Leslie Pierce persuasively argues in her biography 📖 #EmpressoftheEast, the roots of the Ottoman public’s dislike of Hurrem lay in Suleiman’s breaking three important harem traditions for her: the concubine status of royal mothers, the reproductive principle of “one concubine mother — one son,” 👩‍👦and the presence of a prince’s mother at her son’s provincial post.
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Traditionally, the two roles of the sultan’s concubines — the sultan’s favorite (a sexual role) and that of mother of the prince (a post-sexual role) — were separated in the imperial harem. .
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In Hurrem, however, “these two functions were collapsed for the first time in the career of one woman,” as she was “caught between two conflicting loyalties: mother to the prince, and wife to the sultan.” 💍As a result, the Ottomans could not come to terms with her ambiguous status in the harem.