8-4 The aga's test

Irem is called away before I can learn much more about Ahmed, but what she has told me may be useful. When I mention to Anna that there are two Hungarian girls in one of the other dormitories she is eager to meet them. We don't have time to go looking for them now, but I promise Anna that we will do so tomorrow. In the meantime I prepare myself for tomorrow's lessons. I'm pleased with the progress made today, and with most of the girls' mental adjustment to their new surroundings. Şenay, the Polish girl, is the only girl whose mental state causes me some concern. At the other extreme, Anna's acceptance of her circumstances is a big surprise to me. I had expected rebellion and instead she seems to enjoy the prospect of harem life. Of course, given the ingenuity of her previous escape attempts, her behaviour now could all be a ruse.

Araj Aga makes an inspection of his six charges before bedtime. I don't know why he feels it necessary to do so, and it makes each girl nervous when he stands so close to them. Unfortunately the girl's nervousness seems to please him and I suspect that is why he is making such a thorough inspection. He finishes his inspection by walking over to me. He tries to intimidate me by standing very close, but he backs off when I show no reaction. Having endured Gülsah's intimidation in Constantinople, I'm not naïve to such tricks.

"How well are these slaves progressing with their lessons?" he asks me.

"As well as can be expected after only half a day's training," I reply.

"Which girl understands Turkish the best?" he asks.

"It's too early to say," I reply, hiding my annoyance at such a pointless question. "So far I've only covered simple words and phrases. I don't expect any of the girls to be ready to hold a conversation in Turkish."

"I shall test each of them tomorrow night," growls Araj Aga. "There will be consequences for any girl who fails the test. Ahmed Sultan is eager to meet his slaves but Şah Sultan refuses to allow it until the girls are ready. You and your two kalfas had better work them hard tomorrow. Şah Sultan will not be pleased with you if I can't report good progress in the girls' training."

"I know my duty, Araj Aga," I reply, being careful not to show how angry I am with him. I know better than to argue with fools, particularly vindictive bullies like Araj Aga. If Şah Sultan has any problem with my work, then she can discuss it directly with me.

Having unsettled the girls as he probably intended, Araj Aga leaves us in peace. I decide against trying to tell the girls about Araj Aga's test. They may not understand and there's no point in causing them more worry. They won't learn Turkish any faster under the cloud of Araj Aga's threats. We prepare for bed and I have an uneasy night's sleep.

Next morning I discover that Araj Aga also repeated his threats to Birgül and Didem. They are worried about Şah Sultan's reaction should Araj Aga carry out his threat. There's not much I can say to ease their minds, but we all agree to start with the girls' lessons as soon as breakfast is finished.

Since I have no idea what Araj Aga intends to test, I decide to carry out the lesson I prepared yesterday without any changes. I recall the lessons I received when I was taught Turkish and I follow the same pattern of instruction. Fortunately the harem store contains plenty of visual aids used by previous language instructors. I'm not the first person to teach the Turkish language to new arrivals in the harem, and I know I won't be the last.

Birgül and Didem spend the rest of the morning giving tuition in etiquette and hygiene. They are experienced tutors and manage to cover most of their material without needing my help. I feel we have all made good progress by the end of the this morning's sessions. If we had enough time the girls will soon be trained to a good standard. Unfortunately the kalfas are being forced to condense several months of training into a few weeks, and some subjects will probably be omitted entirely. Hopefully Ahmed Sultan will allow the girls to complete their training. There's no reason why he shouldn't allow it, but anything is possible if he's relying on Araj Aga for advice.

Anna remains with the girls during the kalfa's tuition. I remind her that she isn't obliged to do so, but she chooses to stay. She says that since Sultan Suleiman has ordered that she be treated as a hatun, she should learn everything necessary to be a concubine fit for a sultan. I'm not certain Sultan Suleiman meant for her to be trained as a hatun, but I don't argue with her.

I hold another Turkish language lesson in the afternoon. The lesson reinforces my earlier observation that Anna, Aysun, Mehtap and Nuray are finding the lessons easier than the other three. It's fortunate that Anna can speak French and German, and she does so regularly during lessons, despite her refusal to speak anything but Hungarian when we first met. Her ability to speak German has helped her coach the German girl, Mehtap. Perhaps I should try and find time to do the same with the Polish girl, Şenay, but I think it is her sour mood and reluctance to accept her enslavement which is the real cause of her difficulties. The rapid progress of the English girl, Aysun, is a pleasant surprise. She is both eager and talented in picking up Turkish. It would be easy to dismiss her progress as a consequence of her wanting to communicate in a place where nobody speaks her native language. But the extent of her Turkish vocabulary in such a short time indicates she has a natural gift for learning languages. If Araj Aga asks me again which girl can speak Turkish the best, my answer would be Aysun, although Anna could run her a close second.

More lessons from Birgül and Didem throughout the afternoon leave tutors and students exhausted by the time we finish for the day. We could run further lessons in the evening, but Birgül and Didem have other duties needing their attention, and I promised Anna we would go and find the two Hungarian girls who are part of Kadir's personal harem.

In reality, a personal harem within the palace harem is a misnomer. Every slave girl in the harem belongs to the Ottoman dynasty as a whole. The allocation of one or more slaves to be at the beck and call of a particular member of the dynasty is only an informal arrangement. It's an arrangement family members usually respect, but which can be changed at a moment's notice. Sleeping quarters and work duties are allocated without any regard to the girl's notional master. Kadir could summon any slave girl to his bed, and if the girl became one of his favourites she would be regarded as part of his personal harem regardless of her former status.

Such a loose arrangement has a major drawback. If Kadir covets a girl who is one of his brothers' favourites, then it becomes a contest for supremacy between the brothers. The girl, of course, has no say in the matter. I only know what Irem has told me about Ramazan, but I suspect he constantly lives under Kadir's shadow. Perhaps that's why there's never any mention of Ramazan's favourites, although I've heard that several girls have been sent to his room at night. I can't help feeling Ahmed and his harem will quickly suffer the same fate at Kadir's hands that Ramazan has endured. Only the youth of the new girls may temper Kadir's lust for them.

Anna and I enter the dormitory directly across the interior garden from our own dormitory. This is the room where we were told the two Hungarian girls lived. With most work duties finished for the day, the harem in crowded with women preparing for the evening's entertainment. In Constantinople that would sometimes include music performances by the more talented women, but usually the evenings simply provide an opportunity to repair clothes and sit around and gossip.

After a few enquiries we locate the two Hungarian girls. Huri and Melek ... Turkish names which have replaced their own. They are several years older than Anna and I ... young women rather than girls ... but they will still be referred to as girls in the parlance of the Edirne harem. They talk to us in Turkish. Within the Imperial Harem, conversing in any language other than Turkish is only tolerated among newcomers who are unable to speak much Turkish. Huri and Melek have obviously been here long enough to learn enough Turkish. It's only when Anna starts to struggle with the conversation that they translate their words into Hungarian. It would be easier to hold the whole conversation in Hungarian, but I soon realise that an aga is watching us, and he would undoubtedly punish Huri and Melek if they did so.

Anna, Huri and Melek exchange stories of how they come to be here. All are captives from the recent war. Huri and Melek are like me and have been torn from their murdered families by rampaging soldiers. In their case, the soldiers were Turkish troops under the command of Kadir Sultan. Their town was well behind the battle lines, and Huri describes the troops as little more than second grade militia foraging for food and searching for plunder. Hasan once told me about some poorly led Turkish units rampaging and pillaging through the countryside to the rear of the main army. Sultan Suleiman ordered some of those units to return home in disgrace weeks before the main campaign ended. The date of Huri and Melek's enslavement, and Kadir Sultan's return to Edirne, fits with his unit being one of those sent home early. Kadir clearly didn't mention that to his family since Irem believes him to be a war hero who has earned Sultan Suleiman's highest praise. Huri and Melek, despite what they witnessed, have also been told the same story about Kadir as Irem. I would be foolish to repeat what I suspect without proof. I know from experience how hard it is to adjust to life as a slave. Believing you are a desirable prize taken in battle by a valiant warrior is probably better than knowing that you are being forced to lie with a miserable and incompetent bully. Over time Huri and Melek will undoubtedly realise the truth, but for the moment they have the illusion.

Anna is in a subdued mood when we return to our room. I can't work out what she is thinking. Her apparent desire to acquire the knowledge and skills required to be a hatun seems at odds with her earlier attempts to escape. While we are friendly towards each other, our relationship hasn't developed to the stage that we can call each other friends. If I question her too deeply she'll more than likely clam up and distrust my motives. It's only a few days since I was her jailer.

Araj Aga is waiting for me when Anna and I return to our room. He has already made the six new girls line up for inspection which has made the girls nervous. Fortunately Birgül and Didem are with them, so the girls' emotions are still under control.

"Gülnihal Hatun," snarls Araj Aga. "Did I not say that I shall be testing each girl tonight?"

"You did, Araj Aga," I reply, refusing to rise to his bait.

"Then why were you not here when I arrived?"

"You did not request my presence," I reply calmly.

My answer throws him out of his stride to a greater extent than I expected. Perhaps he is so used to dominating girls that he can't cope with someone who doesn't cower before him. I don't under-estimate him, however. He is still capable of causing me considerable trouble, but I refuse to let him have his own way without a challenge. It's a lesson I learned during my time in the Imperial Harem in Constantinople. Submissiveness only encourages those wanting to dominate you.

I'm not happy that Araj Aga is testing the girls so soon into their training. Unfortunately I can't prevent him for doing so since he's been placed in charge of the girls. He gives each girl a series of commands in Turkish. As I expected Aysun understands his orders the best, but even she can't follow all of his instructions. Not only do they not understand enough Turkish, but they haven't been taught some of the positions he orders them to adopt. The girls are nearly in tears when Araj Aga finishes the test.