Mehtab Kadın Efendi

Mahitab Kadın (Ottoman Turkish: مهتاب قادین‎; c. 1830 – c. 1888) was the tenth wife of Sultan Abdulmejid I of the Ottoman Empire.

Early life

Mahitab Kadın was born in 1830 in Mahachkala, Dagestan, Russia. Born as Nuriye, she was a member of a Chechen noble family. Her father was Hişam Bey and her mother was Malika Hanım. She had two brothers and two sisters.

Hışam Bey's elder sister, Şevkinihak Hanım, had been in service in the imperial harem. For this reason, Nuriye and her siblings were sent to live with her at Istanbul. She and her sisters were then taken into the imperial harem, where her name according to the custom of the Ottoman court was changed to Mahitab. Mahitab was one of the rare Chechen girls to have entered the imperial palace. Her brothers were brought up out of the palace by a certain Ali'ebru Hanım.

Marriage

Mahitab married Abdulmejid in 1845. She was given the title of "Second Fortunate". Three years later, on 15 April 1848, she gave birth to her first child, a daughter, Sabiha Sultan in the Old Çırağan Palace. The princess died a year later on 27 April 1849.

In 1850, she was elevated to the title of "Senior Fortunate". Two years later on 31 March 1852, she gave birth to her second child, a son, Şehzade Nureddin in the Old Çırağan Palace.

In early 1853, she was elevated to the title of "Fifth Consort". On 24 February 1855, she gave birth to twin girls, Zekiye Sultan and Fehime Sultan. Both of them died in 1856.

Widowhood and death

After Abdulmejid's death on 25 June 1861, Mahitab settled in the Feriye Palace with her eleven years old son, Şehzade Nureddin. Mahitab always supported Shamil, 3rd Imam of Dagestan, and in 1870, he and his family visited her. Her son, Nureddin died in 1884 at the age of thirty two.

Mahitab died in 1888 in the Feriye Palace, and was buried in the mausoleum of the imperial ladies in the New Mosque, Istanbul.

Issue

Together with Abdulmejid, Mahitab had four children:

• Sabiha Sultan (Old Çırağan Palace, 15 April 1848 - 27 April 1849, buried in New Mosque);
• Şehzade Ahmed Nureddin (Old Çırağan Palace, 31 March 1852 - 3 January 1884);
• Zekiye Sultan (24 February 1855 – 18 February 1856, buried in Gülüstü Hanım Mausoleum, Fatih Mosque); twin with Fehime
• Fehime Sultan (24 February 1855 – 10 November 1856, buried in Gülüstü Hanım Mausoleum, Fatih Mosque); twin with Zekiye

Sources

• Uluçay, M. Çağatay (2011). Padişahların kadınları ve kızları. Ötüken. ISBN 978-9-754-37840-5.
• Açba, Harun (2007). Kadın efendiler: 1839-1924. Profil. ISBN 978-9-759-96109-1.
• Sakaoğlu, Necdet (2008). Bu Mülkün Kadın Sultanları: Vâlide Sultanlar, Hâtunlar, Hasekiler, Kandınefendiler, Sultanefendiler. Oğlak Yayıncılık. ISBN 978-6-051-71079-2.