Ottoman Empire (1301-1922)



Ottoman Empire (1301-1922)

• The Ottoman Empire was one of the largest and longest lasting Empires in history

• It was inspired and sustained by Islam and Islamic institutions.

• The Empire reached its height under Suleiman the Magnificent

• At its peak it included Turkey, Egypt, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Macedonia, Hungary, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, parts of Arabia, and coastal North Africa

Ottoman Empire - Recipe for Success

• Highly centralized

• Power was always transferred to a single person – not split among rival princes

• Ruled by a single family for seven centuries

• State-run education system

• Religion was incorporated in the state structure, Sultan regarded as “the protector of Islam”

• State-run judicial system

• Ruthless in dealing with local leaders

• Promotion to power depended on merit, not family ties

• Created alliances across political and racial groups

• United by Islam, Islam warrior code of increasing Muslim territory through Jihad

• Highly pragmatic – used the best ideas from other cultures and made them their own

• Encouraged loyalty from other faith groups

• Private power and wealth were controlled

• Very strong military – strong slave-based army (the Janissaries), expert in developing gunpowder as a military tool

Ottoman Empire – Economics

• Istanbul was not only a political and military capital, but because of its position – at the junction where Europe, Africa, and Asia meet, it became a great trade center

• The economic strength of the Empire was a result of Mehmet’s policy of increasing the number of traders and artisans in the Empire

• Mehmet first encouraged merchants to move to Istanbul but later forced them to resettle

• Some of the goods traded: silk and other cloth, musk, rhubarb, porcelain from China, spices such as pepper, dyestuffs such as indigo

Other Religions

• Non Muslim communities were organized by a millet system – this gave minority religious/ethnic communities limited power to regulate their own affairs

• Non Muslims in parts of the empire had to hand over some of their children as a tax

• Conquered Christian communities had to surrender 20% of their male children to the state

• These children were converted to Islam and served as slaves

• This system, called “devshirme” trained the youngsters for government service and some rose to great importance

• Battles between Muslims and Christians resulted in churches turned into mosques and mosques into churches, depending on the winner

• Mehmet tolerated Christians and made a special effort to attract Jews to Istanbul

• Non Muslim communities were given a great deal of freedom to practice their faiths as long as they remained loyal to the Sultan

Court Life

• The Sultans lived in the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul

• The Sultan wore his silk robes only once and then they were discarded

• It was in the Harem that the Sultan spent his life

• 230 rooms were his to command and often the number of concubines exceeded 1000

• Access to the Sultan meant power but no one was to be trusted

• The Sultan moved every night to avoid assassination

• A doctor always stood by as the Sultan ate in case of possible poisoning

Suleiman – A Golden Age

• The Ottoman Empire reached its peak of power during the rule of Selim’s son, Suleiman

• Suleiman came to the throne as one of the richest rulers in the world

• Suleiman had no rivals for power – his father had seen to that by having all of his own brothers executed as well as Suleiman’s four brothers

• The Ottoman Empire now included so much land where Islam was practiced that Suleiman was regarded as the religious leader of Islam

• Suleiman was called the “Magnificent” by Europeans, but his own people called him the “Lawgiver”

• Suleiman was also a man and sometimes made bad decisions – a captive from Ukraine named Roxelana joined Suleiman’s harem and convinced him to marry her (the first official wife of a Sultan in 200 years) and to name her son in law Grand Vizier

• She bore Suleiman three sons but the heir to the throne was Mustafa, Suleiman’s first son by another woman

• Roxelana convinced Suleiman that Mustafa planned to overthrow him

• Suleiman believed her stories and had Mustafa killed

• After having her second son and his children killed, Roxelana insured that her favorite son would take power – “Selim the Sot” a drunk who began the decline of the Empire

The Decline

• The Empire began to lose power after a failed attempt to conquer Vienna

• Several factors led to the decline: European powers wanted to expand, development of other trade routes, competition from cheap products from India and the Far East, rising unemployment in the Empire, weakened central control, poor leadership

• Turkey became known as the “sick man of Europe”

• After effects of WWI

The Empire officially ended 1 November 1922 when the Ottoman sultanate was a

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