family could maintain its independence and prestige 43.

The Sultanic harem will continue to inspire stories and will stay covered by a
veil of mystery mainly because of the limited access it allowed to not only the
Western but also domestic eye. The voices, thoughts, feelings and expectation of
its inhabitants, with some rare exceptions44, will stay silenced like the voices of
most women and slaves in history. But their actions have left their mark in history
and their academic research gives us an insight into the dynastic politics and the
function of Ottoman society.