Suleiman the Magnificent Holding Mace

Suleiman ascended the Ottoman Sultanate in 1520 upon the death of his father, the ruthless Selim I. Suleiman was the tenth and greatest of the Ottoman Sultans.
Groomed for command by his father and grandfather, Bayazid II, Suleiman served as a Regional Governor at 21 years of age. A gifted military leader and tactician, Suleiman conquered Belgrade by 1521, drove the crusaders from Rhodes by 1522 and acquired most of Hungary by 1526.
Along with his much feared land army of Janissaries, Suleiman also built a considerable navy under his Admiral Barbarossa. Sea battles against Spain, Venice, Genoa and Greece all saw victories for the Ottoman fleet.
Suleiman’s campaign against the Habsburg lands came to a stalemate culminating in a treaty with Archduke Ferdinand in 1532.
With an Empire that now extended to three continents, Suleiman needed to relocate his army from Europe to combat disaffection in his Asia Minor provinces. Suleiman sent his army to quell revolts in Anatolia and rebellions in Persia, fighting from Azerbaijan to Bagdad. By 1555 these territories of the Ottoman Empire were once more relatively peaceful and the focus once more moved to Europe.
Despite living most of his life on military campaigns, Suleiman was a great patron of the arts. His court abounded in artists, poets, architects, engineers, scholars and talented statesmen. Overall his reign became the high-water mark culturally and militarily for the Ottoman Empire.
After Suleiman’s demise during a 1566 battle in Hungary, the Ottomans began their gradual decline beginning with Suleiman’s dissolute sons, none of whom inherited his dedication or integrity.
Suleiman had elevated the Ottoman Empire to a position of strength and consequence in Eastern Europe and the Near East. His administrative skills earned him the name “Lawgiver” from his nation. His public works remain a reminder of his leadership in a period of great change in world affairs.