| “ | I will use a different knife for your ears. It's curved, easier to slice with. They'll be on a single chain as they deserve. | „ |
| ~ The Sultan to attempting to kill Catherine; also his last words. |
The Sultan is a supporting antagonist in Season 2 of The Great. He is the sultan of the Ottoman Empire and a frequent enemy of Empress Catherine the Great.
He was portrayed by Billy Postlethwaite.
Biography[]
The Sultan is the son of his predecessor as leader of the Ottomans. He originally had many brothers, but he was forced to kill all of them to gain the throne, something he feels great remorse for. This evidently left him mentally damaged as, despite his remorse for his previous actions, he developed into a sadist. The Sultan is infamous among Russians for killing people and cutting off their ears which he wears on a chain around his neck.
At the start of season 2, the Ottomans under his command invade Russia and attempt to annexe it. This angers General Velementov who calls for war with the Sultan, but Empress Catherine decides to negotiate instead. She almost manages to reach a peaceful solution early in the season when the Sultan's ambassador is won over by her charisma, but supporters of Peter III murder him and send his headless corpse back to the Sultan, angering him further.
Catherine's attempts to win the Sultan over have seemingly succeeded by the episode "Five Days", when he sends her some candles as a gift. However, the candles turn out to be poisoned and release toxic fumes that kill Catherine's maid. This angers Catherine enough to agree to a war with the Ottomans. Velementov's inability to defeat them leads to her deciding to negotiate again.
The season finale "Wedding" sees Catherine and the Sultan finally meet face-to-face. The Sultan is brought to the verge of tears when Catherine reminds him of how he was forced to kill his brothers, a story which he claims proves that he will win. Despite this it seems as though the negotiations will be successful, as the Sultan produces a map and shows her the areas that he wishes to control. However, as Catherine outlines her own proposals she sees the Sultan staring at her ears and calls for her bodyguard Alex, who is shot dead by the Sultan's own guard.
The Sultan produces a knife and stabs Catherine through the hand, pinning her to the table. He then brags that he plans to use a second knife to cut off her ears, which he will wear on a separate chain to the others due to his admiration of her beauty. Catherine pulls out the knife with her other hand and stabs the Sultan in the neck, killing him. His bodyguard then takes aim, but is shot by Peter's aunt Elizabeth who asks what happened. Catherine responds "He looked at my ears".
Trivia[]
- Though much of the series is only loosely based on history, it is possible that this Sultan is based on Abdul Hamid I as Abdul Hamid I was ruler when the Ottomans lost the Russo-Turkish War during Catherine the Great's reign. However, much of the Sultan's depiction in The Great does not reflect history.
- Catherine the Great never killed a Sultan.
- Abdul Hamid I did not kill any siblings, though he was imprisoned by them due to him being heir to the Ottoman throne.
- The specific year of the episode's setting is not officially stated.
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 villains
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Peter III of Russia | Lady Antonia Svenska | Lady Georgina Dymov | Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp | Simitz | The Sultan | ||