Suleyman I (Ottoman Türkiye: سليمان اول、 Modern Türkiye: Suleiman the Magnificent; From November 6, 1494 to September 7, 1566, he was the 10th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and the longest reigning Sultan (reigned from 1520 to 1566). He also held the position of Caliph, the highest spiritual leader of Islam.
Suleiman I was an outstanding monarch of the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century. Under his rule, the Ottoman Empire entered its heyday in many aspects such as politics, economy, military, and culture. Suleyman I personally commanded the Ottoman army and conquered most of the territory of Belgrade, Rhode Island and Hungary, the important Christian town. The expansion of the Turks was temporarily stopped until the siege of Vienna in 1529. [2] Suleiman I occupied most of the Middle East during the war with the Safavid dynasty in Persia (now Iran) and incorporated most of North Africa, from west to Algeria, into the Ottoman Empire's territory. During the reign of Suleiman I, the Ottoman Empire's fleet dominated the Mediterranean, Red Sea, and Persian Gulf.
Suleiman I was hailed as the Kanuni (legislator) within the Ottoman Empire and in the East. As the helmsman of a vast empire, Suleiman the Great personally initiated legislative reforms in areas such as society, education, taxation, and criminal law. The authoritative code (or canon) he presided over and compiled laid the foundation for the legal system of the empire for centuries after his death. Due to Suleiman I's cultural, political, and military achievements, he is widely known as the "Great Emperor" in the West and is on par with Abbas and Akbar in the history of Islamic development.

Early accession to the throne
Suleiman I was born in Trabzong on the Black Sea coast, possibly on November 6, 1494. [1] His mother was Sultan Asheh Hafsha of Sultan Selim I of Yavuz (later known as Empress Dowager), who passed away in 1534. At the age of 7, Suleiman was sent to the Royal School of Science, History, Literature, Theology, and Art of War in the imperial capital of Istanbul, Topkapo Palace. When Suleiman was young, he formed a friendship with a slave named Ibrahim, who later became one of Suleiman's most trusted advisors and served as the Grand Vizier. Suleiman I received traditional Islamic education from a young age, believed in Sunni teachings, and followed the teachings of the Hanafi school. In 1509, he was sent by his grandfather Bayezid II to serve as the governor of Kafa in Crimea. Starting from the age of 17, the young Suleiman served as the Governor General of Kafa (now Feodosia, Ukraine) and Manisa, and briefly served in the former imperial capital of Edirne. During the reign of his father Selim I, he governed Istanbul and Edirne on behalf of his father and served as the Governor of Manisa in western Asia Minor in 1517.

After the death of Selim I, the father of Suleiman I, Suleiman returned to the imperial capital Istanbul and succeeded him as the 10th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. A few weeks later, Bartolomeo Kontarini, the envoy of the Republic of Venice to the Ottoman Empire, described the young Sultan as follows: "At the age of 25, he was tall and tough, with a soft and weak appearance. He had a slightly longer neck, a thin face, a hooked nose, and a cluster of small beards and a little beard. Despite appearing slightly pale, he was still lively. He was hailed as the wise lord, a studious person, and everyone wanted to benefit from his rule. His headscarf was also surprisingly large." Some historians claim that Sultan admired Alexander the Great of Macedonia in his youth and was influenced by it, aspiring to establish a sachet. The empire encompassing both the East and the West became his intellectual driving force for frequent battles in Asia, Africa, and Europe in the future.

Dominate Europe
After inheriting his father's business, Suleiman I suppressed a rebellion led by the Governor General of Damascus in 1521 and soon began a series of military conquests. Suleiman quickly prepared to conquer the important town of Belgrade in the Kingdom of Hungary, which was also the unfinished business of his grandfather Mohammed II. After the successive failures of the Serbs, Bulgarians, and Byzantines, the Hungarians became the only formidable force to prevent the Ottoman Empire from expanding inland into Europe, and capturing Belgrade was the key to eliminating the Hungarians. The Suleiman army surrounded Belgrade and fired heavy artillery from an island in the Danube River into the city. Belgrade had only 700 defenders, and Hungary did not send troops to reinforce it. The Ottomans occupied Belgrade in August 1521.
The news of the fall of Belgrade, a major Christian city, quickly spread throughout Europe. The road to Hungary and Austria was opened up, but Suleiman shifted his attention to the headquarters of the Hospital Knights - Rhode Island in the eastern Mediterranean. The pirate activities of the Hospital Knights in the waters off Anatolia and Levant have long plagued the Ottoman Empire. In the summer of 1522, Suleiman, relying on the naval advantage left by his father Selim I, dispatched a fleet of 400 warships to Rhode Island. He personally commanded a force of 100000 to encircle from the opposite direction. After five months of brutal siege of Rhode Island, the defenders on the island surrendered conditionally. The knights obtained Suleiman's permission to leave Rhode Island and ultimately rebuilt the Order of Malta on the island of Malta.

After the Battle of Belgrade, the relationship between the Kingdom of Hungary and the Ottoman Empire deteriorated, and Suleiman reopened the war in Eastern Europe after resolving the concerns of Rhode Island. In the first Battle of Mohaci on August 29, 1526, Suleiman defeated King Rajos II of Hungary. The resistance of the Hungarians collapsed, and the Ottoman Empire became an unprecedentedly powerful force in Eastern Europe. It is said that Suleiman expressed condolences when he saw the body of Lajos II: "I did come here to defeat him; but it was not my intention for him to pass away when he had just tasted life and power."
Under the leadership of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and his brother Archduke Ferdinand of Austria (Ferdinand I), the Habsburg dynasty seized Buda and Hungary. For this reason, Suleiman led his army through the Danube River Valley in 1529, once again occupying Buda, and in the autumn of that year, he marched under the city of Vienna. The Siege of Vienna was the most ambitious expedition of the Ottoman Empire, marking the pinnacle of its military threat to the West. However, due to the struggle of 16000 Viennese defenders, the Austrians gave Suleiman the taste of defeat for the first time, opening the curtain on the Ottoman Habsburg War that lasted until the 20th century. In 1532, the Ottoman Empire attempted to occupy Vienna again, but Suleiman's army retreated before reaching the city. The reasons for the failure of these two expeditions to Vienna were both due to Ottoman soldiers falling ill due to severe weather conditions (forcing them to abandon carrying siege equipment), as well as prolonged supply lines hindering their march.

Conquer the East
After the consolidation of the European border, Suleiman shifted his focus to the eastern empire threatened by the Shia Safavid dynasty in Persia (now Iran). Especially two events exacerbated the deterioration of the relationship between the two countries: the first was that Persian Shah (Emperor) Tahmasp I killed the governor of Baghdad who was loyal to Suleiman and replaced him with his own people; The second thing was that Governor Beatrice defected and swore allegiance to the Safavid dynasty. For this reason, Suleiman ordered Grand Vizier Pargal Ibrahim Pasha to lead his troops into Asia in 1533, initiating the three hundred year long Polish Turkish War. The Ottoman army captured Bitlis and seized the unresponsive Persian capital of Tabriz.
In 1534, Suleiman personally led a large army to meet with Ibrahim Pasha and advance towards the interior of Persia. Tahmasp I attempted to use the harsh winter weather in the interior of Persia to lure the enemy deeper. In order to avoid direct confrontation with the Ottoman army, he retreated and gave up large territories. Suleiman had concerns about the Persian war in winter, so he turned to Iraq with Ibrahim Pasha. When the Ottoman army approached the former Arab capital of Baghdad, the Persian governor Kai surrendered. From then on, Suleiman became the undisputed leader of the Islamic world and the legitimate heir to the Abbasid caliph.

When Suleiman achieved great success in his conquest on land, the news of the conquest of the Colony fortress in Moria (now the Peloponnese) by the naval admiral Andrea Doria of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V caught his eye. The existence of Spain in the Eastern Mediterranean was deeply ingrained in Suleiman's mind, as he saw it as a precursor to Charles V's intention to compete with him for regional hegemony. Realizing the necessity of establishing a strong navy in the Mediterranean, Suleiman appointed the excellent Hayreddin Pasha (referred to by Westerners as "Barbarossa" or Red Beard) as the commander-in-chief of the navy, responsible for rebuilding the Ottoman Empire fleet. The number of Ottoman naval warships rebuilt by Hayreddin Pasha is equivalent to the total number of warships from other Mediterranean countries.
In 1535, Charles V achieved a major victory over the Ottoman Empire in Tunisia, and the subsequent war between the Ottoman Empire and the Republic of Venice prompted Suleiman to agree to the proposal to join forces with French King Fran ç ois I to deal with Charles V. In 1538, the Spanish fleet was defeated by Heredin Pasha in the battle of Preveza. [9] From then on, the Ottoman Turks dominated the Mediterranean for 33 years.
Quansheng Martial Arts
The resurgence of the Hungarian dispute in the 1540s provided an opportunity for Suleiman to shed the shame of Vienna. Some Hungarian nobles suggested that the neighboring Archduke Ferdinand of Austria should marry the family of the late Hungarian King Rayos II to inherit the Hungarian throne. According to previous agreements, after Rayos's death, there were no heirs and the Habsburg family would inherit the throne. But other nobles supported the current king Shao Boyao Yi Yanosh, who received support from Suleiman but did not receive recognition from Christian countries in Europe. In 1541, the conflict between the Habsburg Dynasty and the Turks arose again and tried to besiege Buda. But the efforts of the Habsburg dynasty ultimately failed, and they lost more fortresses. Ferdinand and his brother, Holy Roman King Charles V, were forced to enter into a humiliating treaty with Suleiman, which stipulated that Ferdinand would give up his attempt to the Hungarian throne and pay Suleiman a fixed fee every year in exchange for Suleiman's recognition of parts of the Hungarian territory still under his control. More symbolically, the treaty did not refer to Charles V as the "Holy Roman King", but only referred to him as the "King of Spain", because Suleiman believed that he was the true "Caesar" and the legitimate heir of the Roman Empire.

A large area of North Africa east of Morocco became a territory of the Ottoman Empire, while the Berber states of Tripoli, Tunisia, and Algeria became autonomous provinces of the empire, and were also at the forefront of the conflict between Suleiman and Charles V. Charles V tried to drive the Turks out of the region, but his plan failed in 1541. During the Ottoman Empire's resistance against Spain, the Berber pirates were always present. In the short term, the expansion of the Ottoman Empire maintained its hegemony in the Mediterranean. The Ottoman Empire Navy also controlled the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf until it was defeated by the Portuguese Empire Navy in the Battle of Oman in 1554. The Portuguese occupied Hulimuzi (in present-day Hormuz Strait) in 1515, posing a threat to Aden (in present-day Yemen) under Suleiman's control.
In 1542, in order to deal with a common threat from the Habsburg dynasty, King Fran ç ois I of France requested the restoration of the alliance with the Ottoman Empire. Therefore, Suleiman ordered Hayreddin Pasha to lead 200 large sailboats to the Western Mediterranean to support France. During his journey to France, Herreddin Pasha plundered the coastal areas of Naples and Sicily. Upon arriving in France, Francis I handed over the port of Toulon to Herreddin Pasha as his naval headquarters. In this expedition, Hayreddin Pasha captured Nice in 1543. In 1544, Francis I and Charles V made peace, thus ending the brief alliance between France and the Ottoman Empire.

Expansion in Asia and Africa
In order to defeat Persia once and for all, Suleiman launched the second war against Persia from 1548 to 1549. In this battle, Tahmasp I, like the first time, avoided direct confrontation with the Ottoman army and chose to retreat, implementing a scorched earth policy in the Azerbaijan region bordering the Ottoman Empire, attempting to expose the Ottoman army to the cold winter of the Caucasus. The Suleiman army temporarily occupied the regions of Tabriz and Azerbaijan and was forced to withdraw to Anatolia for the winter. The Persians subsequently recaptured the Azerbaijani region. However, the Ottoman Empire still seized the city of Van and some fortresses in Georgia.
In 1553, Suleiman launched the third and final war against Persia. Initially, Erzurum was captured by the son of Tahmasp I, but Suleiman quickly returned to power. He led his army across the upper reaches of the Euphrates River, reoccupied Erzurum, and looted parts of Persia. The Persian army still followed the strategy of evading the enemy's sharpness in the previous two times, putting Suleiman in a dilemma.
The agreement signed in 1554 ended Suleiman's expedition in Asia. According to the agreement, the Ottoman Empire returned Tabriz to Persia, but obtained Baghdad, the lower reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris river basins, the estuary, and parts of the Persian Gulf. Tahmasp I also pledged to cease all attacks on Ottoman Empire territory.
In North Africa, they occupied the Maghreb region except for Morocco and completely annihilated the Spanish Expeditionary Force attacking Tripoli in 1560. On September 8th, a set of murals painted by Italian painter Matteo Perez de Alecchio in the halls of Saint Michael and Saint George at the Palazzo Grande Valletta vividly depicted the battle. He once boasted of his laurels such as "The Shadow of Allah on the Earth", "Sultan of All Sultans", and "Sovereign of All Sovereigns", and was renowned for his reputation as "Suleiman the Great".

Late death
Suleiman's two concubines gave birth to eight princes for him, four of whom lived through the 1550s. Among the four princes, only Prince Mustafa was not born to Sultan Hurem, but to Sultan Gurbahar. As the eldest son, he has priority in inheriting the throne. Sultan Xurem realized that if Prince Mustafa succeeded to the throne, her three sons would be in danger of their lives. At that time, Prince Mustafa was considered the most talented among all princes, and he received the support of Grand Vizier Pargal Ibrahim Pasha.
Sultan Xu Rem has been accused of at least partially responsible for the subsequent succession plot. In order to save the lives of his three sons, Sultan Xu Rem used her influence to continuously weaken his support for Prince Mustafa. Under the instigation of Sultan Khurem, Sultan Suleiman the Great murdered the Great Vizier Ibrahim Pasha and replaced him with his son-in-law Rustan Pasha. The conspiracy to overthrow Prince Mustafa began in 1552 when Rustan Pasha was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the expedition to Persia. Rustan Pasha sent a person whom the Sultan trusted the most to report to him, stating that because the Sultan was no longer the leader of the army, the soldiers believed it was time to bring a younger prince to power; At the same time, he spread rumors to confirm that Prince Mustafa had accepted this suggestion. Suleiman was angered by rumors and began to believe that Prince Mustafa really wanted to seize power. However, the following summer, while the expeditionary forces were returning from Persia, Suleiman summoned Prince Mustafa to his tent in the Ereli Valley (now part of the province of Konia).

Prince Mustafa faced a choice: if he really went to his father's place, he would have to risk his life being executed; If he doesn't go, he will be accused of treason to the monarch and the country. Finally, Prince Mustafa thought that with the support of the army, he would be fine and chose to go to his father's tent. It is said that Prince Jihangir died of excessive grief a few months after receiving news of his half brother's death. Suleiman granted command of two different parts of the empire to the other two surviving princes: Bayezid and Selim. But within a few years, two fellow brothers erupted in civil war over the struggle for the throne, each with a supporting royal army. With the help of his father's army, Selim defeated Bayezid in Konya in 1559. Prince Bayezid and his four sons had to flee to Persia to seek refuge from the Persians. Sultan Sultan Suleiman demanded that Shah Tahmasp I of Persia hand over Bayezid or execute him, as a diplomatic exchange condition, and that Shah receive a large amount of gold. Shah agreed to the exchange terms, and in 1561, he let Türkiye executioners hang Bayazid and his four sons. In this way, Selim became the only prince alive in the world, clearing the way for him to ascend to the throne seven years later (September 5 or 6, 1566). Suleiman set off from Istanbul to embark on another expedition to Hungary and passed away at the age of 72 before the Ottomans won the Battle of Sigatwal. [4]

military affairs
The Ottoman Empire ruled by Suleiman controlled most of the important cities of Islam, many provinces in the Balkan Peninsula, and most of North Africa. Suleiman's expansion in Europe made the Ottoman Turks a powerful arbiter in maintaining the balance of power among countries on the European political stage.
Suleiman I personally led troops to fight on the battlefield 13 times in order to expand his territory. In the campaign against Christian countries in Central Europe and the Mediterranean region, Belgrade was captured in 1521. The following year, Rhode Island along the coast of Asia Minor was captured from the Knights of St. John's Order (the Siege of Rhode Island). In August 1526, the Hungarian and Czech coalition forces were defeated in the Battle of Mohac, occupying most of Hungary. In 1529, Suleiman led his army through the Danube River valley and once again occupied Buda, and in the autumn of that year, they marched under the city of Vienna. [12] The Siege of Vienna was the most ambitious expedition of the Ottoman Empire, marking the pinnacle of its military threat to the West. In 1530, in another part of the Mediterranean, the Hospital Knights had been rebuilt into the Malta Knights, and the revolt against the Muslim navy soon angered the Turks. The Turks mobilized another huge fleet to Malta to try to drive the Order out of Malta. In 1532, the Ottoman Empire attempted to occupy Vienna again, but Suleiman's army retreated before reaching the city.

In 1542, in order to deal with a common threat from the Habsburg dynasty, King Fran ç ois I of France requested the restoration of the alliance with the Ottoman Empire. Therefore, Suleiman ordered Hayreddin Pasha to lead 200 large sailboats to the Western Mediterranean to support France. During his journey to France, Herreddin Pasha plundered the coastal areas of Naples and Sicily. Upon arriving in France, Francis I handed over the port of Toulon to Herreddin Pasha as his naval headquarters. In this expedition, Hayreddin Pasha captured Nice in 1543. In 1544, Francis I and Charles V made peace, thus ending the brief alliance between France and the Ottoman Empire.
In another part of the Mediterranean, the Hospital Knights had been rebuilt as the Malta Knights in 1530, and their resistance against the Muslim navy quickly angered the Ottomans. The Ottomans mobilized another massive fleet to sail towards Malta, attempting to drive the Knights out of the island. The Ottomans arrived in Malta in 1565, and the siege lasted from May 18th to September 8th. A set of murals painted by Italian painter Matteo Perez de Alecchio in the halls of St. Michael and St. George in the Palace of Valletta vividly depicted this battle. At the beginning of the siege of Malta, it seemed to be a replica of the Battle of Rhodes in 1522, with most of the cities on the island destroyed and half of the members of the Knights killed; But later, the Spanish army rushed to reinforce the Knights, causing the Ottomans to lose 30000 people and ultimately retreat.

politics
statute
Sultan Suleiman is known in the West as "Suleiman the Great", while in Türkiye, he is known as "Kanuni Suleiman" (i.e. Suleiman the legislator). The highest law of the empire is Sharia law, also known as Islamic law, which is the supreme law of Islam and the Sultan has no right to change it. However, the Ottoman Empire also had another set of laws called "canons" or religious regulations, which were formulated based on the personal will of the Sultan, including criminal law, land ownership law, and tax law. Suleiman collected all the judgments made by his previous nine sultans. He removed similar and repetitive judgments in similar cases and selected the ones he believed to be correct from contradictory judgments. He promulgated a new separate code of law, of course, to avoid violating the basic laws of Islam. Suleiman's reform of the legal system was aimed at adapting to the rapid development of the empire and gained the support of Grand Mufti and Mohammad Abusuyud Imadi. [14] In addition, Suleiman also promulgated new criminal and security laws, providing a series of fine measures for specific criminal acts, while reducing the number of death penalty and amputation sentences. [14]
Suleiman's reform of the administrative and legislative system earned him the title of "Kanuni", ensuring the longevity of the empire behind him. This achievement was "enough to leave many generations of decadent successors behind him empty handed.".