At one point Mehmed III temporarily sent her to the Old Palace.[29] Though she returned, she did not live to see the mosque completed. After Mehmed died, Safiye lost power and was permanently exiled to the Old Palace. The mosque's construction was halted for decades. It was finally completed in 1665 by another valide sultan, Turhan Hatice, mother of Mehmed IV.

Masjid al-Malika Safiyya

Masjid al-Malika Safiyya, Egypt.[30] (Interior view)

The Al-Malika Safiye Mosque in Cairo is named in Safiye's honor. The mosque of al-Malika Safiyya derives its name more by appropriation than by real patronage. It was started by 'Uthman Agha, who held the post of the Agha Dar al-Sa'ada, or black eunuch in charge of the harem, as well as the Egyptian waqf estates of the holy places in the Hijaz. 'Uthman Agha was the agent and slave of the noble Venetian beauty Safiya, of the Baffo family, who had been captured by corsairs and presented to the imperial harem, where she became chief consort of Sultan Murad III (1574–95) and virtual regent for her son, Sultan Mehmed III (1595-1603). 'Uthman died before the mosque was completed, and it went to Safiya as part of his estate. She endowed the mosque with a deed that provided for thirty-nine custodians including a general supervisor, a preacher, the khatib (orator), two imams, timekeeper, an incense burner, a repairman, and a gardener.[31]

Safiye Sultan died after 20 April 1619 in the Old Palace during the reign of her great-grandson Osman II (r. 1618–1622). Safiye was buried in Murad III's türbe, inside the Hagia Sophia.

• In Ann Chamberlin’s Sofia, she is depicted as a 14-year-old Venetian noble girl who was taken by Corsairs to Constantinople.
• In Katie Hickman's The Aviary Gate, which talks about Safiye Sultan's interactions with an English merchant and the story of an English captive in the harem, she appears as an important character. It shows a detailed explanation of how she ended up in the harem from her homeland in Albanian mountains.
• In the 2011 TV series Muhteşem Yüzyıl, a young Safiye Sultan is portrayed by Turkish actress Gözde Türker. She is gifted to Murad by Mihrimah Sultan, Murad's aunt, instead of his cousin Hümaşah Sultan.
• In the 2015 TV series Muhteşem Yüzyıl: Kösem, sequel/spin-off of the first, an old Safiye Sultan, now grandmother of the new Sultan Ahmed I, is portrayed by Turkish actress Hülya Avşar.

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