In one of my publications, "What was Selim's ruler in the Ottoman Empire," I called shehzade the only heir. In the comments, debates began as to why he is the only one when there is still Murad.
The plot immediately recalled in my head, when Bayazid went to war against his brother, Atmaja told him to think about the consequences, to which Bayazid replied:
- Why should I be afraid, the sovereign will not execute the only heir, although at that time he had 5 sons.
In this question, I decided to understand and look for an answer.
Everything turned out to be very simple: According to the law of Fatih, if shehzade was executed, then all his sons were executed.
It turns out that if the sovereign had executed Selim, then he would have had to kill his son Murad and then there would be no heirs left. Of course, they would have found someone to put on the throne, but the dynasty would have come to an end.
The lord, in fact, could not follow the law, execute Selim, and not touch Murad, but in the series we showed how Suleiman adheres to all the laws and the execution of his own sons and his best friend is a bright the confirmation.
In addition, the Ottomans have a concept of blood feud. If Selim were executed, and his son was left alive, he would have to avenge his father.
Also, according to the law of Fatih, the sultan could not independently accept the order to execute the heir. First, he had to send a letter to a high-ranking mufti, and only after receiving a feyta from him, he could issue an order for execution. That is why, in the series, we were shown that Suleiman always asked Ebussuudu Efendi for advice.
I do not think that Sultan Suleiman saw a brave warrior and a good ruler in Selim, but he personally eliminated the rest of the worthy candidates for the throne.
