Gülcemal Kadın (Ottoman Turkish: کل جمال قادین; "face of rose" c. 1826 – 29 November 1851) was a consort of Sultan Abdulmejid I, and the mother of Sultan Mehmed V of the Ottoman Empire.[1]

Gülcemal Kadın
Bornc. 1826
Sarajevo, Bosnia Eyalet
Died29 November 1851(1851-11-29) (aged 24–25)
Constantinople, Ottoman Empire (present day Istanbul, Turkey)
Burial
Imperial ladies Mausoleum, New Mosque, Istanbul
Spouse
(m. 1840)
Issue
Names
Turkish: Gülcemal Kadın
Ottoman Turkish: کل جمال قادین
HouseOttoman (by marriage)
ReligionSunni Islam

Early life edit

Of Bosnian origin,[2] Gülcemal Kadın was born around 1826 at Sarajevo.[3] She had one sister, Bimisal Hanım.[4][5] She was also related to Sabit Bey, who became Master of Robes to her son Sultan Mehmed Reşad, and his sister, the Sultan's Sixth Hazinedar, Nevfer Kalfa.[6][7]

Marriage edit

Gülcemal married Abdulmejid in 1840, and was given the title of "Third Ikbal". She was one of the most beloved consorts.

On 1 November 1840, she gave birth to her first child, a daughter, Fatma Sultan in the Old Beşiktaş Palace.[8][9]

In 1842, she was elevated to the title of "Second Ikbal". On 3 February 1842, she gave birth to two twins daughters, Refia Sultan and Hatice Sultan (who died as newborn) in the Old Beşiktaş Palace.[10][9]

In 1843 she was elevated to the title of "Fifth Kadın". On 2 November 1844, she gave birth to her fourth child, a son, Şehzade Mehmed Reşad (future Mehmed V) in the Old Çırağan Palace. In 1845, she was elevated to the title of "Fourth Kadın".[11][9]

In 1850, she gave birth her last child, a daughter, Rukiye Sultan, who died in same year.[12]

Death edit

She died of tuberculosis[3] on 29 November 1851 in Istanbul.[13][14] She was never Valide sultan to her son, because she died before Mehmed Reşad's accession to the Ottoman throne.[15] She is buried in the mausoleum of the imperial ladies at the New Mosque Istanbul.[3]

All the three of her alive children were adopted by Servetseza Kadın, first consort of Abdulmejid.[8][16]

Really beloved by Abdülmecid, he did everything to save her life. To her doctor, İsmail Paşah, he declared: ”… I have had the most genuine conversations with this woman. Since I was a youth, I have loved her with my all heart..“.

Legacy edit

The ocean liner SS Germanic (1874) was renamed Gul Djemal when she entered the Ottoman service in 1911, in memory of Gülcemal Kadın.[17] When the ship was sold yet again, this time to Turkiye Seyrisefain Idaresi, it was renamed Gulcemal.[18]

Issue edit

Name Birth Death Notes
Fatma Sultan 1 November 1840[8][19][20] 26 August 1884[21][20] married twice, and had issue, one son and two daughters
Refia Sultan 7 February 1842[10][19][22] 4 January 1880[23][22] Twin sister of Hatice Sultan, she married once, had a daughter
Hatice Sultan 7 February 1842[10][19][22] [12] 1842[23][22][12] Twin sister of Refia Sultan
Mehmed V Reşad 2 November 1844[11][19][22] 3 July 1918[22] 35th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire
Rukiye Sultan 1850[12] 1850[12]

In literature edit

  • Gülcemal is a character in Hıfzı Topuz's historical novel Abdülmecit: İmparatorluk Çökerken Sarayda 22 Yıl: Roman (2009).[24]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ John Freely (2001). Inside the Seraglio: private lives of the sultans in Istanbul. Penguin.
  2. ^ Açba, Leyla; Açba, Harun (2004). Bir Çerkes prensesinin harem hatıraları. L & M. p. 126. ISBN 978-9-756-49131-7.
  3. ^ a b c Brookes 2010, p. 282.
  4. ^ Brookes 2010, p. 242.
  5. ^ Leyla Saz; Sedat Demir (4 January 2016). Haremde Yaşam: Saray ve Harem Hatıraları. DBY Yayınları. p. 113. ISBN 978-605-61331-1-4.
  6. ^ Brookes, Douglas S. (February 4, 2020). On the Sultan's Service: Halid Ziya Uşaklıgil's Memoir of the Ottoman Palace, 1909–1912. Indiana University Press. p. 58. ISBN 978-0-253-04553-9.
  7. ^ Brookes 2010, p. 239.
  8. ^ a b c Uluçay 2011, p. 218.
  9. ^ a b c Sakaoğlu 2008, p. 589.
  10. ^ a b c Uluçay 2011, p. 220.
  11. ^ a b Uluçay 2011, p. 209.
  12. ^ a b c d e Jamil ADRA (2005). Genealogy of the Imperial Ottoman Family 2005. p. 8.
  13. ^ Finkel, Caroline, Osman's Dream, (Basic Books, 2005), 57; "Istanbul was only adopted as the city's official name in 1930..".
  14. ^ Kolay, Arif (2017). Osmanlı Saray Hayatından Bir Kesit: Ali Akyıldız ve Mümin ve Müsrif Bir Padişah Kızı Refia Sultan. p. 680.
  15. ^ "Sultan V. Mehmed Reşad Han". Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  16. ^ Sakaoğlu 2008, p. 604-5.
  17. ^ Mukherjee, Somenath; Ashrama, Advaita. The Ships of Swami Vivekananda. Advaita Ashrama (A publication branch of Ramakrishna Math, Belur Math). ISBN 978-8-175-05904-7.
  18. ^ Clarkson, Andrew. "SS Germanic". titanic-titanic.com. Archived from the original on 8 October 2014. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  19. ^ a b c d Paşa 1960, p. 144.
  20. ^ a b Brookes 2010, p. 281.
  21. ^ Uluçay 2011, p. 219.
  22. ^ a b c d e f Brookes 2010, p. 288.
  23. ^ a b Uluçay 2011, p. 221.
  24. ^ Hıfzı Topuz (2009). Abdülmecit: İmparatorluk Çökerken Sarayda 22 Yıl: Roman. Remzi Kitabevi. p. 40. ISBN 978-975-14-1357-4.

Sources edit

  • Sakaoğlu, Necdet (2008). Bu Mülkün Kadın Sultanları: Vâlide Sultanlar, Hâtunlar, Hasekiler, Kandınefendiler, Sultanefendiler. Oğlak Yayıncılık. ISBN 978-6-051-71079-2.
  • Uluçay, M. Çağatay (2011). Padişahların kadınları ve kızları. Ötüken. ISBN 978-9-754-37840-5.
  • Brookes, Douglas Scott (2010). The Concubine, the Princess, and the Teacher: Voices from the Ottoman Harem. University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-78335-5.
  • Paşa, Ahmed Cevdet (1960). Tezâkir. [2]. 13 - 20, Volume 2. Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi.