26 honored by the glory of islam
the Janissaries’ and sipahis’ oath of allegiance, demanding that they come to
the palace for the enthronement.^3
The rebellious men proceeded past Hagia Sophia to the gates of TopkapıPalace. They entered the Imperial Gate and passed through the usually crowded
fi rst courtyard, to which all subjects had access. They passed a hospital, a depot
for fi rewood, the imperial armory, the mint, a bakery, the sixth-century Byz-
antine church Hagia Irene, a pavilion for collecting petitions to the sultan for
FIGURE 1.1. Mehmed IV’s fi rst regent, Kösem Sultan. Anonymous, “Valide
Sultan/la Maore Regina,” Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Preußischer Kulturbe-
sitz, Kunstbibliothek, Lipperheide OZ 52, 68. Reproduced with permission.