Magnificent Century (2011)
Synopsis
At the age of 26, when his reign began, Sultan Süleyman sought to build an empire more powerful than Alexander the Great and to render the Ottomans invincible. Throughout his 46-year reign, his fame as the greatest warrior and ruler of his age spreads both to the East and West. With his companion Pargalı İbrahim, Süleyman achieves great victories, and makes his name known in the Muslim World. Süleyman called İbrahim his brother, friend and advisor. The television series shows Süleyman's consolidation of his power: Pargalı İbrahim being grand minister of state, reinforcing the rule of law throughout the empire, meeting foreign diplomats, and preparing for military campaigns, all set against the backdrop of the tension between Christian Europe and the Ottoman Empire.
Network
Show TV
Episodes
Episode 1
Prince Süleyman rushes to Istanbul after his father’s death and begins his reign, while a rebellious slave girl named Alex is brought to Topkapı Palace, unknowingly stepping into a destiny that will intertwine with his; as Süleyman asserts his power with bold early decisions, Alex quickly adapts to palace life and captures his attention, even as his wife Mahidevran arrives hoping to reunite with him.
Episode 2
Süleyman accidentally meets Mahidevran instead of Alex, whose approach is stopped and blamed on İbrahim, prompting a harsh rebuke. As Süleyman sends bold messages to Hungary and prepares for a Rhodes campaign, Hatice becomes enchanted by a mysterious violinist. Alex is renamed Hürrem, sparking jealousy that leads Mahidevran—backed by the Valide Sultan—to punish her and offer escape on a condition, while Süleyman unknowingly summons Hürrem, setting the stage for conflict once he learns what happened.
Episode 3
An envoy to the Hungarian king is killed after mistreatment, while Süleyman prepares a campaign against Rhodes. Mahidevran collapses upon seeing her ring on Hürrem’s finger and is revealed to be pregnant, heightening tensions as Hürrem fails to reach the Sultan. A shocking gift from King Louis prompts Süleyman to shift his target to Belgrade, and when Hürrem’s ring goes missing, İbrahim uncovers the truth but leaves the Valide Sultan to handle the fallout within the palace’s fragile power dynamics.
Episode 4
Mahidevran blames Hürrem for her miscarriage and attacks her, leaving Hürrem in a dangerous condition that the attendants try to conceal, while the Valide Sultan confronts Mahidevran in shock at her accusations. As Süleyman angrily redirects his military campaign toward Belgrade after an insult from the Hungarian king, Hürrem grows critically ill and refuses to see him, prompting Süleyman to visit her himself—setting the stage for his reaction once he discovers what Mahidevran has done.
Episode 5
As Süleyman departs for campaign, the Valide Sultan plots to remove Hürrem by arranging her marriage, while Hürrem—longing for Süleyman—panics upon learning she will be expelled and desperately claims to be pregnant to stay in the palace. On the road to Belgrade, Süleyman faces conflicting opinions in his war council, and meanwhile the Ottoman army captures Zemun, prompting Süleyman to pursue King Louis in a relentless chase.
Episode 6
As the Ottoman campaign toward Belgrade nears victory and Süleyman returns to a celebratory Istanbul, Hürrem becomes the first to reunite with him—unaware that Mahidevran has set a deadly trap. Hürrem is poisoned after spending the night with the Sultan, prompting Süleyman to intervene and İbrahim to hunt down the culprit, eventually uncovering Gülşah’s involvement and facing a difficult choice.
Episode 7
Hürrem struggles to find peace in her new chambers and is upset to learn that her friend Maria has converted to Islam, while Sultan Süleyman sets his sights on Rhodes after the Belgrade victory. Growing closer to Hatice, Hürrem becomes suspicious of her feelings for İbrahim, prompting tension that the Valide Sultan hopes to ease. When Hürrem subtly threatens İbrahim over his interest in Hatice, he retaliates by using her pregnancy to arrange a private night with Süleyman, escalating the palace’s delicate power struggles.
Episode 8
Hürrem pressures Gülnihal to reveal who entered the halvet with Süleyman, unaware it was Gülnihal herself, while Süleyman advances preparations for the Rhodes campaign and Hürrem flaunts her status in the harem, deepening her bond with Hatice and drawing the Valide Sultan’s concern. When Hürrem is barred from seeing Süleyman due to her postpartum state, İbrahim sends Gülnihal to him instead, leading Hürrem to discover the truth and struggle to control her fury.
Episode 9
As İbrahim worries about Hatice’s illness, Hürrem—angry over losing her son—blames him, heightening their conflict. While preparations for the Rhodes campaign continue and the Hungarian king plots revenge, Matrakçı uncovers a surprising truth about a mysterious youth and joins İbrahim in helping him. Hürrem discovers amulets on her baby’s cradle and orders her own, only for an unexpected truth to emerge when they arrive. Meanwhile, Süleyman decides Hatice’s engagement must occur before the campaign, leaving her shattered and forcing her into a critical decision.
Episode 10
A fire in the harem endangers the princes, causing panic and leading Hürrem and Mahidevran to accuse one another while the true culprit remains unknown. The Valide Sultan rewards Victoria for her bravery, and Hatice loses hope in her bond with İbrahim. As the Ottoman army departs for the Rhodes campaign, a troubling message from Rhodes casts a dark shadow over the palace.
Episode 11
During the Rhodes campaign, an assassination attempt on Sultan Süleyman is thwarted by İbrahim, who is gravely injured, while Hürrem gives birth to a daughter, disappointing her but delighting Mahidevran. Süleyman captures and harshly punishes the assassin Murat, alarming the Grand Master as the Ottomans tighten their grip on Rhodes. Meanwhile, news emerges that Hatice Sultan’s fiancé, Mehmet Çelebi, is seriously ill, adding further tension to the unfolding drama.
Episode 12
İbrahim is stunned when Süleyman offers him an unexpected proposal, while tensions erupt between Hürrem and Mahidevran until an unforeseen figure intervenes. Political turmoil deepens as Piri Pasha resigns and Ahmet Pasha is frustrated by Süleyman’s surprising choice of successor. After İbrahim reveals Mehmet Çelebi’s illness to the Valide Sultan, she appeals to Süleyman out of fear for Hatice, only to receive an unexpected and unsettling response.
Episode 13
Hürrem confronts İbrahim in fury, refusing to believe Mahidevran spent the night with Süleyman, while Mahidevran boasts about the halvet only to be met with the Sultan’s unexpected coldness. Unable to endure separation from Hatice, İbrahim leaves the palace for Parga, and Hürrem—enraged by Mahidevran’s claims—hurries to Süleyman, raising the question of whether she will expose İbrahim and Hatice’s secret bond.
Episode 14
The secret love between İbrahim and Hatice is exposed, while Hürrem struggles to prove her innocence as even Süleyman doubts her. Summoned by the Valide Sultan, she faces an uncertain fate, and İbrahim is brought back to hear Süleyman’s ruling on his relationship with Hatice. As a final decision about Hürrem approaches, she desperately seeks İbrahim’s help to stay in the palace, leaving the future of both her and İbrahim’s forbidden love hanging in the balance.
Episode 15
Banished to the Old Palace, Hürrem refuses İbrahim’s initial offer to save her, while Süleyman mourns her absence and preparations begin for İbrahim and Hatice’s engagement celebration. After seeing the sick Şehzade Mehmet, Hatice visits Hürrem, prompting Hürrem to reconsider and ultimately accept İbrahim’s proposal. She dramatically returns to the palace during the garden festivities, leaving everyone wondering how Süleyman and the harem will react, just as a mysterious young man arrives by sea searching for Alexandra Lisowska.
Episode 16
Hürrem, now more strategic and composed, navigates new dangers as Sadıka prepares to enter the halvet with Süleyman and possibly carry out a deadly plan. After Şehzade Mehmet’s near‑drowning, Hürrem confronts Mahidevran with an unexpectedly calm attitude, even as she discovers Sadıka’s threat and seizes a chance to eliminate her. Meanwhile, rumors spread that Mahidevran may be pregnant, shocking Hürrem and adding yet another layer of tension to the palace’s already volatile atmosphere.
Episode 17
Leo arrives at the palace to paint Süleyman and unknowingly comes face‑to‑face with his lost love, now Hürrem Sultan, just as Hürrem rushes to share her pregnancy news. Mahidevran reels from the announcement, with Gülşah offering to kill Hürrem, while Hatice and İbrahim’s grand wedding draws international attention and forces Victoria to relocate, threatening her secret plot against the Sultan.
Episode 18
At İbrahim’s banquet, Hürrem is shaken to see Leo—whom she believed dead—standing beside Süleyman, just as the Sultan asks Leo to paint a family‑style portrait of himself with Hürrem, placing both former lovers in a tense dilemma. Meanwhile, Matrakçı unknowingly aids Victoria’s plot against Süleyman, and Mahidevran, distressed by the idea of Hürrem being immortalized with the Sultan, takes Gülşah’s advice to move into Hatice’s empty chambers in hopes of regaining influence.
Episode 19
While Süleyman and İbrahim are away, the Janissaries ignite a full‑scale revolt in Istanbul, plunging the capital into chaos as the dynasty struggles to maintain control. Hürrem secretly meets Leo and urges him to leave, unaware that Victoria is spying on them, while Mahidevran corners Nigar for her own purposes. Leo, heartbroken, retreats to the gardens where Victoria continues to watch him, and İbrahim learns that Kadızade has acted against Ahmed Pasha before his arrival in Egypt. With Süleyman hunting in Edirne and the capital left vulnerable, the Janissaries—angered by unmet expectations and palace extravagance—rise up, leaving the empire on the brink of disaster.
Episode 20
As the Janissary Rebellion engulfs Istanbul, Hatice is gravely injured and Leo is shot while trying to save her, forcing Hürrem, the princes, and the palace household to hide in a secure corridor with Matrakçı’s help. Mahidevran and the Valide Sultan anxiously wait in the Topkapı cellars while Süleyman races back to the capital, ending the revolt the moment the Janissaries learn of his return. Meanwhile, İbrahim receives Süleyman’s summons from Cairo, Hatice slowly regains consciousness, and Hürrem and Gülfem must break devastating news to her—just as Süleyman and the Valide discover that Hürrem and the princes have not yet made it safely back to Topkapı.
Episode 21
Hürrem becomes convinced that Süleyman spent the night with another woman after finding Victoria’s shawl in his room, fueling her jealousy just as new Russian concubines arrive—one destined for the Sultan. While Leo begins work in the palace and struggles with his pride, tensions rise in the harem as Nigar and Gülşah clash. In state affairs, Süleyman orders action against Ferhat Pasha for corruption, despite the Valide’s distress over the consequences for Beyhan. As Hürrem’s heartbreak intensifies, she resolves to stop Süleyman from being with other women once and for all.
Episode 22
Hürrem, unable to endure Süleyman being with other women, confronts him with a dagger and demands he send away the Russian concubine or she will leave the palace, even at the cost of her life. Her bloody return to her chambers alarms Nigar and Gülnihal, while Mahidevran celebrates what she believes is Hürrem’s downfall and the Valide Sultan disapproves of her boldness. As Süleyman grapples with Hürrem’s ultimatum, the influential Venetian merchant Alvise Gritti arrives, impressing both Süleyman and İbrahim, while Victoria secretly reports to Layoş that this new relationship may signal a dangerous Ottoman–Venetian alliance.
Episode 23
A bloody scene in Hürrem’s chambers throws the harem into chaos, with Gülşah found holding a knife and Mahidevran immediately blaming her for murder. As Esma Hatun alerts the palace and Gülşah is injured and taken to the infirmary, Süleyman orders İbrahim to find the attacker, while Leo panics upon hearing Hürrem may have been harmed. The Valide Sultan questions Mahidevran’s involvement, and Nigar begins her own investigation, suspecting Gülşah. With Hürrem’s fate unknown and accusations spreading, the palace is left in fear and uncertainty.
Episode 24
İbrahim discovers Leo’s letter and sets a trap to catch Hürrem and Leo together, while Nigar desperately tries to stop Hürrem from walking into danger. As Leo waits in the garden and İbrahim hides nearby, palace tensions rise: Hatice grows jealous of Gritti’s beautiful sister, Victoria receives orders to assassinate Süleyman, and Sümbül’s betrayal leaves Nigar cornered. With Hürrem’s greatest secret on the brink of exposure, the fates of Hürrem, Leo, and even Süleyman hang in the balance.
Cast
Details
Original Title
Muhteşem Yüzyıl
Status
Ended
Seasons
4
Episodes
139
Production
Tims Productions
