Suleiman the Magnificent oversaw the politics of the Ottoman Empire.
Ottoman Empire . During the 16th and 17th centuries , at the height of its power under the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent , the Ottoman Empire was a multinational , multilingual empire controlling much of Southeast Europe , parts of Central Europe , Western Asia , the Caucasus , North Africa , and the Horn of Africa . Suleiman I ( سلطان سليمان اول Modern I. Süleyman , Kanunî Sultan Süleyman or Muhteşem Süleyman 6 November 1494 -- 6 September 1566 ) , commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the West and `` Kanuni '' ( the Lawgiver ) in his realm , was the tenth and longest-reigning sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1520 to his death in 1566 . Suleiman became a prominent monarch of 16th-century Europe , presiding over the apex of the Ottoman Empire 's economic , military and political power .