Kösem Sultan

Kösem Sultan was an Ottoman royal consort and queen mother who exercised political influence across several seventeenth-century reigns, including periods as regent.

Ahmed I: Ottoman sultan from 1603 to 1617, whose reign included Kösem Sultan’s rise at court. As Kösem’s husband, he established her place in the imperial household.
Valide Sultan: The title and influential court position held by an Ottoman sultan’s living mother. Kösem exercised this office under sons and grandsons who became sultans.
Ottoman succession: The practices by which members of the Ottoman dynasty succeeded to the sultanate. Unsettled succession brought children to the throne and created openings for regents.
Regicide in the Ottoman Empire: The killing of an Ottoman ruler, usually amid a struggle over dynastic or political authority. Kösem’s career unfolded through coups and executions that repeatedly altered the succession.
Murad IV: Ottoman sultan from 1623 to 1640, who came to the throne as a child. Kösem acted as regent during his minority and later contested his authority.
Ottoman regency: Temporary rule exercised on behalf of an Ottoman sultan unable to govern independently. Kösem governed during the minority of Murad IV and Mehmed IV.
Osman II: Ottoman sultan from 1618 to 1622, deposed and killed after a military revolt. His overthrow intensified the succession crisis in which Kösem’s faction gained influence.
Ottoman palace coup of 1648: The deposition of Sultan Ibrahim and accession of his son Mehmed IV in 1648. The coup restored Kösem’s influence as the new sultan’s grandmother and regent.
Ibrahim: Ottoman sultan from 1640 to 1648, whose deposition helped return Kösem to power. His reign brought Kösem back to the center of court politics.
Imperial Harem: The secluded household of the Ottoman dynasty, comprising royal women, servants, and attendants. Kösem’s household position and networks helped ground her court influence.

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