List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire

The sultan was also referred to as the padishah (, ). In Ottoman usage the word "Padishah" was usually used except "sultan" was used when he was directly named. In several European languages, he was referred to as the Grand Turk, as the ruler of the Turks, or simply the "Great Lord" (il Gran Signore, le grand seigneur) especially in the 16th century. Names of the sultan in languages used by ethnic minorities: • Arabic: In some documents "padishah" was replaced by "malik" ("king") • Bulgarian: In earlier periods Bulgarian people called him the "tsar". The translation of the Ottoman Constitution of 1876 instead used direct translations of "sultan" (Султан Sultan) and "padishah" (Падишах Padišax) • Greek: In earlier periods the Greeks used the Byzantine Empire-style name "basileus". The translation of the Ottoman Constitution of 1876 instead used a direct transliterations of "sultan" (Σουλτάνος Soultanos) and "padishah" (ΠΑΔΙΣΑΧ padisach). • Judaeo-Spanish: Especially in older documents, El Rey ("the king") was used. In addition some Ladino documents used sultan (in Hebrew characters: שולטן and סולטן). == 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. He was theoretically responsible only to God and divine law (the Islamic şeriat, known in Arabic as sharia), of which he was the chief executor. His heavenly mandate (Kut) was reflected in Islamic titles such as "shadow of God on Earth" ( ''ẓıll Allāh fī'l-ʿalem) and "caliph of the face of the earth" ( Ḫalife-i rū-yi zemīn). All offices were filled by his authority, and every law was issued by him in the form of a decree called firman'' (). He was the supreme military commander and had the official title to all land. as well as the caliph of Islam. Newly enthroned Ottoman rulers were girded with the Sword of Osman, an important ceremony that served as the equivalent of European monarchs' coronation. A non-girded sultan was not eligible to have his children included in the line of succession. 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. 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, 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. Constitutionalism was established during the reign Abdul Hamid II, who thus became the empire's last absolute ruler and its reluctant first constitutional monarch. 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 2021, the head of the Osmanoğlu family has been Harun Osman, a great-grandson of Abdul Hamid II. ==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. Early Ottomans 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, there was often a time gap between a sultan's death date and the accession date of his successor. In 1617, the law of succession changed from survival of the fittest to a system based on agnatic seniority ( 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. Agnatic seniority was retained until the abolition of the sultanate, despite unsuccessful attempts in the 19th century to replace it with primogeniture. Note that pretenders and co-claimants during the Ottoman Interregnum are also listed here, but they are not included in the formal numbering of sultans. } • Co-sultan of Anatolia • After the Battle of Ankara, İsa Çelebi defeated Musa Çelebi and took the western Anatolian territories for approximately two years. • Defeated by Mehmed Çelebi in the Battle of Ulubad in March or May 1403. • Strangled in September 1403. • Acquired the title of The Sultan of Rumelia for the European portion of the empire, a short period after the Ottoman defeat at Ankara. • Murdered on 17 February 1411. 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. • Reigned until his death. • Second reign • Conquered Constantinople in 1453. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Mehmed II and Gülbahar Hatun. • Died in exile • Conquered Mamluks in 1516–1517. • First Ottoman Caliph. • Son of Bayezid II and Gülbahar Hatun. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Selim I and Hafsa Sultan. • Died of natural causes in his tent during the Siege of Szigetvár in 1566. • Son of Suleiman I and Hürrem Sultan. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Selim II and Nurbanu Sultan. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Murad III and Safiye Sultan. • Reigned until his death • Son of Mehmed III and Handan Sultan. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Mehmed III and Halime Sultan. • Deposed due to his mental instability in favour of his young nephew Osman II. • 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. • 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. • Son of Ahmed I and Kösem Sultan. • Ruled under the regency of his mother Kösem Sultan until 1632. • Reigned until his death. • 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 at the behest of the Grand Vizier Mevlevî Mehmed Paşa (Sofu Mehmed Pasha). • Son of Ibrahim and Turhan Sultan. • Ruled under the regency of his grandmother Kösem Sultan until 1651. • Ruled under the regency of his mother Turhan Sultan from 1651 until 1656. • Deposed on 8 November 1687 following the Ottoman defeat at the Second Battle of Mohács. • Died in Edirne on 6 January 1693. • Son of Ibrahim and Dilaşub Sultan. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Ibrahim and Muazzez Sultan. • Reigned until his death. • 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. • Son of Mehmed IV and Gülnuş Sultan. • Deposed in consequence of the Janissary rebellion led by Patrona Halil. • Died on 1 July 1736. • Son of Mustafa II and Saliha Sultan. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Mustafa II and Şehsuvar Sultan. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Ahmed III and Mihrişah Kadın. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Ahmed III and Rabia Şermi Kadın. • Reigned until his death. • 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 at the behest of Mustafa IV. • Son of Abdul Hamid I and Sineperver Sultan. • Deposed in an insurrection led by Alemdar Mustafa Pasha. • Executed in Istanbul on 17 November 1808 by order of Mahmud II. • Son of Abdul Hamid I and Nakşidil Sultan. • Disbanded the Janissaries in consequence of the Auspicious Incident in 1826. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Mahmud II and Bezmiâlem Sultan. • Proclaimed the 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 Mustafa Reşid Pasha. • Accepted the Islâhat Hatt-ı Hümayun (Imperial Reform Edict) (Islâhat Fermânı) on 18 February 1856. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Mahmud II and Pertevniyal Sultan. • Deposed by his ministers. • Found dead (suicide or murder) five days later. • Son of Abdulmejid I and Şevkefza Sultan. • Deposed due to his ill mental health. • Ordered to reside in Çırağan Palace where he died on 29 August 1904. • Son of Abdulmejid I and Tirimüjgan Kadın (later became the adoptive son of Rahime Perestu Sultan). • Reluctantly allowed the First Constitutional Era on 23 November 1876 and then suspended it on 13 February 1878. • Forced to restore the Constitution on 3 July 1908. • Deposed after the 31 March incident. • Confined to Beylerbeyi Palace where he died on 10 February 1918. • Son of Abdulmejid I and Gülcemal Kadın (later became the adoptive son of Servetseza Kadın). • Reigned as a figurehead of Mehmed Talat, İsmail Enver, and Ahmed Cemal Pashas. • Reigned until his death. • Son of Abdulmejid I and Gülistu Kadın (later became the adoptive son of Şayeste Hanım) • Sultanate abolished. • Left Istanbul on 17 November 1922. • Died in exile in Sanremo, Italy on 16 May 1926. • Son of Abdulaziz and Hayranidil Kadın; • Exiled after the abolition of the Caliphate; • Died in Paris, France on 23 August 1944. Notes ==See also==