Suleiman the Magnificent — Christopher de Bellaigue

De Bellaigue examines Suleiman's reign — the longest and in many respects the most consequential of the Ottoman sultans — as a study in the relationship between political power and cultural achievement. The book traces the sultan's military campaigns into Europe, the legal codification for which he was known in the Ottoman world, and the personal relationships — with Ibrahim Pasha, with Roxelana — that shaped and ultimately undermined his court.