Letters and Gifts in the Harems of Eighteenth-Century Istanbul

Abstract

This Element examines the political, architectural, and social transformations of the Ottoman Empire during the reign of Selim III (1789–1807), foregrounding the central role of imperial women in shaping reform. While Selim's military and administrative initiatives reconfigured Istanbul's urban fabric, his mother, sisters, and female relatives actively advanced these efforts through architectural patronage, diplomacy, and gift exchange. Drawing on archival sources, visual materials, and microhistorical analysis, the Element reconstructs the dynamic networks sustained by these women and their stewards. It challenges assumptions of female invisibility, demonstrating instead their strategic visibility, economic agency, and integral participation in imperial governance and cross-cultural exchange.