Empress of the East

How a European Slave Girl Became Queen of the Ottoman Empire

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By Leslie Peirce

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$32.00

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$40.00 CAD

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  1. Hardcover $32.00 $40.00 CAD
  2. ebook $19.99 $25.99 CAD

This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around September 19, 2017. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.

The “fascinating . . . lively” story of the Russian slave girl Roxelana, who rose from concubine to become the only queen of the Ottoman empire (New York Times).

In Empress of the East, historian Leslie Peirce tells the remarkable story of a Christian slave girl, Roxelana, who was abducted by slave traders from her Ruthenian homeland and brought to the harem of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent in Istanbul. Suleyman became besotted with her and foreswore all other concubines. Then, in an unprecedented step, he freed her and married her. The bold and canny Roxelana soon became a shrewd diplomat and philanthropist, who helped Suleyman keep pace with a changing world in which women, from Isabella of Hungary to Catherine de Medici, increasingly held the reins of power.

Until now Roxelana has been seen as a seductress who brought ruin to the empire, but in Empress of the East, Peirce reveals the true history of an elusive figure who transformed the Ottoman harem into an institution of imperial rule.
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Genre:

On Sale
Sep 19, 2017
Page Count
368 pages
Publisher
Basic Books
ISBN-13
9780465032518

Leslie Peirce

About the Author

Leslie Peirce is Silver Professor of History, Middle Eastern, and Islamic Studies at New York University. The award-winning author of two previous books, Peirce lives in New York City.

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