Suleiman the Magnificent
Ottoman sultan during the empire’s great territorial and cultural expansion in the sixteenth century. His campaigns in Hungary and the Mediterranean made him the Habsburgs’ principal eastern rival.
Life of Suleiman the Magnificent
A remarkable beginning
The only surviving son of Selim I, Suleiman was born at Trebizond in 1494 and governed provinces before succeeding his father in 1520. In the first years of his reign he captured Belgrade in 1521, a gateway to the Danube, and expelled the Knights Hospitaller from Rhodes in 1522.
References: Deutsche Biographie · Encyclopaedia Britannica
Hungary and Vienna
In 1526 he defeated Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia at Mohács; Louis died during the retreat. The kingdom was disputed between Ferdinand of Habsburg and John Zápolya, a vassal of the sultan. In 1529 Suleiman besieged Vienna without taking it. In 1541 he incorporated Buda and central Hungary as an Ottoman province, while Transylvania became a tributary principality.
References: Deutsche Biographie · Encyclopaedia Britannica
An empire across three continents
His campaigns against the Safavids brought him Baghdad in 1534 and Mesopotamia. With Admiral Hayreddin Barbarossa, his fleet dominated much of the Mediterranean and won at Preveza in 1538, although it failed at Malta in 1565. His alliance with Francis I of France made him an actor in the European balance of power against Charles V.
References: Deutsche Biographie · Encyclopaedia Britannica
Kanuni, the Lawgiver
In Ottoman tradition Suleiman is called Kanuni for compiling and harmonising the sultan’s laws. His wife Hürrem played an unprecedented political role, and struggles among his sons led to the executions of Mustafa in 1553 and Bayezid in 1561. He supported the work of the architect Sinan, including the Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul. He died in 1566 during the siege of Szigetvár in Hungary.
References: Deutsche Biographie · Encyclopaedia Britannica
This complete profile is available in English. Bibliographic titles retain their original language. Links marked ES open the Spanish edition.
Key details
Birth: 1494 Documented
Death: 1566 Documented
Role: Ottoman sultan
Dynasty: Ottoman · ES
Territories: Ottoman Empire (ES)
Recorded relationships
Sources for this profile
- Deutsche Nationalbibliothek · Ficha de autoridad GND · Sulaiman I., Osmanisches Reich, Sultan
- Encyclopaedia Britannica
Biographical and contextual references in their original language. Sources and methodology.
Evidence for this profile
4 recorded claims · 1 without a claim-specific source. Context references do not by themselves verify every fact.
Dates (2/2 with a precise source)
- BirthDocumented
1494
The authority record gives the birth as 1494. - DeathDocumented
1566
The authority record gives the death as 1566.
Family and relationships (1/1 with a precise source)
- FatherDocumented
Selim I
The authority record identifies Selim I (GND 122789148) as father.
Governments (0/1 with a precise source)
- GovernmentPending review
Sultan · Ottoman Empire · 1520–1566
A precise source has not yet been added.
Biographical and contextual references (2)
Editorial history
- 2026-10-12 · Claim registry added; existing historical data kept. Specific sourcing remains to be reviewed.
- 2026-10-08 · Claim registry added; existing historical data kept. Specific sourcing remains to be reviewed.
- 2026-10-04 · Claim registry added; existing historical data kept. Specific sourcing remains to be reviewed.
- 2026-10-04 · Claim registry added; existing historical data kept. Specific sourcing remains to be reviewed.
- 2026-10-03 · Claim registry added; existing historical data kept. Specific sourcing remains to be reviewed.
- 2026-09-30 · The duchy is limited to Dijon and Autun; each other fief now enters the map only under its dated ruler. John III of Namur and the Nevers/Rethel branch were added. The previous shape combined later counties and unrelated lands as if all belonged to the duchy from 1363.
- 2026-09-28 · Claim registry added; existing historical data kept. Specific sourcing remains to be reviewed.
