Suleiman I

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"The world is a tapestry of many colors and patterns. A just leader would celebrate this, not seek to unravel it."

―Suleiman on his view of the world.

Suleiman I (1494 – 1566) was the tenth Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1520 until his death, and was considered one of its greatest rulers. He was the son of Selim I, and was known in the West as Suleiman the Magnificent, and in the East as Suleiman the Lawgiver.

Suleiman became part of the struggle between the Templars and Assassins during 1511, when he befriended the Italian Mentor Ezio Auditore da Firenze, hiring him to find out who was behind the Byzantine attempt on his life.

Biography

Early life

Suleiman was born in Trabzon, as the son of Selim I and Valide Sultan Ayşe Hafsa Sultan, presumably on the 6th of November, 1494. When he was seven years old, he was sent to the schools of Topkapı Palace in Constantinople to study history, science, theology, literature and military tactics.

At the age of 17, Suleiman was installed as the governor of Kefe. In 1511, while returning from his Hajj aboard a ship to Constantinople, Suleiman met Ezio Auditore da Firenze, the leader of the Italian Assassins. Neither of them disclosed their identities to each other at the time, with Suleiman convincing Ezio that he was merely a student, while Ezio did not mention the reasons for his travels. As Suleiman and Ezio arrived in Galata, Suleiman helped Sofia Sartor carry the items she had dropped and bid the old Assassin goodbye.

Assassination attempt

Suleiman became the target of an assassination attempt from the Byzantines during a cultural exchange he had organized at Topkapı Palace. Fortunately, Ezio and the Turkish Assassins had infiltrated the party disguised as minstrels, and were quietly dispatching the would-be killers. However, a guard noticed a body that an Assassin had failed to hide, and a battle broke out: Ezio ended the fight by killing a Templar that was about to attack Suleiman in the midst of the confusion. Ezio and Suleiman then introduced themselves by name for the first time. After Suleiman ordered the guards remove the bodies and send the guests home, he requested Ezio's help.

The next morning, Ezio returned and was asked to spy on a meeting Suleiman had arranged between his uncle, Shehzade Ahmet, and Tarik Barleti, captain of the Janissaries. Suleiman explained Sultan Bayezid II's wanted Ahmet to succeed him on the throne, but the Janissaries, the Sultan's elite soldiers, preferred his father Selim. During the meeting, Ahmet accused Tarik of planning the attack to make him appear to be a weak and ineffective steward. Equally suspicious of Tarik's failure to prevent the Byzantine infiltration, Suleiman and Ezio began their investigation, with Suleiman pointing out to Ezio that Tarik spent most of his free time in the Grand Bazaar.

The investigation

After apparently discovering Tarik was supplying weapons to the Byzantine heir Manuel Palaiologos, Ezio returned to Suleiman, who had been playing chess with Ahmet in the Constantine District. Suleiman directed Ezio to the Janissary camp, and requested he kill Tarik after interrogating him. After the assassination, Ezio returned Topkapı Palace and revealed to Suleiman that Tarik was innocent: with his dying words, Tarik revealed he had been posing as a traitor to ambush the Byzantines.

Suleiman promised to arrange a ship to transport Ezio to the Byzantine base in Cappadocia. Ahmet appeared, distressed that the Janissaries would pin Tarik's murder on him, and that his father would have to banish him. Ahmet spotted Ezio, whom Suleiman claimed was "Marcello", a European advisor from Kefe. After Ahmet requested "Marcello" leave, Suleiman calmed his uncle, saying they would find the true killer.

When Ezio returned, he had learned Ahmet was the Templar Grand Master and discovered he had kidnapped his friend Sofia Sartor. After the Assassins stormed the Arsenal where Ahmet was hiding, Suleiman arrived and overheard his confrontation with Ezio, including his fantasies of finding a Grand Temple and ending religion. The Janissaries arrived to restore order, but Suleiman ordered them to leave Ezio alone. Suleiman requested Ezio spare his uncle after rescuing Sofia, but Ezio made him acknowledge his father would not. Indeed, when the new Sultan Selim arrived with his army, he killed Ahmet, and only at the recommendation of his son, let Ezio live.

Later life

Suleiman died in 1566 during the Siege of Szigetvár in the Kingdom of Hungary.

Gallery

• Suleiman arriving to Constantinople with Ezio Auditore
  Suleiman arriving to Constantinople with Ezio Auditore
• Suleiman on the boat to Constantinople with Ezio.
  Suleiman on the boat to Constantinople with Ezio.
• Yusuf Tazim and Suleiman fighting off guards.
  Yusuf Tazim and Suleiman fighting off guards.
• Suleiman and Ezio meet again.
  Suleiman and Ezio meet again.
• Suleiman, Sofia Sartor and Ezio Auditore da Firenze.
  Suleiman, Sofia Sartor and Ezio Auditore da Firenze.
• Suleiman helping Sofia.
  Suleiman helping Sofia.
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