Characters / Magnificent Century Servants And Concubines

Eunuchs and Servants

Sümbül Ağa

Sümbül Ağa

(Played by Selim Bayraktar)
(Voiced by: Sebastián Castro Saavedra [Latin American Spanish dub])
The chief eunuch in the harem. Eventually, he becomes the most important ally of Hürrem. He also introduces coffee as a drink in the Ottoman Empire.

• Been There, Shaped History: After being liberated by Hürrem, Sümbül opens the first coffeehouse in Turkey.
• Best Friend: He eventually becomes Hürrem's closest confidant and a friend.
• The Bus Came Back: After leaving the palace due to his Slave Liberation, he returns to learn to prepare coffee and to be an informant to Hürrem.
• Camp Straight: He is eventually revealed to be attracted to women. His feminine attitude probably comes from being an eunuch.
• The Confidant: After agreeing to assist Hürrem, she discusses her thoughts and strategies with him. He is one of the few associates that is genuinely loyal to her. Sümbül also extends his friendship to Hürrem to her daughter Mihrimah.
• Crippling Castration: After all those years, he still feels the pain of being castrated when he was a child.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He tends to be somewhat rude with his fellow servants and the concubines, but he has a good heart deep down, as demonstrated when he cares for some concubines and when he becomes a good friend to Hürrem.
• Large Ham: He keeps it professional around the royal family (eventually excluding Hürrem), but with other servants he can get hammy.
• Love Hurts: The one time he tries to have a romantic relationship is used by his lover to disclose things about Hürrem, and he has to kill her as a result.
• Made a Slave: Once, he was a free child, but was captured and his testicles were cut. He was eventually sold to the palace.
• Morality Pet: His friendship with Hürrem makes him evolve into a humanizing character for her. She has said ugly things to him, but has apologized after.
• Odd Friendship: Sümbul and Hürrem used to be indifferent to each other, but following Gül Aga's departure, they become very close. Sümbül is more flamboyant and hammy, while Hürrem is more serious and cunning.
• Old Retainer: He ages working for the palace and was alongside Hürrem until her death. Even in his time outside, he was close to Hürrem and he grew to see the palace as his home. He couldn't adapt to living outside, so that's partly why he stays in the palace.
• I Choose to Stay: At the ending, instead of accompanying Mihrimah he stays at the harem to teach the new servants of the palace.
• In Touch with His Feminine Side: An interesting example. Sümbül Ağa's a eunuch, but Eunuchs Are Evil notably averted—he's not creepy nor immoral. He's rather feminine, but that isn't seen as a bad thing—perhaps a little unusual, but it's expected of eunuchs.
• Intergenerational Friendship: Sümbül extends his loyalty to Hürrem to Mihrimah, becoming her confidant too. They hug each other after Mihrimah leaves the Topkapi palace and Sümbül chooses to stay at the palace in the Grand Finale.
• Plucky Comic Relief: He brings humor to an otherwise dark series with his snide remarks, his feminine attitude, and his quarrels with other eunuchs. Hürrem and Mihrimah consider him funny in-universe.
• Sad Clown: His comedic side hides the fact that he has been in phyisical and emotional pain for years.
• Secret-Keeper:
  • He knows about Hürrem's secret chamber. He is got drunk so he ends up disclosing this.
  • He knows the truth about Rüstem's death.
• Slave Liberation: Hürrem prizes his friendship and loyalty with his liberation.
• Undying Loyalty: After working with Hürrem, he becomes staunchly loyal to her and even becomes her friend.

Seker Aga

• Angry Chef: he tends to act angrily when cooking, since he is supposed to act quickly.
• Phony Veteran: He has the bad habit of pretending to be a Pasha, or otherwise fabricating military background.
• Plucky Comic Relief: His primary role is to create comedy for the series.
• Put on a Bus: In Season 4, he stops appearing on the series and his voice only comes back on Sümbül's memories on the ending.
• Supreme Chef: His cooking skills have been praised by the Imperial family.

Nigar Kalfa

Nigar Kalfa

(Played by Filiz Ahmet)(Voiced by: Claudia Panone [Latin American Spanish dub])

• Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: She tends to betray those who are related to her: Hürrem, Hatice, Ibrahim, and Rüstem.
• Conflicting Loyalty: She's supposed to obey the sultana. But who is the sultana?
• Disney Villain Death: Out of her own will, she throws herself from the cliff shortly after returning Rüstem his daughter.
• Downfall by Sex: When she has an affair with Ibrahim, she passes from a respected maid in the palace to an outcast after her secret is exposed. She has a baby, but she has a very restricted access to her, while she is living a toxic relationship with Rüstem Pasha. When she returns to Istanbul due to her failure to locate her daughter, Hatice and Sah see her as disposable.
• Erotic Dream: She has one about İbrahim. It's awkward.
  • She also may have a Casual Kink. In the dream, he pushes her against a wall, yells at her, strangles her, then kisses her.
• He Knows Too Much: Sah Sultan asks Mercan Aga to kill Nigar so she never reveals that she worked with her or Hatice to attack Hürrem.
• Hypercompetent Sidekick
• Love Martyr: She was too obsessed with her infatuation to Ibrahim, a man who is not above disposing of her and that truly loves another woman.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: In 01x08, she gives one to Hürrem rather magnificently.
• Revenge by Proxy: She kidnaps Mihrimah and Rüstem's daughter to avenge the fact that her own daughter was separated from her.
• We Used to Be Friends: She was an unambiguous ally of Hürrem in the first season and much of the second season. Hürrem initially cuts her off for failing to be more careful about Leo, but later return to be on good terms. Ultimately, her support of Ibrahim makes her betray Hürrem. After she is exposed as Ibrahim's mistress, Nigar is no longer in good terms with Hürrem, and secretly betrays her despite being saved on her orders and being protected from Hatice.

Fahriye Hatun/Diana

• Becoming the Mask: Hürrem decides to invoke it by sparing her. She swears to protect her and becomes her maid for real.
• Consummate Liar: She can make up stories easily to avoid bringing suspicion upon her.
• Deceased Fall-Guy Gambit: When sent to assassinate Hürrem, she killed some maids and an eunuch. After almost being busted by Sümbul, she pretends to be the savior and pins the blame on one of the maids she killed. Hürrem failed to recognize her as the assassin, so it works until Hürrem figures out the truth.
• Drill Sergeant Nasty: She has a bossy demeanor with the Harem girls, especially when it comes down to gossip.
• Easily Forgiven: After Hürrem learns that Fahriye was the assassin, Hürrem decides to leave it be, since Fahriye will no longer be her enemy.
• Hazy-Feel Turn: After being revealed to be a spy sent to kill Hürrem, Fahriye Hatun actually becomes loyal to her.
• Irony: In her time at Sehzade Mustafa's harem, she was suspected as an associate of Hürrem. Mahidevran and Hatice unwittingly convert her on Hürrem's maid for real.
• Ninja Maid: She has good fighting skills, as demonstrated when she escaped from prison to save Sehzade Mustafa from the real infiltrated. That is why she was tasked with assassinating Hürrem.
• Secret-Keeper: She knows about Hürrem's secret chamber to eavesdrop in the council.
• Shipper on Deck: She is enthusiast when mentioning that Suleyman loves Hürrem and has comforted her during falling outs with him.
• Undying Loyalty: She does develop genuine loyalty for Hürrem, even after she dies.
• You Can't Go Home Again: She attempts to request Mahidevran to return to her son's harem, but Sah tells her that returning is no longer an option. Furthermore, being discovered by Hürrem and swearing loyalty for real to Hürrem negates the possibility altogether.

Gülfem Hatun

Gülfem Hatun

-(Played by Selen Öztürk)
(Voiced by: Erika Martens [Latin American Spanish dub])
An earlier concubine of Süleyman's, Gülfem never had any live babies. She remained in the harem, though not as a favorite, and is a dear friend of Hatice's.

• Amicable Exes: She is accepted in the palace even after Suleyman dumps her in favor of Mahidevran due to her inhability to give him a born son. It is clear Suleyman trusts her. However, their good relationship comes to an end after Bayezid is murdered by Selim.
• The Confidant: She is Hatice's best friend and confidant.
• Despair Event Horizon: Bayezid's death is the last straw for her. At that point, she calls Suleyman out and attempts to kill him before his caretaker Ferhat Aga kills her.
• Old Retainer: She grows with the imperial family and has been appointed important positions there due to her good relationship with Suleyman and Hatice.
• We Used to Be Friends: She was friends with Suleyman for most of the series and was loyal to him, but following Bayezid's death at the hands of Selim, she cuts Suleyman off and attempts to murder him before Ferhat Aga kills her.

Daye Hatun

Daye Hatun

(Played by Sema Keçik)
(Voiced by: Mariana Correa [Latin American Spanish dub])
The Valide Sultan's servant.

• Accidental Murder: She accidentally kills a maid, so she is banished from the palace.
• Finding Judas: She may love the Valide, but will not collaborate in her attempts against Hürrem, since she sees them as immoral. She sabotages an assassination attempt by asking Bali Bey to save Hürrem.
• I Let Gwen Stacy Die: She believes herself to be an instigator of the Valide Sultan's illness and death, because she kept a particular secret of one servant. After the latter dies, she relinquishes the jewels and prestige of her role in the palace, eventually killing herself.
• Lady-In-Waiting: To the Valide.
• Old Retainer: Atypical in that Daye and her mistress are of equal age, but Daye has been the Valide Sultan's for 30 years and loves her dearly, filling this trope. The servants respect her greatly.
• Secret-Keeper: She is aware of Nigar's affair with Ibrahim Pasha. Despite condemning it, she keeps the secret. However, she feels remorse over this when Hafsa releasing there puts her in a cattatonic status and kills her.
• Shipping Torpedo: Daye is disapproving of Nigar's affair with Ibrahim, due to her poor opinion on the latter.

Gülşah Hatun

Gülşah Hatun

(Played by Nihan Büyükağaç)
(Voiced by: Valeria Gómez [Latin American Spanish dub])
Mahidevran's main servant.

• Body Horror: After Ibrahim orders henchmen to stab Gülsah, her body is deeply wounded.
• He Knows Too Much:
  • After realizing about Ibrahim and Nigar's affair, Ibrahim has her stabbed in a way so horrific that Hürrem becomes sympathetic of her. While she got much better, the wounds were still evident enough to persuade Hatice that Ibrahim did cheat on her
  • Since she learns that Firuze was Suleyman's new lover, Nigar hides this and motivates Hürrem to get rid of her.
• The Killer Becomes the Killed: After repeatedly murdering people, she is killed by Nigar after the latter tricks her into attacking Hatice.
• Lady-In-Waiting: To Mahidevran. She takes her job very seriously. An estrangement with Mahidevran, knowledge about something against Ibrahim and a suggestion from Gul Aga motivates her to switch to Hürrem's side.
• Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: Being fully rejected by Mahidevran makes her join Hürrem since Gul Aga told her she never dumps her employees.
• Murder Is the Best Solution: Gülşah is always quick to jump to murder. This eventually becomes her undoing.
• Never Suicide: The girl who served Hürrem poisoned sweets is found having hanged herself in the cellars. Gülşah killed her and then staged her suicide as a cover-up.
• We Used to Be Friends: Mahidevran cuts her off after having enough of her murderous, reckless attitude.

Gül Ağa

Gül Ağa

(Played by Engin Günaydın)
(Voiced by: Hernán Palma [Latin American Spanish dub])
An ağa in the harem that operated in the Edirne palace before Hürrem suggests to bring him to the Topkapi palace. He appears in the premiere to clarify the concubines that men other than eunuchs are prohibited to enter the harem.

• Appeal to Flattery: He's such a sycophant.
• Butt-Monkey: Nothing ever goes well for him. His expulsion from the palace was humilliating.
• The Bus Came Back: His first appearance was in the first episode telling the new concubines about the prohibitions. He would appear in Season 2 as Hürrem's sidekick after Hürrem gets him in the Edirne palace.
• Camp Straight: He is somewhat feminine, although not to Sümbül's extent. He is attracted to Nigar Kalfa.
• Double Agent: Since Mahidevran forces him to spy Hürrem after pardoning him, he is forced to be a spy for both. His allegiances remain with Hürrem.
• Et Tu, Brute?: He is not happy after being exposed by his crush Nigar in an incriminatory conspiracy against Mahidevran.
• In Touch with His Feminine Side: Like the other eunuchs, Gül Ağa is feminine, but not evil, averting Eunuchs Are Evil. Gül Ağa takes the role of a Gay Best Friend to Hürrem more than anything else, although he's not actually gay.
• Long Bus Trip: Nothing is ever known or mentioned about Gul Aga after being expelled from the palace.
• Naked People Are Funny: Sümbül makes him leave the bathroom in Modesty Towels at one point.
• Put on a Bus to Hell: He is forced to leave the Topkapi palace after being exposed as an accesory to the incrimination to Mahidevran. After his absence, Hürrem moves to have Sümbül as her right hand.

Nilüfer Hatun

Nilüfer Hatun

(Played by Hayal Köseoğlu)

• Lady-In-Waiting: She is Hürrem's maid.

Fidan Hatun

• The Confidant: She becomes Mahidevran's most reliable maid and the person she discusses her ideas with.
• False Rape Accusation: Gul Aga and she plan to blackmail Sumbul into accusing him of being sexually abusive with her.
• Lady-In-Waiting: She is Mahidevran's key maid, especially in Seasons 3 and 4.
• Old Retainer: She ages with Mahidevran and is one of the people who stays with her after she is disgraced.

Afife Hatun

A transfer brought to lead the palace employees and to hold the treasure after Gülfem's resignation.

• Almighty Mom: She was like a second mother to Suleyman. Sümbül tells Hürrem that even Hafsa Sultan was scared of her.
• Bait-and-Switch Tyrant: She is first introduced as a stern woman who will punish strictly any wrongdoer and who will make Hürrem's life impossible, but was revealed as a much more honest women than the Sultanas.
• Convenient Replacement Character: After Daye stopped appearing in Season 2 due to Valide Sultan's death and her own suicide, she was brought to fulfill her role as the old supervisor of the harem. When she is announced to come, Sümbul calls her the Daye of Dayes.
• Hero Antagonist: When initially brought, she worked alongside Mahidevran and Hatice to sabotage Hürrem's romance with Süleyman, thus becoming an antagonist to Hürrem. However, she was decidedly honest and she condemned the two Sultanas for exposing an innocent girl to be a decoy. Eventually her relationship with Hürrem improves.
• Nice Girl: She may be willing to inflict harsh punishments to the servants, but she is still a honest, polite woman, and even when punishing servants, she is not unnecessarily cruel. She treats Hürrem with kindness despite not endorsing at all her intrigues and her homicidal attitude.
• Old Retainer: She worked for the imperial family before the series even began, being a secondary mother to Suleyman and his sisters.
• Parental Substitute: Hürrem sees her as a mother figure due to her kindness to her.
• Secret-Keeper: She hid Suleyman's having the gout. She discloses it to Hürrem before dying.
• Shipper on Deck: After seeing that Hürrem loves Suleyman that much, she warns Firuze that she cannot compete with that relationship and comments that while she does not excuse Hürrem's actions, she cannot help but show reverence for such love.
• Taking the Bullet: She receives the blow of stones directed to Hürrem.

Mercan Aga

• Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: In Season 4, another man takes the role of guardian and he is never mentioned anymore. It is unknown if Hürrem had him fired or killed.
• The Confidant: He is the sole person Sah could trust.
• Ignored Enamored Underling: It is implied he is somehow attracted to her boss Sah Sultan.
• Morality Pet: Sah Sultan has a soft spot for him, especially due to his loyalty to her.
• Only Friend: He is the only person that Sah trusts in and one of the few she has a healthy relationship with. They are obviously sad about going separate ways on the Season 3 finale.
• Perpetual Frowner: He is never seen smiling. This makes Sümbül annoyed of him.
• Undying Loyalty: He is fiercely loyal to Sah Sultan.

Süleyman’s Harem

Gülnihal Hatun

Gülnihal Hatun

(Played by Burcu Tuna)
(Voiced by: Constanza Faraggi [Latin American Spanish dub])
Born Maria, she is another Crimean girl kidnapped as a slave, and was sold to the harem alongside Hürrem.

• Arranged Marriage: She is married off after surviving her stabbing, so she stops appearing in the series since.
• Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Gülnihal's face is scarred by a poisoned fur sent by Hürrem. First awful boils, then rough scaring, which soon fades. Several episodes later, her face is healed and scarless, much to Hürrem's shock.
• Et Tu, Brute?: Due to unfair allegations of Backstabbing the Alpha Bitch, Hürrem poisons Gülnihal—her supposed best friend—to ruin her prospects, so Gülnihal's only possibility will be to be her servant. Gülnihal is horrified, as is everyone else.
• Hired to Hunt Yourself: After she is forced to have sex with Suleyman, Hürrem realizes Suleyman had sex with someone else but is unaware of who. So Hürrem forces her to search who was the concubine, not realizing it is Gulnihal.
• Lady-In-Waiting: She's Hürrem's personal servant, which mostly involves taking care of her children.
• Long Bus Trip: At the end of the first season, after surviving a stabbing, Gülnihal is sent to another palace to recover, and a comment by Gulsah reveals she was placed in an arranged marriage. Gülnihal never appears since.
• Turn the Other Cheek: She forgives her treacherous friend Hürrem for attempting to damage her face and even when justifiably angry at her, she remains loyal to her. Hürrem thanks her for that.

Nazenin Hatun

Nazenin Hatun

Raziye’s mother.

• Age-Gap Romance: She’s implied to be in her late teens or early twenties, and Süleyman is middle-aged.
• Disney Villain Death: She dies in an ‘accident’ involving detaching balcony rails.
• A Deadly Affair: She has an affair with Süleyman and ends up dead.

Ayse Hatun

Suleyman’s concubine.

• Romantic False Lead: She is Hürrem Sultan’s rival. She is eventually killed by Sadika. Due to being Hürrem’s rival, Hürrem had a motive to kill her, helping her be Mistaken for Murderer.

Mustafa’s Harem

Efsun Hatun

Mustafa’s lover.

• Death by Childbirth: Well, death by abortion really.
• Forced Miscarriage: Because she is Hürrem’s maid, as well as the law saying sehzades without provinces must have no children, she has to abort her child. She doesn’t survive.
• First Love: She is Mustafa’s first romantic partner.
• Secret Relationship: She is Hürrem’s maid, so Hürrem cannot know she is in a relationship with Mustafa, as well as the fact he cannot have a relationship due to not having a province,

Rumeysa Hatun

• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She’s not nearly as nice as she wants you to believe.
• Meaningful Rename: Fidan renames her Rumeysa so she has an Ottoman name. She is the Lucrezia Gabriella is searching.
• I Choose to Stay: Her sister's Gabriella's efforts to recover her are rendered null when it is she who decides to stay within Sehzade Mustafa's harem
• Imperiled in Pregnancy: She was pregnant when she blocks an arrow from an assassination attempt against Mustafa. She and her baby don't survive.
• Taking the Bullet: When an archer attempts to aim at Mustafa, she takes the bullet in his stead. She and the baby she was carrying do not survive.
• Took a Level in Kindness: She becomes a lot more caring in Season 4.

Fatma Hatun

• Jerkass: She burned Hurrem’s face.

• Driven to Suicide: She commits suicide after her son dies.

• Outliving One's Offspring: She outlives her son, but not for long as she kills herself soon after.

• Kick the Dog: She burned Hurrem’s face.

Harems of the other Sehzades

Defne Hatun

Sehzade Bayezid's concubine and lover.

• Better to Die than Be Killed: She and her son Mehmet drink a lethal poison so they aren't executed after Bayezid dies.
• Big Sister Instinct: She is protective of her daughter to the point that she poisoned Bayezid under duress.
• Cyanide Pill: She and her son drink a poison to die together and to avoid being executed by the guards.
• Mama Bear: When Nurbanu and the Guards attempt to go after her son Mehmet, she threatens them with a knife and refuses to surrender him.
• Together in Death: She reunites with Bayezid after she drinks a poison.

Rana Hatun

The mother of most of Bayezid’s children.

• Mistaken for Murderer: She is blamed for murdering Huricihan out of jealousy. The real murderer, however, is Nurbanu.
• Good Parents: She is a loving mother to her children.

Nurbahar Hatun

Sehzade Mehmet’s concubine.

• Forced Miscarriage: Because Mehmet doesn’t have a province, she is forced to have an abortion.
• Put on a Bus to Hell: She is banished from the palace.

Dilsah Hatun

• Romantic False Lead: She is an obstacle for Nurbanu in her love for Selim.

• Kick the Dog: A more literal example than most when she kills Nurbanu’s dog.