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Sultan of the Ottoman Empire
Osmanlı padişahları
Imperial
Imperial Coat of arms
Best known office holder Suleiman I 30 September 1520 – 6 September 1566
Details
Style	His Imperial Majesty
First monarch	Osman I (c. 1299–1323/4)
Last monarch	Mehmed VI (1918–1922)
Formation	c. 1299
Abolition	1 November 1922
Residence	Palaces in Istanbul: Topkapı (1460s–1853) Dolmabahçe (1853–1889; 1909–1922) Yıldız (1889–1909)
Appointer	Hereditary
Pretender(s)	Dündar Ali Osman

Ottoman Imperial Standard

Ottoman Empire in 1683, at the height of its territorial expansion in Europe.

The sultans of the Ottoman Empire (Turkish: Osmanlı padişahları), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to its dissolution in 1922. At its height, the Ottoman Empire spanned an area from Hungary in the north to Yemen in the south, and from Algeria in the west to Iraq in the east. Administered at first from the city of Bursa, the empire's capital was moved to Edirne in 1363 following its conquest by Murad I, and then to Constantinople (present-day Istanbul) in 1453 following its conquest by Mehmed II.^[1]

Family tree

The Ottoman Empire's early years have been the subject of varying narratives due to the difficulty of discerning fact from legend. The empire came into existence at the end of the thirteenth century, and its first ruler (and the namesake of the Empire) was Osman I. According to later, often unreliable Ottoman tradition, Osman was a descendant of the Kayı tribe of the Oghuz Turks.^[2] The eponymous Ottoman dynasty he founded endured for six centuries through the reigns of 36 sultans. The Ottoman Empire disappeared as a result of the defeat of the Central Powers with whom it had allied itself during World War I. The partitioning of the Empire by the victorious Allies and the ensuing Turkish War of Independence led to the abolition of the sultanate in 1922 and the birth of the modern Republic of Turkey in 1922.^[3]

State organisation of the Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire was an absolute monarchy during much of its existence. By the second half of the fifteenth century, the sultan sat at the apex of a hierarchical system and acted in political, military, judicial, social, and religious capacities under a variety of titles.^[a] He was theoretically responsible only to God and God's law (the Islamic شریعت‎ şeriat, known in Arabic as شريعة sharia), of which he was the chief executor. His heavenly mandate was reflected in Islamic titles such as "shadow of God on Earth" (ظل الله في العالم‎ ẓıll Allāh fī'l-ʿalem) and "caliph of the face of the earth" (خلیفه روی زمین‎ Ḫalife-i rū-yi zemīn).^[4] All offices were filled by his authority, and every law was issued by him in the form of a decree called firman (فرمان‎). He was the supreme military commander and had the official title to all land.^[5]Osman (died 1323/4) son of Ertuğrul was the first ruler of the Ottoman state, which during his reign constituted a small principality (beylik) in the region of Bithynia on the frontier of the Byzantine Empire.

After the conquest of Constantinople in 1453 by Mehmed II, Ottoman sultans came to regard themselves as the successors of the Roman Empire, hence their occasional use of the titles Caesar (قیصر‎ Qayser) of Rûm, and emperor,^[4][6][7] as well as the caliph of Islam.^[b] Newly enthroned Ottoman rulers were girded with the Sword of Osman, an important ceremony that served as the equivalent of European monarchs' coronation.^[8] A non-girded sultan was not eligible to have his children included in the line of succession.^[9]

Although absolute in theory and in principle, the sultan's powers were limited in practice. Political decisions had to take into account the opinions and attitudes of important members of the dynasty, the bureaucratic and military establishments, as well as religious leaders.^[5] Beginning in the last decades of the sixteenth century, the role of the Ottoman sultans in the government of the empire began to decrease, in a period known as the Transformation of the Ottoman Empire. Despite being barred from inheriting the throne,^[10] women of the Imperial Harem—especially the reigning sultan's mother, known as the Valide Sultan—also played an important behind-the-scenes political role, effectively ruling the empire during the period known as the Sultanate of Women.^[11]

Constitutionalism was only established during the reign Abdul Hamid II, who thus became the empire's last absolute ruler and its reluctant first constitutional monarch.^[12] Although Abdul Hamid II abolished the parliament and the constitution to return to personal rule in 1878, he was again forced in 1908 to reinstall constitutionalism and was deposed. Since 2017, the head of the House of Osman and pretender to the defunct Ottoman throne has been Dündar Ali Osman, a great-grandson of Abdulhamid II.^[13]

List of sultans

The table below lists Ottoman sultans, as well as the last Ottoman caliph, in chronological order. The tughras were the calligraphic seals or signatures used by Ottoman sultans. They were displayed on all official documents as well as on coins, and were far more important in identifying a sultan than his portrait. The "Notes" column contains information on each sultan's parentage and fate. For earlier rulers, there is usually a time gap between the moment a sultan's reign ended and the moment his successor was enthroned. This is because the Ottomans in that era practiced what historian Quataert has described as "survival of the fittest, not eldest, son": when a sultan died, his sons had to fight each other for the throne until a victor emerged. Because of the infighting and numerous fratricides that occurred, a sultan's death date therefore did not always coincide with the accession date of his successor.^[14] In 1617, the law of succession changed from survival of the fittest to a system based on agnatic seniority (اکبریت‎ ekberiyet), whereby the throne went to the oldest male of the family. This in turn explains why from the 17th century onwards a deceased sultan was rarely succeeded by his own son, but usually by an uncle or brother.^[15] Agnatic seniority was retained until the abolition of the sultanate, despite unsuccessful attempts in the 19th century to replace it with primogeniture.^[16]

№	Sultan	Portrait	Reigned from	Reigned until	Tughra	Notes
Rise of the Ottoman Empire (1299 – 1453)
1	Osman I ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior)		c. 1299	1323	— [c]	Son of Ertuğrul Bey[17] and an unknown woman (perhaps Halime Hatun.[18] Bey. Reigned until his death.
2	Orhan ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior)		1323	1362		Son of Osman I and Malhun Hatun.[18] Bey. Reigned until his death.[19]
3	Murad I SULTAN-İ AZAM (The Most Exalted Sultan) HÜDAVENDİGÂR (The devotee of God) ŞEHÎD (Martyr) [20][b]		1362	15 June 1389		Son of Orhan and Nilüfer Hatun.[18] Bey then Sultan. Reigned until his death. Killed on the battlefield at the Battle of Kosovo on June 15, 1389.[21]
4	Bayezid I SULTAN-İ RÛM (Sultan of the Roman Empire) YILDIRIM (Lightning)		15 June 1389	20 July 1402		Son of Murad I and Gülçiçek Hatun.[18] Captured on the battlefield at the Battle of Ankara (de facto end of reign); Died in captivity in Akşehir on 8 March 1403.[22]
Ottoman Interregnum[d] (20 July 1402 – 5 July 1413)
—	İsa Çelebi The Co-Sultan of Anatolia		1403–1405 (Sultan of the Western Anatolian Territory)	1406	—	After the Battle of Ankara on July 20, 1402, İsa Çelebi defeated Musa Çelebi and began controlling the western part of Anatolian territory of the empire for approximately two years. Defeated by Mehmed Çelebi in the battle of Ulubat in 1405. Murdered in 1406.
—	Emir (Amir) Süleyman Çelebi The First Sultan of Rumelia		20 July 1402	17 February 1411[23]	—	Acquired the title of The Sultan of Rumelia for the European portion of the empire, a short period after the Ottoman defeat of The Battle of Ankara on 20 July 1402 Murdered on 17 February 1411.[24]
—	Musa Çelebi The Second Sultan of Rumelia		18 February 1411	5 July 1413[25]	—	Acquired the title of The Sultan of Rumelia for the European portion of the empire[26] on 18 February 1411, just after the death of Süleyman Çelebi. Killed on 5 July 1413 by Mehmed Çelebi’s forces in the battle of Çamurlu Derbent near Samokov in Bulgaria.[27]
—	Mehmed Çelebi The Sultan of Anatolia		1403–1406 (Sultan of the Eastern Anatolian Territory) 1406–1413 (The Sultan of Anatolia)	5 July 1413	—	Acquired the control of the eastern part of the Anatolian territory as the Co-Sultan just after the defeat of the Battle of Ankara on 20 July 1402. Defeated İsa Çelebi in the battle of Ulubat in 1405. Became the sole ruler of the Anatolian territory of the Ottoman Empire upon İsa’s death in 1406. Acquired the title of Ottoman Sultan Mehmed I Khan upon Musa’s death on 5 July 1413.
Sultanate resumed
5	Mehmed I ÇELEBİ (The Affable) KİRİŞÇİ (lit. The Bowstring Maker for his support)		5 July 1413	26 May 1421		Son of Bayezid I and Devlet Hatun.[18] Reigned until his death.[28]
6	Murad II KOCA (The Great)		25 June 1421	1444		Son of Mehmed I and Emine Hatun;[18] Abdicated of his own free will in favour of his son Mehmed II.[29]
7	Mehmed II FĀTİḤ (The Conqueror) فاتح‬		1444	1446		Son of Murad II and Hüma Hatun.[18] Surrendered the throne to his father after having asked him to return to power, along with rising threats from Janissaries.[29]
(6)	Murad II KOCA (The Great)		1446	3 February 1451		Second reign; Forced to return to the throne following a Janissary insurgence;[30] Reigned until his death.
Growth of the Ottoman Empire (1453 – 1550)
(7)	Mehmed II KAYSER-İ RÛM (Caesar of the Roman Empire) FĀTİḤ (The Conqueror) فاتح‬		3 February 1451	3 May 1481		Second reign; Conquered Constantinople in 1453; Reigned until his death.[31]
8	Bayezid II VELÎ (The Saint)		19 May 1481	25 April 1512		Son of Mehmed II and Gülbahar Hatun.[18] Abdicated. Died near Didymoteicho on 26 May 1512.[32]
9	Selim I YAVUZ (The Strong) Hadim'ul Haramain'ish-Sharifain (Servant of Mecca and Medina)		25 April 1512	21 September 1520		Son of Bayezid II and Gülbahar Hatun. Reigned until his death.[33]
10	Suleiman I MUHTEŞEM (The Magnificent) or KANÛNÎ (The Lawgiver) قانونى‬		30 September 1520	6 or 7 September 1566		Son of Selim I and Hafsa Sultan; Reigned until his death.[34]
Transformation of the Ottoman Empire (1550 – 1700)
11	Selim II SARI (The Blond) MEST (the Sot)		29 September 1566	21 December 1574		Son of Suleiman I and Hürrem Sultan; Reigned until his death.[35]
12	Murad III		22 December 1574	16 January 1595		Son of Selim II and Nurbanu Sultan; Reigned until his death.[36]
13	Mehmed III ADLÎ (The Just)		27 January 1595	20 or 21 December 1603		Son of Murad III and Safiye Sultan; Reigned until his death;[37]
14	Ahmed I BAḪTī (The Fortunate)		21 December 1603	22 November 1617		Son of Mehmed III and Handan Sultan; Reigned until his death.[38]
15	Mustafa I DELİ (The Mad)		22 November 1617	26 February 1618		Son of Mehmed III and Halime Sultan; Deposed due to his mental instability in favour of his young nephew Osman II.[39]
16	Osman II GENÇ (The Young) ŞEHÎD (The Martyr) شهيد‬		26 February 1618	19 May 1622		Son of Ahmed I and Mahfiruz Hatun; Deposed in a Janissary riot on 19 May 1622; Murdered on 20 May 1622 by the Grand Vizier Kara Davud Pasha.[40]
(15)	Mustafa I DELİ (The Mad)		20 May 1622	10 September 1623		Second reign; Returned to the throne after the assassination of his nephew Osman II; Deposed due to his poor mental health and confined until his death in Istanbul on 20 January 1639.[39]
17	Murad IV SAHİB-Î KIRAN The Conqueror of Baghdad ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior) غازى‬		10 September 1623	8 or 9 February 1640		Son of Ahmed I and Kösem Sultan. Reigned until his death.[41]
18	Ibrahim DELİ (The Mad) The Conqueror of Crete ŞEHÎD		9 February 1640	8 August 1648		Son of Ahmed I and Kösem Sultan; Deposed on 8 August 1648 in a coup led by the Sheikh ul-Islam; Strangled in Istanbul on 18 August 1648[42] at the behest of the Grand Vizier Mevlevî Mehmed Paşa (Sofu Mehmed Pasha).
19	Mehmed IV AVCI (The Hunter) ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior) غازى‬		8 August 1648	8 November 1687		Son of Ibrahim and Turhan Sultan; Deposed on 8 November 1687 following the Ottoman defeat at the Second Battle of Mohács; Died in Edirne on 6 January 1693.[43]
20	Suleiman II ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior)		8 November 1687	22 June 1691		Son of Ibrahim and Aşub Sultan; Reigned until his death.[44]
21	Ahmed II ḪĀN ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior Prince)		22 June 1691	6 February 1695		Son of Ibrahim and Muazzez Sultan; Reigned until his death.[45]
22	Mustafa II ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior)		6 February 1695	22 August 1703		Son of Mehmed IV and Gülnuş Sultan; Deposed on 22 August 1703 by a Janissary uprising known as the Edirne Event; Died in Istanbul on 8 January 1704.[46]
Stagnation and reform of the Ottoman Empire (1700 – 1827)
23	Ahmed III Tulip Era Sultan ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior)		22 August 1703	1 or 2 October 1730		Son of Mehmed IV and Gülnuş Sultan; Deposed in consequence of the Janissary rebellion led by Patrona Halil; Died on 1 July 1736.[47]
24	Mahmud I ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior) KAMBUR (The Hunchback)		2 October 1730	13 December 1754		Son of Mustafa II and Saliha Sultan; Reigned until his death.[48]
25	Osman III SOFU (The Devout)		13 December 1754	29 or 30 October 1757		Son of Mustafa II and Şehsuvar Sultan; Reigned until his death.[49]
26	Mustafa III YENİLİKÇİ (The First Innovative)		30 October 1757	21 January 1774		Son of Ahmed III and Mihrişah Kadın; Reigned until his death.[50]
27	Abdul Hamid I Abd ūl-Hāmīd (The Servant of God) ISLAHATÇI (The Improver) ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior)		21 January 1774	6 or 7 April 1789		Son of Ahmed III and Şermi Kadın; Reigned until his death.[51]
28	Selim III BESTEKÂR (The Composer) NİZÂMÎ (Regulative - Orderly) ŞEHÎD (The Martyr)		7 April 1789	29 May 1807		Son of Mustafa III and Mihrişah Sultan; Deposed as a result of the Janissary revolt led by Kabakçı Mustafa against his reforms; Assassinated in Istanbul on 28 July 1808[52] at the behest of Ottoman Sultan Mustafa IV.
29	Mustafa IV		29 May 1807	28 July 1808		Son of Abdul Hamid I and Sineperver Sultan; Deposed in an insurrection led by Alemdar Mustafa Pasha; Executed in Istanbul on 17 November 1808[53] by order of Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II.
Modernization of the Ottoman Empire (1827 – 1908)
30	Mahmud II İNKILÂPÇI (The Reformer) ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior)		28 July 1808	1 July 1839		Son of Abdul Hamid I and Nakşidil Sultan (adoptive mother of Mahmud II); Disbanded the Janissaries in consequence of the Auspicious Event in 1826; Reigned until his death.[54]
31	Abdulmejid I TANZİMÂTÇI (The Strong Reformist or The Advocate of Reorganization) ĠĀZĪ (The Warrior)		1 July 1839	25 June 1861		Son of Mahmud II and Bezmiâlem Sultan; Proclaimed the Hatt-ı Sharif (Imperial Edict) of Gülhane (Tanzimât Fermânı) that launched the Tanzimat period of reforms and reorganization on 3 November 1839 at the behest of reformist Grand Vizier Great Mustafa Rashid Pasha; Accepted the Islâhat Hatt-ı Hümayun (Imperial Reform Edict) (Islâhat Fermânı) on 18 February 1856; Reigned until his death.[55]
32	Abdülaziz BAḪTSIZ (The Unfortunate) ŞEHĪD (The Martyr)		25 June 1861	30 May 1876		Son of Mahmud II and Pertevniyal Sultan; Deposed by his ministers; Found dead (suicide or murder) five days later.[56]
33	Murad V		30 May 1876	31 August 1876		Son of Abdulmejid I and Şevkefza Kadın; Deposed due to his efforts to implement democratic reforms in the empire; Ordered to reside in Çırağan Palace where he died on 29 August 1904.[57]
34	Abdul Hamid II Ulû Sultân Abd ūl-Hāmīd Khan (The Sublime Khan)		31 August 1876	27 April 1909		Son of Abdulmejid I and Tirimüjgan Kadın and later the adoptive son of Perestu Kadın). Reluctantly allowed the First Constitutional Era on 23 November 1876 and then suspended it and reverted to personal rule on 13 February 1878; Forced to restore the Second Constitutional Era on 3 July 1908; Deposed after the 31 March Incident (on 13 April 1909); Confined to Beylerbeyi Palace where he died on 10 February 1918.[58]
35	Mehmed V REŞÂD (Rashād) (The True Path Follower)		27 April 1909	3 July 1918		Son of Abdulmejid I and Gülcemal Kadın; Reigned as a figurehead of Mehmed Talat, İsmail Enver, and Ahmed Cemal Pashas until his death.[59]
36	Mehmed VI VAHDETTİN (Wāhīd ād-Dīn) (The Unifier of Dīn (Islam) or The Oneness of Islam)		4 July 1918	1 November 1922		Son of Abdulmejid I and Gülüstü Hanım; Sultanate abolished; Left Istanbul on 17 November 1922; became pretender to the Sultanate between 17 November 1922 and 16 May 1926; Died in exile in Sanremo, Italy on 16 May 1926.[60]
Caliph under the Republic (1 November 1922 – 3 March 1924)
—	Abdulmejid II		18 November 1922	3 March 1924	— [c]	Son of Abdülaziz I and Hayranidil Kadın;[61] Elected caliph by the TBMM; Exiled after the abolition of the caliphate;[62] became pretender to the Sultanate between 16 May 1926 and 23 August 1944; Died in Paris, France on 23 August 1944.[63]

List of heirs since 1922

The Ottoman dynasty was expelled from Turkey in 1924 and most members took on the surname Osmanoğlu, meaning "son of Osman."^[64] The female members of the dynasty were allowed to return after 1951,^[64] and the male members after 1973.^[65] Below is a list of people who would have been heirs to the Ottoman throne following the abolition of the sultanate on 1 November 1922.^[65] These people have not necessarily made any claim to the throne; for example, Ertuğrul Osman said "Democracy works well in Turkey."^[66]

• 
  Mehmed VI, last Ottoman Sultan (1918–1922), then 36th Head of the House of Osman in exile (1922–1926).^[65]
  


• 
  Abdulmejid II, last Ottoman Caliph (1922–1924), then 37th Head of the House of Osman following Mehmed VI's death (1926–1944).^[65]
  


• 
  Ahmed IV Nihad, 38th Head of the House of Osman (1944–1954), grandson of Sultan Murad V.^[65]
  


• 
  Osman IV Fuad, 39th Head of the House of Osman (1954–1973), half-brother of Ahmed Nihad.^[65]
  


• 
  Mehmed Abdulaziz II, 40th Head of the House of Osman (1973–1977), grandson of Sultan Abdülaziz.^[65]
  


• 
  Ali I Vâsib, 41st Head of the House of Osman (1977–1983), son of Ahmed IV Nihad.^[65]
  


• 
  Mehmed Orhan II, 42nd Head of the House of Osman (1983–1994), grandson of Sultan Abdul Hamid II.^[67]
  


• 
  Ertuğrul II Osman V Osmanoğlu, 43rd Head of the House of Osman (1994–2009), grandson of Sultan Abdul Hamid II.^[66]
  


• 
  Osman Bayezid III Osmanoğlu, 44th Head of the House of Osman (2009–2017), great-grandson of Sultan Abdulmejid I.^[68]
  


• 
  Dündar Ali II Osman Osmanoğlu, 45th Head of the House of Osman (2017–present), great-grandson of Sultan Abdul Hamid II.

See also

Book: Sultans of the Ottoman Empire

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sultans of the Ottoman Empire.

• Line of succession to the Ottoman throne


• Ottoman Emperors family tree


• 
  Ottoman family tree (more detailed)


• List of Valide Sultans


• List of Ottoman Grand Viziers


• List of admirals in the Ottoman Empire


• List of Ottoman Kaptan Pashas

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links

• 
  "Website of the 700th Anniversary of the Ottoman Empire". Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  


• 
  "Official website of the immediate living descendants of the Ottoman Dynasty". Retrieved 2009-02-06.