ASIANOVERLAND.NET WINTER EUROPEAN DAY 36/209:  ISTANBUL TO TOPKAPI PALACE, TURKEY

“16-1-81.  ISTANBUL – BUS UNDER REPAIR"

We have a few holes in the side of the top deck of INTER from our close encounters with olive trees along the icy roads in Thrace, northern Greece. They wouldn't be much of a problem on a summer tour (natural air-con), but we're all freezing to death in this bitterly cold winter, so Gary Hayes and I have a panel beating and grease and oil day at Camping Londra, while the punters have their last chance for a tour of Istanbul and Asia.

By the middle of the 17th century, six sultans had reigned, four of whom were children when they came to the throne, so the Sultanate of Women gained ascendency after the first Ottoman glass ceiling was broken. As such, the valide sultan ruled virtually unopposed, both during their sons' rule, and between Sultans. However, such radical prominence of women was not easily accepted by all. Even with a direct connection to the sultan, the valide sultan often faced opposition from the advisors of the sultan, as well as from public opinion. Where their male predecessors had won favour with the public through military conquest and charisma, female leaders had to rely on imperial ceremonies and the construction of monuments and public works. These public works, known as hayrat or works of piety, were often built extravagantly in the name of the sultana, as had been tradition for imperial Islamic women.

Other imperial women, such as Turhan Sultan contributed to the empire's defense, spending large amounts of money on the reconstruction and fortification of key military strongholds. Some even symbolically participated in warfare as well. When her son Mehmed IV returned from a successful military campaign, she had a royal procession arranged to retrace his warpath, and share in the glory of his victory.

Weddings were also a common cause for celebration, and an opportunity for imperial women to promote charity while displaying their wealth and power. At one wedding as the daughter of Murad III was about to be wed to a prominent admiral, she had newly minted coins given out to all the onlookers, some making off with whole skirt-fulls of wealth.

And the death of an imperial wife or sultan's mother could be even more extravagant. In one instance, the death of Hurrem Sultan brought throngs of mourners out to the streets, including the sultan himself, who was traditionally supposed to seclude himself in the palace during the funeral of a family member. Once again, during the ceremony coins and food were distributed to the attendees, to pay tribute to the queen's generous and caring nature.

The most long-lasting accomplishments of many wives and mothers of sultans were their large public works projects. Often constructed as mosques, schools, or monuments, the construction and maintenance of these projects provided crucial economic circulation during a time otherwise marked by economic stagnation and corruption, while leaving a powerful and long-lasting symbol of the sultanate's power and benevolence. While the creation of public works had always been an obligation of the sultanate, sultanas such as Suleiman's mother and wife undertook projects that were larger and more lavish than any woman before them, and most men as well.

On one occasion, when a Venetian ambassador tried to send a letter to the queen sultan through the grand vizier (highest official), the vizier refused to transmit the letter, claiming that the queen mother was nothing more than a slave, and held no power of her own.  But many foreign ambassadors at the time reported to their own countries that if one wanted to do business with the Ottoman Empire, they ought to go to the Sultan's mother of wife before any other.

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