1. Handan Sultan was a consort of Ottoman Sultan Mehmed III, and mother and Valide Sultan to their son Sultan Ahmed I She acted as de facto ruler during her tenure from 1603 to 1605.
20 Facts About Handan Sultan
1. 2.
Handan Sultan was an enslaved servant in the household of Cerrah Mehmed Pasha, the Beylerbey of the Rumelia Eyalet, and his wife Gevherhan Sultan, daughter of Sultan Selim II, sister of Sultan Murad III, and aunt of Sultan Mehmed III.
3.
Handan Sultan became one of Mehmed's esteemed concubines in Manisa having possibly given birth to two sons, other than Ahmed I, Prince Selim and Prince Suleyman, and two daughters.
4.
Handan Sultan had an ally in Raziye Hatun, a harem staff member who had helped her to became Mehmed's favorite.
5.
Unlike other Valide Sultans, Handan Sultan gathered her family members in the Imperial palace and the capital.
6.
Handan Sultan took her sisters into the harem and her brother, Geysudar Mustafa, entered the dervish lodge of Mahmud Hudayi.
7.
Handan Sultan personally ruled the state on behalf of her son from 1603 till her death in 1605, acting as the de facto ruler: she was the first Valide to act as a regent, although it has always been mistakenly reported that the first Valide to act as a ruler was Kosem Sultan.
8.
The administrative level formed by Handan Sultan carried out an effective policy in the first years of her son's reign.
9.
Handan Sultan was the most influential person in the first two years of Ahmed I's reign.
10.
The Valide Handan Sultan brought down the law of fratricide during her son's reign.
11.
Handan Sultan began to spend a great deal of time outside the palace, notably hunting or conducting incognito inspections, regardless of the weather.
12.
Handan Sultan quickly realized that her son could easily put himself in danger and thus needed to be closely watched.
13.
Handan Sultan favored her fellow Bosnians at her son's court.
14.
Handan Sultan convinced Ahmed to appoint Yavuz Ali Pasha as grand vizier, and maintained a close relationship with him, especially during the first critical months of Ahmed's reign.
15.
Handan Sultan acted as an intermediary between her son and other government officials.
16.
Handan Sultan made an endowment for the maintenance of her husband Mehmed III's tomb and the salaries of its employees.
17.
At the Imperial Palace, Handan Sultan had rooms built for the dwarf court servants, to whom she was attached.
18.
Handan Sultan returned to Istanbul, and took up his duties as vezir.
19.
Handan Sultan, who was already ill at that time, was so shocked by the turn of events that her condition reportedly worsened.
20.
Handan Sultan was buried next to her consort in his mausoleum in Hagia Sophia Mosque, Istanbul.