Hatice Sultan (1766–1821)

Hatice Sultan (June 15, 1766 - July 17, 1821), was an Ottoman princess, daughter of Mustafa III and sister of Selim III. She was married in 1787 to the Muhafız (Governor) of Hotin Nakîbzade Seyyid Ahmed Pasha. Hatice was very close to her brother Selim, and played an important role during his reign in 1789-1807 as his influential confidant. She formed a close relationship to the architect Antoine Ignace Melling. At Hatice Sultan's suggestion, Melling was employed as Imperial Architect by Selim III. In 1795 the princess commissioned Melling to design a labyrinth for her palace at Ortaköy in the style of the Danish ambassador Baron Hübsch's garden. Delighted with the result, she asked Melling to redecorate the palace interior, and subsequently, a completely new neoclassical palace at Defterdarburnu. He also designed clothes and jewellery for her. She employed him to repair her Palace Neşetâbâd in 1804. She corresponded with him in Turkish written with Latin letters. In 1809, she bought land in companionship with her sister, Beyhan Sultan (1765-1824), and her cousin Esma Sultan (1778-1848), upon where she had Melling construct the Hatice Sultan Palace. The palace became reputed in all Europe and also led to criticism against the sultan and talked about as a palace of pleasure.