Mezidimestan Kadın

Mezidimestan Kadın (Ottoman Turkish: مزیدمستان قادین‎; born Merve Mikanba; 3 March 1869 – 21 January 1909) was the seventh wife of Sultan Abdul Hamid II of the Ottoman Empire.

Mezidimestan Kadın
Born	Merve Mikanba 3 March 1869 Gagra, Abkhazia
Died	21 January 1909 (aged 39) Yıldız Palace, Constantinople, Ottoman Empire (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey)
Burial	Yahya Efendi Cemetery, Istanbul
Spouse	Abdul Hamid II ​ ​ (m. 1885)​
Issue	Şehzade Mehmed Burhaneddin
Full name Turkish: Mezidimestan Kadin Ottoman Turkish: مزیدمستان قادین‎
House	Mikanba (by birth) Ottoman (by marriage)
Father	Kaymat Bey Mikanba
Mother	Princess Feryal Hanım Marshan
Religion	Sunni Islam

Early life

Mezidimestan Kadın was born on 3 March 1869 in Gagra, Abkhazia.[1] Born as Merve Mikanba,[2] she was a member of Abkhazian noble family Mikanba. Her father was Kaymat Bey Mikanba,[2] and her mother was Princess Feryal Hanım Marshan, also an Abkhazian. She was the first cousin of Nazikeda Kadın.[1]

She had been brought to Istanbul when she was young, where she was entrusted to the entourage of Sultan Murad V. Here her name according to the custom of the Ottoman court was changed to Mezidimestan.[3]

Marriage

Mezidimestan married Abdul Hamid on 2 February 1885 at the Yıldız Palace.[1] She was given the title of "Fifth Consort". On 19 December 1885, after ten months of the wedding, she gave birth to her only son, Şehzade Mehmed Burhaneddin.[4] Mehmed Burhaneddin was the most favourite son of Abdul Hamid.[5]

In 1895, she was elevated to the title of "Fourth Consort",[4] and in 1901, she was elevated to the title of "Third Consort". Abdul Hamid had presented her a villa located on the grounds of Yıldız Palace.[5]

She was beautiful, had black eyes, black eyebrows, and thick black hair.[3]

Death

Mezidimestan died of stomach cancer,[3] on 21 January 1909, just three months before the deposition of Abdul Hamid, at the age of thirty-nine in the Yıldız Palace, and was buried in Yahya Efendi Cemetery, Istanbul.[5][4]

Issue

Name	Birth	Death	Notes
Şehzade Mehmed Burhaneddin	18 December 1885[6][4][7]	29 May 1949[6][7]	married four times, and had issue, two sons

See also

• Kadın (title)
• Ottoman Imperial Harem
• List of consorts of the Ottoman sultans

References

1. Açba 2007, p. 134.
2. Akyıldız, Ali (2019). Son Dönem Osmanlı Padişahlarının Nikâh Meselesi. p. 696.
3. Örik, Nahid Sırrı (2002). Bilinmeyen yaşamlarıyla saraylılar. Türkiye İş Bankası. pp. 128–29. ISBN 978-9-754-58383-0.
4. Uluçay 2011, p. 248.
5. Açba 2007, p. 135.
6. Osmanoğlu 2000, p. 262-63.
7. Brookes 2010, p. 279.

Sources

• Açba, Harun (2007). Kadın efendiler: 1839–1924. Profil. ISBN 978-975-996-109-1.
• Brookes, Douglas Scott (2010). The Concubine, the Princess, and the Teacher: Voices from the Ottoman Harem. University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-78335-5.
• Uluçay, M. Çağatay (2011). Padişahların kadınları ve kızları. Ötüken. ISBN 978-975-437-840-5.
• Osmanoğlu, Ayşe (2000). Babam Sultan Abdülhamid. Mona Kitap Yayinlari. ISBN 978-6-050-81202-2.
• Sakaoğlu, Necdet (2008). Bu Mülkün Kadın Sultanları: Vâlide Sultanlar, Hâtunlar, Hasekiler, Kandınefendiler, Sultanefendiler. Oğlak Yayıncılık. ISBN 978-6-051-71079-2.