Mehisti Hanım (, "''moon's presence''" or "''moon's desire''"; born Atiye Akalsba and called also Mehisti Kadın; 27 January 1892 – 1964) was the fourth consort of

Abdulmejid II ʻAbd al-Majīd (ALA-LC romanization of , ), also spelled as Abd ul Majid, Abd ul-Majid, Abd ol Majid, Abd ol-Majid, and Abdolmajid, is a Muslim male given name and, in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-Maj ...

, the last Caliph of the

Ottoman Caliphate The Ottoman Caliphate () was the claim of the heads of the Turkish Ottoman dynasty, rulers of the Ottoman Empire, to be the caliphs of Islam during the Late Middle Ages, late medieval and Early Modern period, early modern era. Ottoman rulers ...

Early life

Mehisti Hanım was born in 1892 in

Adapazarı Adapazarı () is a municipality and the capital Districts of Turkey, district of Sakarya Province, Turkey. Its area is 324 km2, and its population 281,489 (2022). It covers the central and northern part of the agglomeration of Adapazarı and t ...

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. Born as Atiye Akalsba, she was member of the Abkhazian noble family Akalsba. Her father was Hacımaf Bey Efendi Akalsba and her mother was Safiye Hanım. She had one brother, Fazıl Bey Akalsba, and two sisters, Mihridil Hanım Akalsba, and Mihrivefa Hanım Akalsba. In 1895, at aged three, her father entrusted her to the

Yıldız Palace Yıldız Palace (, ) is a vast complex of former imperial Ottoman Empire, Ottoman pavilions and villas in Beşiktaş, Istanbul, Turkey, built in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was used as a residence by the List of sultans of the Ottoman ...

's imperial harem with her sisters. Here her name according to the custom of the

Ottoman court Ottoman court was the culture that evolved around the court of the Ottoman Empire. Ottoman court was held at the Topkapı Palace in Constantinople where the sultan was served by an army of pages and scholars. Some served in the treasury and th ...

was changed to Mehisti. She was then sent to the court of Şehzade Abdulmejid. She had blue eyes and long brown hair.

Marriage

Mehisti married Abdulmejid on 16 April 1912 in the Bağlarbaşı Palace, as his third consort. Hatice Hayriye Ayşe Dürrüşehvar Sultan, the couple's only daughter, was born in the Çamlıca Palace,

Çamlıca Hill Çamlıca Hill () (), aka Big Çamlıca Hill () to differentiate it from the nearby Little Çamlıca Hill (), is a hill in the Üsküdar district of the Asian side of Istanbul, Turkey. At above sea level, Çamlıca Hill offers a panoramic view o ...

, Çamlıca, on 26 January 1914. At the exile of the imperial family in March 1924, she followed her husband and the other members of his entourage. They moved firstly to

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

and then to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

where they settled in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. During exile, her daughter, Dürrüşehvar married Prince Azam Jah, the eldest son and heir of the last

Nizam Nizam of Hyderabad was the title of the ruler of Hyderabad State ( part of the Indian state of Telangana, and the Kalyana-Karnataka region of Karnataka). ''Nizam'' is a shortened form of (; ), and was the title bestowed upon Asaf Jah I ...

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

Osman Ali Khan, Asif Jah VII Mir Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII (5 or 6 April 1886 – 24 February 1967) was the last Nizam (ruler) of Hyderabad State, the largest state in the erstwhile Indian Empire. He ascended the throne on 29 August 1911, at the age of 25 and rule ...

, at

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionNilüfer Hanımsultan, cousin of Dürrüşehvar, and Moazzam Jah, brother of Azam. Dürrüşehvar went to live in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. After her marriage, Dürrüşehvar took Mehisti with her. But, when the family traveled from India to Europe, and came to France, she and her daughter would stay with Abdulmejid. Neslişah notes that before Dürrüşehvar's marriage Mehisti was allowed to eat in the second sitting, along with Abdulmejid's second consort Hayrünnisa Hanım, the fourth consort Bihruz Hanım, the secretaries Behruze and Ofelya and other Kalfas. However, after her marriage, Mehisti's position changed, and she was allowed to eat at the first sitting. Abdulmejid was interested in

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

. At times, he would perform with his wives, and the Kalfas. He would be at the piano,

Şehsuvar Hanım Şehsuvar Hanım (; 2 May 1881 – 1945; meaning "intrepid heroine"), called also Şehsuvar Kadın, was the first consort of Abdulmejid II, the last Caliph of the Ottoman Caliphate. Life Of Turkish and Ubykh people, Ubykh origin, Şehsuvar Han� ...

and Mehisti would play the violin, and Hayrünnisa Hanım the cello.

Death

After Abdulmejid's death in 1944, Mehisti settled in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. She died in 1964, and was buried in

Brookwood Cemetery Brookwood Cemetery, also known as the London Necropolis, is a burial ground in Brookwood, Surrey, England. It is the largest cemetery in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in Europe. The cemetery is listed a Grade I site in the Regist ...

. After Dürrüşehvar's death in 2006, she was buried beside her.

Issue

References

Sources