In the cult series "The Magnificent Century" about the brilliant reign of Sultan Suleiman Kanuni, there are a lot of characters. One of them - the beautiful concubine Nurbanu - appears only in the last, fourth season. And then the young beauty falls into the cycle of palace conspiracies and harem intrigues. She falls into the favorites of the Shahzade of Selim, and this alone puts her life at risk. In the one hundred and twenty-ninth series, it is stoked in the bathroom by order of Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska. Then Nurbanu several times tries to kill Hurigihan. Mercenary killers attempted on a concubine. But always she miraculously remains alive. Each time, the audience waits with bated breath: in which series will Nurbanu die? After all, it can’t be so lucky forever! For those who watch the series, but do not mind looking a little ahead into the future, in this article we will unveil the veil of secrecy. We will tell you in detail about the fate of Nurban, who, following the mother and wife of Suleiman the Fair, so successfully fit into the period of the “women sultanate”.
Origin Nurbanu
The answer to the question of how Nurbanu will die in the "Magnificent Century" is left for later. Now consider how she appears in the series. The director more or less adheres to historical truth. The twelve-year-old girl was really captured by the pirates of Khair ad Din Barbarossa, and thus she was in the Topkapi Palace. But what was her childhood like? She was born out of wedlock in 1525 on the island of Paros, in the Cyclades archipelago, which then belonged to the Venetian Republic. The girl was the fruit of love by Nicolo Venier and Violanta Baffo. Her father was the governor of Paros and the brother of the Venetian Doge Sebastiano Venier. There is some confusion in the sources of the name given to the girl at baptism. According to some, her name was Cecilia, and according to others - Olivia. The Ottoman records indicate that the real name of the young concubine was Rachel Maria Nasi, that her mother was Violanta Baffo, and her father was a Spanish Jew whose name was not preserved. But judging by the fact that Nurbanu, having become a Haseki and a valid, adhered to pro-Venetian and anti-Genoese policies, the first version looks more plausible.
Concubine
So, in the year 1550, little Cecilia ended up in Topkapi. Having matured a little, she turned into a real beauty. She was given another name - Nurban, which means "Radiant." First, she was endowed with sympathy by Shahzadeh Selim. Red-haired, like his mother, Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska Sultan, he was far from becoming a padishah. Before him in line to the throne stood the only son of Mahidevran-Sultan Mustafa and his two older blood brothers - Mehmet and Bayazid. In addition, the father, Suleiman the Just, did not favor Selim. He did not like the quick-tempered, envious disposition of the red-haired son, his self-will and inclination toward a wild life. But in the case of Selim, the proverb comes true: "Behind every great man is a strong woman." And the great merit to Nurban is that the Great Ottoman Empire went to the red-haired Shahzade. When Selim reached adulthood (around 1543), an eighteen-year-old concubine followed him to Konya. But even there she was haunted by palace conspiracies. Viewers of the series could only guess how Nurbanu would die in "The Magnificent Century."
Iqbala
Fertility served Nurban well. During her four years in Konya, she gave Shahzade Selim four children: three daughters (Shah Sultan, Esmehan Sultan and Fatma Sultan) and a son who was destined to inherit the empire and become a padishah under the name of Murad the Third. But the rampant lifestyle of Selim was also manifested in Konya. He had other concubines. Chronicles report the existence of at least four ikbal who gave birth to the Shahzade of six sons. The most dangerous was the Circassian Selimiye, who fell into the harem in 1545. She even managed to become a haseki - the official wife. She gave Selim the son of Abdullah and daughter Gevherkhan Sultan. Selimiye was constantly at enmity with her rival and built all sorts of intrigues. Thanks to this insidious woman, the audience was constantly worried and wondered when and how Nurbanu would die in the “Magnificent Century”.
The end of the series?
Most recently, filming of the epic "The Magnificent Century" was completed in Istanbul. How Nurbanu will die - was kept secret until the end. The life of a beautiful concubine in almost every series was in great danger. But the lucky star led Nurbanu. The series was conceived as the story of Suleiman, the tenth padishah of the Ottoman Empire, and his beloved wife Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska, former Nastya Lisovsky, a native of the city of Rogatin (Ivano-Frankivsk region, Ukraine). All other heroes of the tape, including Selim II and his wife Afife Nurbanu, are secondary characters. In the last, one hundred and fiftieth series, Suleiman dies, and this concludes the story of his all-consuming love. Maybe the filmmakers will one time shoot a sequel? In any case, Nurbanu will die in the series "The Magnificent Century", if only his fifth season will be. In the meantime, the concubine lives and lives with her shahzade, who ascended the throne under the name Selim II. Her image in the series was brilliantly performed by the Turkish actress Merve Bolugur.
Nurbanu, wife of Selim
After moving from Konya to the capital, the young concubine faced many problems. In the harem, the sister of Selim the Second, Mikhrimah , ruled sovereignly. Nurban had no influential patrons, no connections. Only enemies, and the most dangerous of them is Selimiye. But the story of Nurbanu shows that patience and tact can eliminate all rivals from the path. As a result, she managed to neutralize Selimiye, despite the fact that she achieved an official marriage and became the Haseki Sultan. When Nurbanu was widowed, her son, who ascended the throne, Murad the Third, removed his rival's mother to exile in Trabzon (after strangling her son and his half-brother Abdullah). Selimiye died in 1596. In 1571, Selim made a chabin - he entered into an official marriage with Nurbanu. The son of a young couple at that time was already 22 years old. At the same time, Selim gave his haseki-sultan eleven thousand gold ducats - one thousand more than his father when he took Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska as his legal wife.
Valide Sultan
Haseki Nurban managed to stay only three years. However, she used this time to completely strengthen her position in the harem. Her husband greatly appreciated her insightful mind, strategic thinking, and therefore often consulted with her on government affairs. Her husband Selim received the unflattering nickname "The Drunkard", although he was never a real alcoholic. But the wise Nurbanu entered into an alliance with the main vizier, Mehmed Sokollu (Boyko Sokolovich from Bosnia). Thus, in her hands were all the reins of government.
Device children
Becoming the Dowager Queen, Valide Sultan, she also enjoyed great authority from her son Murad III. She married her daughters strategically: Esmehan - for the main vizier, Shah-Sultan and Fatima - for other influential nobles. The sons-in-law were devoted to her. We don’t know how Nurbanu will die in “The Magnificent Century” (if the fifth season is filmed), but in reality, at the end of her life, Valide did not quarrel with anyone. To her son Murat, she herself looked after her beloved concubine. Then she became the Haseki Sultana and the mother of the next, thirteenth padishah, the cruel Mehmed III, who, upon entering the throne, ordered to kill not only his younger brothers, but also the pregnant concubines of his father. Her countrywoman and even a distant relative of Safie became Nurban’s daughter-in-law. Her real name is Sophia Baffo. The daughter of the governor of the Greek island of Corfu was born in 1550. Safie in Turkish means Pure. With the assistance of Nurban, she became the only favorite of shehzade.
How did the Nurbanu Sultan actually die
Murat became a sultan at 28 years old (in 1574). Having established relations with his son-in-law, the great vizier, and his daughter-in-law Safie, Nurban ruled the empire like a queen. She corresponded with European rulers and ruled the fate of the Mediterranean. Until his death, the Valide Sultan Murat obeyed his mother in everything. Not far from Istanbul, he erected a mosque named after her Attik Valide. The Nurbanu Sultan died on December 7, 1583, surrounded by love and revered by nobles and common people, because at the end of her life she was famous for charity. She is buried in the Attic Valide Mosque. Her son mourned the loss bitterly and mourned for a long time.
Nurbanu, Murad and Safie
What will the creators of the series “Magnificent Century” come up with if they choose to shoot the fifth season? The last two somewhat distort historical events in favor of a cinema drive. One can only imagine how Nurbanu, the wife of Selim, will die. Yes, sometimes a struggle broke out between her and Safie for influence on the Sultan, but is this not the usual relationship between the mother-in-law and the daughter-in-law? It would hardly have come to the point of suicide. Maybe something else. This version of Valide's death is confirmed by documented rumors of the time. In the eighties of the sixteenth century, the Ottoman Empire (not without the participation of Valide) entered into an alliance with Venice, the birthplace of Cecilia Venier-Buffo. This infringed on the rights of Genoa. This republic considered itself the mistress of the Mediterranean Sea. True or not, rumors circulated that the Genoese ambassador had poisoned the Nurbanu Sultan.