Biography and love story of Roksolana Hurrem Sultan and Suleiman
Roksolana is a girl known as Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya Sultan. She is the first and only Slavic beauty who changed the history of the Ottoman Empire. Chronicle” is still arguing about her real name. Some say that her name was Anastasia from birth, others — Alexandra Gavrilovna Lisovskaya. Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya was born in Ukraine in 1501.
Contents of the article:
Hard fate
Reliable information about the origin of Roksolana has not been preserved in historical archives. The only reliable information is that she was the daughter of a priest. At that time, the Tatars often raided various areas, robbing the local population, taking money, valuables and even food. If along the way they came across beautiful young girls, they captured them. Thus, after another raid, Loksolana was captured by the Turks and her parents were killed. At the age of 15, the girl lost her mother and father and was resold several times, after which she ended up in Suleiman’s harem. At that time, the young man was the governor of Manisa. Once in the palace as a slave, the Slavic girl again faced the injustice and cruelty of the world. At first she wanted to take revenge on her family, but soon she fell in love with Suleiman with all her heart. At that time, the ruler”s main wife was Mahidevran, who bore him a son, Shehzad Mustafa. Soon Suleiman noticed Loksolana because of her extraordinary beauty and began to show sympathy for her. Embittered by jealousy, Makhidevran inflicted deep wounds on the girl’s face, tore her dress and disheveled her hair. After such an unpleasant incident, it would seem that the Slavic beauty should have retreated, but mentally she became stronger and promised to endure evil for the sake of love. Suleiman became angry with Makhidevran and left her.
Fight for survival
In the Middle Ages, there were cruel rules for life in a harem. Those who were mentally strong survived. Those who were weak remained in the background or died. To survive in such harsh conditions, Alexandra”s concubine Roksolana did everything possible to become Suleiman”s favorite.
She was smart, had a great sense of humor and musical talent. Thanks to this information, she conquered the ruler of Manisa. Every day Alexandra told Suleiman interesting stories to entertain him, and received a new name — Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya, which means “cheerful and joyful.” She later converted to Islam and became a pious Muslim. Despite the great love and support from Suleiman, the girl was regularly attacked by Makhidevran. Then the smart Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya set out to give birth to as many sons as possible in order to surpass her rivals in everything. At this time, Suleiman”s father died, and he rightfully ascended to the Istanbul throne. First of all, the young Sultan dissolved the entire harem and remained only with his favorite, Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya. Due to jealousy, Mahidevran could not control her emotions, and Suleiman”s mother, Valide Habusa Sultan, helped her. She calmed the girl down, gave her wise advice and kept her emotions under control. After her death, there was no one to support the concubine, so Suleiman sent her to Manisa along with her son. This event strengthened the position of the harem in the palace.
Favorite concubine and wife
No matter what happened in life, Suleiman was everywhere with his beloved Pipper. He dedicated songs to her, wrote poems to her curls and succumbed to her love. After some time, violating all the foundations of the Ottoman dynasty, the Sultan freed the girl, and then officially married Alexandra Anastasia Lisovka.
The celebration took place very discreetly, in accordance with all Turkish customs. He became the only master who held a wedding in a side room. Especially for his beloved, he introduced a new title, “Haseki”. His wife accompanied Suleiman wherever he went. He consulted her on political and life issues. And if they happened to separate, they wrote letters to each other. At first, instead of Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya, due to ignorance of the language, the letters were written by the palace clerk. Over time, the girls actively participated in the letters and did not need a third person. To this day, their messages have been preserved in chronicles. The power of Alexandra Anastasiarisovna strengthened in the palace. Everyone was respected and loved, even Suleiman’s mother. If two slaves were sent to the palace: one as a gift to Barida Sultan, and the other for the master. Havza intended to give the gift to her son, but when Alexandra Anastasia Lisovka became upset, she took it back and apologized. A slave destined to become a ruler was given to one of the sanjaks of Bif. Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya Sultan skillfully raised her child and developed herself spiritually. She communicated with noble people, aristocrats and artists. She was the patron of artists. I read a lot and wrote poetry. According to historical data, the girl negotiated with foreign envoys and talked with Polish, Persian and Venetian rulers. In addition, the girl deserved honor and respect and was involved in charity work.
Read also: History of the emergence and development of beauty contests today, traditional beauty pageants are not as popular as they used to be. Nowadays, there are many ways for beautiful women to express themselves.
She opened hospitals, schools and baths and won the love of the people. Alexandra Anastasia Lisovka allocated funds from her own budget for the construction of religious buildings. She became the first woman in history to build a building in Istanbul. Later, the Ottoman queen founded a charitable foundation, the funds of which were used to build a women”s bazaar. In addition to Istanbul, she ordered the construction of dining halls in Mecca, Jerusalem and Ankara. Slavic girls became the first in the palace and changed the fashion for clothing and jewelry. In many ways she was a pioneer. She asked a tailor to sew loose-fitting clothes, loved to wear embroidered cloaks and was selective about jewelry. The Lord gave her many jewels, which he made with his own hands, and she received other beautiful things as a gift from the ambassador. In those centuries, even the eyes of artists turned to the great woman. Thus, the famous artist Titian painted a portrait of Alexandra Anastasiarisovka in the fifties of the last century and called her “Sultana of Russia.” The image is currently kept in the American Museum in Florida. In addition to the portrait, the book describes the luxurious decoration of the Ottoman queen. An exact description of the costumes and exquisite jewelry is recorded in the book “Roksolana”. The mutual passionate love of Suleiman and Alexandra for Anastasia Lisovskaya was so strong that it caused a storm of negative feelings and desires in many people. The lord was very devoted to his beloved, calling her a witch, believing that she had bewitched him. In fact, his main support was his sincere and deep love for the Sultan.
Historically, one case of killing a egg capsule was recorded in the chronicles, although it was never proven. One day, Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya and Suleiman spent the night in the arms of one of their slaves. Having learned about this, the sovereign”s wife cried and worried for a long time, but did not want to talk to her husband. Tormented by remorse for making his beloved suffer, he gave the order that the slave be put in a sack and drowned in the Bos Horace River. The order was quickly carried out.
Triumphant takeoff
After Havsa”s death, Mahidevran ruled the harem for some time. Consumed by anger and hatred, he continually made mistakes. Due to unacceptable misdeeds, Suleiman stripped her of her position and sent her to Manisa”s son. Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya continued to remove obstacles. She opened the sovereign”s eyes to the evil side of her sworn enemy, Ibrahim Pasha, and repeatedly testified against him. Finally, two years later, in 1536, Grand Vizier Ibrahim Pasha was executed by order of the sovereign. She subsequently played a major role in the elevation of her daughter”s husband, Mihrim Rustem, to the post of Grand Vizier. These events further cleared the way for Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya. She then awaited her victory. She ruled her harem until her death. Rumors about her spread not only throughout the country but also abroad. Having eliminated her rivals, Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya set herself the goal of placing one of her sons on the throne in the future. Chroniclers were divided on this point. Some claimed that Mustafa, Mahidevran”s son, himself defected to his arch-enemy, Shah Tokmasp, thereby betraying his father. Others were convinced that Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya was involved in his execution and slandered Shehzade. After Mustafa”s death, the question of who would occupy the Ottoman throne arose.
Magnificent Century! Facts you didn”t know about Suleiman and Roxolana!
Illness and death
Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya was ill for a long time. Healers and treatment did not help. In 1558, the Ottoman queen died at the hands of Suleiman. Historical data differs regarding the cause of death. Some say she had a heart attack. Others are convinced that poisoning occurred with the most powerful poisons.
Her body in the Garden of Eden, a poem about love, painted with ceramic tiles by Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya with the Hasekisultan spirit. The grave is to our left in the spirit of Suleiman. After the death of Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya, Vladyka spent a lot of time with his first bosom friend, Galfem Khatun. He was distinguished by nature by calmness, prudence and cordiality. Long conversations with her consoled the Sultan. Mahidevran lived her years in Bursa. She survived Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya, Suleiman and Mustafa. Leaving her son a widower and depriving him of all payments, she was forced to sell her property to provide for herself. She was in debt and did not have enough money to live. After her death at the hands of her ruler and the invasion of the throne by Selim II, everything changed. He issued an order to cover all Makhidevran’s debts and prescribed regular benefits. Thanks to the consequences of this event, the former chamberlain of the Lord was able to complete the spirit us of his son and organize funds for his maintenance. She died in 1581 and was buried next to her son Shezade Mustafa.
Memory of a great woman
For many years, the image of Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskasultan lives in the memory of people and is embodied in performances, theaters and TV series. So, in the 19th century, the writer dedicated his poems and prose to the Slavic girl, as well as several performances about Loxolana’s life in the French theater. There are about 20 operas based on motifs. Suleiman and Alexandra Anastasiarisovka, or Love in a Harem.”
In 2011, the Turkish TV series “The Magnificent Century” was released, where the director reflected as much as possible the historical moments of the Ottoman Empire. The main character of Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya was played by actress Melie Uzerli. For a long time, the filmmakers could not decide who to invite to the shooting, and in the end they compared the portraits of Alexandra Loxolana and came to the conclusion that Meslier looked like her. The photographs won the love of millions of viewers. All the actors did an excellent job in their roles. The director worked on everything down to the smallest detail, from the palace scenery to the costumes. In the series “The Magnificent Century,” Loksolana appears before the audience as a persistent girl who sets goals for herself and goes towards them. Her main desire was to win the love of the sovereign and become his legal wife. Thanks to these strong passions, Alexandra Anastasia Lisovka reached the pinnacle of fame. The main biographies of Alexandra Anastasiarisovskaya and Suleiman shown in the film are true. However, historians were critical of the film, since many episodes did not correspond to real events.
But still, Alexandra Anastasia Lisovskaya or Loksolan is a truly legendary woman who deserves respect! We also provide more interesting facts in our article at the link.
