Taking a Look at the Ottoman Empire

The ruling elite of the Ottoman Empire were unique, because they were a foreign influence, which shaped the way they were perceived and how they displayed their identity. This was because; they were Devirshirme, recruits of the child levy system. They served in either the palace service or the Janissary military system. Their status as the ruling elite was bittersweet, filled with pros and cons. The Janissaries formed a powerful interest group, which allowed them to project their power to the Sultan as well as the people.

While taking the class of Early Modern European History there was two states that really stuck out and peaked my interest the most. They were the Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe. If you compare and contrast both the Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe during the 16th Century through the 18th Century, you will see that there are a number of similarities as well as differences when you look at the expansion of the states. You will also see many of these contrasts as well when you look in terms of each states military and commerce. Although the Ottoman Empire existed before the 16th century and continued to exist past the 18th century and in great decline until the early 20th century, when looking at the state as a whole the time

The Ottoman Turks emerged on the periphery of the Byzantine Empire and the Saljuk Turks. Under a Turkish Muslim warrior named Osman, raids were conducted in western Anatolia on Byzantine settlements and a vast number of Turks were united under his banner. Those Turks who flocked to Osman's banner and followed him into the history books came to be called the Ottomans. The word Ottoman, fits these Turks well as it roughly translates from Turkish as "those associated with Oman."

The Ottoman had several scenes of decline and each one had marked their history and are linked with it so I will explain each one. The armistice of 1918 ended the fighting between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies but didn´t bring stability or peace to the region. The British controlled Syria, Palestine and Mesopotamia.

Though it may sound heartless and selfish, the needs and aims of countries usually are the primary factor controlling their foreign relations. During the period of the czars, from 1547 to 1917, Russia’s need for land and modernization shaped its relationships with Western Europe and the Ottoman Empire, causing Russia’s leaders to respect and imitate Western Europe while competing with the European powers to fill the power vacuum of the failing Ottoman Empire.

While some may like it and others may not, change is inevitable. This falls very true for countries such as Russia, China, Japan, and Ottoman Turkey in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Of course a region will be affected by even the slightest bit of change as they develop, but these regions were all majorly affected by Western influence at this time. From technologies to land ownership, regions would be changed forever, no matter how much they may have tried to resist. Despite massive efforts by some, Russia, China, Japan, and Ottoman Turkey were all greatly influenced by the West, in many aspects.

The Europeans were greatly intimidated by the Ottoman's increasingly strong and powerful army. As a result, they wanted to cut off trade with the Ottomans in order to prevent them from becoming too wealthy and powerful. Many of the European nations feared that the Ottomans would be powerful enough to conquer more European nations, similar to how they brought down the Byzantine Empire by conquering Constantinople. The Europeans’ fears came from seeing the ease at which the Ottoman Empire was able to achieve military victories. They believed that the Ottoman armies would cause the political and social infrastructure of Europe to crumble along with Christendom. The Europeans’ concerns about the Ottoman’s armies can be seen in the document, “The Turkish Letters of Ogier Ghislain de Busbeq.” Ogier Ghislain de Busbeq traveled to Istanbul in 1555 as a diplomat of Hungary and Bohemia. In the document, he comments on the state, society, customs, and military forces of the Ottoman Empire. He writes, “I tremble when I think of what the future must bring when I compare the Turkish system with our own. On their side are the resources of a mighty empire, strength unimpaired, experience and practice in fighting, a veterinary soldiery, habituation to victory, endurance of toil, unity, order, discipline, frugality, and watchfulness.” The Ottoman Empire, undoubtedly, made many nations fear

The Ottoman Empire, during its peak, was one of the largest and most powerful empires in the world, where the empire lasted from the fourteenth century until the early twentieth century. The Ottoman Empire stretched from North Africa, Arabs states, and the Balkan. However, just like any great empire, the Ottoman Empire would eventually experience significant problems and potentially lead to its decline as a great power in the European and Asian continent. In order to combat the decline of the empire and bring back their strength in comparison to the European powers, the Ottomans started a period of reform, known as the Tanzimat (1839 – 1876), which means reorganization in Turkish. There were major reforms developed for the empire, but whether they were truly effective is still debated.

Constantinople great Christian city that had been seized and controlled by the Muslim Ottoman sultan Mehmed II in 1453. This event marked the final end of the Roman/Byzantine Empire and the ascendency of the Ottoman Empire. The byzantine was a stronghold for Christianity and had ruled for eleven hundred years.

In this week’s chapter, it discusses a lot about the rise and fall of the Ottoman and Safavid Empires. In many dynasties, it is critically important to have a well balanced society and economy. Anderson displays many of the reasons why these two empires were so great during their time, but evidently loss of power and control of government can be a major turning point and, eventually, led to the decline of these empires. This specific chapter focus on the systems of governance that was established in each empire.

The Ottoman empire; one of the greatest empires in history. The Empire, at its height, ruled most of the land around the Mediterranean. It contributed much to culture, science, religion, war, politics, and the world. Its monumental fall will be known throughout history. How can the swift decline of the Ottoman power be explained? Perhaps the best way to understand how important this event was, there needs to be a brief explanation of the history behind this epic collapse; showing the rise before the fall and the drastic change.

The Ottoman empire reached its peak during the !6th century and slowly began its descend. By the 19th century, the empire was riddled with incompetent rulers which allowed for power struggles within. Rival ministers, religious experts, and the commanders of the Janissary corps competed, further eroding effective leadership. There was no control over the vast resources and great population of the empire. The Provincial officers and the landowning class, ayan, took the opportunity to control taxes, and skimmed revenues. The corruption of the bureaucracy depleted the resources need to maintain a large land empire. Additionally, the artisans could not keep up with imported manufactured goods from Europe. This led to artisan riots with guild members

Today, there are virtually no multinational states remaining and one would be hard-pressed to find a government that has remained in place since the pre-World War I era. In that sense, it is highly unlikely that the Ottoman Empire could have survived the tumultuous 20th Century. Nevertheless, it may have had a chance. If not for European intervention, Ottoman reforms may have succeeded. However, even with those reforms, they had to compete with the rise of nationalism, which would have been difficult.

The rise of the Ottoman Empire started in Turkey and spread through most of the Middle East. Their military practice and successful transition to the use of gun powder made them one of the most successful ruling bodies in the Middle East. The Ottoman Empire which ruled until modern times had great influence on the Middle Eastern world. Their political and economic abilities astonished the western world. Their religious views and fears were instilled into any non-Muslim and helped the western world to find new trade. The rise of Christianity in the western world provided new ways to preserve the dead and ended the need for frankensence, the main export of the Ottoman Empire. This

At its peak, the Ottoman Empire spread across 3 continents and was known as the most powerful empire in Europe, Asia, and Africa. In the beginning, the Ottomans were descendants of the Seljuk Turks, the great empire in Asia. The Ottomans were military minded and raided surrounding areas. Of these raiders, or Gazis, Osman I was the most important. Sultan Osman Gazi I was an expert at invading and conquering. Soon, Osman and his followers, Ottomans, created a small state in Anatolia. They bought and conquered land and expanded their small state into an empire. Also, their military was the first to use gunpowder and cannons as an offense and thus were considered the greatest military at the time. With all of this, their Empire successfully survived from one family line of Sultans for seven centuries. Because of their strength and superiority, the Ottomans were considered one of the most successful Empires in history.