The Ottoman Empire arose in 1299 in the north-west of Asia Minor and existed for 624 years, managing to conquer many peoples and become one of the greatest powers in human history.
From place to quarry
The position of the Turks at the end of the 13th century looked hopeless, if only because of the presence of Byzantium and Persia in the neighborhood. Plus the sultans of Konya (the capital of Lycaonia - a region in Asia Minor), depending on whom, albeit formally, the Turks were.
However, all this did not prevent Osman (1288-1326) from territorially expanding and strengthening his young state. By the way, the Turks began to be called Ottomans after the name of their first sultan.
Osman was actively involved in the development of internal culture and treated others with care. Therefore, many Greek cities located in Asia Minor preferred to voluntarily recognize his supremacy. In this way they “killed two birds with one stone”: they received protection and preserved their traditions.
Osman's son, Orhan I (1326-1359), brilliantly continued his father's work. Having announced that he was going to unite all the faithful under his rule, the Sultan set out to conquer not the countries of the east, which would be logical, but the western lands. And Byzantium was the first to stand in his way.
By this time, the empire was in decline, which the Turkish Sultan took advantage of. Like a cold-blooded butcher, he "chopped off" area after area from the Byzantine "body". Soon the entire northwestern part of Asia Minor came under Turkish rule. They also established themselves on the European coast of the Aegean and Marmara Seas, as well as the Dardanelles. And the territory of Byzantium was reduced to Constantinople and its environs.
Subsequent sultans continued the expansion of Eastern Europe, where they successfully fought against Serbia and Macedonia. And Bayazet (1389 -1402) was “marked” by the defeat of the Christian army, which King Sigismund of Hungary led in the Crusade against the Turks.
From defeat to triumph
Under the same Bayazet, one of the most severe defeats of the Ottoman army occurred. The Sultan personally opposed Timur’s army and in the Battle of Ankara (1402) he was defeated, and he himself was captured, where he died.
The heirs tried by hook or by crook to ascend to the throne. The state was on the verge of collapse due to internal unrest. Only under Murad II (1421-1451) did the situation stabilize and the Turks were able to regain control of the lost Greek cities and conquer part of Albania. The Sultan dreamed of finally dealing with Byzantium, but did not have time. His son, Mehmed II (1451-1481), was destined to become the killer of the Orthodox empire.
On May 29, 1453, the hour of X came for Byzantium. The Turks besieged Constantinople for two months. Such a short time was enough to break the city's inhabitants. Instead of everyone taking up arms, the townspeople simply prayed to God for help, without leaving their churches for days. The last emperor, Constantine Palaiologos, asked the Pope for help, but he demanded in return the unification of churches. Konstantin refused.
Perhaps the city would have held out longer if not for the betrayal. One of the officials agreed to the bribe and opened the gate. He did not take into account one important fact - in addition to the female harem, the Turkish Sultan also had a male harem. That's where the pretty son of the traitor ended up.
The city fell. The civilized world froze. Now all the states of both Europe and Asia realized that the time had come for a new superpower - the Ottoman Empire.
European campaigns and confrontations with Russia
The Turks did not even think of stopping there. After the death of Byzantium, no one blocked their path to rich and unfaithful Europe, even conditionally.
Soon, Serbia (except for Belgrade, but the Turks would capture it in the 16th century), the Duchy of Athens (and, accordingly, most of all of Greece), the island of Lesbos, Wallachia, and Bosnia were annexed to the empire. 
In Eastern Europe, the territorial appetites of the Turks intersected with the interests of Venice. The ruler of the latter quickly gained the support of Naples, the Pope and Karaman (Khanate in Asia Minor). The confrontation lasted 16 years and ended in complete victory for the Ottomans. After that, no one stopped them from “getting” the remaining Greek cities and islands, as well as annexing Albania and Herzegovina. The Turks were so keen on expanding their borders that they even successfully attacked the Crimean Khanate.
Panic began in Europe. Pope Sixtus IV began to make plans for the evacuation of Rome, and at the same time hastened to declare a Crusade against the Ottoman Empire. Only Hungary responded to the call. In 1481 Mehmed II died and the era of great conquests came to a temporary end.
In the 16th century, when internal unrest in the empire subsided, the Turks again turned their weapons on their neighbors. First there was a war with Persia. Although the Turks won it, their territorial gains were insignificant.
After success in North African Tripoli and Algeria, Sultan Suleiman invaded Austria and Hungary in 1527 and besieged Vienna two years later. It was not possible to take it - bad weather and widespread illness prevented it.
As for relations with Russia, the interests of states collided for the first time in Crimea.
The first war took place in 1568 and ended in 1570 with the victory of Russia. The empires fought with each other for 350 years (1568 - 1918) - one war occurred on average every quarter of a century.
During this time there were 12 wars (including the Azov War, the Prut Campaign, the Crimean and Caucasian Fronts during the First World War). And in most cases, victory remained with Russia.
Dawn and sunset of the Janissaries
When talking about the Ottoman Empire, one cannot fail to mention its regular troops - the Janissaries.
In 1365, by personal order of Sultan Murad I, the Janissary infantry was formed. It was staffed by Christians (Bulgarians, Greeks, Serbs, and so on) aged from eight to sixteen years. This is how the devshirme - blood tax - worked, which was imposed on the non-believing peoples of the empire. It is interesting that at first life for the Janissaries was quite difficult. They lived in monasteries-barracks, they were forbidden to start a family or any kind of household.
But gradually the Janissaries from an elite branch of the army began to turn into a highly paid burden for the state. In addition, these troops took part in hostilities less and less often.
The decomposition began in 1683, when Muslim children began to be taken into the Janissaries along with Christian children. Rich Turks sent their children there, thereby solving the issue of their successful future - they could make a good career. It was the Muslim Janissaries who began to start families and engage in crafts, as well as trade. Gradually they turned into a greedy, arrogant political force that interfered in state affairs and participated in the overthrow of unwanted sultans.
The agony continued until 1826, when Sultan Mahmud II abolished the Janissaries.
Death of the Ottoman Empire
Frequent unrest, inflated ambitions, cruelty and constant participation in any wars could not but affect the fate of the Ottoman Empire. The 20th century turned out to be especially critical, in which Turkey was increasingly torn apart by internal contradictions and the separatist spirit of the population. Because of this, the country fell far behind the West technically, and therefore began to lose the territories it had once conquered.
The fateful decision for the empire was its participation in the First World War. The Allies defeated the Turkish troops and organized a division of its territory. On October 29, 1923, a new state emerged - the Turkish Republic. Its first president was Mustafa Kemal (later, he changed his surname to Ataturk - “father of the Turks”). Thus ended the history of the once great Ottoman Empire.
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Having become the ruler of the mountainous region, Osman in 1289 received the title of bey from the Seljuk Sultan. Having come to power, Osman immediately set out to conquer Byzantine lands and made the first Byzantine town of Melangia his residence.
Osman was born in a small mountain town of the Seljuk Sultanate. Osman's father, Ertogrul, received lands adjacent to the Byzantine ones from Sultan Ala ad-Din. The Turkic tribe to which Osman belonged considered the seizure of neighboring territories a sacred matter.
After the escape of the deposed Seljuk Sultan in 1299, Osman created an independent state based on his own beylik. In the first years of the 14th century. the founder of the Ottoman Empire managed to significantly expand the territory of the new state and moved his headquarters to the fortified city of Episehir. Immediately after this, the Ottoman army began to raid Byzantine cities located on the Black Sea coast and the Byzantine regions in the Dardanelles Strait region.
The Ottoman dynasty was continued by Osman's son Orhan, who began his military career with the successful capture of Bursa, a powerful fortress in Asia Minor. Orhan declared the prosperous fortified city the capital of the state and ordered the minting of the first coin of the Ottoman Empire, the silver akçe, to begin. In 1337, the Turks won several brilliant victories and occupied territories up to the Bosphorus, making the conquered Ismit the main shipyard of the state. At the same time, Orhan annexed the neighboring Turkish lands, and by 1354, under his rule were the northwestern part of Asia Minor to the eastern shores of the Dardanelles, part of its European coast, including the city of Galliopolis, and Ankara, recaptured from the Mongols.
Orhan's son Murad I became the third ruler of the Ottoman Empire, adding territories near Ankara to its possessions and setting off on a military campaign to Europe.
Murad was the first Sultan of the Ottoman dynasty and a true champion of Islam. The first schools in Turkish history began to be built in the cities of the country.
After the first victories in Europe (the conquest of Thrace and Plovdiv), a stream of Turkic settlers poured onto the European coast.
The sultans sealed their firman decrees with their own imperial monogram - tughra. The complex oriental design included the sultan's name, his father's name, title, motto and the epithet "always victorious".
New conquests
Murad paid great attention to improving and strengthening the army. For the first time in history, a professional army was created. In 1336, the ruler formed a corps of Janissaries, which later turned into the Sultan’s personal guard. In addition to the Janissaries, a mounted army of the Sipahis was created, and as a result of these fundamental changes, the Turkish army became not only numerous, but also unusually disciplined and powerful.
In 1371, on the Maritsa River, the Turks defeated the united army of the southern European states and captured Bulgaria and part of Serbia.
The next brilliant victory was won by the Turks in 1389, when the Janissaries first took up firearms. That year, the historical battle of Kossovo took place, when, having defeated the crusaders, the Ottoman Turks annexed a significant part of the Balkans to their lands.
Murad's son Bayazid continued his father's policies in everything, but unlike him, he was distinguished by cruelty and indulged in debauchery. Bayazid completed the defeat of Serbia and turned it into a vassal of the Ottoman Empire, becoming the absolute master of the Balkans.
For the rapid movements of the army and energetic actions, Sultan Bayazid received the nickname Ilderim (Lightning). During the lightning campaign in 1389–1390. he subjugated Anatolia, after which the Turks captured almost the entire territory of Asia Minor.
Bayazid had to fight simultaneously on two fronts - with the Byzantines and the crusaders. On September 25, 1396, the Turkish army defeated a huge army of crusaders, taking all Bulgarian lands into submission. According to contemporaries, more than 100,000 people fought on the side of the Turks. Many noble European crusaders were captured and were later ransomed for huge sums of money. Caravans of pack animals with gifts from Emperor Charles VI of France reached the capital of the Ottoman Sultan: gold and silver coins, silk fabrics, carpets from Arras with paintings from the life of Alexander the Great woven on them, hunting falcons from Norway and much more. True, Bayazid did not make further trips to Europe, distracted by the eastern danger from the Mongols.
After the unsuccessful siege of Constantinople in 1400, the Turks had to fight Timur's Tatar army. On July 25, 1402, one of the greatest battles of the Middle Ages took place, during which the army of the Turks (about 150,000 people) and the army of the Tatars (about 200,000 people) met near Ankara. Timur's army, in addition to well-trained warriors, was armed with more than 30 war elephants - quite a powerful weapon during the offensive. The Janissaries, showing extraordinary courage and strength, were nevertheless defeated, and Bayazid was captured. Timur's army plundered the entire Ottoman Empire, exterminated or captured thousands of people, and burned the most beautiful cities and towns.
Muhammad I ruled the empire from 1413 to 1421. Throughout his reign, Muhammad was on good terms with Byzantium, turning his main attention to the situation in Asia Minor and making the first trip to Venice in the history of the Turks, which ended in failure.
Murad II, the son of Muhammad I, ascended the throne in 1421. He was a fair and energetic ruler who devoted much time to the development of the arts and urban planning. Murad, coping with internal strife, made a successful campaign, capturing the Byzantine city of Thessalonica. The battles of the Turks against the Serbian, Hungarian and Albanian armies were no less successful. In 1448, after Murad's victory over the united army of the crusaders, the fate of all the peoples of the Balkans was sealed - Turkish rule hung over them for several centuries.
Before the start of the historical battle in 1448 between the united European army and the Turks, a letter with a truce agreement was carried through the ranks of the Ottoman army on the tip of a spear, which was violated once again. Thus, the Ottomans showed that they were not interested in peace treaties - only battles and only an offensive.
From 1444 to 1446, the empire was ruled by the Turkish Sultan Muhammad II, son of Murad II.
The reign of this sultan for 30 years turned the power into a world empire. Having started his reign with the already traditional execution of relatives who potentially claimed the throne, the ambitious young man showed his strength. Muhammad, nicknamed the Conqueror, became a tough and even cruel ruler, but at the same time had an excellent education and spoke four languages. The Sultan invited scientists and poets from Greece and Italy to his court, and allocated a lot of funds for the construction of new buildings and the development of art. The Sultan set his main task to the conquest of Constantinople, and at the same time treated its implementation very carefully. Opposite the Byzantine capital, in March 1452, the Rumelihisar fortress was founded, in which the latest cannons were installed and a strong garrison was stationed.
As a result, Constantinople found itself cut off from the Black Sea region, with which it was connected by trade. In the spring of 1453, a huge Turkish land army and a powerful fleet approached the Byzantine capital. The first assault on the city was unsuccessful, but the Sultan ordered not to retreat and organize preparations for a new assault. After dragging some of the ships into the bay of Constantinople along a specially constructed deck over iron barrier chains, the city found itself surrounded by Turkish troops. Battles raged daily, but the Greek defenders of the city showed examples of courage and perseverance.
The siege was not a strong point for the Ottoman army, and the Turks won only due to the careful encirclement of the city, a numerical superiority of forces by approximately 3.5 times and due to the presence of siege weapons, cannons and a powerful mortar with cannonballs weighing 30 kg. Before the main assault on Constantinople, Muhammad invited the residents to surrender, promising to spare them, but they, to his great amazement, refused.
The general assault was launched on May 29, 1453, and selected Janissaries, supported by artillery, burst into the gates of Constantinople. For 3 days the Turks plundered the city and killed Christians, and the Church of Hagia Sophia was later turned into a mosque. Türkiye became a real world power, proclaiming the ancient city as its capital.
In subsequent years, Muhammad made conquered Serbia his province, conquered Moldova, Bosnia, and a little later Albania and captured all of Greece. At the same time, the Turkish Sultan conquered vast territories in Asia Minor and became the ruler of the entire Asia Minor Peninsula. But he did not stop there either: in 1475 the Turks captured many Crimean cities and the city of Tana at the mouth of the Don on the Sea of Azov. The Crimean Khan officially recognized the power of the Ottoman Empire. Following this, the territories of Safavid Iran were conquered, and in 1516 Syria, Egypt and the Hejaz with Medina and Mecca came under the rule of the Sultan.
At the beginning of the 16th century. The empire's conquests were directed to the east, south and west. In the east, Selim I the Terrible defeated the Safavids and annexed the eastern part of Anatolia and Azerbaijan to his state. In the south, the Ottomans suppressed the warlike Mamluks and took control of trade routes along the Red Sea coast to the Indian Ocean, and in North Africa they reached Morocco. In the west, Suleiman the Magnificent in the 1520s. captured Belgrade, Rhodes, and Hungarian lands.
At the peak of power
The Ottoman Empire entered the stage of its greatest prosperity at the very end of the 15th century. under Sultan Selim I and his successor Suleiman the Magnificent, who achieved a significant expansion of territories and established reliable centralized governance of the country. The reign of Suleiman went down in history as the “golden age” of the Ottoman Empire.
Starting from the first years of the 16th century, the Turkish Empire became the most powerful power in the Old World. Contemporaries who visited the lands of the empire enthusiastically described the wealth and luxury of this country in their notes and memoirs.
Suleiman the Magnificent
Sultan Suleiman is the legendary ruler of the Ottoman Empire. During his reign (1520–1566), the huge power became even larger, the cities more beautiful, the palaces more luxurious. Suleiman (Fig. 9) also went down in history under the nickname Lawgiver.
Having become a sultan at the age of 25, Suleiman significantly expanded the borders of the state, capturing Rhodes in 1522, Mesopotamia in 1534, and Hungary in 1541.
The ruler of the Ottoman Empire was traditionally called Sultan, a title of Arabic origin. It is considered correct to use such terms as “shah”, “padishah”, “khan”, “Caesar”, which came from different peoples who were under the rule of the Turks.
Suleiman contributed to the cultural prosperity of the country; under him, beautiful mosques and luxurious palaces were built in many cities of the empire. The famous emperor was a good poet, leaving his works under the pseudonym Muhibbi (In Love with God). During the reign of Suleiman, the wonderful Turkish poet Fuzuli lived and worked in Baghdad, who wrote the poem “Leila and Mejun”. The nickname Sultan Among Poets was given to Mahmud Abd al-Baki, who served at the court of Suleiman, who reflected in his poems the life of the high society of the state.
The Sultan entered into a legal marriage with the legendary Roksolana, nicknamed the Laughing One, one of the slaves of Slavic origin in the harem. Such an act was, at that time and according to Sharia, an exceptional phenomenon. Roksolana gave birth to an heir to the Sultan, the future Emperor Suleiman II, and devoted a lot of time to philanthropy. The Sultan's wife also had great influence over him in diplomatic affairs, especially in relations with Western countries.
In order to leave his memory in stone, Suleiman invited the famous architect Sinan to create mosques in Istanbul. Those close to the emperor also erected large religious buildings with the help of the famous architect, as a result of which the capital was noticeably transformed.
Harems
Harems with several wives and concubines, permitted by Islam, could only be afforded by wealthy people. The Sultan's harems became an integral part of the empire, its calling card.
In addition to sultans, viziers, beys, and emirs had harems. The vast majority of the empire's population had one wife, as was customary throughout the Christian world. Islam officially allowed a Muslim to have four wives and several slaves.
The Sultan's harem, which gave rise to many legends and traditions, was in fact a complex organization with strict internal orders. This system was controlled by the Sultan’s mother, “Valide Sultan”. Her main assistants were eunuchs and slaves. It is clear that the life and power of the Sultan’s ruler directly depended on the fate of her high-ranking son.
The harem housed girls captured during wars or purchased at slave markets. Regardless of their nationality and religion, before entering the harem, all girls became Muslims and studied traditional Islamic arts - embroidery, singing, conversation skills, music, dancing, and literature.
While in the harem for a long time, its inhabitants passed through several levels and ranks. At first they were called jariye (newcomers), then quite soon they were renamed shagirt (students), over time they became gedikli (companions) and usta (masters).
There have been isolated cases in history when the Sultan recognized a concubine as his legal wife. This happened more often when the concubine gave birth to the ruler’s long-awaited son-heir. A striking example is Suleiman the Magnificent, who married Roksolana.
Only girls who had reached the level of craftswomen could gain the attention of the Sultan. From among them, the ruler chose his permanent mistresses, favorites and concubines. Many representatives of the harem who became the Sultan's mistresses were awarded their own housing, jewelry and even slaves.
Legal marriage was not provided for by Sharia, but the Sultan chose four wives who were in a privileged position from all the inhabitants of the harem. Of these, the main one became the one who gave birth to the Sultan’s son.
After the death of the Sultan, all his wives and concubines were sent to the Old Palace, which was located outside the city. The new ruler of the state could allow retired beauties to marry or join him in his harem.
The mystery of Genghis Khan's tomb revealed?...
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In the 16th-17th centuries Ottoman state reached the highest point of its influence during the reign Suleiman the Magnificent. During this period Ottoman Empire was one of the most powerful countries in the world - a multinational, multilingual state, stretching from the southern borders of the Holy Roman Empire - the outskirts of Vienna, the Kingdom of Hungary and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the north, to Yemen and Eritrea in the south, from Algeria in the west, to the Caspian Sea in the east. Most of Southeast Europe, Western Asia and North Africa were under her rule. At the beginning of the 17th century, the empire consisted of 32 provinces and numerous vassal states, some of which were later annexed by it - while others were granted autonomy [approx. 2]. Capital of the Ottoman Empire was moved to the city of Constantinople, which had previously been the capital of the Byzantine Empire, but was renamed Istanbul by the Turks. The Empire controlled the territories of the Mediterranean basin. The Ottoman Empire was the connecting link between Europe and the countries of the East for 6 centuries. After the international recognition of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, on October 29, 1923, after the signing of the Lausanne Peace Treaty (July 24, 1923), the creation of the Turkish Republic was proclaimed, which was the successor to the Ottoman Empire. On March 3, 1924, the Ottoman Caliphate was finally liquidated. The powers and responsibilities of the caliphate were transferred to the Turkish Grand National Assembly. Beginning of the Ottoman EmpireThe name of the Ottoman Empire in Ottoman language is Devlet-i ʿAliyye-yi ʿOsmâniyye (دَوْلَتِ عَلِيّهٔ عُثمَانِیّه), or - Osmanlı Devleti (عثمانلى د ولتى) [approx. 3]. In modern Turkish it is called Osmanli Devleti or Osmanlı İmparatorluğu. In the West the words " Ottoman" And " Türkiye" were used interchangeably during the imperial period. This relationship ceased to be used in 1920-1923, when Turkey had a single official name, used by Europeans since the Seljuks. Ottoman Empire historySeljuk State |
Battle of Nicopolis 1396
After the collapse of the Konya Sultanate of the Seljuks (ancestors of the Ottomans) in the 1300s, Anatolia was divided into several independent beyliks. By 1300, the weakened Byzantine Empire had lost most of its lands in Anatolia, amounting to 10 beyliks. One of the beyliks was ruled by Osman I (1258-1326), son of Ertogrul, with his capital at Eskisehir, in western Anatolia. Osman I expanded the borders of his beylik, starting to slowly move towards the borders of the Byzantine Empire. During this period, the Ottoman government was created, the organization of which changed throughout the existence of the empire. This was vital to the rapid expansion of the empire. The government operated a socio-political system in which religious and ethnic minorities were completely independent of the central government. This religious tolerance led to little resistance as the Turks conquered new territories. Osman I supported all those who contributed to achieving his goal.
After the death of Osman I, the power of the Ottoman Empire began to spread over the Eastern Mediterranean and the Balkans. In 1324, the son of Osman I, Orhan captured Bursa and made it the new capital of the Ottoman state. The fall of Bursa meant the loss of Byzantine control over Northwestern Anatolia. In 1352, the Ottomans, having crossed the Dardanelles, set foot on European soil for the first time on their own, capturing the strategically important fortress of Tsimpu. The Christian states missed the key moment to unite and drive the Turks out of Europe, and within a few decades, taking advantage of civil strife in Byzantium itself and the fragmentation of the Bulgarian kingdom, the Ottomans, having strengthened and settled in, captured most of Thrace. In 1387, after a siege, the Turks captured the largest city in the empire, after Constantinople, Thessaloniki. The Ottoman victory at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 effectively ended Serbian rule in the region and paved the way for further Ottoman expansion in Europe. The Battle of Nicopolis in 1396 is rightfully considered the last major crusade of the Middle Ages, which could not stop the endless advance of the hordes of Ottoman Turks in Europe. With the expansion of Ottoman possessions in the Balkans, the most important task of the Turks was the capture of Constantinople. The Ottoman Empire controlled all the former Byzantine lands surrounding the city for hundreds of kilometers. The tension for the Byzantines was temporarily relieved by the invasion from the depths of Asia by another Central Asian ruler, Timur, into Anatolia and his victory at the Battle of Angora in 1402. He captured Sultan Bayezid I himself. The capture of the Turkish Sultan led to the collapse of the Ottoman army. An interregnum began in Ottoman Turkey, lasting from 1402 to 1413. And again, a favorable moment, which gave a chance to strengthen their forces, was missed and wasted on internecine wars and unrest between the Christian powers themselves - Byzantium, the Bulgarian kingdom and the disintegrating Serbian kingdom. The interregnum ended with the accession of Sultan Mehmed I.
Some of the Ottoman possessions in the Balkans were lost after 1402 (Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Kosovo, etc.), but were recaptured by Murad II in 1430-1450. On November 10, 1444, Murad II, taking advantage of his numerical superiority, defeated the combined Hungarian, Polish and Wallachian troops of Vladislav III and Janos Hunyadi at the Battle of Varna. Four years later, at the Second Battle of Kosovo in 1448, Murad II defeated the Serbian-Hungarian-Wallachian forces of Janos Hunyadi.
Rise of the Ottoman Empire (1453-1683)
Expansion and apogee (1453-1566)
Murad II's son, Mehmed II, transformed the Turkish state and army. After lengthy preparations and a two-month siege, an overwhelming numerical superiority of the Turks and stubborn resistance of the townspeople, on May 29, 1453, the Sultan captured the capital of Byzantium, the city of Constantinople. Mehmed II destroyed the centuries-old center of Orthodoxy, the Second Rome, which Constantinople had been for more than a thousand years, preserving only some semblance of a church institution to govern all the conquered and (yet) not converted to Islam Orthodox population of the former empire and the Slavic states in the Balkans. Crushed by taxes, oppression and the harsh rule of Muslims, despite the historically difficult relations between Byzantium and Western Europe, the majority of the Orthodox population of the Ottoman Empire would prefer to come even under the rule of Venice.
The 15th-16th centuries were the so-called period of growth of the Ottoman Empire. The empire successfully developed under the competent political and economic management of the sultans. Some successes were achieved in economic development, since the Ottomans controlled the main land and sea trade routes between Europe and Asia [approx. 4].
Sultan Selim I greatly expanded the Ottoman Empire's territories in the east and south by defeating the Safavids at the Battle of Çaldiran in 1514. Selim I also defeated the Mamluks and captured Egypt. From this time on, the empire's navy was present in the Red Sea. After the capture of Egypt by the Turks, competition began between the Portuguese and Ottoman empires for dominance in the region.
In 1521, Suleiman the Magnificent captured Belgrade and annexed southern and central Hungary during the Ottoman-Hungarian wars. After the Battle of Mohács in 1526, he divided all of Hungary with the Kingdom of East Hungary and the Kingdom of Hungary[clarify]. At the same time, he established the position of representatives of the Sultan in European territories. In 1529, he besieged Vienna, but despite the overwhelming numerical superiority, the resistance of the Viennese was such that he could not take it. In 1532 he once again besieged Vienna, but was defeated at the Battle of Koszeg. Transylvania, Wallachia and, partly, Moldavia became vassal principalities of the Ottoman Empire. In the east, the Turks took Baghdad in 1535, gaining control of Mesopotamia and access to the Persian Gulf.
France and the Ottoman Empire, having a common dislike of the Habsburgs, became allies. In 1543, French-Ottoman troops under the command of Khair ad-Din Barbarossa and Turgut Reis won a victory near Nice, in 1553 they invaded Corsica and captured it a few years later. A month before the siege of Nice, French artillerymen, together with the Turks, took part in the siege of Esztergom and defeated the Hungarians. After the remaining victories of the Turks, the Habsburg king Ferdinand I in 1547 was forced to recognize the power of the Ottoman Turks over Hungary.
By the end of Suleiman I's life, the population of the Ottoman Empire was huge, numbering 15,000,000 people. In addition, the Ottoman fleet controlled a large part of the Mediterranean Sea. By this time, the Ottoman Empire had achieved great success in the political and military organization of the state, and in Western Europe it was often compared to the Roman Empire. For example, the Italian scientist Francesco Sansovino wrote:
If we were to carefully examine their origins and study in detail their internal relations and external relations, we could say that the Roman military discipline, execution of orders and victories are equal to the Turkish... During military campaigns [the Turks] are able to eat very little, they are unshakable when face difficult tasks, obey their commanders absolutely and fight stubbornly until victory... In peacetime, they organize disagreements and unrest among their subjects for the sake of restoring absolute justice, which is beneficial to themselves...
Likewise, the French politician Jean Bodin, in his work La Méthode de l'histoire, published in 1560, wrote:
Only the Ottoman Sultan can lay claim to the title of absolute ruler. Only he can legally claim the title of successor to the Roman Emperor
Riots and revival (1566-1683)
Ottoman Empire, 1299-1683
The strong military and bureaucratic structures of the last century were weakened by anarchy during the reign of weak-willed sultans. The Turks gradually fell behind the Europeans in military affairs. The innovation, accompanied by powerful expansion, was the beginning of the suppression of the growing conservatism of believers and intellectuals. But despite these difficulties, the Ottoman Empire continued to be a major expansionist power until it was defeated at the Battle of Vienna in 1683, ending the Turkish advance in Europe.
The opening of new sea routes to Asia allowed Europeans to escape the monopoly of the Ottoman Empire. The discovery of the Cape of Good Hope by the Portuguese in 1488 began a series of Ottoman-Portuguese wars in the Indian Ocean that continued throughout the 16th century. From an economic point of view, the enormous influx of silver to the Spaniards, who were exporting it from the New World, caused a sharp depreciation of the currency of the Ottoman Empire and rampant inflation.
Under Ivan the Terrible, the Muscovite kingdom captured the Volga region and fortified itself on the coast of the Caspian Sea. In 1571, the Crimean Khan Devlet I Giray, with the support of the Ottoman Empire, burned Moscow. But in 1572, the Crimean Tatars were defeated in the Battle of Molodi. The Crimean Khanate continued to raid Rus' during the later Tatar-Mongol raids on Russian lands, and Eastern Europe continued to be under the influence of the Crimean Tatars until the end of the 17th century.
In 1571, the troops of the Holy League defeated the Turks in the naval battle of Lepanto. This event was a symbolic blow to the reputation of the invincible Ottoman Empire. The Turks lost a lot of people, the losses of the fleet were much lower. The power of the Ottoman fleet was quickly restored, and in 1573 the Porte persuaded Venice to sign a peace treaty. Thanks to this, the Turks gained a foothold in North Africa.
By comparison, the Habsburgs created the Military Krajina, which defended the Habsburg Monarchy from the Turks. The weakening of the Ottoman Empire's personnel policy in the war with Habsburg Austria caused the former to lack arms in the Thirteen Years' War. This contributed to low discipline in the army and open disobedience to command. In 1585-1610, the Jelali uprising broke out in Anatolia, in which the Sekbans took part [approx. 5] By 1600, the empire's population had reached 30,000,000, and land shortages put even more pressure on the Porto.
In 1635, Murad IV briefly captured Yerevan, and in 1639, Baghdad, restoring central power there. During the period of the Sultanate of Women, the empire was ruled by the mothers of the sultans on behalf of their sons. The most powerful women during the period were Kösem Sultan and her daughter-in-law Turhan Hatice, whose political rivalry ended with the former's murder in 1651. During the Köprülü era, the great viziers were representatives of the Albanian Köprülü family. They exercised direct control over the Ottoman Empire. With the assistance of the Köprülü viziers, the Turks regained Transylvania, captured Crete in 1669 and Podolia in 1676. The strongholds of the Turks in Podolia were Khotyn and Kamenets-Podolsky.
In May 1683, a huge Turkish army under the command of Kara Mustafa Pasha laid siege to Vienna. The Turks delayed the final assault and were defeated at the Battle of Vienna in September of the same year by the troops of the Habsburgs, Germans and Poles. Defeat in the battle forced the Turks to sign the Treaty of Karlowitz with the Holy League on January 26, 1699, ending the Great Turkish War. The Turks ceded many territories to the League. From 1695, the Ottomans waged a counter-offensive in Hungary, which ended in a crushing defeat at the Battle of Zenta on September 11, 1697.
Stagnation and recovery (1683-1827)
During this period, the Russians posed a great danger to the Ottoman Empire. In this regard, after the defeat in the Battle of Poltava in 1709, Charles XII became an ally of the Turks. Charles XII persuaded the Ottoman Sultan Ahmed III to declare war on Russia. In 1711, Ottoman troops defeated the Russians on the Prut River. On July 21, 1718, the Peace of Požarevac was signed between Austria and Venice on the one hand and the Ottoman Empire on the other, ending Turkey’s wars for some time. However, the treaty showed that the Ottoman Empire was on the defensive and was no longer able to expand in Europe.
Together with Austria, the Russian Empire participated in the Russian-Turkish War of 1735-1739. The war ended with the Treaty of Belgrade in 1739. Under the terms of peace, Austria ceded Serbia and Wallachia to the Ottoman Empire, and Azov went to the Russian Empire. However, despite the Peace of Belgrade, the Ottoman Empire took advantage of the peace, due to the wars of Russia and Austria with Prussia[what?]. 
During this long period of peace, educational and technological reforms were carried out in the Ottoman Empire, and higher educational institutions were created (for example, Istanbul Technical University). In 1734, an artillery school was created in Turkey, where instructors from France taught. But the Muslim clergy did not approve of this step of rapprochement with European countries, approved by the Ottoman people. Since 1754, the school began to operate in secret. In 1726, Ibrahim Muteferrika, having convinced the Ottoman clergy of the productivity of printing, appealed to Sultan Ahmed III for permission to print anti-religious literature. From 1729 to 1743, his 17 works in 23 volumes were published in the Ottoman Empire, the circulation of each volume ranged from 500 to 1000 copies.
Under the guise of pursuing a fugitive Polish revolutionary, the Russian army entered Balta, an Ottoman outpost on the Russian border, committing massacres and burning it. This event provoked the start of the Russian-Turkish War of 1768-1774 by the Ottoman Empire. In 1774, the Kuchuk-Kainardzhi Peace Treaty was concluded between the Ottomans and the Russians, ending the war. According to the agreement, religious oppression was lifted from Christians in Wallachia and Moldavia.
During the 18th-19th centuries, a series of wars followed between the Ottoman and Russian empires. At the end of the 18th century, Türkiye suffered a series of defeats in wars with Russia. And the Turks came to the conclusion that in order to avoid further defeats, the Ottoman army must undergo modernization.
In 1789-1807, Selim III carried out military reform, making the first serious attempts to reorganize the army along European lines. Thanks to the reform, the reactionary movements of the Janissaries, which by that time were no longer effective, were weakened. However, in 1804 and 1807 they rebelled against the reform. In 1807, Selim was put into custody by the conspirators, and in 1808 he was killed. In 1826, Mahmud II liquidated the Janissary corps.
The Serbian Revolution of 1804-1815 marked the beginning of the era of romantic nationalism in the Balkans. The Eastern Question was raised by the Balkan countries. In 1830, the Ottoman Empire de jure recognized the suzerainty of Serbia. In 1821, the Greeks rebelled against the Porte. The Greek uprising in the Peloponnese was followed by an uprising in Moldavia, which ended in 1829 with its de jure independence. In the mid-19th century, Europeans called the Ottoman Empire “The Sick Man of Europe.” In 1860-1870, the Ottoman overlords - the principalities of Serbia, Wallachia, Moldavia and Montenegro - gained complete independence.
During the Tanzimat period (1839-1876), the Porte introduced constitutional reforms that led to the creation of a conscript army, reform of the banking system, the replacement of religious law with secular law, and the replacement of factories with guilds. On October 23, 1840, the Ministry of Postal Communications of the Ottoman Empire was opened in Istanbul.
In 1847, Samuel Morse received a patent for the telegraph from Sultan Abdulmecid I. After the successful testing of the telegraph, on August 9, 1847, the Turks began construction of the first Istanbul-Edirne-Shumen telegraph line.
In 1876, the Ottoman Empire adopted a constitution. During the era of the first constitution
In turn, the Crimean War of 1853-1856 was a continuation of the long rivalry between the major European powers for the lands of the Ottoman Empire. On August 4, 1854, during the Crimean War, the Ottoman Empire took out its first loan. The war caused mass emigration of Crimean Tatars from Russia - about 200,000 people emigrated. By the end of the Caucasian War, 90% of the Circassians left the Caucasus and settled in the Ottoman Empire.
Many nations of the Ottoman Empire were gripped by the rise of nationalism in the 19th century. The emergence of national consciousness and ethnic nationalism in the Ottoman Empire was its main problem. Turks faced nationalism not only in their own country, but also abroad. Number of revolutionary political parties
The Russian-Turkish War of 1877-1878 ended in a decisive victory for the Russian Empire. As a result, Turkish defenses in Europe were sharply weakened; Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia gained independence. In 1878, Austria-Hungary annexed the Ottoman provinces of the Bosnian Vilayet and Novopazar Sanjak, but the Turks did not recognize their inclusion in this state and tried with all their might to return them back.
In turn, after the Berlin Congress of 1878, the British began campaigning for the return of territories in the Balkans to the Turks. In 1878, the British were given control of Cyprus. In 1882, British troops invaded Egypt, ostensibly to suppress the revolt of Arabi Pasha, capturing it.
Between 100,000 and 300,000 people were killed in massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire between 1894 and 1896.
After the reduction in the size of the Ottoman Empire, many Balkan Muslims moved within its borders. By 1923, Anatolia and Eastern Thrace became part of Turkey.
The Ottoman Empire has long been called the “sick man of Europe.” By 1914, it had lost almost all of its territories in Europe and North Africa. By that time, the population of the Ottoman Empire numbered 28,000,000 people, of whom 17,000,000 lived in Anatolia, 3,000,000 in Syria, Lebanon and Palestine, 2,500,000 in Iraq, and the remaining 5,500,000 in the Arabian Peninsula.
After the Young Turk Revolution on July 3, 1908, the era of the second Constitution began in the Ottoman Empire. The Sultan announced the restoration of the 1876 constitution and reconvened Parliament. The coming to power of the Young Turks meant the beginning of the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.
Taking advantage of the civil unrest, Austria-Hungary, having withdrawn its troops from the Novopazar Sanjak, which had fallen to the Turks, introduced them into Bosnia and Herzegovina, annexing it. During the Italo-Turkish War of 1911-1912, the Ottoman Empire lost Libya, and the Balkan Union declared war on it. The Empire lost all its territories in the Balkans during the Balkan Wars, except for Eastern Thrace and Adrianople. 400,000 Balkan Muslims, fearing reprisals from the Greeks, Serbs and Bulgarians, retreated along with the Ottoman army. The Germans proposed the construction of a railway line in Iraq. The railway was only partially built. In 1914, the British Empire bought this railway and continued its construction. The railway played a special role in the outbreak of the First World War.
In November 1914, the Ottoman Empire entered World War I on the side of the Central Powers, taking part in the fighting in the Middle East. During the war, the Ottoman Empire won several significant victories (for example, the Dardanelles operation, the Siege of Al-Kut), but also suffered several serious defeats (for example, on the Caucasian front).
Before the invasion of the Seljuk Turks, on the territory of modern Turkey there were Christian states of Romans and Armenians, and even after the Turks captured Greek and Armenian lands, in the 18th century Greeks and Armenians still made up 2/3 of the local population, in the 19th century - 1 /2 of the population, at the beginning of the twentieth century, 50-60% were the local indigenous Christian population. Everything changed at the end of the First World War as a result of the genocide of Greeks, Assyrians and Armenians carried out by the Turkish army.
In 1915, Russian troops continued their offensive in Eastern Anatolia, thereby saving the Armenians from destruction by the Turks.
In 1916, the Arab Revolt broke out in the Middle East, which turned the tide of events in favor of the Entente.
On October 30, 1918, the Armistice of Mudros was signed, ending the First World War. It was followed by the occupation of Constantinople and the division of the Ottoman Empire. Under the terms of the Treaty of Sèvres, the divided territory of the Ottoman Empire was secured between the Entente powers.
The occupations of Constantinople and Izmir led to the beginning of the Turkish national movement. The Turkish War of Independence of 1919-1922 ended in victory for the Turks under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. On November 1, 1922, the sultanate was abolished, and on November 17, 1922, the last Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Mehmed VI, left the country. On October 29, 1923, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey declared the creation of the Turkish Republic. On March 3, 1924, the caliphate was abolished.
The state organization of the Ottoman Empire was very simple. Its main focuses were military and civil administration. The highest position in the country was the Sultan. The civil system was based on administrative units based on the characteristics of regions. The Turks used a system in which the state controlled the clergy (as in the Byzantine Empire). Certain pre-Islamic traditions of the Turks, preserved after the introduction of administrative and judicial systems from Muslim Iran, remained important in the administrative circles of the Ottoman Empire. The main task of the state was the defense and expansion of the empire, as well as ensuring security and balance within the country in order to maintain power.
None of the dynasties of the Muslim world was in power for as long as the Ottoman dynasty. The Ottoman dynasty was of Turkish origin. Eleven times the Ottoman Sultan was overthrown by his enemies as an enemy of the people. In the history of the Ottoman Empire, there were only 2 attempts to overthrow the Ottoman dynasty, both of which ended in failure, which testified to the strength of the Ottoman Turks.
The high position of the caliphate, ruled by the sultan, in Islam allowed the Turks to create the Ottoman caliphate. The Ottoman sultan (or padishah, "king of kings") was the sole ruler of the empire and was the personification of state power, although he did not always exercise absolute control. The new sultan always became one of the sons of the former sultan. The palace school's robust education system was aimed at eliminating unsuitable possible heirs and creating support for the ruling elite for a successor. The palace schools, where future government officials studied, were not separate. Muslims studied in the Madrasah (Ottoman Medrese), and scientists and government officials taught here. Waqfs provided financial support, which allowed children from poor families to receive higher education, while Christians studied in Enderun, where 3,000 Christian boys from 8 to 12 years old from 40 families from the population of Rumelia and/or the Balkans (devshirme) were recruited annually.
Despite the fact that the Sultan was the supreme monarch, state and executive powers were vested in politicians. There was a political struggle between the councilors and ministers in the self-government body (divan, in the 17th century it was renamed Porto). Even in the times of the beylik, the divan consisted of elders. Later, instead of elders, the diwan included army officers and local nobility (for example, religious and political figures). Beginning in 1320, the Grand Vizier performed some of the duties of the Sultan. The Grand Vizier was completely independent of the Sultan; he could dispose of the Sultan’s inherited property as he wished, dismiss anyone and control all areas. Starting from the end of the 16th century, the Sultan ceased to participate in the political life of the state, and the Grand Vizier became the de facto ruler of the Ottoman Empire.
Throughout the history of the Ottoman Empire, there were many cases when the rulers of the vassal principalities of the Ottoman Empire acted without coordinating their actions with the Sultan and even against him. After the Young Turk Revolution, the Ottoman Empire became a constitutional monarchy. The Sultan no longer had executive power. A parliament was created with delegates from all provinces. They formed the Imperial Government (Ottoman Empire).
The empire, which was rapidly growing in size, was led by devoted, experienced people (Albanians, Phanariots, Armenians, Serbs, Hungarians and others). Christians, Muslims and Jews completely changed the system of government in the Ottoman Empire.
The Ottoman Empire had an eclectic rule, which even affected diplomatic correspondence with other powers. Initially, correspondence was carried out in Greek.
All Ottoman sultans had 35 personal signs - tughr, with which they signed. Carved on the Sultan's seal, they contained the name of the Sultan and his father. As well as sayings and prayers. The very first tughra was the tughra of Orhan I. The tawdry tughra, depicted in a traditional style, was the basis of Ottoman calligraphy.
Law
Trial in the Ottoman Empire, 1877
The Ottoman legal system was based on religious law. The Ottoman Empire was built on the principle of local law. Legal governance in the Ottoman Empire was the exact opposite of central government and local government. The power of the Ottoman Sultan depended heavily on the Ministry of Legal Development, which satisfied the needs of the millet. Ottoman jurisprudence pursued the goal of uniting various circles in cultural and religious terms. There were 3 judicial systems in the Ottoman Empire: the first - for Muslims, the second - for the non-Muslim population (at the head of this system were Jews and Christians who ruled the respective religious communities) and the third - the so-called “merchant courts” system. This entire system was governed by the qanun, a system of laws based on the pre-Islamic Yas and Torah. Kanun was also a secular law issued by the Sultan, which resolved problems not dealt with in the Sharia.
These judicial ranks were not entirely an exception: the first Muslim courts were also used to resolve conflicts under men or disputes between litigious infidels, and Jews and Christians, who often turned to them to resolve conflicts. The Ottoman government did not interfere with non-Muslim legal systems, even though it could intervene in them with the help of governors. The Sharia legal system was created by combining the Koran, Hadith, Ijma, Qiyas and local customs. Both systems (qanun and sharia) were taught in law schools in Istanbul.
Reforms during the Tanzimat period significantly influenced the legal system in the Ottoman Empire. In 1877, private law (except family law) was codified in Majalla. Trade law, criminal law, and civil procedure were later codified.
The first military unit of the Ottoman army was created at the end of the 13th century by Osman I from members of a tribe that inhabited the hills of Western Anatolia. The military system became a complex organizational unit in the early years of the Ottoman Empire.
The Ottoman army had a comprehensive system of recruitment and feudal defense. The main branches of the army were the Janissaries, Sipahi, Akinci and the Janissary Band. The Ottoman army was once considered one of the most modern armies in the world. It was one of the first armies to use muskets and artillery pieces. The Turks first used the falconet during the siege of Constantinople in 1422. The success of mounted troops in battle depended on their speed and maneuverability, and not on the thick armor of archers and swordsmen, their Turkmen and Arabian horses (the ancestors of thoroughbred racing horses) and applied tactics. The deterioration of the combat effectiveness of the Ottoman army began in the mid-17th century and continued after the Great Turkish War. In the 18th century, the Turks won several victories over Venice, but in Europe they lost some territories to the Russians.
In the 19th century, the Ottoman army and the country as a whole underwent modernization. In 1826, Sultan Mahmud II liquidated the Janissary Corps and created the modern Ottoman army. The army of the Ottoman Empire was the first army to hire foreign instructors and send its officers to study in Western Europe. Accordingly, the Young Turk movement flared up in the Ottoman Empire when these officers, having received an education, returned to their homeland.
The Ottoman fleet also took an active part in Turkish expansion in Europe. It was thanks to the fleet that the Turks captured North Africa. The Ottomans' loss of Greece in 1821 and Algeria in 1830 marked the beginning of the weakening of the Ottoman navy's military power and control of distant overseas territories. Sultan Abdul Aziz tried to restore the power of the Ottoman navy, creating one of the largest fleets in the world (3rd place after Great Britain and France). In 1886, the first submarine of the Ottoman Navy was built at the Barrow shipyard in Great Britain.
However, the collapsing economy could no longer support the fleet. Sultan Abdul Hamid II, who did not trust the Turkish admirals who sided with the reformer Midhat Pasha, argued that a large fleet, requiring expensive maintenance, would not help win the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878. He sent all the Turkish ships to the Golden Horn, where they rotted for 30 years. After the Young Turk Revolution of 1908, the Union and Progress Party attempted to recreate the powerful Ottoman navy. In 1910, the Young Turks began collecting donations to purchase new ships.
The history of the air force of the Ottoman Empire began in 1909. The first flying school in the Ottoman Empire
The administrative division of the Ottoman Empire was based on the military administration, which governed the subjects of the state. Outside this system there were vassal and tributary states.
The government of the Ottoman Empire pursued a strategy for the development of Bursa, Adrianople and Constantinople as large commercial and industrial centers, which at various times were the capitals of the state. Therefore, Mehmed II and his successor Bayezid II encouraged the migration of Jewish artisans and Jewish merchants to Istanbul and other major ports. However, in Europe, Jews were persecuted everywhere by Christians. This is why the Jewish population of Europe immigrated to the Ottoman Empire, where the Turks needed Jews.
The economic thought of the Ottoman Empire was closely related to the basic concept of the state and society of the Middle East, which was based on the goal of strengthening the power and expanding the territory of the state - all this was carried out as the Ottoman Empire had large annual incomes due to the prosperity of the productive class. The ultimate goal was to increase government revenues without compromising the development of regions, since damage could cause social unrest, and the immutability of the traditional structure of society.
The structure of the treasury and chancellery was better developed in the Ottoman Empire than in other Islamic states, and until the 17th century the Ottoman Empire remained the leading organization in these structures. This structure was developed by scribe-officials (also known as "literary workers") as a special group of partly highly qualified theologians that grew into a professional organization. The effectiveness of this professional financial organization was supported by the great statesmen of the Ottoman Empire.
The structure of the state's economy was determined by its geopolitical structure. The Ottoman Empire, located in the middle between the West and the Arab world, blocked the land routes to the east, which forced the Portuguese and Spaniards to go in search of new routes to the countries of the East. The Empire controlled the spice route along which Marco Polo once passed. In 1498, the Portuguese, having circumnavigated Africa, established trade relations with India; in 1492, Christopher Columbus discovered the Bahamas. At this time, the Ottoman Empire reached its peak - the power of the Sultan extended to 3 continents.
According to modern research, the deterioration of relations between the Ottoman Empire and Central Europe was caused by the opening of new sea routes. This was evident in the fact that Europeans no longer looked for land routes to the East, but followed sea routes there. In 1849, the Treaty of Baltaliman was signed, thanks to which the English and French markets became equal to the Ottoman ones.
Thanks to the development of commercial centers, the opening of new routes, an increase in the amount of cultivated land and international trade, the state carried out basic economic processes. But in general, the main interests of the state were finance and politics. But the Ottoman officials who created the social and political systems of the empire could not help but see the advantages of the capitalist and trade economy of Western European states.
Demography
The first census of the population of the Ottoman Empire took place at the beginning of the 19th century. The official results of the census of 1831 and subsequent years were published by the government, however, the census did not cover all segments of the population, but only certain ones. For example, in 1831 there was a census of only the male population.
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It is not clear why the population of the country in the 18th century was lower than in the 16th century. Nevertheless, the population of the empire began to increase and by 1800 reached 25,000,000 - 32,000,000 people, of which 10,000,000 lived in Europe, 11,000,000 in Asia and 3,000,000 in Africa. The population density of the Ottoman Empire in Europe was twice as high as that of Anatolia, which in turn was 3 times higher than Iraq and Syria and 5 times higher than Arabia. In 1914, the state's population numbered 18,500,000 people. By this time, the country's territory had shrunk by about 3 times. This meant that the population almost doubled. |
By the end of the empire's existence, the average life expectancy in it was 49 years, despite the fact that back in the 19th century this figure was extremely low and amounted to 20-25 years. Such low life expectancy in the 19th century was due to epidemic diseases and famine, which, in turn, were caused by destabilization and demographic changes. In 1785, about one-sixth of the population of Ottoman Egypt died from the plague. Throughout the 18th century, Aleppo's population declined by 20%. In the years 1687-1731, the population of Egypt starved 6 times, but the last famine in the Ottoman Empire broke out in the 1770s in Anatolia. Famine was avoided in subsequent years thanks to improved sanitary conditions, health care and the beginning of transportation of food to the cities of the state.
The population began to move to port cities, which was caused by the beginning of the development of shipping and railways. In the years 1700-1922, the Ottoman Empire experienced a process of active urban growth. Thanks to improved health care and sanitation, the cities of the Ottoman Empire became more attractive to live in. Especially in port cities there was active population growth. For example, in Thessaloniki the population increased from 55,000 in 1800 to 160,000 in 1912, in Izmir - from 150,000 in 1800 to 300,000 in 1914. In some regions the population was declining. For example, the population of Belgrade dropped from 25,000 to 8,000 due to the struggle for power in the city. Thus, the population size in different regions was different.
Economic and political migration had a negative impact on the empire. For example, the annexation of Crimea and the Balkans by the Russians and Habsburgs led to the refugee of all Muslims inhabiting these territories - about 200,000 Crimean Tatars fled to Dobruja. In 1783-1913, 5,000,000 - 7,000,000 people immigrated to the Ottoman Empire, 3,800,000 of whom came from Russia. Migration greatly affected the political tensions between different parts of the empire, so that there were no longer distinctions between different segments of the population. The number of artisans, traders, industrialists and farmers has decreased. Starting from the 19th century, mass emigration of all Muslims (the so-called muhajirs) from the Balkans began to the Ottoman Empire. By the end of the Ottoman Empire, in 1922, most of the Muslims living in the state were emigrants from the Russian Empire.
Languages
The official language of the Ottoman Empire was Ottoman. It was heavily influenced by Persian and Arabic. The most common languages in the Asian part of the country were: Ottoman (spoken by the population of Anatolia and the Balkans, with the exception of Albania and Bosnia), Persian (spoken by the nobility) and Arabic (spoken by the population of Arabia, North Africa, Iraq, Kuwait and the Levant ), Kurdish, Armenian, New Aramaic languages, Pontic and Cappadocian Greek were also common in the Asian part; in European - Albanian, Greek, Serbian, Bulgarian and Aromanian languages. In the last 2 centuries of the empire's existence, these languages were no longer used by the population: Persian was the language of literature, Arabic was used for religious rituals.
Due to the low level of literacy of the population, special people were used to write petitions for ordinary people to appeal to the government. National minorities spoke their native languages (Mahalla). In multilingual cities and villages, the population spoke different languages, and not all people living in megacities knew the Ottoman language.
Religions
Before the adoption of Islam, the Turks were shamanists. The spread of Islam began after the Abbasid victory in the Battle of Talas in 751. In the second half of the 8th century, most of the Oguzes (ancestors of the Seljuks and Turks) converted to Islam. In the 11th century, the Oghuz settled in Anatolia, which contributed to its spread there.
In 1514, Sultan Selim I carried out a massacre of Shiites living in Anatolia, whom he considered heretics, with 40,000 people killed.
The freedom of Christians living in the Ottoman Empire was limited, as the Turks considered them “second-class citizens.” The rights of Christians and Jews were considered unequal to the rights of the Turks: the testimony of Christians against the Turks was not accepted by the court. They could not carry weapons, ride horses, their houses could not be higher than those of Muslims, and also had many other legal restrictions. Throughout the existence of the Ottoman Empire, a tax was levied on the non-Muslim population - Devşirme. Periodically, the Ottoman Empire mobilized pre-teen Christian boys, who, after conscription, were raised as Muslims. These boys were trained in the art of government or the formation of a ruling class and the creation of elite troops (Janissaries).
Under the millet system, non-Muslims were citizens of the empire, but did not have the rights that Muslims had. The Orthodox millet system was created under Justinian I, and was used until the end of the Byzantine Empire. Christians, as the largest non-Muslim population group in the Ottoman Empire, had a number of special privileges in politics and trade, and therefore paid higher taxes than Muslims.
After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Mehmed II did not massacre the city's Christians, but on the contrary, even preserved their institutions (for example, the Orthodox Church of Constantinople).
In 1461, Mehmed II founded the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople. During the Byzantine Empire, Armenians were considered heretics and therefore could not build churches in the city. In 1492, during the Spanish Inquisition, Bayezid II sent a Turkish fleet to Spain to rescue Muslims and Sephardim who soon settled in the territory of the Ottoman Empire.
The Porte's relations with the Orthodox Church of Constantinople were generally peaceful, and repressions were rare. The structure of the church was kept intact, but it was under strict control of the Turks. After the nationalistic New Ottomans came to power in the 19th century, the policies of the Ottoman Empire acquired features of nationalism and Ottomanism. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church was dissolved and placed under the jurisdiction of the Greek Orthodox Church. In 1870, Sultan Abdulaziz founded the Bulgarian Exarchate of the Greek Orthodox Church and restored its autonomy.
Similar millets were formed from different religious communities, including a Jewish millet headed by a chief rabbi and an Armenian millet headed by a bishop.
The territories that were part of the Ottoman Empire were mainly coastal areas of the Mediterranean and Black Sea. Accordingly, the culture of these territories was based on the traditions of the local population. After conquering new territories in Europe, the Turks adopted some of the cultural traditions of the conquered areas (architectural styles, cuisine, music, recreation, form of government). Intercultural marriages played a large role in shaping the culture of the Ottoman elite. Numerous traditions and cultural characteristics adopted from the conquered peoples were developed by the Ottoman Turks, which subsequently led to a mixture of the traditions of the peoples living in the territory of the Ottoman Empire and the cultural identity of the Ottoman Turks.
The main directions of Ottoman literature were poetry and prose. However, the predominant genre was poetry. Until the beginning of the 19th century, no fantasy stories were written in the Ottoman Empire. Genres such as the novel and short story were absent even in folklore and poetry.
Ottoman poetry was a ritual and symbolic art form.
The Ottoman Empire arose in 1299 in the north-west of Asia Minor and existed for 624 years, managing to conquer many peoples and become one of the greatest powers in human history.
From place to quarry
The position of the Turks at the end of the 13th century looked hopeless, if only because of the presence of Byzantium and Persia in the neighborhood. Plus the sultans of Konya (the capital of Lycaonia - a region in Asia Minor), depending on whom, albeit formally, the Turks were.
However, all this did not prevent Osman (1288-1326) from territorially expanding and strengthening his young state. By the way, the Turks began to be called Ottomans after the name of their first sultan.
Osman was actively involved in the development of internal culture and treated others with care. Therefore, many Greek cities located in Asia Minor preferred to voluntarily recognize his supremacy. In this way they “killed two birds with one stone”: they received protection and preserved their traditions.
Osman's son, Orhan I (1326-1359), brilliantly continued his father's work. Having announced that he was going to unite all the faithful under his rule, the Sultan set out to conquer not the countries of the east, which would be logical, but the western lands. And Byzantium was the first to stand in his way.
By this time, the empire was in decline, which the Turkish Sultan took advantage of. Like a cold-blooded butcher, he "chopped off" area after area from the Byzantine "body". Soon the entire northwestern part of Asia Minor came under Turkish rule. They also established themselves on the European coast of the Aegean and Marmara Seas, as well as the Dardanelles. And the territory of Byzantium was reduced to Constantinople and its environs.
Subsequent sultans continued the expansion of Eastern Europe, where they successfully fought against Serbia and Macedonia. And Bayazet (1389 -1402) was “marked” by the defeat of the Christian army, which King Sigismund of Hungary led in the Crusade against the Turks.
From defeat to triumph
Under the same Bayazet, one of the most severe defeats of the Ottoman army occurred. The Sultan personally opposed Timur’s army and in the Battle of Ankara (1402) he was defeated, and he himself was captured, where he died.
The heirs tried by hook or by crook to ascend to the throne. The state was on the verge of collapse due to internal unrest. Only under Murad II (1421-1451) did the situation stabilize and the Turks were able to regain control of the lost Greek cities and conquer part of Albania. The Sultan dreamed of finally dealing with Byzantium, but did not have time. His son, Mehmed II (1451-1481), was destined to become the killer of the Orthodox empire.
On May 29, 1453, the hour of X came for Byzantium. The Turks besieged Constantinople for two months. Such a short time was enough to break the city's inhabitants. Instead of everyone taking up arms, the townspeople simply prayed to God for help, without leaving their churches for days. The last emperor, Constantine Palaiologos, asked the Pope for help, but he demanded in return the unification of churches. Konstantin refused.
Perhaps the city would have held out longer if not for the betrayal. One of the officials agreed to the bribe and opened the gate. He did not take into account one important fact - in addition to the female harem, the Turkish Sultan also had a male harem. That's where the pretty son of the traitor ended up.
The city fell. The civilized world froze. Now all the states of both Europe and Asia realized that the time had come for a new superpower - the Ottoman Empire.
European campaigns and confrontations with Russia
The Turks did not even think of stopping there. After the death of Byzantium, no one blocked their path to rich and unfaithful Europe, even conditionally.
Soon, Serbia (except for Belgrade, but the Turks would capture it in the 16th century), the Duchy of Athens (and, accordingly, most of all of Greece), the island of Lesbos, Wallachia, and Bosnia were annexed to the empire.
In Eastern Europe, the territorial appetites of the Turks intersected with the interests of Venice. The ruler of the latter quickly gained the support of Naples, the Pope and Karaman (Khanate in Asia Minor). The confrontation lasted 16 years and ended in complete victory for the Ottomans. After that, no one stopped them from “getting” the remaining Greek cities and islands, as well as annexing Albania and Herzegovina. The Turks were so keen on expanding their borders that they even successfully attacked the Crimean Khanate.
Panic began in Europe. Pope Sixtus IV began to make plans for the evacuation of Rome, and at the same time hastened to declare a Crusade against the Ottoman Empire. Only Hungary responded to the call. In 1481 Mehmed II died and the era of great conquests came to a temporary end.
In the 16th century, when internal unrest in the empire subsided, the Turks again turned their weapons on their neighbors. First there was a war with Persia. Although the Turks won it, their territorial gains were insignificant.
After success in North African Tripoli and Algeria, Sultan Suleiman invaded Austria and Hungary in 1527 and besieged Vienna two years later. It was not possible to take it - bad weather and widespread illness prevented it.
As for relations with Russia, the interests of states collided for the first time in Crimea.
The first war took place in 1568 and ended in 1570 with the victory of Russia. The empires fought with each other for 350 years (1568 - 1918) - one war occurred on average every quarter of a century.
During this time there were 12 wars (including the Azov War, the Prut Campaign, the Crimean and Caucasian Fronts during the First World War). And in most cases, victory remained with Russia.
Dawn and sunset of the Janissaries
When talking about the Ottoman Empire, one cannot fail to mention its regular troops - the Janissaries.
In 1365, by personal order of Sultan Murad I, the Janissary infantry was formed. It was staffed by Christians (Bulgarians, Greeks, Serbs, and so on) aged from eight to sixteen years. This is how the devshirme - blood tax - worked, which was imposed on the non-believing peoples of the empire. It is interesting that at first life for the Janissaries was quite difficult. They lived in monasteries-barracks, they were forbidden to start a family or any kind of household.
But gradually the Janissaries from an elite branch of the army began to turn into a highly paid burden for the state. In addition, these troops took part in hostilities less and less often.
The decomposition began in 1683, when Muslim children began to be taken into the Janissaries along with Christian children. Rich Turks sent their children there, thereby solving the issue of their successful future - they could make a good career. It was the Muslim Janissaries who began to start families and engage in crafts, as well as trade. Gradually they turned into a greedy, arrogant political force that interfered in state affairs and participated in the overthrow of unwanted sultans.
The agony continued until 1826, when Sultan Mahmud II abolished the Janissaries.
Death of the Ottoman Empire
Frequent unrest, inflated ambitions, cruelty and constant participation in any wars could not but affect the fate of the Ottoman Empire. The 20th century turned out to be especially critical, in which Turkey was increasingly torn apart by internal contradictions and the separatist spirit of the population. Because of this, the country fell far behind the West technically, and therefore began to lose the territories it had once conquered.
The fateful decision for the empire was its participation in the First World War. The Allies defeated the Turkish troops and organized a division of its territory. On October 29, 1923, a new state emerged - the Turkish Republic. Its first president was Mustafa Kemal (later, he changed his surname to Ataturk - “father of the Turks”). Thus ended the history of the once great Ottoman Empire.
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman imperial, officially - the great Ottoman state (Osm. دولت ولت ولی etterی et - Devlet -i âliyye -i Osmâniye) - a multinational state under the control of the Ottoman sultans, which existed from 1299 to 1923. In Europe, the Ottoman Empire was often called the Ottoman Empire, the Sublime Porte, or simply the Porte. During its heyday in the 16th-17th centuries, the state included Asia Minor (Anatolia), the Middle East, North Africa, the Balkan Peninsula and the lands of Europe adjacent to it in the north.
Anatolia, in which the bulk of modern Turkey is located, was the territory of Byzantium before the arrival of the Seljuk Turks in the 11th century. The Ottoman Empire completed its conquest of Byzantium with the capture of Constantinople in 1453. At the height of its power, during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent (1520-1566), the empire stretched from the gates of Vienna to the Persian Gulf, from the Crimea to Morocco.
After the end of the First World War, the Ottoman Empire disintegrates: the French Third Republic receives Syria, the British Empire - Iraq and Palestine; the remaining territories made up modern Turkey.
Story
Anatolia (Asia Minor), where Türkiye is located, was the cradle of many civilizations in ancient times. By the time the ancestors of modern Turks arrived, the Byzantine Empire existed here - a Greek Orthodox state with its capital in Constantinople (Istanbul). The Arab caliphs who fought with the Byzantines invited Turkic tribes to military service, which were allocated border and empty lands for settlement.
In 1071, the state of the Seljuk Turks arose with its capital in Konya, which gradually expanded its borders to almost the entire territory of Asia Minor. Destroyed by the Mongols.
In 1326, the Turkish Sultanate was founded on the lands conquered from the Byzantines with its capital in the city of Bursa. The Janissaries became the mainstay of the Turkish sultans' power.
In 1362, the Turks, having conquered lands in Europe, moved the capital to the city of Adrianople (Edirne). The European possessions of the Turkish Sultanate were called Rumelia.
In the 1450s, Armenia was included in the Ottoman Empire.
In 1453 the Turks took Constantinople and made it the capital of the empire. Under Selim the Terrible, Türkiye conquered Syria, Arabia and Egypt. The Turkish Sultan deposed the last caliph in Cairo and became the caliph himself. After defeating Venice (1505) and Egypt (1517), the Ottomans gained control of the Eastern Mediterranean. In 1526, the Battle of Mohacs took place, during which the Turks defeated the Czech-Hungarian army and occupied Hungary and in 1529 approached the walls of Vienna. At the height of its power, during the reign of Suleiman "the Magnificent" (1520-1566), the empire stretched from the gates of Vienna to the Persian Gulf, from the Crimea to Morocco. In 1678 the Turks captured territories west of the Dnieper.
In the 19th century, the Ottomans began rapid conquests in Africa south of Egypt, as a result of which they finally managed to finally appropriate the Nubian lands, Eastern Sudan (those territories that now make up the Republic of Sudan), Habesh - coastal lands in the territory of modern Eritrea and Djibouti, and also the northern part of modern Somalia.
Device and control
Public relations
The capture of Constantinople made the Ottoman state a powerful power. It was no longer a horde of 50,000 men and women; it was a state capable of fielding an army of 250,000 men, while maintaining strong garrisons in various places over a vast territory.
This increase in the number of Turks is explained by the ease with which they assimilated other nationalities, the Turkic tribes of Anatolia, Greeks, Slavs; Among the latter, all those who agreed to sacrifice religion for the sake of acquiring a privileged position became Turks - and there were many of them. The Balkan peoples had to pay tax not only with money (jizya), but also with children (devshirme), from whom, after converting to Islam, they raised janissaries and kapi-kulu - the personal slaves of the Sultan (unconfirmed information). Parents often voluntarily gave their children to Turkish officials, since slaves sometimes reached a very high position at court. Coming from Christian parents did not hinder his career at all. Thus, the grand vizier under Mehmet II was Mahmud Pasha, the son of an Orthodox Serbian and Greek mother. Under Suleiman Kanuni, the former Serb slave Mehmed Sokollu Pasha (Sokolović or Sokolić) was also the grand vizier.
The change in the physical characteristics of the Turks was accelerated by the fact that the Turks' harem for the most part consisted of captives of European or Caucasian origin. Politically and culturally, the conquerors of Constantinople were also far from being Osman's horde; they were a large state with a complex administration and complex life. The Turks themselves constituted a privileged, predominantly military, and also bureaucratic class, but by no means a closed caste. Administrators and judges were appointed exclusively from among them; they were an army.
The Ottomans never introduced conscription for the conquered Christian peoples, although they sometimes took auxiliary units from vassal peoples. Many Turks received in the form of awards or otherwise acquired significant land holdings (chifliks) and were large landowners who managed their estates with the help of serf labor of the subject Christian population. Small peasant landowners also appeared next to them, partly Turks, but mostly Greeks, Serbs or Bulgarians who converted to Islam. The position of the conquered Christian peoples under the rule of the Ottomans (except, of course, slaves) was not particularly difficult at first.
The Ottomans deliberately preserved local self-government of the subject “raya”; They did not even think about religious persecution, since Islam forbade limiting the freedom of religion of any people. Immediately after the capture of Constantinople, Mehmed invited the Greek clergy to elect a new patriarch (the previous one was killed during the siege) and immediately approved the chosen one. Janissary guards were assigned to guard him, which immediately gave him the character of a Turkish official. The Patriarch, together with the council, received the significance of supreme control over the Orthodox (Greeks, Serbs, Bulgarians, Russians, etc.) and court in disputes between them. They could impose punishments on the Orthodox, up to and including the death penalty, and the Ottoman authorities usually carried them out without objection. The downside of this policy was that over time, all the highest positions within the Orthodox millet were given to the Greeks, who often developed and instilled the language and culture of their fellow tribesmen throughout the millet, at the expense of other nationalities. The Turks did the same with other nations. By this they easily reconciled them at first with their power, but the church became a force that subsequently greatly contributed to the liberation of these peoples.
Along with serfdom, real slavery also existed: slaves were used primarily as domestic servants, and female slaves as concubines in a harem. Slave trading took place on a fairly large scale in Constantinople and other cities. Civil administration was at a very low level; officials and judges looked at their positions as a way to enrich themselves; The crudest bribery flourished. The Sultans tried to fight this evil; Thus, Bayazet I in one day hanged 80 judges convicted of bribery, but in the absence of properly organized control on the part of society or at least the government, with the population downtrodden and deprived of the opportunity to protest, such measures did not lead to the desired results. Mehmed II transferred the spiritual administration to the supreme authority of the Mufti, or Sheikh-ul-Islam, the spiritual head of all the faithful, appointed by the Sultan. The fatwas (decrees) he gave had the character of valid law. Often, despite all the caution in their appointment, the sheikh-ul-Islams turned out to be strong opponents of one or another sultan; sometimes with their help coups d'etat were carried out. Sheikh-ul-Islam was also at the head of the court.
State structure
Over the course of six centuries, the Ottoman Empire developed a rather complex state structure. During the reign of Osman (1288-1326), a powerful military state was formed, essentially absolutist, although the commanders to whom the Sultan gave different areas to manage often turned out to be independent and reluctant to recognize the supreme power of the Sultan. This period is marked by the creation of the Ottoman system of government, which remained virtually unchanged for four centuries.
Army
Despite the undoubted courage of the Ottoman soldiers, the military art and organization of the army were not so high compared to the military art of the Europeans; only a significant numerical superiority made it possible for the Ottomans to win their resounding victories; Thus, in the second battle on the Kosovo field, the size of the Hunyadi army is determined to be 30,000 people, while the Ottoman army reached 150,000; and yet the battle lasted 3 days and at least 30,000 Turks remained at the battle site. In the naval battle with the Genoese near Constantinople, even a significant superiority of forces did not help the Turks. As long as conquests were possible, forcing the people to strain all their strength, the Ottoman Empire could maintain its existence; but it did not have sufficient internal forces for cultural development, and with the cessation of conquests, political disintegration and internal decay should have begun.
During the 1880s, the Ottoman government worked actively to rearm the army; Mostly German instructors worked on organizing the army.
One should also take into account the huge irregular detachments as part of the Ottoman hordes, which were of little use, but they still existed. And in clashes with the Janissaries, the Austrian troops had an extremely difficult time, especially in close combat, which most Europeans avoided (“fear of the bayonet”). Control over the Janissaries was found by Suvorov-Rymniksky and Rumyantsev-Zadunaysky, who raised the art of bayonet fighting to an unprecedented height, using battalion squares covered by regimental artillery and rangers. Before them, hand-to-hand combat with the Janissaries was avoided (preferring gunfire) and they even blocked the front with slingshots.
Army reform under Mahmud
In the midst of these uprisings, Mahmud decided to boldly reform the Janissary army. The Janissary corps was replenished with annual intakes of Christian children of 1000 annually (in addition, service in the Janissary army was inherited, for the Janissaries had families), but at the same time it was reduced due to constant wars and rebellions. Under Suleiman there were 40,000 Janissaries, under Mehmed III - 116,000. During the reign of Mehmed IV, an attempt was made to limit the number of Janissaries to 55 thousand, but it failed due to their rebellion, and by the end of the reign their number rose to 200 thousand. Under Mahmud II it was probably even greater (salaries were given to more than 400,000 people), but it is completely impossible to accurately determine it precisely due to the complete indiscipline of the Janissaries.
The number of orts or ods (detachments) was 229, of which 77 were stationed in Constantinople; but the agis themselves (officers) did not know the true composition of their odes and tried to exaggerate it, since in accordance with it they received salaries for the Janissaries, which partly remained in their pockets. Sometimes salaries, especially in the provinces, were not paid at all for entire years, and then even this incentive to collect statistical data disappeared. When rumors spread about the reform project, the Janissary leaders at a meeting decided to demand that the Sultan execute its authors; but the Sultan, who foresaw this, sent a standing army against them, distributed weapons to the population of the capital and proclaimed a religious war against the Janissaries.
A battle took place in the streets of Constantinople and in the barracks; government supporters broke into homes and exterminated the Janissaries with their wives and children; The Janissaries, taken by surprise, offered almost no resistance. At least 10,000, and according to more accurate information, up to 20,000 Janissaries were exterminated; the corpses were thrown into the Bosphorus. The rest fled across the country and joined bandits. In the provinces, arrests and executions of officers were carried out on a large scale, while the mass of the Janissaries surrendered and were distributed to the regiments.
Following the Janissaries, on the basis of the Mufti's fatwa, the Bektashi dervishes, who had always served as faithful companions of the Janissaries, were partly executed and partly expelled.
With the formation of new troops in the Ottoman Empire (Turkish Sekban-ı Cedit), and as a result of numerous Janissary revolts, the Janissary corps was liquidated. Sultan Mahmud II planned to liquidate the Janissary corps by supplying the population with weapons. The people mercilessly killed members of the Janissary corps. The Janissaries tried to hide in their headquarters, which, on the orders of Mahmud II, were set on fire along with the Janissaries. Thus, on June 16, 1826, the corps (odzhak) of the Janissaries was destroyed. This event was called Vaka-i Hayriye (Turkish: Vaka-i Hayriye) or Event that does a good deed (Hayırlı Olay).
Cities of the Ottoman Empire. Crafts and trade
On the territory of the Ottoman Empire there were large cities with developed handicraft production. Cotton and wool fabrics, silks, satin and velvet, carpets, blades and various weapons, perfumes and ivory products were famous far beyond its borders. Istanbul, Izmir, numbered tens of thousands of artisans. They united into workshops that resembled the workshops of medieval Europe. Labor methods, production volumes, and order distribution were strictly regulated. Each workshop was headed by a foreman sheikh. The first manufactories appeared in some cities in the 18th century.
Craftsmen worked both for feudal customers and for the market, selling their products to merchants. Trade grew, which was concentrated mainly in the hands of merchants of trading cities. Handicraft products, some types of raw materials and food were exported from the Ottoman Empire. Luxury goods and weapons were imported from Europe and East Asia. In addition, quite lively transit trade between Europe and East Asia took place through Turkey. However, the feudal order that prevailed in the Ottoman Empire prevented the development of crafts and trade, and the formation of a capitalist structure, which today, it should be noted, causes serious problems in the world economy.
Due to the dominance of subsistence farming in the Turkish countryside, economic ties between town and countryside were negligible. The level of technology among artisans and factories was low. All production was based on manual labor. Trade also experienced serious difficulties. There were internal customs offices that imposed numerous taxes on goods. Each province had its own measures of length and weight. The government systematically issued devalued coins. All this hindered the further development of crafts and trade. Already in the 17th and especially the 18th centuries, clear signs of the decline of the craft appeared.
Culture
The deep socio-economic crisis in the 18th-19th centuries had a detrimental effect on the development of national culture in the Ottoman Empire. Science, literature, art fell into decline. The gap between the culture of the ruling classes, alien to the people, and the working masses has become even more insurmountable. Due to the departure from the core values of Islam at the Sultan's court, the palaces of the feudal lords emulated Western European royal courts. The first Turkish printing houses, created in the 18th century, printed mainly theological treatises. Books and official documents used a language that consisted almost entirely of Arabic and Persian words. Education and school were in the hands of the clergy. There were very few literate people. In these difficult conditions, the masses preserved and developed their national culture mainly in the form of folklore and other types of folk art.
Religion
The Ottoman Caliphate was a state that spread Islam throughout the world, defended and protected Islam from the influence of sects. The Ottoman Caliphate actively Islamized the Balkan Peninsula. The official legal school of the caliphate was the Hanafi madhhab and the Hanafi creed - Maturidism. Also on the territory of the Ottoman Caliphate, Sufi brotherhoods, such as Naqshbandi, Mevlevi, Bektashi, etc., were active. Moreover, often the caliphs were students (murids) of a spiritual mentor (murshid), for example, the founder of the Ottoman caliphate Osmanu Ghazi was a student of the murshid Sheikh Edebali.
Science and art
Sultan Selim I patronized literature and himself left a significant number of Turkish and Arabic poems. Many works were written under him.
During the reign of Mahmud, Ibrahim Basmaji founded the first Turkish printing house. The Mufti gave a fatwa, with which he blessed the undertaking in the name of the interests of enlightenment, and the Sultan Gatti Sherif authorized it. It was only forbidden to print the Koran and holy books (unconfirmed fact). During the first period of the printing house’s existence, 15 works were printed there (Arabic and Persian dictionaries, several books on the history of the Ottoman state and general geography, military art, political economy, etc.). After the death of Ibrahim Basmaji, the printing house was closed, a new one arose only in 1784. In the 18th century, under the patronage of Mustafa, the first public library, several schools and hospitals were opened in Constantinople.
Economy
To regulate finances, Mustafa III began by saving in his own palace. He very willingly concluded an agreement with Prussia in 1761, which granted Prussian merchant ships free navigation in Ottoman waters; Prussian subjects in the Ottoman Empire were subject to the jurisdiction of their consuls. Russia and Austria offered Mustafa 100,000 ducats for the abolition of the rights given to Prussia, but to no avail: Mustafa wanted to bring his state as close as possible to European civilization.
After the Crimean War, the sultans began to borrow money from Western bankers. Already in 1854, having virtually no external debt, the Ottoman government very quickly became bankrupt, and already in 1875 Sultan Abdul Aziz owed European bondholders almost one billion dollars in foreign currency. This was a serious mistake by the sultans, and if the loan was carried out at interest, then this operation also contradicted the norms of Islam prohibiting usury.
In 1880, 5 years after declaring bankruptcy, the Ottoman Empire not only did not begin to pay its debts in full, but was preparing for a further reduction in payments. At the end of 1881, a conference of representatives of the empire's creditors met in Constantinople, which had to agree to a further reduction in payments (1% on fixed capital instead of 5+% depreciation) under the condition of transferring control over some income to a commission of creditors. This commission, called the Conseil d'administration de la dette publique Ottoman, consisted of 5 members appointed for a 5-year term: the Foreign bondholders syndicate in London, the Chamber of Commerce in Rome and the syndicates of Ottoman creditors in Vienna, Paris and Berlin. Moreover, one of the directors of the Ottoman Bank had the right to be present. It had been meeting in Constantinople since 1882 and in reality was like a department of the Ministry of Finance, since it was directly in charge of certain state revenues, but enjoyed independence from the entire ministry and from the government in general. In 1883, a tobacco monopoly was introduced to increase revenue.
Economic recovery
In 1889, slaves whose owners could not prove that they legally owned them were declared free; in 1890, effective measures were taken to stop the slave trade, which had been prohibited back in 1858. Since that time, slavery can be considered almost disappeared from the European part of the empire, but in Asia Minor it persisted to a weak extent until the declaration of the Turkish Republic.
In 1889, an arbitration hearing of the dispute between the Porte and Baron Hirsch, the owner of railways in the Ottoman Empire, took place in Berlin. Prof. was elected as arbitrator. Gneist. The decision was largely in favor of the Porte; Thanks to him, the Porte acquired the right to use some railways and was given the opportunity to build further ones, which was done in Asia Minor.
The two decades that passed after the war of 1876-1878 were a period of some economic recovery for the country and, at the same time, some improvement in its international position. During this time, her relations with her most bitter enemies improved. In 1883, Prince Nicholas of Montenegro visited Constantinople; in 1892, the Bulgarian minister Istanbulov was in Constantinople; friendly relations with Bulgaria were consolidated in 1898 by the visit of the Bulgarian prince and princess to Constantinople. In 1893, the Sultan received a valuable album as a gift from Emperor Alexander III. In 1894 there was a Serbian king in Constantinople. The visit of the German Emperor and Empress to the Sultan was of even greater significance.
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