Visit the Harem at Topkapi Palace
If religious artifacts and harems full of beautiful concubines intrigue you, then be sure to visit Topkapi Palace in Istanbul. The museum in Topkapi Palace is where they keep religious artifacts. They have a piece of skull and an arm that they claimed to be from John the Baptist as well as a piece of beard belonging to the prophet Muhammad. Other precious pieces belonging to the Prophet Muhammad included his footprint in a stone and one of the four teeth that the Prophet was said to have lost in the Battle of Uhud after being struck with an axe. They also have the Holy Mantle – a white coat made of goat’s hair given to a pagan Arab named Ka'b ibn Zuhayr by the Prophet.
Growing up in the Christian world, the artifact that most caught my eye was the staff of Moses. It looked just like the wooden staff from the movie The Ten Commandments. Could this be the same staff that Moses used to perform God’s miracles to free the Israelites from Egypt? Who really knows but it sure looked authentic.
While the museum is interesting, most people are drawn to Harem in Topkapi Palace. This was where the concubines lived during the times of the Sultans.
Growing up in the Christian world, the artifact that most caught my eye was the staff of Moses. It looked just like the wooden staff from the movie The Ten Commandments. Could this be the same staff that Moses used to perform God’s miracles to free the Israelites from Egypt? Who really knows but it sure looked authentic.
While the museum is interesting, most people are drawn to Harem in Topkapi Palace. This was where the concubines lived during the times of the Sultans.
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Concubines were usually beautiful intelligent young women from affluent families in neighboring countries brought into the Harem at a tender age where they were groomed to be potential wives.
As they grew up they could work their way up in the Harem to become kalfas or ustas and if they shared a bed with the Sultan they could achieve the ranks of Gözde (the Lucky), Ikbal(the Favorite) or Kadın (the Wife). Muslim law permits a man to have up to 4 wives at one time. If a woman produced a child with the Sultan she would get an even more elevated position within the Harem and receive her own apartment. Since there was no queen, the most powerful woman in the empire was the Sultan’s mother called Valide Sultan or the Queen Mother. She was the second most powerful person in the Empire next to the Sultan. She had a huge say in the matters of the Harem and the relationships between the Sultan and his wives. I used to think it would be cool to be part of a Harem but after learning the real facts I changed my mind. Competing for the affection of a momma’s boy with a bunch of other attractive woman and having my honour protected by a group of castrated men does not sound fun. |
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Yes you read that right, in order to work as a eunuch you must be castrated to ensure you wouldn’t make sexual advances on the women. These men were slaves, prisoners of war or men recruited from within the Empire. The Black eunuchs had their entire genitalia surgically removed while the whites had a portion of
their penis and testicles removed – black men were preferred for harem service.
their penis and testicles removed – black men were preferred for harem service.
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The Golden Cage
The Ottoman Empire excluded women from becoming Sultans and practiced open succession to the throne. While most empires had a policy of succession based on birth order, it was survival of the fittest in the Ottoman Empire. While their father the Sultan was alive, all of the adult sons would hold provincial governorships and then upon his death they would fight amongst themselves until one triumphed. To solidify his position as Sultan, he killed any of his brothers who could pose a threat to the throne. Strangulation by a silk cord was usually the method of choice. Centuries later, this practice was replaced with a lifetime of solitary confinement in the Kafes or “Golden Cage”, a room within the Imperial Harem where the brothers were imprisoned with little chance of escape unless of course they became next in line to the throne. By the time they became Sultan’s many had become mentally unstable – go figure! These poor guys were also denied the right to have their own children as long as their father was alive thus creating an abundance of 40-year-old virgins. Wasn’t that a movie? This practice led to what was called the Sultanate of Women, a 130-year period in the 16th and 17thcenturies where Sultans came to power while they were still minors forcing the empire to be run by their mothers. A system of Agnatic seniority was then put in place – an order of succession in which the monarchs brothers were in line ahead of his own sons. This system remained the prominent one until the abolition of the sultanate in 1922. |
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For tips on visiting Turkey CLICK HERE
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For general travel tips on what to pack and how to plan ahead CLICK HERE
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For tips on visiting the Middle East CLICK HERE
For general travel tips on what to pack and how to plan ahead CLICK HERE
For tips on travelling on a budget CLICK HERE
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Where I Stayed...
Hotel Arcadia Istanbul,Turkey Dr.Imran Oktem Caddesi No:1 Sultanahmet 34400 Istanbul Tel: 90-212-519 96 96 Website: www.hotelarcadiaistanbul.com Email: [email protected] Hotel Hali Klodfarer Caddesi No:20 Sultanahmet, Istanbul, Turkey Tel: 0090. 212. 5162170 Website: www.halihotel.com Email: [email protected] |
