Mahidevran Hatun

Mahidevran Hatun (; – 3 February 1581) also known as Gülbahar Hatun, (, meaning "spring rose"), was a concubine of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent of the Ottoman Empire and the mother of Şehzade Mustafa.

== Title and status == Mahidevran was the mother of Şehzade Mustafa, the eldest surviving son of the reigning Sultan. She held a prominent position in the harem of her son in Manisa. While Hürrem Sultan became Suleiman's favorite and legal wife, Mahidevran retained the status of the mother of Suleiman's eldest son, and was referred to as Suleiman's "first wife" by some diplomats, despite the fact that they were never married. Until Hürrem was given the title of "Sultan" and later "Haseki Sultan", a new title created for her, all consorts had the simple courtesy title of "Hatun", meaning "lady, woman". Therefore Mahidevran never had the title of Sultana in the hierarchy of the harem and she was called simply "Mahidevran Hatun", although she commanded respect as the mother of the eldest son. Nonetheless, in historical fiction she is often mistakenly given the title Sultan. Furthermore, she is sometimes erroneously titled as Baş Kadın, however this title didn't exist in sixteenth century.