Payitaht: Abdülhamid

Payitaht: Abdülhamid, named The Last Emperor in English, is a Turkish historical television drama series starring Bülent İnal and Özlem Conker depicting historical events during the reign of the 34th Ottoman Sultan, Abdul Hamid II.[1][2]

Payitaht: Abdülhamid
Also known as	The Last Emperor
Written by	Osman Bodur Uğur Uzunok Ali Al Suleiman
Directed by	Serdar Akar Doğan Ümit Karaca
Starring	Bülent İnal Özlem Conker
Country of origin	Turkey
Original language(s)	Turkish
No. of seasons	4
No. of episodes	119
Production
Producer(s)	ES Film
Production location(s)	Turkey
Running time	150 min.
Release
Original network	TRT 1 TRT HD
Picture format	576i (16:9 SDTV ) 1080i ( HDTV )
Audio format	Stereo
Original release	24 February 2017 – present
External links
Website

Alex Ritman and Mia Galuppo of The Hollywood Reporter described it as a "follow-up" to the previous television series Filinta.[3]

Plot

The series follows important events that marked the last 13 years of the reign of Sultan Abdülhamid. It includes a war that resulted in the victory of the Ottoman Empire, the Greek War. It also shows the request for lands from Palestine and 1st Zionist Congress. Another important project that the Sultan succeeded is the work of Hejaz railway. The main theme of the series is struggle and fight till the end.

Season 1

The series starts during the 20th year of the sultan's reign. They are planning a big project, the Hejaz railway. However, the Sultan's brother-in-law, Mahmut Paşa, the Brits, and Theodore Herzl are trying to sabotage this project. In the harem, on the other hand, a strong rivalry between Bidar Sultan and Seniha Sultan extends to their family; Mahmut Paşa, Seniha Sultan's husband, piles slander upon slander on Mehmet Paşa, Bidar Sultan's brother, eventually getting him exiled. Abdülkadir, the sultan's son, is consistently manipulated by Mahmut Paşa and his son Sabahattin, and while trying to ruin their game gets himself into a deeper mess, getting stuck in a burning room with his mother at the end of the season. Also in the last episode of the season is the Ottoman Empire declaring war on Greece.

Season 2

The new century begins. Sultan Abdülhamid changed the fortune of the Ottoman, who had not been victorious in the last two centuries, and won the Greek War. The war that ended at the front continues at the table now. Parvus, the vizier of the Global Monarchy, pretends to be an engineer and gets into the palace. The sultan is preparing the state for a great war with his development moves and launches the oil move that starts wars for the new century after the railway move. While Parvus is struggling to end Payitaht with agents spread all over Istanbul under the leadership of Marco, his right-hand man, Sultan Abdülhamid's extraordinary and successful nephew, Murad, fights with his team at the expense of their lives. Sultan Abdülhamid is unaware of the storms in his harem while fighting to protect Payitaht. Entering to avenge the her mother, who was fired from the palace, Firuze helps the enemies in their war against the Ottoman Family. She causes all the balances to turn upside down between Bidar Sultan and Seniha Sultan. At the end of the season, Bidar Sultan, who left the palace, has an accident and her carriage falls down a cliff, severely injuring her. Parvus, although in a cage, makes a plan to kill the entire palace; using a man named Crowly, he gets poison gas into the palace and poisons everyone during a ceremony.

Season 3

In the palace, the wounds of the last serious incident are tried to be healed, and the death of Fehim Paşa is mourned. Sultan Abdülhamid ensured Parvus was thrown into the dungeon in England. The partner of this plan, Crowly, is found where he is hiding in Egypt and punished. Fuat Efendi, the son of a former Khedive of Egypt, comes to Payitaht. Bidar Sultan cannot forget what has happened to her. Moreover, she cannot make anyone believe what he remembers about her accident, which is that it was deliberate and that she was kidnapped and taken to someone's house; everyone just calls it nightmares. Meanwhile, Shivenaz comes to the palace and makes problems in harem. The Young Turks become a true organization when Sabahattin goes to Paris and becomes a leader. Sultan Abdülhamid sends Zühtü Paşa, who everyone thinks is a traitor, to Paris as a spy. However, when he gets information that one of the Paşas actually is a spy, he calls the head of intelligence, Ahmet Celalettin Paşa, to find the traitor. At the end of the season, the Young Turks start a revolution and attack the palace. Tahsin Paşa, Mahmut Paşa, and Ahmet Paşa all get shot and the sultan and his family are stuck inside the burning palace.

Season 4

The revolution was suppressed and the fire in the palace was extinguished. However, its consequences and destruction continue. Sultan Abdülhamid makes veladet-i humayun celebrations to show that the Ottoman Empire was not destroyed and cannot be destroyed easily. The news of victory from Payitaht brings together the adversaries of Abdulhamid once again. They bring Bay Zalman to Payitaht. Cemile Sultan, who came to Payitaht for Veladet-i humayun celebrations, manages to disturb everyone in harem. While Bidar Sultan and Seniha Sultan think that she will go in a few days, she decides to stay when Abdulhamid commissions Mehmet, her son, in the palace. Even though Bidar Sultan tries to be patient in this situation, Seniha Sultan cannot bear the domination of Cemile Sultan any more and leaves the palace. They defeat Zalman eventually, so the Brits send their next enemy as an ambassador; he is quickly defeated as well. However, one of his men arranges an assassination for the sultan and shoots at him with a sniper.

Characters

Character	Played by	Appearance in Episodes	Description
Sultan Abdülhamid II	Bülent İnal	1-	Sultan Abdülhamid is the titular character, played by Bülent İnal. He is the last Sultan to hold executive powers in Ottoman Empire. Sultan Abdülhamid is a seasoned politician and statesman. He is trying to preserve the Empire from external as well as internal threats. He survives many assassination attempts. Sultan is a devout Muslim who wants to modernize and industrialize the empire while retaining Islamic and cultural values. His dream project is Hejaz railway to connect Muslim world from Sarajevo to Baghdad to the Holiest sites in Islam. He is shown to be the de facto head of the secret police and intelligence services of the Empire.
Tahsin Paşa	Bahadır Yenişehirlioğlu	1-	The head of chamberlains and First Secretary of the palace. He is the most loyal person and the right-hand man of the Sultan and Sultan trusts him with his life. He is always present with the Sultan. For him, the state means the Sultan. He has been working for the state since he was 13 years old. Although he did not like either at first, he becomes friends with Mahmut Paşa and Ahmet Celalettin Paşa. Is logical and clear-headed, not fooled very easily.
Bidar Kadın	Özlem Conker	1-	Wife of Sultan Abdülhamid II, the empress and matriarch of the palace. Intelligent and not easy to fool, she is the mother of Prince Abdülkadir and Naime Sultan. Often argues with Seniha Sultan.
Fatma Pesend Hanım	Zeynep Özder	4-17	Sultan Abdülhamid's second wife, is pregnant.
Seniha Sultan	Selen Öztürk	1-89	Sultan Abdülhamid's sister and wife of Mahmut Pasha. She loves her brother and always wants him out of the harm's way. She is smart and cunning. She stands out with her ambitious and brave personality. She depends on the traditions and rules of the state. Has a rivalry with Bidar Kadın. Although she likes Sultan Abdülhamid very much, the continuation of the Ottoman Dynasty is more important to her. Doesn't appear in the fourth season after the first episode.
Theodor Herzl	Saygın Soysal	1-44	The main antagonist of the first season. Herzl is an Austro-Hungarian Zionist. He wants to establish a Zionist state in Palestine and tries to convince the Sultan. He repeatedly publishes fake news against Sultan Abdülhamid II to defame him and the Ottoman Empire. His death is spoken of but not shown.
Mahmut Paşa	Hakan Boyav	1-	Brother-in-law of Sultan and husband of Seniha Sultan. He is a paşa. He is one of the antagonists for the first season and the beginning of the second season. He is greedy and treacherous, always ready to switch sides. He is main conspirator of several assassination attempts on Sultan and tries to sabotage the Hejaz Railway project. He is also the best comic relief character. Mahmut Pasha reforms after helping the Sultan find the killer of Sultan Abdülaziz, and becomes a trustworthy and clever pasha whose former ties with traitors comes in handy.
Şehzade Mehmed Abdülkadir	Can Sipahi	1-119	Son of Sultan Abdülhamid and Bidar Kadın. He is arrogant, pampered by his mother and spoiled by his uncle Mahmut Paşa who wants to use him as a pawn. He causes trouble for the Sultan and exhibits a lot of personal and ideological differences with his father. He often reads the opposition’s newspapers. His best friend is his cousin Sebahattin, who repeatedly tricks him into making many mistakes.
Naime Sultan	Duygu Gürcan	1-	Sultan Abdülhamid and Bidar Kadın's favorite daughter. Very naïve; in love with Kemalettin Paşa but goes after revenge after finding out his affair with Hatice Sultan. Was close friends with Şivenaz and was shocked by her betrayal.
Sultanzade Sabahaddin	Kaan Turgut	1-	Son of Seniha Sultan and Mahmut Paşa. He is a leader of the Young Turks. He is cunning like his father and acts as his right-hand man in manipulating Prince Abdülkadir. There is nothing he won’t do for independence. He is ideologically more rabid than his father. Is a traitor and flees the Empire. Collaborates with Armenian gangs, Rothschild, and Zalman to bring trouble to Sultan Abdülhamid. Uses his father’s weakness against him to his benefit multiple times.
Kolağası Celal	Umut Kurt	1-9	Excellent marksman and loyal soldier of the Sultan. He is an officer in sultan's secret police. Close friends with Ömer, Yusuf, and Kemalettin Paşa. In love with Naime Sultan; is shot while transporting weapons.
Melike (Ahsen)	Ezgi Eyüboğlu	1-39	A beautiful girl from Balkans who loses her memory in an accident during the chaos of an assassination attempt on the Sultan. Intelligent, with a big heart and good intentions. She becomes a royal guest after losing her memory and becomes a love interest for Prince Abdülkadir, who runs into trouble with rival Ömer. It is later found out that Sara Hedaya sent her to the palace to kill Sultan Abdülhamid; however, she sees that the Sultan is not a bad person and finds out that he was not the person who killed her father. Gets involved with many spy missions with Murat Efendi and Söğütlü Osman, finally getting engaged to Murat. Is shot by Vladimir while shopping for a wedding dress.
Ömer	Akın Akınözü	1-17	Brave, dashing and fearless cabby, he is a commoner. He saves the Sultan during the assassination attempt and becomes a favorite young admirer of sultan. Becomes closely tied with the palace and is allowed into the secret room after saving the Sultan. His best friends are Yusuf and Celal, who works in Secret Police. He is romantically interested in Ahsen which causes him to get in trouble with Prince Abdülkadir. Shoots himself in order not to betray his state.
Yusuf	İbrahim Kendirci	1-27	He was born and raised on the same street as Ömer. When Yusuf lost his family at 13, he moved with Ömer's family. Together with Ömer, he is sworn to fight. Although he used to lose his money cockfighting, starts earning his money in honest ways after Ömer’s death. Is shot and killed by Vladimir.
Kemalettin Paşa	Eren Hacısalihoğlu	1-54	Son of Gazi Osman Paşa, one of Abdülhamid's most trusted men. Was very close friends with Celal and was devastated when he died. Fell in love with Hatice Sultan but married to Naime Sultan, still continuing his relationship with Hatice Sultan. When exposed, he was divorced and exiled to Bursa.
Fehime Sultan	Elif Özkul	1-51	Ottoman Sultan Murad V's second daughter. Abdülhamid treats her like his own daughter, although she is forbidden to meet her father.
Hatice Sultan	Gözde Kaya	1-54	Sultan Murad V's eldest daughter. Doesn’t like her uncle, wanting revenge for her dad being taken off the throne.
Hiram	Berkan Şal	1-18	An Armenian priest sent by Vatican but he is more than a pastor. He is an atheist professional assassin. He is known to commits his first murder at the age of four. He attempted to assassinate Sultan Abdülhamid but he fails. Sultan Abdülhamid confronts him in prison with some emotional details about his past, after which he becomes a double agent for him.
Samir	Emre Kentmenoğlu	1-9	Brother of Melike. He is a journalist by profession who believes in violent revenge for the death of his father who is believed to be killed during a rebellion against the Empire in the Balkans. He too wants to kill the Sultan. However, he learns the truth about his dad and has Ahsen write his apology in a notebook after being shot by Hiram.
Sara Hedeya	Elena Viunova	1-17	Assistant and personal secretory of Herzl. She is a hardcore Zionist herself. Killed by Parvus's man.
Emanuel Karasu	Ali Nuri Türkoğlu	2-	He is a well-known member of Young Turks. He is a member of a well-known merchant family of Zionists who plots to overthrow the Empire. He is the pioneer of Freemasonry activities in the Ottoman State.
Söğutlü Osman	Yusuf Aytekin	2-	Becomes a soldier after his brother, a soldier, was martyred in an assassination attempt on the Sultan. Was given the job of staying with Ömer and became close friends with him and Yusuf. After the death of Ömer, he began to work as a spy with Murat Efendi and then Fehim Paşa. Starts working with Halil Halid after being sent to get him from Egypt.
Aleksandr İsrail Parvus	Kevork Malikyan	18-54	A rich Zionist who funds various anti-Ottoman factions. Killed Melike and Samir’s dad Efraim Efendi and framed the Sultan for it. The main antagonist of the second season. Sent to British prisons.
Murat Efendi (Meyyit Efendi)	Volkan Keskin	18-54	Sultan Abdülhamid’s nephew, as his mother and Sultan Abdülhamid were milk siblings, and one of his most trusted spies, along with Söğütlü Osman. Falls in love with Ahsen and eventually proposes to her. However, while Ahsen is shopping for a wedding dress, she gets shot by Vladimir, Parvus’s man. Murat kills the wrong person in trying to take revenge and was supposed to be executed; however, he did not die thanks to Sultan Abdülhamid, who gave him the name Meyyit Efendi. Worked with Fehim Paşa for the rest of the season.
Şehzade Mehmed Selim	İlker Kızmaz	43-88	Son of Sultan Abdülhamid and Bedrifelek Kadın. Very sensible and loyal to his fathers ideology. Falls in love with Zeynep Nurse and is with her when she dies. Returns to Paris after season three.
Edmond Rothschild	Suavi Eren	55-89	Edmund Rothschild, born in France in 1845, is a member of the Rothschild Banking family; he is a very rich Zionist Jew. An extremely intelligent, cunning, and cold-blooded character, he is an identity that worships money and power like all Rothschilds, sees the world as its own playground, and believes that everything exists to serve him. His biggest goal is to destroy the Ottoman Empire. Is openly enemies with Sultan Abdülhamid, although he has sent many traitors into the palace.
Shivenaz (Lila)	Başak Daşman	55-88	Rothschild's daughter. Clever, cunning, and manipulative. Her biggest dream is to get the holy lands of her belief back from the Ottomans. By coming to payitaht, she turns everything in the palace upside down. Is also Fuat Efendi's fiancée. Pretends to reform and convert to Islam after being arrested, but is really trying to kill Bidar Sultan. Shot and killed by Prince Abdülkadir.
Fuat Efendi	Hakan Yufkacıgil	55-81	Works with Rothschild and Shivenaz. Inherited his hate of the Sultan from his father, who was Khedive of Egypt. His biggest purpose is to get rid of Sultan Abdülhamid and his family. Is in love with Shivenaz, although they never get married. Is shot in the neck and killed by Ahmet Celalettin Paşa.
Zeynep Nurse	Sedef Avci	55-82	A nurse who crosses paths with Bidar Sultan. Is a traitor and works for Shivenaz. Although Mehmet Selim falls in love with her, she is in love with Halil Halid. Is shot and killed by Shivenaz's men before telling who the traitor is.
Arminius Vambery	Güven Kıraç	55-88	Sultan Abdülhamid’s old friend. He is a dynamic, cunning, intelligent, and political man who knows how to act. In addition to being an international spy for Sultan Abdülhamid, Uncle Vambery is a close friend to Abdülkadir and Naime since their childhood. Though he has a strong will, he loves money and power, causing him to become a traitor and work with Fuat Efendi and Rothschild.
Halil Halid	Gürkan Uygun	55-119	He is the one of the most trustworthy and efficient spies of Sultan. He is seen carrying out missions throughout the Empire as well as behind enemy lines like in Tsarist Russia. He is known as "Dayı" or Uncle, and commands a small group of men, including Söğütlü Osman, Tatar, Nadir Bey, and Asaf Emre, who accompany him on different missions.
Ahmet Celalettin Paşa	Cem Uçan	75-	The head of spies (Serhafiye) for Sultan Abdülhamid. Was underground for 10 years due to his harsh tactics, but was summoned to find the pasha collaborating with the Young Turks. The journals from all over the world pass by him and are presented to the Sultan; only what he thinks is important is followed. Few people have achieved his might within the state and all the statesmen are afraid of him. He is like a wall next to Abdülhamid and fights against those who are hostile to the state.
Cemile Sultan	Devrim Yakut	89-111	Sister of Sultan Abdulhamid II. Is grieving over her husband Mahmud Celaleddin Pasha, who was known to have a finger in the assassination of Sultan Abdülaziz. They did not divorce despite his death sentence from exile. She is authoritarian, intolerant, and a sultan who shakes everyone in the harem, even causing Seniha Sultan to leave.
Zalman David Levontin	Sermet Yeşil	89-112	He is an expert in war tactics. Had participated in all the wars of the past 30 years. His main goal is to start a big world war. Goes to payitaht to fight as a Jewish Zionist for the first time. Is killed by Selim Paşa.

Controversy

According to staff members of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, the series allegedly promotes an antidemocratic, antisemitic and conspiratorial worldview. A free press, secularism and democracy are the work of foreign powers, religious minorities and godless liberals, and ultimately serve to erode national identity, honor and security. Of all the series’ villains, none are more sinister than the Jews."[4] However, the show also goes on to depict the Jews as people of innocence while marking a contrast between Judaism and Zionism. This is shown by the saving of Jews by Sultan AbdulHamid II that fled Russia due to discrimination and wide-spread abuse.

Ritman and Galuppo stated that the television series portrays Abdulhamid "as a noble leader forced to do what he must to protect the Ottoman Empire", at odds with the negative reputation in the West for allowing the Hamidian massacres.[3] However, according to respectable Islamic Scholars and a variety of historians (even non muslim) Abdulhamid II was one of the most effective rulers of the Ottoman State and as one historian (prefers to stay anonymous) puts it, "The controversy surrounding this show is ridiculous. While the West portrays even corrupt and evil men in the media as heroes, it is unfair to surround illogical and non-historical controversy to a noble show. The Last Emperor is a story of a true hero - maybe us, (the West - British, Europeans) didn't like him, and maybe we don't want to admit he was a hero to his people, but he was." Additonally, many people have claimed that Ritman and Galuppo take the West's side in every conflict. Abdulhamid II's life was in danger from Armenian rebels, and the Armenian massacre death toll was undoubtedly an exaggeration by the victors of the First Balkan Wars and World War I, to many.

Theodor Herzl, the liberal founder of modern Zionism is one of the villains of the series who is portrayed as a man so perfidious as to hold his penniless father prisoner without his mother's knowledge because of alleged ideological differences. The show depicts him at the First Zionist Congress, portrayed in such a way as to evoke the Elders of Zion, planning to create a Jewish state spanning from the Nile to Euphrates,[4] which is a popular anti-Semitic conspiracy theory. However, recent claims by Zionists in Israel have proved that some Jews do indeed want a larger state. Meanwhile, the coin-flipper for the Sultan is portrayed as a secret Vatican agent allegedly working on behalf of Herzl,[4] even though the Vatican allegedly opposed the establishment of Israel. The Washington Times noted that this portrayal was "revisionist in the extreme" even though the show reports itself to be "inspired by real historical events," but this is often considered Western sensitivity to anything against them.[4] However, many local gazettes in Turkey and abroad reported that the show "showed history in a way where the true Zionists were exposed, and how Abdulhamid was trying to save Palestine and the Jews from bloodshed and the death of countless men, women, and children, and an unending conflict."

The show has been seen by most people a challenge to the West's notion to being the only "civilized" civilization of the early 20th century. Many have said that this show is a true portrayal of the West and is the usual European propaganda in the media. The West, according to many sources, did conduct manhunts in Africa and did oppress almost the entire world through their colonies. However,the alleged "anti-Westernism" present in the show's message has also been remarked upon,[4] as the production portrays "Zionist conspiracies" as melding together with the nefarious plots of the Catholic Church, Freemasonry, Britain as well as other Western powers, and the Young Turks into "one overarching scheme".[4] The Vatican emissary is named "Hiram", a name that is associated with Freemasonry.[4]

Reception

Political endorsements in Turkey

The Washington Post noted that various actors in Turkey's political scene seemed to explicitly endorse the messages present in the show.[4]

In Turkey, the show has met the approval of a descendant of Abdulhamid, who said "history repeats itself … these meddling foreigners now call our president a dictator, just as they used to call Abdulhamid the ‘Red Sultan’".[4][5]

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan praised the show's portrayals just two days before a referendum,[4] saying "the same schemes are carried out today in the exact same manner … What the West does to us is the same; just the era and actors are different".[4][6] Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus lauded the show for "shedding light" on Sultan Abdulhamid's life in "an objective manner", and gave a personal visit to the set.[4][7] Aykan Erdemir and Oren Kessler, writing for the Washington Times, noted that Sultan Abdulhamid frequently used the same Koranic-inspired catchphrases as President Erdogan, notably including "If they have a plan, God too has a plan!".[4]

The Balkans

Although Turkish soap operas are wildly popular in the Balkans, Payitaht: Abdülhamid has caused some controversy in places such as Kosovo due to its message and historical revisionism.[8]

See also

• Other productions by Eastern Sunrise Films:
  • Filinta
  • The Ottoman Lieutenant
  • İsimsizler
• List of Islam-related films

References

1. "Payitaht "Abdülhamid" cuma günü başlıyor" (in Turkish). Haberturk. 18 February 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
2. "Sultan Abdülhamid's era depicted in new TV series". Daily Sabah. Anadolu Agency. 11 January 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
3. Ritman, Alex; Mia Galuppo (2017-04-21). "'The Promise' vs. 'The Ottoman Lieutenant': Two Movies Battle Over the Armenian Genocide". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2019-05-15.
4. Aykan Erdemir and Oren Kessler (15 May 2017). "A Turkish TV blockbuster reveals Erdogan's conspiratorial, anti-semitic worldview". The Washington Post. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
5. "Şehzade Orhan Osmanoğlu: O benim dedem değil!". Turkiye Haber Merkezi. 29 March 2017. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
6. "Erdogan degerlendirdi: Dirilis mi, Payitaht mi?". Yeni Akit. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
7. "Numan Kurtulmuş, Payitaht Abdülhamid setinde". Sabah. February 15, 2017. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
8. "Turkish Series About Sultan Causes Concern in Kosovo". Balkan Insight. March 9, 2018. Retrieved April 3, 2018.

External links

• Payitaht: Abdülhamid - Eastern Sunrise Films