Sulayman the Magnificent

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Sulayman the Magnificent,(1494–1566), Ottoman Khalif (1520–66 CE), son and successor of Selim I. He is sometimes erroneously called Sulayman II. Under him the Ottoman Khilafah (based in present day Turkey) reached the height of its power and prestige. He continued his father’s conquests in the Balkans and the Mediterranean, conquering Belgrade in 1521, expelling the Knights Hospitalers from Rhodes in 1522, and inflicting a crushing defeat on the Hungarians at Mohács in 1526. He unsuccessfully besieged Vienna in 1529 and supported John Zapolya (John I of Hungary) against Ferdinand of Hungary and Bohemia (later Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I). After John’s death in 1540 and the accession of John II Hungary was opened (except for Transylvania and the section held by Ferdinand) to the Ottoman Khilafah.

In 1536, Sulayman made a treaty with Francis I of France against the house of Hapsburg; this remained the basis of Khilafah’s foreign policy for more than three centuries. Although Sulayman’s vassal Barbarossa made the Khilafah fleet the terror of the Mediterranean

In his government Sulayman was distinguished for his justice. His military, educational, and legal reforms earned him the name Sulayman the Lawgiver among Muslims.