The Sultanate of Women: Nurbanu Sultan & Safiye Sultan

Thank you to BetterHelp for sponsoring this video! To get 10% off your first month of therapy, go to to sign up today! Ottoman Sultans kept a harem of hundreds of enslaved concubines to bear their children. But from 1533 to 1656 a handful of remarkable women bent the harem system to their wills and exercised extraordinary political influence and power. This period is known as the The Sultanate of Women. Hürrem Sultan Mihrimah Sultan Nurbanu Sultan Safiye Sultan Handan Sultan Halime Sultan Kösem Sultan Turhan Sultan Get exclusive early access to the end of the saga: