Suleiman the Magnificent was the tenth and longest-reigning Sultan of
the Ottoman Empire, ruling from 1520 to 1566. Suleiman became the
pre-eminent monarch of 16th century Europe, presiding over the apogee
of the Ottoman Empire's military, political and economic power.
Suleiman personally led Ottoman armies to conquer the Christian
strongholds of Belgrade, Rhodes, and most of Hungary before his
conquests were checked at the Siege of Vienna in 1529. He annexed most
of the Middle East in his conflict with the Persians and large swathes
of North Africa as far west as Algeria. Under his rule, the Ottoman
fleet dominated the seas from the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean.
At the helm of an expanding empire, Suleiman personally instituted
legislative changes relating to society, education, taxation and
criminal law. His canonical law fixed the form of the empire for
centuries after his death. Not only was Suleiman a distinguished poet
and goldsmith in his own right; he also became a great patron of
culture, overseeing the golden age of the Ottoman Empire's artistic,
literary and architectural development. In a break with Ottoman
tradition, Suleiman married a harem girl who became Hurrem Sultan,
whose intrigues in the court and power over the Sultan have become as
famous as Suleiman himself. Their son, Selim II, succeeded Suleiman
following his death in 1566 after 46 years of rule.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suleiman_the_Magnificent
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Today's selected anniversaries:
217:
Roman Emperor Caracalla (bust pictured) was assassinated at a
roadside near Harran.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caracalla)
1093:
Winchester Cathedral at Winchester in Hampshire, one of the largest
cathedrals in England, was dedicated by Bishop Walkelin.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winchester_Cathedral)
1341:
Italian scholar and poet Petrarch took the title poet laureate at a
ceremony in Rome.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petrarch)
1886:
British Prime Minister William Gladstone introduced the first Irish
Home Rule Bill into the British House of Commons.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Government_Bill_1886)
1904:
France and the United Kingdom signed the entente cordiale, agreeing
to a peaceful coexistence after centuries of intermittent conflict.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/entente_cordiale)
1904:
British occultist, writer Aleister Crowley began transcribing The
Book of the Law, a Holy Book in Thelema.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Book_of_the_Law)
1929:
Indian independence movement: Indian revolutionary Bhagat Singh with
the help of Batukeshwar Dutt bombed the Central Assembly in Delhi.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhagat_Singh)
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Wiktionary's Word of the day:
prorogue: To suspend a parliamentary session or to discontinue the
meetings of a parliament without formally ending the session.
(
http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/prorogue)
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Wikiquote of the day:
Look, look, look to the rainbow Follow it over the hill
and stream Look, look, look to the rainbow Follow the fellow who
follows a dream.
-- Yip Harburg
(
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Yip_Harburg)