He was born in a town called Trabzon along the Black Sea coast. Then at the age of seven, he was sent to the Topkapi Palace for education, and after his education he was appointed as the governor of Manisa. After his father’s death in 1520, he became the Ottoman sultan.

Suleyman the Magnificent was a successful ruler with broad vision: During his reign, Ottoman navy won important victories against the Knights of Rhodes, and Venetians and Spaniards. On land, he conquered all the way till Vienna, a city he besieged twice but couldn’t capture especially due to bad weather conditions. And during his reign, chief palace architect was Sinan the Great constructing magnificent buildings all over the empire.

Aged 71, Suleyman the Magnificent died in a military campaign because of old age. It was the end of the longest reign in Ottoman history. His death was kept as a secret from the soldiers who loved him dearly. After his death in Szigetvar in today’s Hungary in 1566, Selim II came to power.