Editing Murad III

{{Short description|Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1574 to 1595}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Murad III
| title        = [[Ottoman Caliphate|Ottoman Caliph]]<br/>[[Amir al-Mu'minin]]<br/>[[Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques]]
| titletext    = 
| more         = 
| type         = 
| image        = Sultan Murad III.jpeg
| alt          = 
| caption      = Life-size portrait, attributed to a Spanish artist, 17th century
| moretext     = 
| reign        = 27 December 1574 &ndash; {{nowrap|16 January 1595}}
| coronation   = 
| cor-type     = 
| predecessor  = [[Selim II]]
| regent       = 
| reg-type     = 
| successor    = [[Mehmed III]]
| succession   = [[List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire|Sultan of the Ottoman Empire]] ([[Padishah]])
| spouse       = {{plainlist|*[[Safiye Sultan (mother of Mehmed III)|Safiye Sultan]]
* [[#Consorts|Others]]
}}
| spouse-type  = Consorts
| issue        =[[Hümaşah Sultan (daughter of Murad III)|Hümaşah Sultan]]<br/>[[Ayşe Sultan (daughter of Murad III)|Ayşe Sultan]]<br/>[[Mehmed III]]<br/>Şehzade Mahmud<br/>Şehzade Selim<br/>[[Fatma Sultan (daughter of Murad III)|Fatma Sultan]]<br/>[[Mihrimah Sultan (daughter of Murad III)|Mihrimah Sultan]]<br/>[[Fahriye Sultan]]
| issue-link   = #Sons
| issue-pipe   = Among others
| full name    = Murad bin Selim
| house        = [[Ottoman dynasty|Ottoman]]
| house-type   = Dynasty
| father       = [[Selim II]]
| mother       = [[Nurbanu Sultan]]
| birth_date   = 4 July 1546
| birth_place  = [[Manisa]], [[Ottoman Empire]]
| death_date   = {{death date and age|1595|1|16|1546|7|4|df=yes}}
| death_place  = [[Topkapı Palace]], [[Constantinople]], [[Ottoman Empire]]
| burial_date  = 
| burial_place = [[Hagia Sophia]], Istanbul
| signature_type = [[Tughra]]
| religion     = [[Sunni Islam]]
| signature    = Tughra_of_Murad_III.svg
}}
[[File:III. Murat Han.jpg|alt=Sultan|thumb|''Sultan Murad III'']]
'''Murad III''' ({{langx|ota|مراد ثالث|Murād-i <u>s</u>āli<u>s</u>}}; {{langx|tr|III. Murad}}; 4 July 1546 – 16 January 1595) was the [[sultan of the Ottoman Empire]] from 1574 until his death in 1595. His rule saw battles with the [[Habsburg monarchy|Habsburgs]] and exhausting wars with the [[Safavid Iran|Safavids]]. The long-independent [[Saadi Sultanate|Morocco]] was for a time made a vassal of the empire but regained independence in 1582. His reign also saw the empire's expanding influence on the eastern coast of Africa. However, the empire was beset by increasing corruption and inflation from the New World which led to unrest among the [[Janissary]] and commoners. Relations with [[Elizabethan England]] were cemented during his reign, as both had a common enemy in the [[Spanish Empire|Spanish]]. He was also a great patron of the arts, commissioning the ''[[Siyer-i Nebi|Siyer-i-Nebi]]'' and other illustrated manuscripts.

==Early life==
Born in [[Manisa]] on 4 July 1546,<ref>{{cite web|title =Murad III|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Murad-III|website= Encyclopedia Britannica|access-date= 10 July 2018}}</ref> Şehzade Murad was the oldest son of Şehzade [[Selim II|Selim]] and his powerful wife [[Nurbanu Sultan]]. He received a good education and learned the Arabic and Persian languages. After his ceremonial [[Khitan (circumcision)|circumcision]] in 1557, Murad's grandfather, the Sultan [[Suleiman the Magnificent|Suleiman I]], appointed him [[Sanjak-bey|''sancakbeyi'']] (governor) of [[Akşehir]] in 1558. At the age of 18 he was appointed ''sancakbeyi'' of Saruhan. Suleiman died in 1566 when Murad was 20, and his father became the new sultan, [[Selim II]]. Selim II broke with tradition by sending only his oldest son out of the palace to govern a [[sanjak|province]], assigning Murad to Manisa.<ref name=felek>
Felek, Özgen. (2010). ''Re-creating image and identity: Dreams and visions as a means of Murad III's self-fashioning''. PhD Thesis. University of Michigan. Ann Arbor: ProQuest/UMI. (Publication No. 3441203).
</ref>{{rp|21–22}}

==Reign==
Selim died in 1574 and was succeeded by Murad, who began his reign by having his five younger brothers strangled.<ref>Marriott, John Arthur. ''The Eastern Question'' (Clarendon Press, 1917), 96.</ref> His authority was undermined by [[harem (Ottoman)|harem]] influences – more specifically, those of his mother and later of his favorite concubine [[Safiye Sultan (mother of Mehmed III)|Safiye Sultan]], often to the detriment of [[Sokollu Mehmed Pasha]]'s influence on the court.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Murad-III#ref16049|title=Murad III {{!}} Ottoman sultan|work=Encyclopedia Britannica|access-date=2018-11-13|language=en}}</ref> Selim's power had only been maintained by the effective leadership of the powerful [[Grand Vizier]] Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, who remained in office until his assassination in October 1579. During Murad's reign, the northern borders with the [[Habsburg monarchy]] were defended by the [[Bosnians|Bosnian]] governor [[Hasan Predojević]]. The reign of Murad III was marked by exhausting wars on the empire's western and eastern fronts. The Ottomans also suffered defeats in battles such as the [[Battle of Sisak]].

===Expedition to Morocco===
{{See also|Capture of Fez (1576)}} {{See also|Ottoman expeditions to Morocco}}
[[Abu Marwan Abd al-Malik I Saadi|Abd al-Malik]] became a trusted member of the Ottoman establishment during his exile. He made the proposition of making Morocco an Ottoman vassal in exchange for the support of Murad III in helping him gain the Saadi throne.<ref name="auto">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=39JMAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA23|title=Dictionary of African Biography|first1=Emmanuel Kwaku|last1=Akyeampong|first2=Henry Louis|last2=Gates (Jr.)|date=2 February 2012|publisher=OUP USA|isbn=978-0-19-538207-5 |via=Google Books}}</ref>

With an army of 10,000 men, most of whom were Turks, Ramazan Pasha and Abd al-Malik left from Algiers to install Abd al-Malik as an Ottoman vassal ruler of Morocco.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=V7qpKqM2Ji8C&pg=PA408 The Cambridge History of Africa, Volume 3] - J. D. Fage: Pg 408</ref> Ramazan Pasha conquered Fez which caused the Saadi Sultan to flee to Marrakesh which was also conquered. Abd al-Malik then assumed rule over Morocco as a client of the Ottomans.<ref>‎هيسبريس تمودا‫ Volume 29, [https://books.google.com/books?id=u-8PAQAAMAAJ&q=ramadan+pasha Issue 1] Editions techniques nord-africaines, 1991</ref><ref name="auto"/><ref>Hess, Andrew (1978). [https://books.google.com/books?id=4DTOTrXcazMC&pg=PA96 The Forgotten Frontier : A History of the Sixteenth-Century Ibero-African Frontier]. University of Chicago Press. {{ISBN|978-0-226-33031-0}}</ref>

Abd al-Malik made a deal with the Ottoman troops by paying them a large amount of gold and sending them back to Algiers, suggesting a looser concept of vassalage than Murad III may have thought.<ref name="auto"/> Murad's name was recited in the Friday prayer and stamped on coinage marking the two traditional signs of sovereignty in the Islamic world.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D1TMc1aQNskC|title=Ottoman Empire and Islamic Tradition|first=Norman|last=Itzkowitz|date=15 March 1980|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=9780226388069 |via=Google Books}}</ref> The reign of Abd al-Malik is understood to be a period of Moroccan vassalage to the Ottoman Empire.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Barletta|first=Vincent|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=49rmZ7_kessC&pg=PA82|title=Death in Babylon: Alexander the Great and Iberian Empire in the Muslim Orient: Pages 82 and 104|date=2010-05-15|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-03739-4|pages=82|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DjBZAAAAMAAJ&q=abd+al+malik+%22vassal%22|title=Langues et littératures|date=9 September 1981|publisher=Faculté des lettres et des sciences humaines|via=Google Books}}</ref> Abd al-Malik died in 1578 and was succeeded by his brother [[Ahmad al-Mansur]] who formally recognised the suzerainty of the Ottoman Sultan at the start of his reign while remaining ''de facto'' independent. He stopped minting coins in Murad's name, dropped his name from the Khutba and declared his full independence in 1582.<ref>Rivet, Daniel (2012). Histoire du Maroc: de Moulay Idrîs à Mohammed VI. Fayard</ref><ref>[https://www.academia.edu/16116909/A_struggle_for_Sahara_Idrīs_ibn_Alī_s_embassy_to_Aḥmad_al_Manṣūr_in_the_context_of_Borno_Morocco_Ottoman_relations_1577_1583 A Struggle for the Sahara:Idrīs ibn ‘Alī’s Embassy toAḥmad al-Manṣūr in the Context ofBorno-Morocco-Ottoman Relations], 1577-1583 Rémi Dewière Université de Paris Panthéon Sorbonne</ref>

===War with the Safavids===
[[File:OttomanEmpire1590.png|thumb|right|300px|link=Treaty of Constantinople (1590)|The Ottoman Empire reached its greatest extent in the Middle East under Murad III.]]
The Ottomans had been at peace with the neighbouring rivaling Safavid Empire since 1555, per the [[Treaty of Amasya]], that for some time had settled border disputes. But in 1577 Murad declared war, starting the [[Ottoman–Safavid War (1578–90)|Ottoman–Safavid War (1578–1590)]], seeking to take advantage of the chaos in the Safavid court after the death of Shah [[Tahmasp I]]. Murad was influenced by viziers [[Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha]] and [[Sinan Pasha]] and disregarded the opposing counsel of Grand Vizier Sokollu. Murad also fought the Safavids which would drag on for 12 years, ending with the [[Treaty of Constantinople (1590)]], which resulted in temporary significant territorial gains for the Ottomans.<ref name=felek />{{rp|198–199}}

===Ottoman activity in the Horn of Africa===

During his reign, an Ottoman Admiral by the name of [[Mir Ali Beg]] was successful in establishing Ottoman supremacy in numerous cities in the [[Swahili coast]] between Mogadishu and Kilwa.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uhwOAQAAMAAJ|title=The Portuguese Empire in Asia, 1500-1700: A Political and Economic History|first=Sanjay|last=Subrahmanyam|date=9 September 1993|publisher=Longman|isbn=9780582050693 |via=Google Books}}</ref> Ottoman suzerainty was recognised in Mogadishu in 1585 and Ottoman supremacy was also established in other cities such as [[Barawa]], [[Mombasa]], Kilifi, Pate, Lamu, and Faza.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cVGZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA224|title=Muslim Societies in Africa: A Historical Anthropology|first=Roman|last=Loimeier|date=17 July 2013|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=9780253027320 |via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CgawCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA407|title=Historic Cities of the Islamic World|first=C. Edmund|last=Bosworth|date=31 August 2007|publisher=BRILL|isbn=9789047423836 |via=Google Books}}</ref>

===Financial affairs===
Murad's reign was a time of financial stress for the Ottoman state. To keep up with changing military techniques, the Ottomans trained infantrymen in the use of firearms, paying them directly from the treasury. By 1580 an influx of silver from the [[New World]] had caused high inflation and social unrest, especially among Janissaries and government officials who were paid in debased currency. Deprivation from the resulting rebellions, coupled with the pressure of over-population, was especially felt in Anatolia.<ref name=felek />{{rp|24}} Competition for positions within the government grew fierce, leading to bribery and corruption. Ottoman and Habsburg sources accuse Murad himself of accepting enormous bribes, including 20,000 ducats from a statesman in exchange for the governorship of Tripoli and Tunisia, thus outbidding a rival who had tried bribing the Grand Vizier.<ref name=felek />{{rp|35}}

During his period, excessive inflation was experienced, the value of silver money was constantly played, [[food prices]] increased. 400 dirhams should be cut from 600 dirhams of silver, while 800 was cut, which meant 100 percent inflation.  For the same reason, the purchasing power of wage earners was halved, and the consequence was an uprising.{{sfn|Sakaoğlu|2008|p=172}}

===English pact===
Numerous envoys and letters were exchanged between [[Elizabeth I of England|Elizabeth I]] and Sultan Murad III.<ref name=kupperman>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/jamestownproject00kupp |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/jamestownproject00kupp/page/39 39] |title=The Jamestown project |year=2007 |publisher=Harvard University Press |author=Karen Ordahl Kupperman |isbn=9780674024748 |author-link=Karen Ordahl Kupperman }}</ref>{{rp|39}} In one correspondence, Murad entertained the notion that Islam and [[Protestantism]] had "much more in common than either did with [[Roman Catholicism]], as both rejected the worship of idols", and argued for an alliance between England and the Ottoman Empire.<ref name=kupperman />{{rp|40}} To the dismay of Catholic Europe, England exported tin and lead (for cannon-casting) and ammunition to the Ottoman Empire, and Elizabeth seriously discussed joint military operations with Murad III during the outbreak of war with Spain in 1585, as [[Francis Walsingham]] was lobbying for a direct Ottoman military involvement against the common Spanish enemy.<ref name=kupperman />{{rp|41}}  This diplomacy would be continued under Murad's successor [[Mehmed III]], by both the sultan and [[Safiye Sultan (mother of Mehmed III)|Safiye Sultan]] alike.

==Personal life==
===Palace life===
Following the example of his father Selim II, Murad was the second Ottoman sultan who never went on campaign during his reign, instead spending it entirely in Constantinople. During the final years of his reign, he did not even leave [[Topkapı Palace]]. For two consecutive years, he did not attend the Friday procession to the imperial mosque—an unprecedented breaking of custom. The Ottoman historian [[Mustafa Selaniki]] wrote that whenever Murad planned to go out to Friday prayer, he changed his mind after hearing of alleged plots by the [[Janissaries]] to dethrone him once he left the palace.<ref>Karateke, Hakan T. "On the Tranquility and Repose of the Sultan." ''The Ottoman World''. Ed. Christine Woodhead. Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon; New York: Routledge, 2011. p. 118.</ref> Murad withdrew from his subjects and spent the majority of his reign keeping to the company of few people and abiding by a daily routine structured by the five daily Islamic prayers. Murad's personal physician Domenico Hierosolimitano described a typical day in the life of the sultan:

{{Blockquote|''In the morning he rises at dawn to say his prayer for half an hour, then for another half-hour he writes. Then he is given something pleasant as a collation, and afterwards sets himself to read for another hour. Then he begins to give audience to the members of the Divan on the four days of the week that this occurs, as had been said above. Then he goes for a walk through the garden, taking pleasure in the delight of fountains and animals for another hour, taking with him the dwarves, buffoons and others to entertain him. Then he goes back once again to studying until he considers the time for lunch has arrived. He stays at table only half an hour, and rises (to go) once again into the garden for as long as he pleases. Then he goes to say his midday prayer. Then he stops to pass the time and amuse himself with the women, and he will stay one or two hours with them, when it is time to say the evening prayer. Then he returns to his apartments or, if it pleases him more, he stays in the garden reading or passing the time until evening with the dwarfs and buffoons, and then he returns to say his prayers, that is at nightfall. Then he dines and takes more time over dinner than over lunch, making conversation until two hours after dark, until it is time for prayer [...] He never fails to observe this schedule every day.<ref name=felek />{{rp|29–30}}''}}

Özgen Felek argues that Murad's sedentary lifestyle and lack of participation in military campaigns earned him the disapproval of [[Mustafa Âlî]] and [[Mustafa Selaniki]], the major Ottoman historians who lived during his reign. Their negative portrayals of Murad influenced later historians.<ref name=felek />{{rp|17–19}}

===Children===
Before becoming sultan, Murad had been loyal to [[Safiye Sultan (mother of Mehmed III)|Safiye Sultan]], his Albanian concubine. His monogamy was disapproved of by Nurbanu Sultan, who worried that Murad needed more sons to succeed him in case Mehmed died young. She also worried about Safiye's influence over her son and the Ottoman dynasty. Five or six years after his accession to the throne, Murad was given a pair of concubines by his sister Ismihan. Upon attempting sexual intercourse with them, he proved impotent. "The arrow [of Murad], [despite] keeping with his created nature, for many times [and] for many days has been unable to reach at the target of union and pleasure," wrote Mustafa Ali. Nurbanu accused Safiye and her retainers of causing Murad's impotence with witchcraft. Several of Safiye's servants were tortured by eunuchs in order to discover a culprit. Court physicians, working under Nurbanu's orders, eventually prepared a successful cure, but a side effect was a drastic increase in sexual appetite; by the time Murad died, he was said to have fathered over a hundred children.<ref name="felek" />{{rp|31–32}} Nineteen of these were executed by Mehmed III when he became sultan.

===Women at court===
Influential ladies of his court included his mother Nurbanu Sultan, his sister [[Ismihan Sultan]], wife of grand vizier [[Sokollu Mehmed Pasha]], and musahibes (favourites) mistress of the housekeeper [[Canfeda Hatun]], mistress of financial affairs [[Raziye Hatun]], and the poet [[Hubbi Hatun]], Finally, after the death of his mother and older sister, Safiye Sultan was the only influential woman in the court.<ref>{{cite book|author=Maria Pia Pedani Fabris, Alessio Bombaci|title=Inventory of the Lettere E Scritture Turchesche in the Venetian State Archives|pages=26|publisher=BRILL|year=2010|isbn=978-90-04-17918-9}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Attilio|last=Petruccioli|title=Gardens in the Time of the Great Muslim Empires: Theory and Design|publisher=E. J. Brill|year=1997|pages=50|isbn=978-90-04-10723-6}}</ref>

===Eunuchs at court===
Before Murad, the palace [[eunuch]]s had been mostly white, especially [[Circassians]] or [[Syrians]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Von Schierbrand |first1=Wolf |title=Salve Sold to the Turk |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1886/03/28/106300694.pdf |access-date=January 19, 2011 |agency=The New York Times |date=March 28, 1886}}</ref> This began to change in 1582 when Murad gave an important position to a black eunuch.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/the-black-eunuchs-and-the-ottoman-dynasty-47541|title=The black eunuchs and the Ottoman dynasty|last=Gamm|first=Niki|date=25 May 2013|website=Hürriyet Daily News|language=en|access-date=2020-03-19}}</ref> Before, the eunuchs' roles in the palace were racially determined: black eunuchs guarded the harem and the princesses, and white eunuchs guarded the Sultan and male pages in another part of the palace.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Booth|first=Marilyn|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZqdbdFnRv_kC&pg=PA143|title=Harem Histories: Envisioning Places and Living Spaces|date=2010|publisher=Duke University Press|isbn=978-0-8223-4869-6|pages=143|language=en}}</ref> The chief black eunuch was known as the [[Kizlar Agha]], and the chief white eunuch was known as the [[Kapi Agha]].

==Murad and the arts==
[[File:Surname-i huemayun gazi.jpg|thumb|Miniature painting of a parade of two riding ''Gazi'' (veterans from Rumelia) in front of Sultan Murat III (from the Surname-i hümayun, 16th century)]]

Murad took great interest in the arts, particularly [[Ottoman miniature|miniatures]] and books. He actively supported the court of Society of Miniaturists, commissioning several volumes including the ''[[Siyer-i Nebi]]'', the most heavily illustrated biographical work on the life of the Islamic prophet [[Muhammad]], the ''Book of Skills'', the ''Book of Festivities'' and the ''Book of Victories''.<ref name="Pamuk">Pamuk, Orhan. ''My Name is Red'', Alfred A. Knopf, 2010. {{ISBN|978-0-307-59392-4}}</ref> He had two large [[alabaster]] urns transported from [[Pergamon]] and placed on two sides of the nave in the [[Hagia Sophia]] in Constantinople and a large wax candle dressed in tin which was donated by him to the [[Rila monastery]] in [[Bulgaria]] is on display in the monastery museum.

Murad also furnished the content of ''Kitabü’l-Menamat'' (''The Book of Dreams''), addressed to Murad's spiritual advisor, Şüca Dede. A collection of first person accounts, it tells of Murad's spiritual experiences as a Sufi disciple. Compiled from thousands of letters Murad wrote describing his dream visions, it presents a hagiographic self-portrait. Murad dreams of various activities, including being stripped naked by his father and having to sit on his lap,<ref name=felek />{{rp|72}} single-handedly killing 12,000 infidels in battle,<ref name=felek />{{rp|99}} walking on water, ascending to heaven, and producing milk from his fingers.<ref name=felek />{{rp|143}}

In another letter addressed to Şüca Dede, Murad wrote "I wish that God, may He be glorified and exalted, had not created this poor servant as the descendant of the Ottomans so that I would not hear this and that, and would not worry. I wish I were of unknown pedigree. Then, I would have one single task, and could ignore the whole world."<ref name=felek />{{rp|171}}

The [[Diplomatics|diplomatic edition]] of these dream letters have been recently published by Ozgen Felek in Turkish.

==Death==
Murad died from what is assumed to be natural causes in the [[Topkapı Palace]] on 16 January 1595 and was buried in a tomb next to the [[Hagia Sophia]]. In the mausoleum are 54 sarcophagus of the sultan, his wives and children that are also buried there. He is also responsible for changing the burial customs of the sultans' mothers. Murad had his mother Nurbanu buried next to her husband Selim II, making her the first consort to share a sultan's tomb.<ref name=felek />{{rp|33–34}}

==Family==
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===Consorts===
Murad is believed to have had [[Safiye Sultan (mother of Mehmed III)|Safiye Sultan]] as his only concubine for circa fifteen years. However, Safiye was opposed by Murad's mother, [[Nurbanu Sultan]], and by his sister, [[Ismihan Sultan]], and around 1580, she was exiled to the Old Palace on charges of having rendered the sultan impotent with a spell, after he had not succeeded or had not wanted to have sex with two concubines received by his sister. Furthermore, Nurbanu was concerned about the future of the dynasty, as she believed that Safiye's son alone, Mehmed, (two of three sons that Safiye gave to Murad were dead before 1580) were not enough to ensure the succession. After Safiye's exile, revoked only after Nurbanu's death on December 1583, Murad, to deny the rumor about his impotency, took a huge number of concubines and he had more than fifty known children, although according to sources the total number could exceed hundred.<ref name="peirce=">{{cite book | last=Peirce | first=Leslie P. |author-link=Leslie Peirce | title=The imperial harem : women and sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire | publication-place=New York | date=1993 | pages = 94–95, 259 | isbn=0-19-507673-7 | oclc=27811454}}</ref>

At time of his death in 1595, Murad had at least thirty-five concubines, amongs others:<ref name="altun" />
* [[Safiye Sultan (mother of Mehmed III)|Safiye Sultan]], an ethnic [[Albanians|Albanian]]. [[Haseki sultan|Haseki Sultan]] of Murad and [[Valide sultan]] of [[Mehmed III]];<ref>Mustafa Çağatay Uluçay, Padışahların kadınları ve kızları, Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, 1980, pp. 42-6</ref>
* Şemsiruhsar Hatun, mother of Rukiye Sultan. She commissioned Koranic readings of prayers in the [[Al-Masjid an-Nabawi|Prophet's mosque]] in [[Medina]]. She died before 1623.<ref name="altun">{{cite book|first=Mustafa|last=Altun|title=Yüzyıl Dönümünde Bir Valide Sultan: Safiye Sultan'ın Hayatı ve Eserleri|year=2019|pages=20–21}}</ref>
* Mihriban Hatun;<ref name="altun" />
* Şahıhuban Hatun; she commissioned a school in Fatih, where she is buried<ref name="altun"/>
* Nazperver Hatun; she commissioned a mosque in Eyüp<ref name="altun" />
* Zerefşan Hatun<ref name="altun" />
*Fakriye Hatun<ref>Alderson, A.D.; ''The structure of the Ottoman Dynasty''</ref>
* A concubine who died in August 1591, along with their stillborn son and were interred together.<ref name="Internet">{{cite web | title=Tarih-i Selaniki 1-2 : Selânik Mustafa Efendi, d. 1600? : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive | website=Internet Archive | date=2023-03-25 | url=https://archive.org/details/selaniki-mustafa-efendi-tarih-i-selaniki-1 | access-date=2024-02-09 | page=251}}</ref>
*Fiveteen pregnant concubines were placed in sacks and tossed into the [[Sea of Marmara]], where they drowned, in 1595, by order of Mehmed III.<ref name="Jenkins">{{cite book | last=Jenkins | first=E. | title=The Muslim Diaspora (Volume 2, 1500-1799): A Comprehensive Chronology of the Spread of Islam in Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas | publisher=McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers | year=2015 | isbn=978-1-4766-0889-1 | page=124}}</ref> 
*A concubine seduced and made pregnant by Mehmed III when he was a prince. The act was a violation of the rules of the harem, so Mehmed’s grandmother, Nurbanu Sultan, ordered the girl to be drowned in order to protect her grandson.

After the death of Murad III many of his concubines who became childless when at his accession Mehmed had his half-brothers killed, and others who never had children by Murad, were remarried off to palace officials, such as door keepers, cavalry forces (''bölük halkı''), and sergeants (''çavus'').<ref name="Argit"/><ref>{{cite journal |last=Pazan |first=İbrahim |date=2023-06-06 |title=A Comparison of Seyyid Lokman's Records of the Birth, Death and Wedding Dates of Members of Ottoman Dynasty (1566-1595) with the Records in Ottoman Chronicles |journal=Marmara Türkiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi |publisher=Marmara University |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=245–271 |doi=10.16985/mtad.1120498 |issn=2148-6743 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

===Sons===
Murad III had at least 27 known sons.

On Murad's death in 1595 Mehmed III, his eldest son and new sultan, son of Safiye Sultan, executed the 19 half-brothers still alive and drowned seven pregnant concubines, fulfilling the [[Fratricide#Ottoman Empire|Law of Fraticide]].

Known sons of Murad III are:
* Sultan [[Mehmed III]] (26 May 1566, Manisa Palace, Manisa – 22 December 1603, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Mehmed III Mausoleum, [[Hagia Sophia]] Mosque, Constantinople), with Safiye Sultan, became the next sultan;
* Şehzade Selim (1567, Manisa Palace, Manisa - 25 May 1577, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople), with Safiye Sultan.
* Şehzade Mahmud (1568, Manisa Palace, Manisa – before 1580, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Selim II Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque), with Safiye Sultan.
* Şehzade ''Fülan'' (June 1582, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - June 1582, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople. buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque). Stillbirth.
* Şehzade Cihangir (February 1585, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - August 1585, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque); twin of Şehzade Süleyman. 
* Şehzade Süleyman (February 1585, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - 1585, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque); twin of Şehzade Cihangir. 
* Şehzade Abdüllah (1585, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Mustafa (1585, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, [[Hagia Sophia]] Mosque);
* Şehzade Abdürrahman (1585, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Bayezid (1586, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Hasan (1586, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - died 1591, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Cihangir (1587, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Yakub (1587, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Ahmed (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - before 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade ''Fülan'' (August 1591, stillbirth);
* Şehzade Alaeddin (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Davud (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Alemşah (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Ali (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Hüseyin (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Ishak (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Murad (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Osman (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - died 1587, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Yusuf (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Korkud (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Ömer (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
* Şehzade Selim (?, Topkapi Palace, Constantinople - murdered 28 January 1595, Topkapı Palace, Constantinople, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque);
In addition to these, a European braggart, [[Count Alexander of Montenegro|Alexander of Montenegro]], claimed to be the lost son of Murad III and Safiye Sultan, presenting himself with the name of Şehzade Yahya and claiming the throne for it. His claims were never proven and appear dubious to say the least.<ref name="tezca">{{cite book|first=Baki|last=Tezcan|title=Searching For Osman: A Reassessment Of The Deposition Of Ottoman Sultan Osman II (1618-1622)|year=2001|pages=327–8 n. 17}}</ref>

===Daughters===
Murad had more than thirty daughters still alive at his death in 1595, of whom nineteen died of [[Plague (disease)|plague]] (or smallpox) in 1598.<ref>{{cite book|title=Disease and Empire: A History of Plague Epidemics in the Early Modern Ottoman Empire (1453–1600)|year=2008|pages=145|isbn=978-0-549-74445-0}}</ref><ref name="Argit">{{cite book | last=Argit | first=B.İ. | title=Life after the Harem: Female Palace Slaves, Patronage and the Imperial Ottoman Court | publisher=Cambridge University Press | year=2020 | isbn=978-1-108-48836-5 | page=109}}</ref>

It is not known if and how many daughters may have died before him.

Known daughters of Murad III are:
* [[Hümaşah Sultan (daughter of Murad III)|Hümaşah Sultan]] (Manisa, {{circa}} 1564 - Costantinople, 1625 {{rp|p=168}}); buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque) - with Safiye Sultan. Also called Hüma Sultan.<ref>{{cite book|first=Yusuf |last=Sarinay|title=82 Numaralı Mühimme Defteri'nin (H.1026-1027/1617-1618) Transkripsiyonu ve Değerlendirilmesi|publisher=T.C. Başbakanlık Devlet Arşivleri Genel Müdürlüğü|year=2000|page=7}}</ref> She married Nişar Mustafazade Mehmed Pasha (died 1586). She may have then married [[Serdar Ferhad Pasha]] (d.1595) in 1591.<ref>{{cite book|first=Necdet|last=Sakaoğlu|title=Bu mülkün kadın sultanları: Vâlide sultanlar, hâtunlar, hasekiler, kadınefendiler, sultanefendiler|publisher=Oğlak Yayıncılık|year=2008|page=217}}</ref> She was lastly married in 1605 to Nakkaş Hasan Pasha (died 1622);{{sfn|Miović|2018|p=168}}<ref name="pecevi"/><ref name="tezcan"/><ref name="Great">{{cite book | author=Great Britain. Public Record Office | title=Calendar of State Papers and Manuscripts Relating to English Affairs: Existing in the Archives and Collections of Venice, and in Other Libraries of Northern Italy | publisher=H.M. Stationery Office | issue=v. 10 | year=1900 | page=442}}</ref><ref name="TDV">{{cite web | title=Nakkaş Hasan Paşa| website=TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi | url=https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/nakkas-hasan-pasa | language=tr | access-date=February 22, 2024}}</ref> 
* [[Ayşe Sultan (daughter of Murad III)|Ayşe Sultan]] (Manisa, {{Circa|1565}} - Costantinople, 15 May 1605, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque) - with Safiye Sultan. Married firstly on 20 May 1586, to [[Damat Ibrahim Pasha|Ibrahim Pasha]],<ref name="pecevi">{{cite book|first1=Ibrahim|last1=Peçevi|first2=Bekir Sıtkı|last2=Baykal|title=Peçevi Tarih, Volume 2|year=1982|publisher=Başbakanlık Matbaası|pages=3}}</ref> married secondly on 5 April 1602, to [[Yemişçi Hasan Pasha]], married thirdly on 29 June 1604, to Güzelce Mahmud Pasha.<ref name="tezcan">{{cite book|first=Baki|last=Tezcan|title=Searching For Osman: A Reassessment Of The Deposition Of Ottoman Sultan Osman II (1618-1622)|year=2001|pages=328 n. 18}}</ref><ref name="ulucay">{{cite book|first=Mustafa Çağatay |last=Uluçay|title=Padişahların kadınları ve kızları|location=Ankara|publisher= Ötüken|year=2011|isbn=978-975-437-840-5}}</ref>
* [[Fatma Sultan (daughter of Murad III)|Fatma Sultan]] (Manisa, {{circa}} 1573 - Costantinople, 1620, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque) - with Safiye Sultan. Married first on 6 December 1593, to Halil Pasha,<ref name="pecevi"/><ref name="ulucay"/> married second December 1604, to Cafer Pasha;<ref name="tezcan"/> married third 1610 Hizir Pasha, married fourth [[Kuyucu Murad Pasha|Murad Pasha]].
* [[Mihrimah Sultan (daughter of Murad III)|Mihrimah Sultan]] (Costantinople, 1578/1579 - after 1625 ; buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque<ref name="Demircanlı"/>) - possibly with Safiye Sultan;<ref name="tezcan"/><ref>{{cite book |last=Uçtum |first=Nejat R. |title=Hürrem ve Mihrümah sultanların Polonya Kralı II. Zigsmund'a Yazdıkları Mektuplar |pages=707}}</ref>
* [[Fahriye Sultan]] (died in 1656, buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque<ref name="Demircanlı">{{cite book | last=Demircanlı | first=Y.Y. | title=İstanbul mimarisi için kaynak olarak Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnamesi | publisher=Vakıflar Genel Müdürlüğü | year=1989 | isbn=978-975-19-0121-7 | page=599}}</ref>), - possibly with Safiye Sultan, perhaps born after her return from exile in [[Eski Saray|Old Palace]]. Called also Fahri Sultan.<ref name="Kahya">{{cite thesis | last=Kahya | first=Ozan | title=11 numaralı İstanbul Mahkemesi defteri (H.1073) : tahlil ve metin | date=2011 | url=https://acikerisim.msgsu.edu.tr/xmlui/handle/20.500.14124/3808 | pages=219, 303–304}}</ref>{{sfn|Miović|2018|p=168}} She married firstly to Cuhadar Ahmed Pasha, Governor of Mosul, married secondly to Sofu Bayram Pasha, Governor of [[Bosnia Eyalet|Bosnia]] (died in 1633);,<ref name="ulucay" /><ref name="Ayvansarayî">{{cite book | last1=Ayvansarayî | first1=H.H. | last2=Derin | first2=F.Ç. | title=Vefeyât-ı selâtîn ve meşâhı̂r-i ricâl | publisher=Edebiyat Fakültesi Matbaası | series=Yayınlar (İstanbul Üniversitesi. Edebiyat Fakültesi) | year=1978 | page=45}}</ref><ref name="dumas">{{cite book |first=Juliette |last=Dumas |title=Les perles de nacre du sultanat: Les princesses ottomanes (mi-XVe – mi-XVIIIe siècle)|year=2013 |page=464}}</ref>{{rp|p=168}} married thirdly to Deli Dilaver Pasha (died 1668).{{rp|p=168}}<ref name="Cikar">{{cite book | last=Cikar | first=J. | title=Türkischer Biographischer Index | publisher=De Gruyter | year=2011 | isbn=978-3-11-096577-3 | page=290}}</ref>
* Rukiye Sultan (buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque) - with Şemsiruhsar Hatun.<ref name="ulucay"/><ref name="altun" /><ref name="pecevi"/><ref name="tezcan"/><ref name="The Cambridge History of Turkey">{{cite book |last1=Fleet |first1=Kate |title=The Cambridge History of Turkey |last2=Faroqhi |first2=Suraiya N. |last3=Kasaba |first3=Reşat |date=2 November 2006 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-62095-6 |pages=412}}</ref>
* Mihriban Sultan (buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque)<ref name="ulucay"/> married in 1613;<ref name="pecevi"/>
* Hatice Sultan (1583 - 1648,{{rp|p=168}} buried in [[Şehzade Mosque]]<ref name="Turkey">{{cite book | author=Turkey. Kültür Bakanlığı | title=Dünden bugüne İstanbul ansiklopedisi | publisher=Kültür Bakanlığı | issue=v. 4 | year=1993 | isbn=978-975-7306-04-7 | page=20}}</ref>), was married in 1598 to [[Sokolluzade Lala Mehmed Pasha]] and had two sons and a daughter.<ref>Bayrak, 1998, p. 43.</ref> She participated in the reparation of the minarets of Bayezid Veli Mosque inside Kerch Fortress in 1599.<ref>Öztuna, 1977. Başlangıcından zamanımıza kadar Büyük Türkiye tarihi, p. 125.</ref> After widowed, in 1613 she married Gürşci Mehmed Pasha of Kefe, governor of Bosnia.<ref name="tezcan" /><ref name="Efendi"/><ref name="dumas"/>{{rp|p=168}}
*Fethiye Sultan (buried in Murad III Mausoleum, Hagia Sophia Mosque).
* Beyhan Sultan (died {{floruit}} 1648<ref name="miovic">{{cite journal |last=Miović |first=Vesna |date=2018-05-02 |title=Per favore della Soltana: moćne osmanske žene i dubrovački diplomati |journal=Anali Zavoda za Povijesne Znanosti Hrvatske Akademije Znanosti i Umjetnosti u Dubrovniku |language=hr |volume=56 |issue=56/1 |pages=147–197 |doi=10.21857/mwo1vczp2y |issn=1330-0598 |doi-access=free}}</ref>), married in 1613 to Vizier Kurşuncuzade Mustafa Pasha;<ref name="tezcan" /><ref name="Efendi"/><ref name="dumas">{{cite book |first=Juliette |last=Dumas |title=Les perles de nacre du sultanat: Les princesses ottomanes (mi-XVe – mi-XVIIIe siècle)|year=2013 |page=464}}</ref><ref name=miovic/>{{rp|p=168}}
* Sehime Sultan,<ref name="Kahya">{{cite thesis | last=Kahya | first=Ozan | title=11 numaralı İstanbul Mahkemesi defteri (H.1073) : tahlil ve metin | date=2011 | url=https://acikerisim.msgsu.edu.tr/xmlui/handle/20.500.14124/3808 | pages=219, 303–304}}</ref> married in 1613 to Topal Mehmed Pasha, formerly a Kapucıbaşı;<ref name="tezcan" /><ref name="Efendi"/><ref name="pecevi"/><ref name="dumas"/><ref name=miovic/>{{rp|p=168}}
* A daughter married to Davud Pasha;<ref name="pecevi">{{cite book|first1=Ibrahim|last1=Peçevi|first2=Bekir Sıtkı|last2=Baykal|title=Peçevi Tarih, Volume 2|year=1982|publisher=Başbakanlık Matbaası|pages=3}}</ref>
* A daughter married in 1613 to Kücük Mirahur Mehmed Agha;<ref name="tezcan" /><ref name="Efendi">{{cite book | last1=Efendi | first1=A. | last2=Yılmazer | first2=Z. | title=Topçular Katibi ʻAbdülkādir (Kadrı) Efendi Tarihi: metin ve tahlıl | publisher=Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi | series=Publications de la Société d'histoire turque | issue=v. 1 | year=2003 | isbn=978-975-16-1585-5 | url= https://www.scribd.com/document/378549786/1592-1644-Topcular-Katibi-Abdulkadir-Efendi-Tarihi | page=624}}</ref>
* A daughter married in 1613 to Mirahur-i Evvel Muslu Agha;<ref name="tezcan" /><ref name="Efendi"/>
* A daughter married in 1613 to Bostancıbaşı Hasan Agha;<ref name="tezcan" /><ref name="Efendi"/>
* A daughter married in 1613 to Cığalazade Mehmed Bey (son of [[Cığalazade Yusuf Sinan Pasha]] and [[Ayşe Hümaşah Sultan#Daughters|Safiye Hanimsultan]]);<ref name="tezcan" /><ref name="Efendi"/>
*Nineteen daughters, died of plague in 1598; 
* A daughter who died young on 29 July 1585.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Pazan | first=İbrahim | title=A Comparison of Seyyid Lokman's Records of the Birth, Death and Wedding Dates of Members of Ottoman Dynasty (1566-1595) with the Records in Ottoman Chronicles | journal=Marmara Türkiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi | publisher=Marmara University | volume=10 | issue=1 | date=2023-06-06 | issn=2148-6743 | doi=10.16985/mtad.1120498 | pages=245–271| doi-access=free }}</ref>

==In fiction==
* Murad is portrayed by the Romanian actor [[Colea Răutu|Colea Rautu]] in the historic epic film [[Michael the Brave (film)|Michael the Brave]].
* [[Orhan Pamuk]]'s historical novel ''Benim Adım Kırmızı'' (''[[My Name is Red]]'', 1998) takes place at the court of Murad III, during nine snowy winter days of 1591, which the writer uses in order to convey the tension between East and West. Murad is not specifically named in the book, and is referred to only as "Our Sultan".
* The Harem Midwife by Roberta Rich - a historical fiction set in Constantinople (1578) which follows Hannah, a midwife, who tends to many of the women in Sultan Murad III's harem.
* In the 2011 TV series ''[[Muhteşem Yüzyıl]]'', Murad III is portrayed by Turkish actor Serhan Onat.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category-inline}}
* {{cite EB1911|wstitle=Murad#Murad III|display=Murad § Murad III|volume=19 |pages=14–15 |short=x}}
* [http://www.wargs.com/royal/venier.html Ancestry of Sultana Nur-Banu (Cecilia Venier-Baffo)]

{{s-start}}
{{s-hou|[[Ottoman Dynasty|House of Osman]]||4 July 1546||15 January 1595}}[aged 48]
{{s-reg|}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Selim II]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire|Sultan of the Ottoman Empire]]|years=12 December 1574 – 15 January 1595}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Mehmed III]]}}
{{s-rel|su}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Selim II]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[List of caliphs|Caliph of the Ottoman Caliphate]]|years=12 December 1574 – 15 January 1595}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Mehmed III]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{Sultans of the Ottoman Empire}}
{{Sons of the Ottoman Sultans}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murad 03}}
[[Category:1546 births]]
[[Category:1595 deaths]]
[[Category:16th-century sultans of the Ottoman Empire]]
[[Category:Turks from the Ottoman Empire]]
[[Category:Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques]]
[[Category:Burials at Hagia Sophia]]
[[Category:Ottoman caliphs]]
[[Category:Sons of sultans]]