Verdicenan Kadın

In this Ottoman Turkish style name, the given name is Verdicenan, the title is Kadın (title), and there is no family name.
Verdicenan Kadın
BornSaliha Achba Hanim
c. 1825
Sukhum, Principality of Abkhazia
Died9 December 1889(1889-12-09) (aged 63–64)
Feriye Palace, Constantinople, Ottoman Empire
Burial
Imperial ladies Mausoleum, New Mosque, Istanbul
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1844; died 1861)​
Issue
Names
Turkish: Saliha Verdicenan Kadın
Ottoman Turkish: وردجنان قادین
HouseAchba (by birth)
Ottoman (by marriage)
FatherKaytuk Giorgi Achba
MotherYelizaveta Hanım
ReligionSunni Islam

Verdicenan Kadın (Ottoman Turkish: ورد جنان قادين; "Heart's decision" or "Heart's jury"; born Saliha Achba; c. 1825 – 9 December 1889) was a consort of Sultan Abdulmejid I of the Ottoman Empire.[1]

Early life

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Verdicenan Kadın was born in 1825 in Sukhum. Her original name was Saliha Achba. She was a member of the Abkhazian princely family, Achba.[2] Her father was Prince Kaytuk Giorgi Bey Achba (1793–1848), and her mother was Princess Yelizaveta Hanım (1795–1843).[3] She had four elder siblings, two brothers, Prince Ahmet Bey,[3] and Prince Islam Musa Bey,[2] and two sisters, Princess Peremrüz Hanım and Princess Embruvaz Hanım,[4] and a younger brother, Prince Mehmed Bey.[3]

Kadın was brought to Istanbul as a young child, where her father entrusted her and her sisters to the care of Bezmiâlem Sultan, the mother of Sultan Abdulmejid I. Here her name was changed to Verdicenan in accordance with the custom of the Ottoman court.[4]

Marriage

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Verdicenan married Abdulmejid in 1844. She was given the title of "Sixth Kadın".[1] On 9 December 1844, she gave birth to her first child, a daughter, Münire Sultan in the Topkapı Palace.[5][6] In 1845, she was elevated to "Fifth Kadın". On 16 July 1848, she gave birth to Şehzade Ahmed Kemaleddin, in the Old Çırağan Palace.[7][8] In 1851, she was elevated to "Fourth Kadın", and in 1852, to "Third Kadın". Verdicenan was known for her luxurious lifestyle and sense of style. She wore only clothes imported from Europe and luxurious jewelry; she never went out unless she was accompanied by at least ten ladies-in-waiting. Among these, there was her niece Leyla Achba, also known as Gülefşan Hanim, who became a well-known poet and writer, and Ayşe Zatimelek Hanım, who would become the fifth consort of one of Abdülmecid I's sons, Şehzade Selim Süleyman.[1]

Widowhood

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After Abdulmejid's death in 1861, she moved to Feriye Palace.[9] Having lost her only daughter, Münire Sultan, in 1862,[6] she was entrusted with Mediha Sultan, after her own mother Gülistü Kadın died in 1861.[10] The relationship between the two of them was like mother and daughter. She kept Mediha under close surveillance, and always helped her whenever she had problems.[11] In 1879, she played a major role in Mediha's marriage to Samipashazade Necip Bey, interceding with the sultan to allow Mediha to marry the man she loved rather than one chosen for her.[9][1][12]

Death

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Verdicenan Kadın died on 9 December 1889 in the Feriye Palace at the age of sixty-four, and was buried in the mausoleum of the imperial ladies at the Yeni Mosque, Istanbul.[1][9][13]

Issue

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Name Birth Death Notes
Münire Sultan 9 December 1844[5][14] 29 June 1862[5] married twice, and had issue, a son
Şehzade Ahmed Kemaleddin 16 July 1848[15] 25 April 1905[16] married once, and had issue, two daughters
Mediha Sultan 30 July 1856[15] 9 November 1918[16] daughter of Gülistu Kadın, she was adopted by Verdicenan after her mother's death. She married twice and had a son.

In literature

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  • Verdicenan is a character in Hıfzı Topuz's historical novel Abdülmecit: İmparatorluk Çökerken Sarayda 22 Yıl: Roman (2009).[17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Uluçay 2011, p. 211.
  2. ^ a b Tuna 2007, p. 23, 25.
  3. ^ a b c Tuna 2007, p. 23.
  4. ^ a b Tuna 2007, p. 25.
  5. ^ a b c Uluçay 2011, p. 225.
  6. ^ a b Sakaoğlu 2008, p. 588.
  7. ^ Bey, Mehmet Sürreya (1969). Osmanlı devletinde kim kimdi, Volume 1. Küğ Yayını. p. 199.
  8. ^ The Concubine, the Princess, and the Teacher: Voices from the Ottoman Harem. University of Texas Press. 2010. p. 283. ISBN 978-0-292-78335-5.
  9. ^ a b c Sakaoğlu 2008, p. 589.
  10. ^ Bardakçı, Murat (2017). Neslishah: The Last Ottoman Princess. Oxford University Press. p. 6. ISBN 978-9-774-16837-6.
  11. ^ Kahya 2012, p. 8.
  12. ^ Fanny Davis (1986). The Ottoman Lady: A Social History from 1718 to 1918. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 12, 17. ISBN 978-0-313-24811-5.
  13. ^ Kahya 2012, p. 5.
  14. ^ Paşa 1960, p. 144.
  15. ^ a b Paşa 1960, p. 145.
  16. ^ a b Brookes 2010, p. 283.
  17. ^ Hıfzı Topuz (2009). Abdülmecit: İmparatorluk Çökerken Sarayda 22 Yıl: Roman. Remzi Kitabevi. p. 180. ISBN 978-975-14-1357-4.

Sources

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  • Tuna, Mahinur (2007). İlk Türk kadın ressam: Mihri Rasim (Müşfik) Açba : 1886 İstanbul-1954 New-York. As Yayın. ISBN 978-9-750-17250-2.
  • Uluçay, M. Çağatay (2011). Padişahların kadınları ve kızları. Ötüken. ISBN 978-9-754-37840-5.
  • Sakaoğlu, Necdet (2008). Bu Mülkün Kadın Sultanları: Vâlide Sultanlar, Hâtunlar, Hasekiler, Kandınefendiler, Sultanefendiler. Oğlak Yayıncılık. ISBN 978-6-051-71079-2.
  • Kahya, Özge (2012). Sultan Abdülmecid'in kızı Mediha Sultan'ın hayatı (1856-1928).
  • 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.
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