374 Suleiman I the Magnificent both whites and mulattoes Known in France as the “Pearl of the Antilles,” Saint-Domingue had quickly become the world’s largest sugar producer, with more than 800 sugar plantations, many with hundreds of slaves Decadal mortality rates among slaves on SaintDomingue in the mid- and late 1700s are estimated at more than 90 percent The more than 10 million African slaves transported over nearly three centuries to work in New World plantation agriculture, most in sugar production, has been called accurately the largest forced migration in the history of the world The African diaspora, fueled in large part by an insatiable European demand for sugar, coffee, tobacco, and other tropical plantation export commodities of the Americas, profoundly shaped every aspect of African, European, and American history, especially in the Caribbean and Brazil The long-term historical effects of Europe’s sweet tooth remain readily apparent across the Americas, Africa, and the broader Atlantic World See also slave trade, Africa and the Further reading: Cateau, Heather, and S H H Carrington Capitalism and Slavery Fifty Years Later: Eric Eustace Williams: A Reassessment of the Man and His Work New York: Peter Lang, 2000; Mintz, Sidney Sweetness and Power: The Place of Sugar in Modern History New York: Viking, 1985; Schwartz, Stuart B Sugar Plantations in the Formation of Brazilian Society: Bahia, 1500–1835 New York: Cambridge University Press, 1985; Sheridan, Richard B. Sugar and Slavery, an Economic History of the British West Indies, 1623– 1775 Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992; Williams, Eric From Columbus to Castro: The History of the Caribbean New York: Vintage, 1970 Michael J Schroeder Suleiman I the Magnificent (1494–1566) Ottoman sultan Suleiman (r 1520–66) ruled the Ottoman Empire when it was the most powerful empire on earth He came to the throne after his father, Selim I (the Grim), had expanded Ottoman territories to the east and west Although he was only in his 20s when he became the sultan, Suleiman already had experience in the field as a military commander and as an able administrator in Balkan and Crimean territories Suleiman was known as “the Magnificent” in Europe, and among his subjects as Kanuni (the lawgiver) for his codification of Ottoman laws Known for his fairness and honesty, Suleiman granted extensive local autonomy to his far-flung provinces, maintaining close regulation only over taxes and the regulation of trade Victory over European rivals In 1527, Suleiman had over 80,000 trained men in military service and with better guns and horsemen than his European rivals, the Ottomans quickly seized Belgrade after the Battle of Mohács and moved on to lay siege to Vienna in 1529 But Suleiman failed to defeat his main rival Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor, or to take Vienna As the Ottoman troops retreated from the city they were reputed to have left sacks of coffee, already popular among the Ottoman urban elite and a commodity that would soon enjoy widespread favor in the west as well Although Suleiman also failed in the attempt to take Malta, he ruled all of the Balkans and Hungary, as well as most of the territory around the Black Sea, the eastern Mediterranean, Egypt, and much of North Africa He rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem, parts of which still stand The Austrian diplomat Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq described in lavish detail the grandeur of the Ottoman court under Suleiman Europeans praised Suleiman’s serious demeanor and culture, as well as his ability to discuss literature and philosophy in several languages A contemporary of the other great monarchs of the age, Charles V of Spain, Francis I of France, and Henry VIII of England, Suleiman made practical alliances with Francis I to counter the power of Charles V and was a major participant in European diplomacy Marriage Suleiman married a favorite slave from Russia, Hurrem Haseki (The Joyous One), known in Europe as Roxelana Suleiman was deeply in love with Hurrem, and he wrote her moving love poems under the penname of muhibbi (beloved) However, Hurrem, as well as her mother-inlaw and a rival wife, became powerful political forces in their own right and plotted ruthlessly for their particular favorites to become Suleiman’s successor Hurrem outmaneuvered her rivals so that her favorite son, Selim II, would become sultan Believing Hurrem’s allegations about intrigues by his more capable sons, particularly Mustapha, Suleiman ordered their murders Suleiman was devastated when Hurrem died and had the famed Ottoman architect Abdul-Menan Sinan build a magnificent mausoleum in her memory Sinan also designed the massive Suleimaniya complex in Istanbul as a lasting monument to the great sultan