Harem of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire: 8 facts you didn't know for sure

In our view, the sultan's harem is a paradise where the languid wives and concubines of the lord in beautiful gardens, among fountains and flowers, wait for the master to invite them for a night of passionate love. But in reality, life in the harem was radically different from what we are shown in films and women's novels. Here are 8 facts about the real harem of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire that will disappoint you somewhat.

The idleness of the harem women of the Eastern rulers is a myth. From the outside, it looked more like a training center, where something was constantly being taught. Women were taught literacy, theology, playing musical instruments, and etiquette. They were also taught the science of conversation-eloquence was considered an important quality for the wife or concubine of the lord.

They also taught the ladies the art of seducing and giving pleasure to a man. In general, they developed the inhabitants of harems in a versatile and high-quality way. An analysis of the letters of the sultan's wives made it clear that they were very educated women for their time. Some of them headed public organizations and foundations, and some even supervised the construction of mosques and madrasas.

Not all of the concubines were captives captured in distant military campaigns. Beautiful girls from poor families could get into the sultan's harem at the will of their parents. They were simply sold, receiving a good reward and signing a paper about giving up their child forever.

If the concubine revealed flaws that were hidden during the purchase, the transaction could be declared invalid and the money had to be returned. The disadvantages could include both physical flaws, and a complete lack of good manners, as well as a bad character.

Most of the concubines spent their entire lives in the harem, but some not only failed to get into the bed of the sultan, but even to see him. The lord's masculine strength was praised to the skies by the court flatterers, but in reality, he was an ordinary man, sometimes even middle-aged.

The sultan could not physically satisfy the hordes of ladies from the harem. It also happened that he was not interested in women at all and the harem was necessary for visibility. Back then, the concubines were forced to maintain their innocence for the rest of their lives.

The harem was a place where there was a hierarchy and strict discipline. Each concubine received a salary, but could also be severely punished for misdeeds. The women were assigned responsibilities — there were keepers of the key to the wine cellar, the great sultan's seal, and even the treasury.

It is known that in the 18th century, 320 responsible positions were distributed among women from the sultan's harem! Not only did they use their favorite wives — of all the highly trusted ones, only 15 women were listed as favorites.

It may seem strange, but the sultan, who was called the lord of the world, had some obligations to his wives. During the whole week, the lord could do whatever he wanted, but he was obliged to spend the night from Friday to Saturday with one of his legitimate wives. Missing three Fridays in a row was a reason to go to court — the wives could complain about their master, neglecting men's duties.

The sultan, in addition to hundreds of concubines, had from 4 to 8 wives and, so that there were no overlaps, one of the most responsible concubines kept a special log of the monarch's meetings with his spouses.

The Sultan's harem was a state body, though not quite formal. There are many cases when the inhabitants of harems interfered in domestic and even foreign policy, and even gave advice to their master. A well-known period in the history of the Ottoman Empire, which historians call the "female sultanate".

From 1550 to 1656, in fact, many historical decisions in the vast empire were made by the wives of the sultans. Unfortunately, this period saw the decline of the Ottoman Empire, but historians associate it not with the "female sultanate", but with a combination of foreign and domestic state factors.

It is known that there is no companion for taste and color, so under different sultans there were concubines of different types in harems. The master himself set the standard of beauty, based on his taste and his ideas about the beautiful, often very peculiar.

For example, Sultan Ibrahim, who ruled the Ottoman Empire from 1640 to 1648, favored curvy women. For the sultan, they searched for beauties "in the body" all over the country, and then in the harem they brought them to condition, fattening them with sweets and limiting their mobility.

Thanks to the efforts of the specialists of the harem, the weight of the concubines was in the range from 114 to 220 kg. Ibrahim's favorite was a concubine weighing 230 kg with the affectionate nickname Sheker Para ("Sweet as sugar").

If the sultan for 9 years did not turn his eyes to the concubine, then she had every right to apply for dismissal from the harem. The Sultan gave such women a good severance package. They received valuable gifts, money, a house and a document confirming the status of a free person.

The Sultan also took care of the personal lives of "unclaimed exes". By the decree of the ruler, they chose worthy husbands with good incomes and organized a wedding.

Did you know that some European monarchs also had harems? They were organized somewhat differently and called differently, but their essence was the same.