Hürrem Sultan (1502-1558) also known as Alexandra , was the favorite concubine, chief consort and legal wife of Suleiman the Magnificent. She was the mother of five of his children: Şehzade Mehmed, Mihrimah Sultan, Şehzade Selim, Şehzade Bayezid and Şehzade Çihangir. In history, she was the first
“Haseki Sultan” (chief consort of the Sultan.) In the series, Mahidevran Sultan was the first Haseki Sultan. She achieved power and influenced the politics of the Ottoman Empire through her husband, and played an active role in state affairs. In her reign, the people once believed that she was a witch, as she seduced Sultan Suleiman and was strong in politics.
Early life
Alexandra was born in 1502 in Eastern Galicia, which at that time was a part of the Kingdom of Poland. She was the daughter of an Orthodox priest, and her native language was Ruthenian [Ukrainian]. In the 1520s Crimean Tartars captured her during one of their frequent raids into this region, took her as a slave (first selling her to the Crimean city of Kaffa, a major center of the slave trade, then to Istanbul), and she and her friend from her village, Maria, were sent to Sultan Suleiman’s harem.
