Roxelana

Anastasia Lisovs'ka, also variously known as Roxelana, Roxolana, Roxelane, Rossa, Ruziac, and often also by her Turkish name of Khourrem (or H?rrem or Karima), meaning "the laughing one", (circa 1510 - April 18, 1558) was the wife of sultan S?leyman the Magnificent of the Ottoman Empire.

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Khourrem was born to a father who was a Ruthenian Orthodox priest, in what was then Poland (now Ukraine), possibly in Rohatyn. She was captured and taken to Istanbul in the 1520s as a slave, but was selected for S?leyman's Harem.

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In the Harem, she gradually worked her way up to become S?leyman's favourite concubine. In 1534 she used her influence to have S?leyman's firstborn son, together with his mother, sent away to be a provincial governor, before apparently persuading S?leyman to have him strangled - see S?leyman the Magnificent for details.

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Khourrem was to bear S?leyman five children and, in an astonishing break with tradition, eventually became his wife, leading to one of her sons, Selim, inheriting the empire. Khourrem also acted as S?leyman's advisor on matters of state, and she was also active in foreign affairs and international politics.

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Aside from her political concerns, Khourrem was the first woman to engage in several major works of public building, from Mecca to Jerusalem, and the first to endow a mosque in Istanbul.

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Khourrem died on April 18 1558. She is buried in a mausoleum with her husband at the S?leymaniye Mosque.

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Turkish: redirect Turk...

Ottoman Empire: The Ottoman Empire (Ottoman Turkish: Devlet-i Aliye-i Osmaniye; Modern Turkish: Osmanl? ?mparatorlu?u; Arabic: ?????? ?????????, Al-Dawla Al-?Uthmaniyya) was an imperial power, centered around the borders of the Mediterranean Sea, that existed from 1299 to 1922. At the height of its power, it includ...

Ruthenia: Ruthenia is a name applied to parts of Eastern Europe which were populated by Eastern Slavic peoples, as well as to various states that existed in this territory in the past. Essentially, the word is a Latin rendering of the ancient place name Rus. See Etymology of Rus and derivatives....

Roxelana related Images and Photos (experimental)

Roxelana Wife of Ottoman Sultan Suleiman I the Magnificent