Hürrem's Mother-in-Law: The Woman Who Kept Her in Check

In the TV series, she was Hürrem's toughest rival. In real life, Hafsa Sultan was something bigger: a captive girl who became the first valide sultan in Ottoman history, the mother who raised Suleiman the Magnificent, and the one woman who could keep Hürrem in check. Follow Hafsa through the six places that made her: Trabzon, where the legend of a Crimean princess falls apart; Kefe, where she was paid more than the prince and where the story of a poisoned kaftan begins; Manisa, where she ran a household of seventeen women, including Mahidevran; Istanbul, where she became valide sultan; her mosque with two minarets; and her tomb beside Selim the Grim. Then see what happened when she was gone, and the 500-year-old festival in Manisa that still remembers her every spring. ⏱ Chapters 0:00 The woman who held Hürrem back 1:23 Trabzon: a captive, not a princess 3:21 Kefe: the poisoned kaftan 5:05 Manisa: the prince's household 6:47 Istanbul: the first valide sultan 8:06 Hafsa and Hürrem 9:07 Her mosque in Manisa 9:49 1534: her death 10:21 The dominoes fall 10:56 The twist: an empty chair 11:34 The poisoned kaftan: did it happen? 12:37 The festival that still happens 13:44 Your turn 📚 Sources include the TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, Leslie Peirce's The Imperial Harem, Ottoman palace stipend records, the report of the Venetian envoy Pietro Bragadin (1526), and UNESCO's record of the Mesir Macunu festival. ▶ ▶️ Watch the full series, The Women Who Ruled the Ottoman Empire:    • The Women Who Ruled the Ottoman Empire   🔔 Every week, we tell the story of another woman who ruled the Ottoman Empire. Subscribe so you don't miss the next one. #HafsaSultan #HurremSultan #ValideSultan