The Ottomans Libertyville HS

Who were the Ottomans? Turks were a small Muslim state in Western Anatolia Extended control over most of Anatolia, then into SE Europe Byzantine Empire was a joke, but Constantinople held out

Sultan Mehmed II “the Conqueror” Sultan who finally conquered Constantinople Renamed city Istanbul Became one of the most important cities of Islam Important because it was a trade center (N+S & E+W)

Ottoman Absolutism Sultan = absolute ruler Job was to guarantee justice (adala) throughout land Justice = fairness, equity (Solomon) Sultan also to protect poor, helpless from corrupt government Personal protector of the people from excesses of government To do this, Sultan had to have absolute power!

Ottoman Absolutism Government practices Divan: Imperial council advising sultan Bureaucracy under control of Sultan Central government controlled local gov’t Sultan observed operations of gov’t, stepping in when necessary (spies, disguise) Siyasa: punishments for corrupt officials Accessibility: All levels of government could be accessed by lowest peasant, except sultan

Ottoman Absolutism: The Bureaucracy SULTAN Divans Social / Military Divans Heads of Individual Religious Millets Muslims Jews Local Administrators & Military Christians Landowners / Tax Collectors Note: Religion was a part of the government

Ottoman Absolutism Structure of Government Sultan was the Caliph (supreme leader of Islamic faith) Why? Mecca, Medina part of empire Responsible for Islamic orthodoxy Pursued conquest for two reasons Assure safety of pilgrims Root out false Islam practices

Suleiman the Magnificent Suleiman “the Magnificent” (“the Law Giver”) Considered the most perfect Islamic ruler in history Brilliant military leader, poet, architect, politician Recognized in Europe as well Believed the entire world was his, as a gift from God

Suleiman the Magnificent Viewed conquest of Europe as his right Conquered Rhodes & much of Greece Conquered Hungary Also conquered most of Austria (up to Vienna) Played major role in European politics

Suleiman the Magnificent Saw Europe as the major threat to Islam Tried to destabilize Catholic Church and HRE Poured a lot of money into supporting Protestant countries Why support European destabilization?

Suleiman the Magnificent “The Builder” Building projects in Istanbul with goal of making it the center of Islamic civilization Patron of the Arts Poetry, music, philosophy all flowered under his rule Suleiman’s rule was highpoint of the Ottoman Empire Suleiman’s signature

Ottoman Empire in 1600s Largest, most powerful empire in world 1683: Ottomans invaded Austria, laid siege to Vienna Defeated by European coalition Lost out to better technology of Europeans

Ottoman Empire in 1700s Defined by conflict with Russia Russia aggressively expanded southward into Central Asian Muslim countries Muslim states had no where else to turn, except Ottomans Ottomans and Russians fought three major wars No clear winner, loser

Decline of Ottoman Empire Series of poor rulers Insane Uninterested in overseeing gov’t functions Increasing corruption Loss of support for sultan by people 18th C., population doubled (high unemployment, famine) Ottomans did not industrialize like Europe (kept old labor practices, like guilds) By 19th C., decline accelerated by rising European powers