Chapter 3: Odalisques

“Freedom?” asks Alexandra, suddenly joining our conversation. “How so? I thought we are all slaves for the rest of our lives.”

“Our slavery need not be permanent,” replies Esme. “In time, many harem slaves are offered their freedom, particularly if the sultan doesn’t select you as one of his favourites. Every sultan is different. The last sultan, Sultan Selim, chose only a few girls to be among his favourite concubines, while some of his ancestors had a steady stream of concubines delivered to his room every night. Even if you remain a slave you can live comfortably if you rise high enough in the harem hierarchy.”

“So, how does this hierarchy work?” asks Alexandra.

“At the lowest level are the odalisques, like us,” continues Esme. “We do all the household chores and menial tasks. Some odalisques, like Nigar Kalfa, are talented enough to become kalfa, the administrators of the harem. The kalfa also train those odalisques who are selected to become concubines. If you successfully complete your training, you become a hatun, and you are elevated above the odalisques in the harem hierarchy. In time a hatun will either be chosen to walk the golden path and become one of the sultan’s concubines, or she’ll be given her freedom and an arranged marriage to a suitable husband who has done good service for the Empire.

“A concubine who walks the golden path more than once may become one of the sultan’s favourites. As soon as the Valide is satisfied that a concubine has found the sultan’s favour, then the girl is moved to one of the rooms upstairs to live among the other favourites. If a favourite gives birth to a son, then she will be provided with her own personal maid and be given a chamber in the imperial family wing of the harem. She will effectively become part of the Sultan’s family. When a concubine’s son is old enough, it is traditional for mother and son to be sent to another province so the son may learn the necessary skills to rule.”

“But why does the Sultan need so many concubines?” I ask. “I thought kings and rulers of Empires married princesses to form political alliances.”

“Not in the Ottoman Empire,” replies Esme. “The Ottoman dynasty chooses to provide heirs through slave concubinage. Slaves don’t have ambitious or greedy relations who can cause trouble, and concubines can be more easily manipulated in the interests of the dynasty. The pool of heirs is greatly enlarged in this way. Any son can become the next sultan. That is how Sultan Suleiman became ruler upon the death of his father. Did you not know this already? I thought you are all Roxolani.”

“Roxolani, yes,” I reply. “But Alexandra’s and my families moved away from our native homeland to the lands ruled by the King of Poland. We were captured inside Polish territory and taken to the Crimea.”

We temporarily halt our questioning of Esme while we select clothes from the stack. Like Alexandra, Rebecca and Sarah, my worldly possessions now consist of a white cotton dress, a grey waistcoat, a sleeveless shift, a pair of slippers and a comb.

“You are each provided with one of the chests along the wall over here for your possessions,” says Esme once the four of us have changed into our new clothes. “Do not take another girls’ things without her permission or you will be severely punished.”

“How severely?” asks Rebecca.

“Thieves are tied in a large sack and thrown into the river to drown,” replies Esme in a very matter of fact tone. “Slaves are easy to replace, so don’t expect mercy if you break the harem rules.”

The slightly raised areas underneath the mezzanines either side of the central aisle form a huge communal living room. I realise the area must be converted into a dormitory at night. After a discussion with the women sitting around us, Esme finds four unused chests for us. Inside each chest is a sheet and a quilt. Esme tells us that the location of the chest marks our allocated sleeping place.

The young women around us are busy embroidering and chatting among themselves. Their curiosity at our arrival has been satisfied for now. I am standing watching their handiwork when one of the adolescent girls looks at me and says something to me in Turkish.

“I don’t understand what you are saying,” I reply in my own language. I look around for Esme so she can translate the girl’s words, but Esme is busy with Rebecca at the other end of the room.

“Fatima wishes to know whether you can embroider,” says one of the other girls sat in the group.

“Yes. My mother taught me how to embroider, although I’m not very good.”

“Then practise and improve,” says the girl who translated Fatima’s question. “The Sultanas and favourites may buy your work if it is any good. It is one of the few ways you can earn extra money in this place. Your stipend won’t go far.”

“Stipend?” I reply, not certain I heard her correctly. “Do we get paid?”

“Yes ... but not much. An odalisque receives four aspers a day; six if you impress Sümbul Aga and Daye Hatun. It won’t buy much, but in a month or so you may have saved enough to buy some small items of jewellery or a new dress. Nothing fancy, but something of your own choosing. An odalisque can’t attract the eye of the sultan if she’s dressed the same as everyone else.”

I look around for Alexandra to share what I have just learned, but she isn’t anywhere to be seen. This room is large, but not so large that anyone can just disappear.