The biography of the Sultan Suleiman is one of the most interesting among the biographies of the eastern rulers. He was the tenth ruler of the
Ottoman Empire (1494-1566). Today, this ruler is not only famous in the world, but also enjoys popular respect in modern Turkey. If in Europe his nickname “Magnificent” is better known, then he is called the legislator in his homeland, linking his personality with fair rule and the glorious pages of the heyday of Ottoman statehood.
Prince Suleiman
The future head of the Turkish state was born in 1494. The boy's parents were Sultan Selim I and one of his concubines, the daughter of the Crimean Khan. The biography of the Sultan Suleiman at its initial stage is nothing special. Up to twenty-six years, the young man was brought up in the traditional spirit of the royal heirs, from a young age taking part in military campaigns and being a father's viceroy in remote regions of the state. Selim I, who spent most of his life on military campaigns, during the preparation of the next expedition, contracted the plague incurable at that time and died in 1520.
On the throne
The biography of Sultan Suleiman during the reign of a powerful empire is an impressive list of military campaigns, in which he significantly surpassed his own father. The views of the young ruler were directed mainly to the west. The first war was declared by Hungary in 1521. During the first invasion, Belgrade, the island of Rhodes and significant territories in the Balkans were captured. Then the conqueror paused. A few years later, in 1526, the second Turkish invasion of Hungary was launched. This campaign ended with the defeat of the Hungarian army near the town of Mohach and the occupation of new bridgeheads for the subsequent offensive in Europe. Over the next three years, the sultan again gathered strength, and in 1529 launched a war with the Habsburg empire. The beginning of the campaign was habitually successful for a young, but already quite experienced commander. The Ottomans quickly approached Vienna. However, the siege of this city in 1529 was the last page of the brilliant Turkish expansion into Europe. And after 154 years, the siege of the same city will mark the reconquista of the Europeans and the progressive loss of possessions by the Turks in the Balkans.
In the meantime, the sultan, despite the failure in the siege of the city, continued the war with the Austrians, as a result of which he got the opportunity to share Hungary with them. The biography of the Sultan Suleiman also knows the eastern campaigns. So, for example, in the 1530s, the commander defeated the Iranian state of the Safavids. And in 1538 he led his army to Arabia and even India.
Sultan Suleiman: biography, family
The Turkish ruler, as is customary in the Muslim world, had many concubines. But a special influence on the future fate of the whole state was exerted by the Slavic Roksolana. She became his first wife, having a significant influence on the sovereign. It was her son Selim who became the next ruler of the country in 1566, when the Sultan Suleiman died. The biography, children, and numerous military successes of this ruler say a lot about a man whose rule has truly become the golden age of Ottoman statehood.