NYT page: here and here

An amazing thing about Mimar Sinan was also his long career. He was the head architect during three sultans who were not known as the easiest employers. Sinan survived personal tragedies, struggles for power and in spite of everything kept creative till his late years. The loyalty he felt against the Empire, the obvious understanding that changing Ottoman sultans had for his greatness  -  all this tells us that in addition to a brilliant architect he must have been an exceptional personality also.