Süleyman I Kanuni

Süleyman I Kanuni (Suleiman the Magnificent), b 27 April 1495 (other sources cite November 1494), d 6 September 1566 near Szigetvár, Hungary. (Portrait: Süleyman I Kanuni.) Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (1520–66). He ruled during the apogee of the Ottoman Empire, marked by military campaigns and territorial aggrandizement (including forays into Persia and central and eastern Europe), as well as significant cultural achievements (notably in the field of law, for which he was named Kanuni, meaning Lawgiver). He took as his wife a Ukrainian captive, Roksoliana, who came to have a considerable influence in the affairs of state. Their eldest son, Selim, succeeded Süleyman, who died during a campaign in Hungary.

[This article originally appeared in the Encyclopedia of Ukraine, vol. 5 (1993).]