Ayşe Sultan (daughter of Rüstem Pasha)
Ayşe Sultan (; 25 August 1547 – 1599) was an Ottoman princess, the only daughter of Mihrimah Sultan and Rüstem Pasha (Grand Vizier 1544–53, 1555–61). She was granddaughter of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (1520–1566) and his favorite consort and legal wife, Hurrem Sultan. Life. Early life. Ayşe Sultan was born on 25 August 1547 in Istanbul. Her father was Rüstem Pasha, a devshirme from Croatia, and her mother was Mihrimah Sultan, daughter of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent and Hurrem Sultan. She was the first child of her parents. Like her cousin Hümaşah Sultan, she was reportedly  beloved by their grandfather. Ayşe, her mother, and her cousin would all imitate the communication style ushered in by her grandmother Hurrem, whose letters to the Sultan are known for their colourfulness, charm, and smoothness. First marriage. Ayşe married two times. Her first husband was the future Grand vizier, Şemsi Ahmet Pasha. The two together had nine children including, Sultanzade Abdurrahman Bey, Sultanzade Mehmed Bey, Sultanzade Şehid Mustafa Pasha, Sultanzade Osman Bey, and Saliha Sultan. Her mother used to send two thousand ducats to the couple every week. Ahmet Pasha became grand vizier in 1579, and died in 1580. Second  marriage. After Ahmet's death, Ayşe married Feridun Ahmed Bey, who had served twice as the head scribe of the imperial chancery. The marriage took place on 7 April 1582. "Kizlar Agha" Mehmed Agha, served as her agent, while "Miralem" Mahmud Agha served as Feridun Pasha's agent. The marriage was performed by Sheikh-ul-Islam Çivizade Hacı Mehmet Efendi. Her dowry was thirty five thousand gold coins. The marriage, however, lasted only eleven months because the pasha died on 16 March 1583. Political affairs. After her mother's death in 1578, the Ragusans turned to her, with a petition  to act in their favour and support them in a manner her mother did, whose death they mourned deeply. In fact, all of this they reported to Behram Kethüda, who by sultan's order was to attend to Ayşe after Mihrimah's death. She and her husband Şemsi Pasha shared a disposition towards the Ragusans. When her son Mehmed Bey was installed as sancakbey of Herzegovina on 1592, she soon wrote him a letter of recommendation for the Ragusans. In 1591, she proposed to pay the expenses of one hundred galleys for six months, if her son-in-law Çiğalazade  Sinan Pasha was made Kapudan Pasha. According to the French ambassador Jacques de Germigny, Ayşe formed a political faction with Safiye Sultan to oppose Nurbanu Sultan and her allies. Last years. In 1595, Ayşe Sultan went for a pilgrimage. In 1598–99, she commissioned a fountain in Üsküdar. When she died, she was buried in the complex of Şeyh ‘Azîz Mahmûd Hüdâyî Efendi, Üsküdar. Issue. Ayşe had nine children by her first husband;