Transformation of the Ottoman Empire
Sultan Suleiman I (r. 1520–1566) was the longest-reigning sultan in Ottoman history, but the last years of his reign were characterized by uncertainty over who would be his successor. Suleiman had three sons who could hope to succeed, Mustafa, Bayezid, and Selim. While the latter two were the children of Suleiman's wife Hurrem Sultan, the first was the son of an earlier concubine. Mustafa may have felt that his half-brothers possessed an unfair advantage over him, and thus worked to secure the favor of the military. Perhaps suspecting that Mustafa planned to dethrone him just as his own father had done to his grandfather, Suleiman acted first and in 1553 ordered that Mustafa be executed. The death of Hurrem Sultan in 1558 triggered open conflict between the two remaining candidates, and Selim ultimately emerged victorious. Suleiman further strengthened his son's position by arranging a marriage between Selim's daughter and the influential Sokollu Mehmed Pasha (Grand Vizier 1565–1579). Suleiman died in 1566, while besieging the fortress of Szigetvar in Hungary, bringing Selim to the throne.
Bezmiâlem Sultan
She is said to have been buxom and a bath attendant before entering the imperial harem. She had a beautiful face and extraordinary white and beautiful hands. She was married to Sultan Mahmud II in 1822. As mother of Sultan Abdülmecit I, she was Valide Sultan from 1839 to 1853. One source says Mahmud II died of alcoholism, rather than tuberculosis, and she is reported to have convinced Abdülmecit I to destroy his father's wine cellars. She was thirty one and was still young enough to despise and mistrust the elder non statesman who had made himself minister. She advised her son to allow Hüsrev to incur the odium of seeking terms from M. Ali but urged him to resist the Grand Vizier's attempts to advance his nominees to important offices of the state. Abdülmecit duly played for time, awaiting Reşit's return from England before taking any major decisions on policy. His mother had given sound counsel. So shrewd was her judgement of men and their motives that the Valide Sultan continued to influence the choice of ministers until shortly before her death fourteen years later. Bezmialem also recommended Reşit to Abdülmecit because she believed he understood what Mahmut had been seeking to achieve in his reform programme.