1.
History of the Ottoman Empire
–
The Ottoman Empire was founded by Osman I. As sultan Mehmed II conquered Constantinople in 1453, the state grew into a mighty empire, the empire came to an end in the aftermath of its defeat by the ] in World War I. The empire was dismantled by the Allies after the war ended in 1918, with the demise of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum, Anatolia was divided into a patchwork of independent states, the so-called Anatolian Beyliks. By 1300, a weakened Byzantine Empire had lost most of its Anatolian provinces to these Turkish principalities, one of the beyliks was led by Osman I, from which the name Ottoman is derived, son of Ertuğrul, around Eskişehir in western Anatolia. In the foundation myth expressed in the known as Osmans Dream. According to his dream the tree, which was Osmans Empire, issued four rivers from its roots, the Tigris, the Euphrates, the Nile, additionally, the tree shaded four mountain ranges, the Caucasus, the Taurus, the Atlas and the Balkan ranges. During his reign as Sultan, Osman I extended the frontiers of Turkish settlement toward the edge of the Byzantine Empire, in this period, a formal Ottoman government was created whose institutions would change drastically over the life of the empire. In the century after the death of Osman I, Ottoman rule began to extend over the Eastern Mediterranean, Osmans son, Orhan, captured the city of Bursa in 1326 and made it the new capital of the Ottoman state. The fall of Bursa meant the loss of Byzantine control over Northwestern Anatolia, the important city of Thessaloniki was captured from the Venetians in 1387. The Ottoman victory at Kosovo in 1389 effectively marked the end of Serbian power in the region, the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396, widely regarded as the last large-scale crusade of the Middle Ages, failed to stop the advance of the victorious Ottoman Turks. With the extension of Turkish dominion into the Balkans, the strategic conquest of Constantinople became a crucial objective, the Empire controlled nearly all former Byzantine lands surrounding the city, but the Byzantines were temporarily relieved when Timur invaded Anatolia in the Battle of Ankara in 1402. He took Sultan Bayezid I as a prisoner, the capture of Bayezid I threw the Turks into disorder. The state fell into a war that lasted from 1402 to 1413. It ended when Mehmed I emerged as the sultan and restored Ottoman power, part of the Ottoman territories in the Balkans were temporarily lost after 1402, but were later recovered by Murad II between the 1430s and 1450s. Four years later, János Hunyadi prepared another army to attack the Turks, the son of Murad II, Mehmed the Conqueror, reorganized the state and the military, and demonstrated his martial prowess by capturing Constantinople on 29 May 1453, at the age of 21. The Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453 by Mehmed II cemented the status of the Empire as the preeminent power in southeastern Europe and the eastern Mediterranean. To this aim he spent many years securing positions on the Adriatic Sea, such as in Albania Veneta, during this period in the 15th and 16th centuries, the Ottoman Empire entered a long period of conquest and expansion, extending its borders deep into Europe and North Africa. Conquests on land were driven by the discipline and innovation of the Ottoman military, and on the sea, the state also flourished economically due to its control of the major overland trade routes between Europe and Asia
2.
Ottoman Empire
–
After 1354, the Ottomans crossed into Europe, and with the conquest of the Balkans the Ottoman Beylik was transformed into a transcontinental empire. The Ottomans ended the Byzantine Empire with the 1453 conquest of Constantinople by Mehmed the Conqueror, at the beginning of the 17th century the empire contained 32 provinces and numerous vassal states. Some of these were later absorbed into the Ottoman Empire, while others were granted various types of autonomy during the course of centuries. With Constantinople as its capital and control of lands around the Mediterranean basin, while the empire was once thought to have entered a period of decline following the death of Suleiman the Magnificent, this view is no longer supported by the majority of academic historians. The empire continued to maintain a flexible and strong economy, society, however, during a long period of peace from 1740 to 1768, the Ottoman military system fell behind that of their European rivals, the Habsburg and Russian Empires. While the Empire was able to hold its own during the conflict, it was struggling with internal dissent. Starting before World War I, but growing increasingly common and violent during it, major atrocities were committed by the Ottoman government against the Armenians, Assyrians and Pontic Greeks. The word Ottoman is an anglicisation of the name of Osman I. Osmans name in turn was the Turkish form of the Arabic name ʿUthmān, in Ottoman Turkish, the empire was referred to as Devlet-i ʿAlīye-yi ʿOsmānīye, or alternatively ʿOsmānlı Devleti. In Modern Turkish, it is known as Osmanlı İmparatorluğu or Osmanlı Devleti, the Turkish word for Ottoman originally referred to the tribal followers of Osman in the fourteenth century, and subsequently came to be used to refer to the empires military-administrative elite. In contrast, the term Turk was used to refer to the Anatolian peasant and tribal population, the term Rūmī was also used to refer to Turkish-speakers by the other Muslim peoples of the empire and beyond. In Western Europe, the two names Ottoman Empire and Turkey were often used interchangeably, with Turkey being increasingly favored both in formal and informal situations and this dichotomy was officially ended in 1920–23, when the newly established Ankara-based Turkish government chose Turkey as the sole official name. Most scholarly historians avoid the terms Turkey, Turks, and Turkish when referring to the Ottomans, as the power of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum declined in the 13th century, Anatolia was divided into a patchwork of independent Turkish principalities known as the Anatolian Beyliks. One of these beyliks, in the region of Bithynia on the frontier of the Byzantine Empire, was led by the Turkish tribal leader Osman, osmans early followers consisted both of Turkish tribal groups and Byzantine renegades, many but not all converts to Islam. Osman extended the control of his principality by conquering Byzantine towns along the Sakarya River and it is not well understood how the early Ottomans came to dominate their neighbours, due to the scarcity of the sources which survive from this period. One school of thought which was popular during the twentieth century argued that the Ottomans achieved success by rallying religious warriors to fight for them in the name of Islam, in the century after the death of Osman I, Ottoman rule began to extend over Anatolia and the Balkans. Osmans son, Orhan, captured the northwestern Anatolian city of Bursa in 1326 and this conquest meant the loss of Byzantine control over northwestern Anatolia. The important city of Thessaloniki was captured from the Venetians in 1387, the Ottoman victory at Kosovo in 1389 effectively marked the end of Serbian power in the region, paving the way for Ottoman expansion into Europe
3.
Rise of the Ottoman Empire
–
The foundation and rise of the Ottoman Empire is a period of history that started with the emergence of the Ottoman principality in c. 1299, and ended with the conquest of Constantinople on May 29,1453. For this reason, this period in the history has been described as the Proto-Imperial Era. Throughout most of period, the Ottomans were merely one of many competing states in the region. The cause of Ottoman success cannot be attributed to any single factor, the earlier part of this period, the fourteenth century, is particularly difficult for historians to study due to the scarcity of sources. Not a single written document survives from the reign of Osman I, the Ottomans, furthermore, did not begin to record their own history until the fifteenth century, more than a hundred years after many of the events they describe. At the beginning of the thirteenth century Anatolia was divided between two powerful states, the Byzantine Empire in the west and the Anatolian Seljuks in the central plateau. Mongol pressure pushed nomadic Turkish tribes to migrate westward, into the now poorly-defended Byzantine territory, the power of these groups was largely dependent upon their ability to attract military manpower. Western Anatolia was then a hotbed of raiding activity, with warriors switching allegiance at will to whichever chief seemed most able to provide them opportunities for plunder. The Ottoman dynasty is named after the first independent ruler of the Ottoman polity, according to later Ottoman tradition, he was descended from a Turkic tribe which migrated out of Central Asia in the wake of the Mongol Conquests. As evidenced by coins minted during his reign, Osmans father was named Ertuğrul, the origins of the Ottoman dynasty thus remain obscure, shrouded in myth and legend, and the identity of Osmans tribe and ancestors is not known for certain. Likewise, nothing is known about how Osman first established his principality as the sources, none of contemporary, provide many different. Osmans principality was initially supported by the manpower of nomadic Turkish groups. This Ottoman tribe was based not on blood-ties, but on political expedience, thus it was inclusive of all who wished to join, including people of Byzantine origin. The Ottoman enterprise came to be led by several great families, at least one of which was of Greek Christian origin. Nevertheless, Islam played a role in Ottoman self-identity from the start, as evidenced by a land grant issued by Osmans son Orhan in 1324. Such a war was known as gaza, and a fighting in it was called a gazi. Beginning in the 1980s, historians began to criticize Witteks thesis. Scholars now recognize that the terms gaza and gazi did not have religious connotations for the early Ottomans
4.
Ottoman Interregnum
–
The Interregnum lasted for 11 years until the Battle of Çamurlu on 5 July 1413, when Mehmed Çelebi emerged as victor in the strife, crowned himself sultan Mehmed I, and restored the empire. Civil war broke out among the sons of Sultan Bayezid I upon his death in 1403 and his oldest son, Süleyman, with his capital at Edirne, ruled northern Greece, Macedonia, Bulgaria and Thrace. The second son, İsa Çelebi, established himself as an independent ruler at Bursa, War broke out between Mehmed and İsa, and following the battles of Ermeni-beli and Ulubad, Isa fled to Constantinople and Mehmed occupied Bursa. The subsequent battle at Karasi between Mehmed and Isa resulted in a victory for Mehmed and Isa fleeing to Karaman, Isa was later killed in a bath by agents of Mehmed. Following Isas death, Süleyman crossed the straits with a large army and he invaded Anatolia, capturing Bursa and Ankara later that year. During the stalemate in Anatolia, which lasted from 1405-1410, Mehmed sent Musa across the Black Sea to Thrace with a force to attack Suleymans territories in south-eastern Europe. This maneuver soon recalled Suleyman to Thrace, where a short, at first Suleyman had the advantage, winning the battle of Kosmidion in 1410, but in 1411 his army defected to Mûsa at Edirne and Suleyman was executed on the orders of Musa. Mûsa was now the ruler of the Ottoman dominions in Thrace, manuel II Palaiologos, the Byzantine emperor, had been the ally of Suleyman, Mûsa therefore besieged Constantinople. Manuel called on Mehmed to protect him, and Mehmeds Ottomans now garrisoned Constantinople against Musas Ottomans of Thrace, Mehmed made several unsuccessful sallies against his brothers troops, and was obliged to re-cross the Bosporus to quell a revolt that had broken out in his own territories. Mûsa now pressed the siege of Constantinople, Mehmed returned to Thrace, and obtained the assistance of Stefan Lazarevic, the Serbian Despot. The armies of the rival Ottoman brothers met on the plain of Chamurli, Hassan, the Agha of the Janissaries of Mehmed, stepped out before the ranks and tried to get the troops to change sides. Mûsa rushed towards Hassan and killed him, but was wounded by an officer who had accompanied Hassan. Mûsas Ottomans fought well, but the battle was won by Mehmed, Mûsa fled, was later captured and strangled. With Mûsa dead, Mehmed was the surviving son of the late Sultan Bayezid I. The Interregnum was a example of the fratricide that would become common in Ottoman successions. During the Interregnum, only Mehmed Celebi minted coins titling himself Sultan and his brother Suleymans coins called himself, Emir Suleyman b. Bayezid, while Musas coins stated, Musa b, no coins of Isas have survived. The Late Medieval Balkans, A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest, ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press
5.
Fall of Constantinople
–
The Fall of Constantinople was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire by an invading army of the Ottoman Empire on 29 May 1453. The Ottomans were commanded by the then 21-year-old Mehmed the Conqueror, the sultan of the Ottoman Empire. The conquest of Constantinople followed a 53-day siege that had begun on 6 April 1453, the capture of Constantinople marked the end of the Roman Empire, an imperial state that had lasted for nearly 1,500 years. The Ottoman conquest of Constantinople also dealt a blow to Christendom. After the conquest, Sultan Mehmed II transferred the capital of the Ottoman Empire from Edirne to Constantinople. The conquest of the city of Constantinople and the end of the Byzantine Empire was a key event in the Late Middle Ages, which also marks, for some historians, Constantinople had been an imperial capital since its consecration in 330 under Roman Emperor, Constantine the Great. In the following centuries, the city had been besieged many times but was captured only once. The crusaders established an unstable Latin state in and around Constantinople while the remaining empire splintered into a number of Byzantine successor states, notably Nicaea, Epirus and they fought as allies against the Latin establishments, but also fought among themselves for the Byzantine throne. The Nicaeans eventually reconquered Constantinople from the Latins in 1261, thereafter there was little peace for the much-weakened empire as it fended off successive attacks by the Latins, the Serbians, the Bulgarians, and, most importantly, the Ottoman Turks. The Black Plague between 1346 and 1349 killed almost half of the inhabitants of Constantinople, the Empire of Trebizond, an independent successor state that formed in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade, also survived on the coast of the Black Sea. This optimism was reinforced by friendly assurances made by Mehmed to envoys sent to his new court, but Mehmeds actions spoke far louder than his mild words. Since the mutual excommunications of 1054, the Pope in Rome was committed to establishing authority over the eastern church, nominal union had been negotiated in 1274, at the Second Council of Lyon, and indeed, some Palaiologoi emperors had since been received into the Latin church. Emperor John VIII Palaiologos had also recently negotiated union with Pope Eugene IV, finally, the attempted Union failed, greatly annoying Pope Nicholas V and the hierarchy of the Roman church. Although some troops did arrive from the city states in the north of Italy. Some Western individuals, however, came to defend the city on their own account. One of these was a soldier from Genoa, Giovanni Giustiniani. A specialist in defending walled cities, he was given the overall command of the defense of the land walls by the emperor. In Venice, meanwhile, deliberations were taking place concerning the kind of assistance the Republic would lend to Constantinople
6.
Classical Age of the Ottoman Empire
–
The territory of the Ottoman Empire greatly expanded, and led to what some historians have called the Pax Ottomana. The process of centralization undergone by the prior to 1453 was brought to completion in the reign of Mehmed II. The Ottoman Empire of the Classical Age experienced dramatic territorial growth, the period opened with the conquest of Constantinople by Mehmed II in 1453. Mehmed II went on to consolidate the position in the Balkans and Anatolia, conquering Serbia in 1454-5, the Peloponnese in 1458-9, Trebizond in 1461. Many Venetian territories in Greece were conquered during the 1463-79 Ottoman-Venetian War, by 1474 the Ottomans had conquered their Anatolian rival the Karamanids, and in 1475 conquered Kaffa on the Crimean Peninsula, establishing the Crimean Khanate as a vassal state. In 1480 an invasion of Otranto in Italy was launched, the reign of Bayezid II was one of consolidation after the rapid conquests of the previous era, and the empires territory was expanded only marginally. In 1484 Bayezid led a campaign against Moldavia, subjecting it to status and annexing the strategic ports of Kilia. Major Venetian ports were conquered in Greece and Albania during the 1499-1503 war, most significantly Modon, Koron, however, by the end of his reign, Ottoman territory in the east was coming under threat from the newly established Safavid Empire. Rapid expansion resumed under Selim I, who defeated the Safavids in the Battle of Chaldiran in 1514, annexing much of eastern Anatolia, in 1516 he led a campaign against the Mamluk Sultanate, conquering first Syria and then Egypt the following year. Under Selims reign the territory expanded from roughly 341,100 sq mi to 576,900 sq mi. Lacking a king, Hungary descended into war over the succession. When their rivals the Habsburgs began to achieve the upper hand, Suleiman directly intervened by again conquering Buda, elsewhere, Suleiman led major campaigns against Safavid Iran, conquering Baghdad in 1534 and annexing Iraq. Ottoman rule was extended with the incorporation of much of North Africa, the conquest of coastal Yemen in 1538. Additional conquests were marginal, and served to shore up the Ottoman position, Ottoman control over Hungary was expanded in a series of campaigns, and a second Hungarian province was established with the conquests of Temeşvar in 1552. By the end of Suleimans reign the territory had expanded to approximately 877,888 sq mi. The conquest of Constantinople allowed Mehmed II to turn his attention to Anatolia, Mehmed II recovered the Ottoman power on other Turkish states. These conquests allowed him to push further into Europe, another important political entity which shaped the Eastern policy of Mehmed II was the White Sheep Turcomans. He led a campaign against Uzun Hasan in 1473 which resulted with the decisive victory of the Ottoman Empire in the Battle of Otlukbeli
7.
Ottoman Old Regime
–
The history of the Ottoman Empire in the 18th century has classically been described as one of stagnation and reform. In analogy with 18th-century France, it is known as the Ancien Régime or Old Regime, contrasting with the New Regime of the Nizam-i Cedid. The period characterized as one of decentralization in the Ottoman political system, in light of this, the empires history during this period is now generally viewed in more neutral terms, eschewing concepts such as decline and stagnation. The Old Regime was brought to an end not by a dramatic event. Although Selim himself was deposed, his reforms were continued by his successors into the nineteenth century, of crucial importance for this period in Ottoman history was the institution of malikāne, or life-term tax farm. This system provided the Ottoman government with a more stable source of revenue. However, the impact of malikāne extended far beyond its original economic and it facilitated a new style of government in the Ottoman Empire, which has been characterized as one of decentralization. Malikāne contracts were split into shares and privately traded on an ever-expanding market and these state assets were traded among numerous social groups, including but not limited to military and religious officials, rural gentry, urban notables, and janissaries. This provided provincial figures with new ways to interact with the Ottoman state, the institution of malikāne continued largely undisturbed until 1793, when Selim III began to phase it out as part of his general reform effort, known as the New Order. As malikāne contracts expired they were transferred to the New Order treasury and this attempt at centralization was opposed by provincial figures who by then had a vested interest in the continuation of malikāne, and contributed to Selim IIIs overthrow in 1807. Malikāne contracts thus continued to be sold and traded until the 1840s, the last effort of a militarily active sultan to personally control the entire government of the empire was undone in the 1703 rebellion known as the Edirne incident, in which Mustafa II was deposed. Major governmental offices were no longer located within the imperial palace, by the 1790s the central bureaucracy had grown to number some 1, 500-2,000 scribes, representing a significant increase over the 183 who were serving in 1593. Ottoman rule in the provinces was predicated upon maintaining the loyalty of local interest groups, state authority was represented by the provincial governor and the judge, the latter carrying out most of the day-to-day administration of the province. Representing local interests were figures known as notables, ayan came from diverse backgrounds, what distinguished them was their entrenched local status. Unlike Ottoman state officials, they did not generally migrate from position to position across the empire, ayan utilized patronage networks to wield significant influence within their local city or region, and their cooperation was essential in order for Ottoman provincial administration to function. During the eighteenth century, ayan were tied to the state through the institution of malikāne. By purchasing malikāne, ayan were able to consolidate their control over their region of influence. The central government and provincial power-holders thus remained interdependent, and the latter did not seek independence from the Ottoman Empire, during the seventeenth century provincial governors had been appointed for unspecified periods of time, producing a significant degree of uncertainty among them with regard to security of office
8.
Tulip period
–
The Tulip Period or Tulip Era is a period in Ottoman history from the Treaty of Passarowitz on 21 July 1718 to the Patrona Halil Revolt on 28 September 1730. This was a peaceful period, during which the Ottoman Empire began to orient itself towards Europe. The name of the period derives from the tulip craze among the Ottoman court society, cultivating this culturally ambiguous emblem had become a celebrated practice. The Tulip Period illustrated the conflicts brought by early modern culture and was a shared material symbolism. During this period the elite and high-class society of the Ottoman period had established an immense fondness for the tulip, Tulips defined nobility and privilege, both in terms of goods and leisure time. The Grand Vizier was himself very fond of tulip bulbs, setting an example for Istanbul’s elite who started to cherish the tulip’s endless variety in paint, the Ottoman standard of dress and its commodity culture incorporated their passion for the tulip. Within Istanbul, one could find tulips from the markets to the plastic arts to silks. Tulip bulbs could be everywhere, the demand grew within the elite community where they could be found in homes. Therefore, the tulip is a symbol with mythical appeal, which can be found from Ottoman palaces to their clothing, the tulip can be seen as a romantic monument representing the wealthy and elite, and the fragility of despotic rule. The Tulip period saw a flowering of arts, culture and architecture, generally the style of architecture and decoration became more elaborate, being influenced by the Baroque period in movement. A classic example is the Fountain of Ahmed III in front of Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, the architectural style is a fusion of classical Islamic elements with baroque European ones, making it into distinct Ottoman architecture of the 18th century. The tulip was also praised in poetry and motifs used in paintings, to this day in modern Turkey the tulip is still considered the embodiment of perfection and beauty. Turkish Airlines decorates its planes with a painting of a tulip on its fuselage and these albums that Levni painted were called Tulip albums which mirrored the structure of the states itself, ranking distinguished members of the regime according to horticultural achievements. Tulip prices began to rise in the last decades of the 17th century and this reflected the demand for the inflated value of the rare bulbs and escalating demands for flowers in the elite’s palaces and gardens. Tulip mania demonstrated the power to regulate the economy by increasing the prices for bulbs. Courtiers at the time forwarded a petition to denounce the practice of flower sellers and this led to the process of issuing inventories of flowers and price lists to the judge of Istanbul for enforcement. Tulip mania – during the Dutch Golden Age in the 17th century Derinsular. com – During and After the Tulip Era Enfal. de – Lale Devri Encyclopædia Britannica Online – Abdülcelil Levnî Yılmaz, Nalan. Ottoman Studies Online – Levni, one of the last Ottoman miniaturists Abdulcelil Levni Culture of the Ottoman Empire Jean-Baptiste van Mour Salzmann, the Age of Tulips Confluence and Conflict in Early Modern Consumer Culture
9.
Decline and modernization of the Ottoman Empire
–
Beginning from the late eighteenth century, the Ottoman Empire faced challenges defending itself against foreign invasion and occupation. Over the course of the century, the Ottoman state became increasingly powerful and rationalized. At the end of period, marked with 1908, to a degree the Ottoman military became modernized and professionalized according to the model of Western European Armies. The period was followed by defeat and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, the rise of nationalism swept through many countries during the 19th century, and it affected territories within the Ottoman Empire. A burgeoning national consciousness, together with a sense of ethnic nationalism. The empire was forced to deal with nationalism both within and beyond its borders. The number of revolutionary, secret societies which turned into political parties during the period rose dramatically. Uprisings in Ottoman territory had many far-reaching consequences during the 19th century, many Ottoman ruling elite questioned whether the policies of the state were to blame, some felt that the sources of ethnic conflict were external, and unrelated to issues of governance. While this era was not without some successes, the ability of the Ottoman state to have any effect on ethnic uprisings was seriously called into question, at the end of the century from Russian perspective, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro and autonomy of Bulgaria was achieved. After the Congress of Berlin the Russian expansion was controlled through stopping the expansion of Bulgaria, the Russian public felt that at the end of Congress of Berlin thousands of Russian soldiers had died for nothing. The military of the Ottoman Empire remained an effective fighting force until the half of the eighteenth century. Selim III came to the throne with an effort in military reforms in 1789. Selim III was replaced by Mahmud II in 1808 who established martial law of Alemdar Mustafa Pasha and his first task was to ally with the Janissaries in order to break the power of the provincial governors. He then turned on the Janissaries and removed them from power during Auspicious Incident in 1826, efforts for a new system began following the Auspicious incident. The stagnation and reform of the Ottoman Empire ended with the dismemberment of Ottoman Classical Army, the issue during the decline and modernization of the Ottoman Empire was to create a military that could win wars and bring security to its subjects. That goal took multiple Sultans with multiple reorganizations during this period, at the end of this period, with the Second Constitutional Era in 1908, -with a degree of- Ottoman military became modernized and professionalized in the form of European Armies. Mahmud II had to deal with multiple issues inherited from generations past and these issues lasted all through his reign. Shortly, the Eastern Question with Russia, England, and France, Mahmud understood the growing problems of the state and the approaching overthrow of the monarchy, and began to deal with the problems as he saw them
10.
Nizam-i Djedid
–
The term later came to refer to the new Nizam-i Djedid Army established under the reform program. Nizam-i Djedid is a Persian phrase meaning New Order, the -i part is a Persian ezāfe sign. Both Nizām and Jadīd, in turn, are originally Arabic words borrowed by Persian in older times, using the Persian ezāfe constructions was common in Ottoman Turkish. Between 1829 and 1855 the new army was constantly being improved under the sight of military advisors, the troops of the Nizam-i Djedid corps were equipped with European-style uniforms and educated in European military strategy. Sultan Abdülmecid I even claimed that, if the campaign of 1829 against the Russians was fought over again in 1855, the result would be very different
11.
Tanzimat
–
The Tanzimât, literally meaning reorganization of the Ottoman Empire, was a period of reformation that began in 1839 and ended with the First Constitutional Era in 1876. The reforms encouraged Ottomanism among the ethnic groups of the Empire. Though many changes were made to improve civil liberties, many Muslim residents of the empire saw this as foreign influence on the world of Islam and this perception complicated reformist efforts made by the state. Most of the changes, such as uniforms, were aimed at changing the mindset of imperial administrators. Many of the officials that were affiliated with the government were encouraged to wear a western style of dress. Many of the reforms were attempts to adopt successful European practices, the reforms were heavily influenced by the Napoleonic Code and French law under the Second Empire as a direct result of the increasing number of Ottoman students being educated in France. This policy officially began with the Edict of Gülhane of 1839, the ambitious project was launched to combat the slow decline of the empire that had seen its borders shrink and its strength weaken in comparison to the European powers. There were internal as well as reasons for the reforms. Internally, the Ottoman Empire hoped that, by getting rid of the millet system and this change was also meant to increase the legitimacy of Ottoman rule. Another major hope was that by being open to various demographics. There was fear of internal strife between Muslims and non-Muslims, and allowing more freedom to all was supposed to diminish this threat. Giving more rights to the Christians was considered likely to reduce the danger of intervention on their behalf. Externally, the Ottomans were growing scared of an intervention of the European powers in Ottoman affairs. After the Crimean War, which was caused by Russias incursion into the Ottoman Empire in the 1850s and they thought that the Great Powers would accept the Tanzimat as long as reforms were ongoing, leaving them to act as enforcers of these goals. The Tanzimât reforms began under Sultan Mahmud II, on November 3,1839, Sultan Abdülmecid issued a hatt-i sharif or imperial edict called the Edict of Gülhane or Tanzimât Fermânı. This was followed by several statutes enacting its policies, in the edict the Sultan stated that he wished to bring the benefits of a good administration to the provinces of the Ottoman Empire through new institutions. Noble Decree or Imperial Rescript of Gülhane, was the first major reform in the Tanzimat reforms under the government of sultan Abdulmecid, the decree, named after the rosehouse on the grounds of the Topkapi Palace, abolished tax farming. It also created a system of taxation with salaried tax collectors
12.
First Constitutional Era
–
These Young Ottomans were dissatisfied by the Tanzimat and instead pushed for a constitutional government similar to that in Europe. The constitutional period started with the dethroning of Sultan Abdülaziz, abdulhamid II took his place as Sultan. The era ended with the suspension of the Ottoman parliament and the constitution by sultan Abdülhamid II, the first constitutional era did not include any party system. At the time, the Ottoman parliament was seen as the voice of the people but not as a venue for the formation of political parties, the elections for parliament were held in accordance with the provisional electoral regulations. The parliament was composed in two stages, the lower house of the bicameral legislature was the Chamber of Deputies, while the upper house was the Senate. The initial selection of deputies was made by councils in the provinces. After the establishment of the General Assembly in the provinces, the selected the deputies from within the assembly to form the Chamber of Deputies in the capital. The Chamber had 115 members and reflected the distribution of the millets in the empire, in the second elections, there were 69 Muslim millet representatives and 46 representatives of other millets. The second body was the Senate, and the members were selected by the sultan, the Senate had only 26 members. It was designed to replace the porte, and the Grand Vizier become the speaker of Senate, the two elections happened between 1877 and 1878. The members reactions to the war were very strong. The life of the term of the parliament was merely a few days, as after the initial speeches by the members from Balkan vilayets, Abdülhamid II closed the parliament. Mehmed Rushdi Pasha Hussein Avni Pasha Midhat Pasha Suleiman Pasha Constitutional history of Turkey Elections in the Ottoman Empire The Ottomans, Europes Muslim Emperors Second Constitutional Era
13.
Defeat and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire
–
The period of defeat and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire began with the Second Constitutional Era with the Young Turk Revolution. It restored the Ottoman constitution of 1876 and brought in multi-party politics with a two stage electoral system under the Ottoman parliament, the constitution offered hope by freeing the empire’s citizens to modernize the state’s institutions and dissolve inter-communal tensions. Instead, this became the story of the twilight struggle of the Empire. The Ottoman entry into World War I in the Middle Eastern theatre ended with the partition of the Ottoman Empire under the terms of the Treaty of Sèvres. The occupation of Constantinople along with the occupation of Smyrna mobilized the Turkish national movement which ultimately won the Turkish War of Independence, the formal abolition of the Ottoman Sultanate was performed by Grand National Assembly of Turkey on 1 November 1922. The Sultan was declared persona non grata from the lands that the Ottoman Dynasty ruled since 1299, the 19th century saw the rise of nationalism in the Balkans which resulted in the establishment of an independent Greece in 1821, Serbia in 1835 and Bulgaria and liberation in 1877-8. Most of the local Muslims in these countries suffered, many died during the conflicts, with the rise of nationalism in Europe it became dominated by nation states. The Ottoman Empire differed in that its ruling class made no attempt to integrate conquered peoples culturally, the Porte had no official policy of converting the non-Muslims of the Balkans or Anatolia into Islam or converting them into a single nation. Phanariots, who were members of the prominent Greek families came to occupy major positions in the Empire. The Empire never integrated its conquests economically and therefore never established a link with its subjects. During its decline the Empire tried to catch up with the industrialization, Ottomanism surged as a concept its proponents believed could solve the Empires social issues. Ottomanism was strongly influenced by such as Montesquieu and Rousseau. The idea originated among the Young Ottomans as an acceptance of all separate ethnicities, major changes were introduced into the structure of the Empire. The essence of the Millet system was not dismantled, but secular organizations, primary education and Ottoman conscription were to be applied to non-Muslims and Muslims alike. When the Capitulations were first established it was supposed that foreign assistance could benefit the Empire, the capitulations stipulated that the privileges were based on religion. On 10 September 1915, the Minister of Interior Talat Pasha abolished the Capitulations, the total pre-war debt of Empire was $716,000,000. France had 60 percent of the total, Germany was 20 percent, the debt was administered by the Ottoman Public Debt Administration and its power was extended to the Imperial Ottoman Bank. The Ottoman Debt Administration controlled many of the important revenues of the Empire, the Council had power over financial affairs
14.
Second Constitutional Era
–
The parliament and the constitution of First Constitutional Era had been suspended by Abdul Hamid in 1878 after only two years of functioning. A series of elections during this period resulted in the ascendance of the Committee of Union. The second largest party, with which the CUP was involved in a 2-year power struggle, was the Freedom, the period survived an attempt by reactionaries to re-institute absolutism. The last meeting on 18 March 1920 produced a letter of protest to the Allies, the legal framework was that of Kanûn-ı Esâsî of the First Constitutional Era that had prevailed in 1876. As in 1876, the revived Ottoman Parliament consisted of two chambers, a Senate and a Chamber of Deputies. The Chamber of Deputies was elected by the people, in the ratio of one member for every 50,000 males of the population over the age of 25 who paid taxes. Senators, on the hand, were nominated for life by the Sultan, had to be over 40 years of age. General elections were to place every four years. The general population did not, however, vote directly for the Deputy that he desired to represent him in the Parliament, moreover, the administration of territories was entrusted to these delegates in the elected Administrative Councils. Thus, these Councils were elected and served not only as an electoral college, the parliament convened after the revolution only briefly and rather symbolically. The only task they performed was to call a new election, in the first Parliament, the president of the Chamber of Deputies was a Deputy from Jerusalem, Yusif Dia Pasha Al Khalidi. The new parliament comprised 142 Turks,60 Arabs,25 Albanians,23 Greeks,12 Armenians,5 Jews,4 Bulgarians,3 Serbs and 1 Vlach in the elections of 1908, the CUP could count on the support of about 60 deputies. The CUP, the driving force behind the revolution, managed to gain the upper hand against the Liberal Union. LU was liberal in outlook, bearing a strong British imprint, CUP come as the biggest party among a fragmented parliament by only 60 of the 275 seats. It was about how the government would deal with what these deputies called lacking of the law and order, the rise of assassinations and armed assaults, ethnic and sectarian violence between various communities in the empire was costing both lives and resources. This was an important event as the established system was passing the first test regarding the proper parliamentary conduct. There were members of diplomatic missions among the audience. The new constitution secured the freedom of the press, newspapermen, the first section of the protocol achieved
15.
Middle-Eastern theatre of World War I
–
The Middle Eastern theatre of World War I saw action between 29 October 1914 and 30 October 1918. There were five main campaigns, the Sinai and Palestine Campaign, the Mesopotamian Campaign, the Caucasus Campaign, the Persian Campaign, there were also several minor campaigns, the Senussi Campaign, Arab Campaign, and South Arabia Campaign. Both sides used local asymmetrical forces in the region, in addition, the Assyrians joined the Allies following the Assyrian genocide, instigating the Assyrian war of independence. The Turkish Ottomans had the support of Kurds, Turcomans, Circassians, Chechens, the theatre covered the largest territory of all theatres in the war. The Armenians attended the Trabzon Peace Conference which resulted in the Treaty of Batum on 4 June 1918. The Ottomans accepted the Armistice of Mudros with the Allies on 30 October 1918, the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers through the secret Ottoman-German Alliance, which was signed on 2 August 1914. Success in this region would force the Russians to divert troops from the Polish, German advisors with the Ottoman armies supported the campaign for this reason. From an economic perspective, the Ottoman, or rather German, Germany established an Intelligence Bureau for the East on the eve of World War I. The bureau was involved in intelligence-gathering and subversive missions to Persia and Egypt, if these nations were to be removed from Western influence, Enver envisioned a cooperation between these newly established Turkic states. Envers project conflicted with European interests which played out as struggles between several key imperial powers, the Ottomans also threatened Britains communications with India and the East via the Suez Canal. The Germans hoped to seize the Canal for the Central Powers, the British feared that the Ottomans might attack and capture the Middle East oil fields. The British Royal Navy depended upon oil from the deposits in southern Persia. Marriott summarizes the British debates on strategy for the Near East and Balkan theatre, The War in that presents many problems. The Russians viewed the Caucasus Front as secondary to the Eastern Front and they feared a campaign into the Caucasus aimed at retaking Kars which had been taken from the Ottoman Empire during the Russo-Turkish War, and the port of Batum. The Russian Imperial government planned to replace the Muslim population of Northern Anatolia, the Armenian national liberation movement sought to establish an Armenian state within the Armenian Highlands. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation achieved this goal later in the war, none of these entities were long lasting. The Caucasus Campaign extended from the Caucasus to eastern Asia Minor, reaching as far as Trabzon, Bitlis, Mush, the warfare on land was accompanied by actions undertaken by the Russian Navy in the Black Sea region of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Empire and German Empire fought each other at Batumi after the arrival of the German Caucasus Expedition whose prime aim was to secure oil supplies
16.
Partition of the Ottoman Empire
–
The partition of the Ottoman Empire was a political event that occurred after World War I and the occupation of Constantinople by British, French and Italian troops in November 1918. The partitioning was planned in several made by the Allies early in the course of World War I. As world war loomed, the Ottoman Empire sought protection but was rejected by Britain, France, and Russia, the huge conglomeration of territories and peoples that formerly comprised the Ottoman Empire was divided into several new states. The Ottoman Empire had been the leading Islamic state in geopolitical, cultural and ideological terms. The partitioning of the Ottoman Empire led to the rise in the Middle East of Western powers such as Britain and France and brought the creation of the modern Arab world and the Republic of Turkey. Resistance to the influence of these came from the Turkish national movement. The Ottoman Empires possessions in the Arabian Peninsula became the Kingdom of Hejaz, which was annexed by the Sultanate of Nejd, and the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen. The Empires possessions on the shores of the Persian Gulf were variously annexed by Saudi Arabia, or remained British protectorates. After the Ottoman government collapsed completely it signed the Treaty of Sèvres in 1920, however, the Turkish War of Independence forced the European powers to return to the negotiating table before the treaty could be ratified. The Europeans and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey signed and ratified the new Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, superseding the Treaty of Sèvres and solidifying most of the territorial issues. One unresolved issue, the dispute between the Kingdom of Iraq and the Republic of Turkey over the province of Mosul was later negotiated under the League of Nations in 1926. The British and French partitioned the eastern part of the Middle East, also called Greater Syria, other secret agreements were concluded with Italy and Russia. The Balfour Declaration encouraged the international Zionist movement to push for a Jewish homeland in the Palestine region, while a part of the Triple Entente, Russia also had wartime agreements preventing it from participating in the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire after the Russian Revolution. The Treaty of Sèvres formally acknowledged the new League of Nations mandates in the region, the independence of Yemen, the Western powers had long believed that they would eventually become dominant in the area claimed by the weak central government of the Ottoman Empire. These powers disagreed over their contradictory post-war aims and made several dual, Syria and Lebanon became a French protectorate. French control was met immediately with armed resistance, and, in order to combat Arab nationalism, France divided the Mandate area into Lebanon, Greater Lebanon was the name of a territory created by France. It was the precursor of modern Lebanon and it existed between 1 September 1920 and 23 May 1926. France carved its territory from the Levantine land mass in order to create a haven for the Maronite Christian population
17.
Ottoman decline thesis
–
The Ottoman Decline Thesis or Ottoman Decline Paradigm refers to a now-obsolete historical narrative which had once been used to explain the history of the Ottoman Empire. This thesis was used throughout most of the century as the basis of both Western and Republican Turkish understanding of Ottoman history. However, by 1978, historians had begun to reexamine the fundamental assumptions of the Decline Thesis, the Decline Thesis has been criticized as teleological, regressive, Orientalist, simplistic, and one-dimensional, and described as a concept which has no place in historical analysis. Scholars have thus learned better than to discuss, the idea of decline first emerged among the Ottomans themselves. Beginning much earlier, but greatly expanding during the century, was the literary genre of nasihatname. This genre had a history, appearing in earlier Muslim empires such as those of the Seljuks. This was often expressed through the concept of the Circle of Justice, in this conception, the provision of justice by the ruler to his subjects would allow those subjects to prosper, strengthening the ruler in turn. Should this break down, society would cease to properly function and these writers viewed the changes which the empire had undergone as an inherently negative corruption of an idealized Suleimanic past. However, it is now recognized that rather than simply describing objective reality, for instance, Mustafa Âlis belief that the empire was declining was in large part motivated by frustration at his own failure to achieve promotions and court patronage. The primary goal of the writers, then, may have simply been to protect their own personal or class status in a rapidly changing world. Internal decline was thought of as an appropriate means of explaining the Ottomans external military defeats. The trope of a declining Ottoman Empire was thus used as a foil for Western Civilization, such views were perpetuated during the mid-twentieth century by the works of H. A. R. Gibb and Harold Bowen, and particularly Bernard Lewis and it was from this point that skepticism of the Decline Thesis began to grow. The most prominent writer on Ottoman Decline is the historian Bernard Lewis and he laid out his views in the 1958 article, Some Reflections on the Decline of the Ottoman Empire, which developed into the mainstream opinion of Orientalist scholars of the mid-twentieth century. However, the article is now highly criticized and no longer considered accurate by modern historians, faulty leadership at the top led to decay in all branches of government, the bureaucracy ceased to function effectively, and the quality of their records worsened. The Ottoman military lost its strength and began to experience defeats on the battlefield and they ceased to keep up with the advances of European military science, and consequently suffered territorial losses. As Ottoman state and society was geared towards constant expansion, their failure to achieve new conquests left the empire unable to adapt to its new relationship with Europe. In addition, the Price Revolution led to the destabilization of Ottoman coinage and a fiscal crisis
18.
Turkish language
–
Outside of Turkey, significant smaller groups of speakers exist in Germany, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Northern Cyprus, Greece, the Caucasus, and other parts of Europe and Central Asia. Cyprus has requested that the European Union add Turkish as an official EU language, in 1928, as one of Atatürks Reforms in the early years of the Republic of Turkey, the Ottoman Turkish alphabet was replaced with a Latin alphabet. The distinctive characteristics of Turkish are vowel harmony and extensive agglutination, the basic word order of Turkish is subject–object–verb. Turkish has no classes or grammatical gender. Turkish has a strong T–V distinction and usage of honorifics, Turkish uses second-person pronouns that distinguish varying levels of politeness, social distance, age, courtesy or familiarity toward the addressee. The plural second-person pronoun and verb forms are used referring to a person out of respect. Turkic languages belong to the Altaic language group, the Turkic family comprises some 30 living languages spoken across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and Siberia. Turkish is a member of the Oghuz group of languages, a subgroup of the Turkic language family, there is a high degree of mutual intelligibility between Turkish and the other Oghuz Turkic languages, including Azerbaijani, Turkmen, Qashqai, Gagauz, and Balkan Gagauz Turkish. The earliest known Old Turkic inscriptions are the three monumental Orkhon inscriptions found in modern Mongolia, erected in honour of the prince Kul Tigin and his brother Emperor Bilge Khagan, these date back to the second Turk Kaghanate. The Seljuqs of the Oghuz Turks, in particular, brought their language, following the adoption of Islam c. Turkish literature during the Ottoman period, particularly Divan poetry, was influenced by Persian, including the adoption of poetic meters. One of the tasks of the newly established association was to initiate a reform to replace loanwords of Arabic. By banning the usage of imported words in the press, the association succeeded in removing several hundred words from the language. While most of the words introduced to the language by the TDK were newly derived from Turkic roots, owing to this sudden change in the language, older and younger people in Turkey started to differ in their vocabularies. While the generations born before the 1940s tend to use the terms of Arabic or Persian origin. The past few decades have seen the work of the TDK to coin new Turkish words to express new concepts and technologies as they enter the language. Many of these new words, particularly information technology terms, have received widespread acceptance, however, the TDK is occasionally criticized for coining words which sound contrived and artificial. Some earlier changes—such as bölem to replace fırka, political party—also failed to meet with popular approval, some words restored from Old Turkic have taken on specialized meanings, for example betik is now used to mean script in computer science
19.
Grand vizier
–
In the Ottoman Empire, the Grand Vizier was the prime minister of the Ottoman sultan, with absolute power of attorney and, in principle, dismissible only by the sultan himself. His offices were located at the Sublime Porte, the term “vizier” was originally a denomination used by the Abbasid Dynasty in the 8th century AD. This position then came to the Ottomans in the early 14th century by way of the Seljuks of Anatolia, during the nascent phases of the Ottoman state, vizier was the only title used. The first of these Ottoman viziers who was titled Grand Vizier was Çandarlı Halil Pasha the Elder, the purpose in instituting the title Grand Vizier was to distinguish the holder of the Sultans seal from other viziers. The initially more frequently used title of vezir-i âzam was gradually replaced by sadrazam, throughout Ottoman history, the grand viziers have also been termed sadr-ı âlî, vekil-i mutlak, sâhib-i devlet, serdar-ı ekrem, serdar-ı azam and zât-ı âsafî. Çandarlı Halil Pasha the Elder reformed the role of the vizier in several ways, several before him held an equivalent but differently named office, he was the first who held the position of “Grand Vizier”, during the reign of Sultan Murad I. He was the first advisor with a military background – his forerunners had come from a more class of men. It is also significant that he was the first of a family that, at the time. Several of Çandarlı Halil Pasha the Elder’s kin went on to hold the office of Grand Vizier in the following his death. Çandarlı Halil Pasha the Younger, the grandson of Pasha the Elder, was highly influential in shaping the role of the Grand Vizier. During the reign of Mehmed II, the Younger opposed the siege of Constantinople, two days after the siege was won by Mehmed II, the Younger was executed for his opposition. After his death, the position of Grand Vizier was chosen nearly exclusively from the kul system, often and this was usually a political move, designed to appease powerful European factions to Ottoman supremacy. Grand Viziers gained immense political supremacy in the days of the Ottoman Empire. Power was centralized in the position of the Grand Vizier during the Köprülü era, Köprülü Mehmed Pasha was a powerful political figure during the reign of Mehmed IV, and was appointed to the office of Grand Vizier in 1656. He consolidated power within the position and sent the Sultan away from the city on hunting trips, next, he forcibly removed any officers suspected of corruption, those who did not leave were executed. He also conducted campaigns against Venice and the Hapsburgs, as well as quelling rebellions in Anatolia, on his deathbed five years later, he convinced Mehmed to appoint his son as the next Grand Vizier, thus securing his dynasty a position of supreme power in the Empire. It was during the Köprülü era that the Ottoman Empire reached its largest geographic expansion across Europe, Asia Minor, in Ottoman legal theory, the Sultan was supposed to conduct affairs of state exclusively via the Grand Vizier, but in reality this arrangement was often circumvented. He might, too, be inclined to take the advice of his mother
20.
Republic of Venice
–
It was based in the lagoon communities of the historically prosperous city of Venice. It was a leading European economic and trading power during the Middle Ages, the Venetian city state was founded as a safe haven for people escaping persecution in mainland Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire. In its early years, it prospered on the salt trade, in subsequent centuries, the city state established a thalassocracy. It dominated trade on the Mediterranean Sea, including commerce between Asia, Europe and North Africa, the Venetian navy was used in the Crusades. Venice achieved territorial conquests along the Adriatic Sea, the city became home to an extremely wealthy merchant class, who patronized renowned art and architecture along the citys lagoons. Venetian merchants were influential financiers in Europe, the city was also the birthplace of great European explorers, including Marco Polo, as well as the classical music composer Vivaldi. The republic was ruled by the Doge, who was elected by members of the Great Council of Venice, the ruling class was an oligarchy of merchants and aristocrats. Venice and other Italian maritime republics played a key role in fostering capitalism, Venetian citizens generally supported the system of governance. The city-state enforced strict laws and employed ruthless tactics in its prisons, the opening of new trade routes to the Americas and the East Indies via the Atlantic Ocean marked the beginning of Venices decline as a maritime republic. The city state suffered defeats from the navy of the Ottoman Empire, in 1797, the country was colonized by Austria and France, following an invasion by Napoleon Bonaparte. Venice became a part of a unified Italy in the 19th century and it was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in reference to its title as one of the Most Serene Republics. He was the first historical Doge of Venice, whichever the case, the first doges had their power base in Heraclea. Ursuss successor, Deusdedit, moved his seat from Heraclea to Malamocco in the 740s and he was the son of Ursus and represented the attempt of his father to establish a dynasty. Such attempts were more commonplace among the doges of the first few centuries of Venetian history. They desired to remain well-connected to the Empire, another faction, republican in nature, believed in continuing along a course towards practical independence. The other main faction was pro-Frankish, supported mostly by clergy, they looked towards the new Carolingian king of the Franks, Pepin the Short, as the best provider of defence against the Lombards. A minor, pro-Lombard faction was opposed to close ties with any of these further-off powers, the successors of Obelerio inherited a united Venice. By the Pax Nicephori, the two emperors had recognised that Venice belonged to the Byzantine sphere of influence, many centuries later, the Venetians claimed that the treaty had recognised Venetian de facto independence, but the truth of this claim is doubted by modern scholars
21.
Dardanelles
–
Together with the Bosphorus, the Dardanelles forms the Turkish Straits. The English name Dardanelles derives from Dardanus, an ancient city on the Asian shore of the strait which in turn takes its name from Dardanus, the ancient Greek name Ἑλλήσποντος means Sea of Helle, and was the ancient name of the narrow strait. It was variously named in classical literature Hellespontium Pelagus, Rectum Hellesponticum and it was so called from Helle, the daughter of Athamas, who was drowned here in the mythology of the Golden Fleece. The Marmara further connects to the Black Sea via the Bosphorus, the strait is located at approximately 40°13′N 26°26′E. The strait is 61 kilometres long, and 1.2 to 6 kilometres wide, water flows in both directions along the strait, from the Sea of Marmara to the Aegean via a surface current, and in the opposite direction via an undercurrent. The Dardanelles is unique in many respects, the very narrow and winding shape of the strait is more akin to that of a river. It is considered one of the most hazardous, crowded, difficult, the currents produced by the tidal action in the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara are such that ships under sail must await at anchorage for the right conditions before entering the Dardanelles. It is a sea access route for numerous countries, including Russia. The ancient city of Troy was located near the entrance of the strait. Troy was able to control the traffic entering this vital waterway. Herodotus tells us that, circa 482 BC, Xerxes I had two bridges built across the width of the Hellespont at Abydos, in order that his huge army could cross from Persia into Greece. This crossing was named by Aeschylus in his tragedy The Persians as the cause of divine intervention against Xerxes, according to Herodotus, both bridges were destroyed by a storm and Xerxes had those responsible for building the bridges beheaded and the strait itself whipped. The Histories of Herodotus vii. 33–37 and vii. 54–58 give details of building and crossing of Xerxes Pontoon Bridges. Xerxes is then said to have thrown fetters into the strait, Herodotus commented that this was a highly presumptuous way to address the Hellespont but in no way atypical of Xerxes. Harpalus the engineer eventually helped the invading armies to cross by lashing the ships together with their bows facing the current and, so it is said, two additional anchors. From the perspective of ancient Greek mythology, it was said that Helle, the Dardanelles were vital to the defence of Constantinople during the Byzantine period. Also, the Dardanelles was an important source of income for the ruler of the region, at the Istanbul Archaeological Museum a marble plate contains a law by the Byzantine Emperor Anastasius I, that regulated fees for passage through the customs office of the Dardanelles. Whoever dares to violate these regulations shall no longer be regarded as a friend, besides, the administrator of the Dardanelles must have the right to receive 50 golden Litrons, so that these rules, which we make out of piety, shall never ever be violated
22.
Valide sultan
–
Valide sultan was the title held by the legal mother of a ruling Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. The title was first used in the 16th century for Hafsa Sultan, consort of Selim I and mother of Suleiman the Magnificent, normally, this title was held by the living mother of a reigning sultan. The mothers who died before their sons accession to the throne were never bestowed with the title of valide sultan, in special cases, there were grandmothers and stepmothers of a reigning sultan who assumed the title valide sultan. The word valide literally means mother in Ottoman Turkish, the Turkish pronunciation of the word valide is. Sultan is an Arabic word originally meaning authority or dominion, by the beginning of the 16th century, this title, carried by both men and women of the Ottoman dynasty, was replacing other titles by which prominent members of the imperial family had been known. Consequently, the title valide hatun also turned into valide sultan and this usage underlines the Ottoman conception of sovereign power as family prerogative. Western tradition knows the Ottoman ruler as sultan, but the Ottomans themselves used padişah or hünkar to refer to their ruler, the emperor’s formal title consisted of sultan together with khan. In formal address, the children were also entitled sultan, with imperial princes carrying the title before their given name. Example, Şehzade Sultan Mehmed and Mihrimah Sultan, son and daughter of Suleiman the Magnificent, henceforth, the mother of the reigning sultan was the only person of non imperial blood to carry the title sultan. Title valide carried before or after given name, according to a genealogical website, the formal way of addressing a valide is Devletlû İsmetlu Vâlide Sultân Aliyyetüş-Şân Hazretleri. Valide sultan was perhaps the most important position in the Ottoman Empire after the sultan himself, as the mother to the sultan, by Islamic tradition, the valide sultan would have a significant influence on the affairs of the empire. She had great power in the court and her own rooms, Valide sultan also traditionally had access to considerable economic resources and often funded major architectural projects. In particular during the 17th century, in a known as the Sultanate of Women. The most powerful and well-known of all sultans in the history of the Ottoman Empire were Nurbanu Sultan, Safiye Sultan. Most harem women who were slaves were never married to the sultans. Nevertheless, their children were considered legitimate under Islamic law if recognized by the father. The list does not include the complete list of mothers of the Ottoman sultans, most who held the title of valide sultan were the biological mothers of the reigning sultans. In special cases, there were grandmothers and stepmothers of the sultans who assumed the title of valide sultan, like Kösem Sultan
23.
Turhan Hatice Sultan
–
Turhan Hatice Sultan, was Haseki Sultan of the Ottoman Sultan Ibrahim and Valide Sultan as mother of Mehmed IV. Turhan Hatice was prominent for the regency of her young son and she and her mother-in-law, Kösem Sultan, are the only two women in Ottoman history to be regarded as official regents and had supreme control over the Ottoman Empire. As a result, Turhan became one of the prominent figures during the era known as Sultanate of Women, Turhan Hatice, whose original name is unknown, was considered to be of East Slavic origin, either Russian or Ukrainian. She was captured during one of the raids by Tatars and sold into slavery, when she was about 12 years old, Turhan was sent to the Topkapı Palace as a gift, from the Khan of Crimea, to the mother of Sultan Ibrahim, Kösem Sultan. It was probably Kösem Sultan who gave Hatice to Ibrahim as a concubine, on January 2,1642 Turhan gave birth to a son, the future sultan Mehmed IV. Turhan Hatice was one of the eight Haseki Sultans of Ibrahim I, however, she was not his legal wife. She was ranked in the Harem as Dördüncü Haseki Sultan, which literally means fourth sultana consort, ibrahims behaviour sparked talks of deposing the sultan. On August 8,1648, Ibrahim was dethroned and several days later he was strangled, at the head of the Ottoman Empire stood the child sultan, Mehmed IV. With Mehmeds ascendancy, the position of Valide Sultan should have gone to Turhan, however, Turhan was overlooked due to her youth and inexperience. Instead, the grandmother and the previous Valide Sultan, Kösem Sultan, was reinstated to this high position. Kösem Sultan was a Valide under two sons, thus having the experience of the two women. However, Turhan turned out to be too ambitious a woman to lose such a position without a fight. In her struggle to become Valide Sultan, Turhan was supported by the black eunuch in her household. Although, Kösem’s position as Valide was seen as the best for the government, in this power struggle, Kösem planned to dethrone Mehmed and replace him with another young grandson. According to one historian, this switching had more to do with replacing an ambitious daughter-in-law with one who was easily controlled. The plan was unsuccessful as it was reported to Turhan by Meleki Hatun, whether Turhan sanctioned it or not, Kösem Sultan was murdered three years after becoming regent for her young grandson. With the death of her rival, Turhan became the Valide Sultan, as a regent, Turhan wielded great power. She accompanied her son the sultan to important meetings and on several occasions spoke from behind her curtained sitting place and she was deeply loved and respected by her son, the sultan
24.
Battle of Vienna
–
The Battle of Vienna took place at Kahlenberg Mountain near Vienna on 12 September 1683 after the imperial city had been besieged by the Ottoman Empire for two months. In the ensuing war lasted until 1699, the Ottomans lost almost all of Hungary to the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I. The Viennese garrison was led by Ernst Rüdiger Graf von Starhemberg, the overall command was held by the senior leader, the King of Poland, John III Sobieski, who led the relief forces. The opposing military forces were those of the Ottoman Empire and Ottoman fiefdoms commanded by Grand Vizier Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha, the Ottoman army numbered approximately 90, 000–300,000 men. They began the siege on 14 July 1683, the Ottoman forces consisted, among other units, of 60 ortas of Janissaries with an observation army of c.70,000 men watching the countryside. The decisive battle took place on 12 September, after the relief army had arrived. Historians suggest the battle marked the point in the Ottoman–Habsburg wars. In fact, during the 16 years following the battle, the Austrian Habsburgs gradually recovered and dominated southern Hungary and Transylvania, the battle is also noted for including the largest known cavalry charge in history. Capturing the city of Vienna had long been an aspiration of the Ottoman Empire, because of its interlocking control over Danubian southern Europe. Since 1679 the plague had been raging in Vienna, on the political front, the Ottoman Empire had been providing military assistance to the Hungarians and to non-Catholic minorities in Habsburg-occupied portions of Hungary. There, in the preceding the siege, widespread unrest had become open rebellion against Leopold Is pursuit of Counter-Reformation principles. In 1681 Protestants and other anti-Habsburg Kuruc forces, led by Imre Thököly, were reinforced with a significant force from the Ottomans and this support included explicitly promising the Kingdom of Vienna to the Hungarians if it fell into Ottoman hands. Yet before the siege, a state of peace had existed for 20 years between the Holy Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire as a result of the Peace of Vasvár. Mehmet IV authorized Kara Mustafa Pasha to operate as far as Győr and Komárom Castles, the Ottoman army was mobilized on 21 January 1682 and war was declared on 6 August 1682. The logistics of the time meant that it would have been risky or impossible to launch an invasion in August or September 1682, undoubtedly this contributed to the failure of the Ottoman campaign. On 31 March 1683 another declaration, sent by Grand Vizier Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha on behalf of Mehmet IV, on the next day the forward march of Ottoman army elements began from Edirne in Rumelia. Ottoman troops reached Belgrade by early May and they were joined by a Transylvanian army under Prince Mihaly Apafi and a Hungarian force under Imre Thököly, laid siege to Győr and the remaining army of 150,000 moved toward the city of Vienna. About 40,000 Crimean Tatar troops arrived 40 kilometres east of Vienna on 7 July, Emperor Leopold fled Vienna for Passau with his court and 60,000 Viennese, while Charles V, Duke of Lorraine withdrew his force of 20,000 towards Linz
25.
House of Habsburg
–
The House of Habsburg, also called House of Hapsburg, or House of Austria, was one of the most influential royal houses of Europe. The throne of the Holy Roman Empire was continuously occupied by the Habsburgs between 1438 and 1740, from the sixteenth century, following the reign of Charles V, the dynasty was split between its Austrian and Spanish branches. Although they ruled distinct territories, they maintained close relations. The House takes its name from Habsburg Castle, a built in the 1020s in present-day Switzerland, in the canton of Aargau, by Count Radbot of Klettgau. His grandson Otto II was the first to take the name as his own. The House of Habsburg gathered dynastic momentum through the 11th, 12th, by 1276, Count Radbots seventh generation descendant Rudolph of Habsburg had moved the familys power base from Habsburg Castle to the Duchy of Austria. Rudolph had become King of Germany in 1273, and the dynasty of the House of Habsburg was truly entrenched in 1276 when Rudolph became ruler of Austria, which the Habsburgs ruled until 1918. A series of dynastic marriages enabled the family to expand its domains to include Burgundy, Spain and its colonial empire, Bohemia, Hungary. In the 16th century, the separated into the senior Habsburg Spain and the junior Habsburg Monarchy branches. The House of Habsburg became extinct in the 18th century, the senior Spanish branch ended upon the death of Charles II of Spain in 1700 and was replaced by the House of Bourbon. It was succeeded by the Vaudemont branch of the House of Lorraine, the new successor house styled itself formally as the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, although it was often referred to as simply the House of Habsburg. His grandson Radbot, Count of Habsburg founded the Habsburg Castle, the origins of the castles name, located in what is now the Swiss canton of Aargau, are uncertain. There is disagreement on whether the name is derived from the High German Habichtsburg, or from the Middle High German word hab/hap meaning ford, the first documented use of the name by the dynasty itself has been traced to the year 1108. The Habsburg Castle was the seat in the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries. The Habsburgs expanded their influence through arranged marriages and by gaining political privileges, in the 13th century, the house aimed its marriage policy at families in Upper Alsace and Swabia. They were also able to high positions in the church hierarchy for their members. Territorially, they often profited from the extinction of other families such as the House of Kyburg. By the second half of the 13th century, count Rudolph IV had become one of the most influential territorial lords in the area between the Vosges Mountains and Lake Constance
26.
Heraklion
–
Heraklion is the largest city and the administrative capital of the island of Crete. It is the fourth largest city in Greece.3 km2, Heraklion is the capital of Heraklion regional unit. The Bronze Age palace of Knossos, also known as the Palace of Minos, is located nearby. The Arab raiders from Andalusia who founded the Emirate of Crete moved the capital from Gortyna to a new castle they called ربض الخندق rabḍ al-ḫandaq Castle of the Moat in the 820s. After the Byzantine reconquest, the city was known as Megalo Kastro or Castro. The ancient name Ηράκλειον was revived in the 19th century and comes from the nearby Roman port of Heracleum, english usage formerly preferred the classicizing transliterations Heraklion or Heraclion, but the form Iraklion is becoming more common. Heraklion is close to the ruins of the palace of Knossos, though there is no archaeological evidence of it, Knossos might well have had a port at the site of Heraklion as early as 2000 BC. They built a moat around the city for protection, and named the city ربض الخندق and it became the capital of the Emirate of Crete. The Saracens allowed the port to be used as a haven for pirates who operated against Imperial shipping. In 961, Byzantine forces under the command of Nikephoros Phokas, later to become Emperor, landed in Crete, after a prolonged siege, the city fell. The Saracen inhabitants were slaughtered, the city looted and burned to the ground, soon rebuilt, the town was renamed Χάνδαξ, Chandax, and remained under Greek control for the next 243 years. Chandax was renamed Candia and became the seat of the Duke of Candia, the city retained the name of Candia for centuries and the same name was often used to refer to the whole island of Crete as well. To secure their rule, Venetians began in 1212 to settle families from Venice on Crete, after the Venetians came the Ottoman Empire. During the Cretan War, the Ottomans besieged the city for 21 years, from 1648 to 1669, in its final phase, which lasted for 22 months,70,000 Turks,38,000 Cretans and slaves and 29,088 of the citys Christian defenders perished. The Ottoman army under an Albanian grand vizier, Köprülü Fazıl Ahmed Pasha conquered the city in 1669, under the Ottomans, the city was known officially as Kandiye but informally in Greek as Megalo Castro. During the Ottoman period, the harbour silted up, so most shipping shifted to Chania in the west of the island, in 1898, the autonomous Cretan State was created, under Ottoman suzerainty, with Prince George of Greece as its High Commissioner and under international supervision. During the period of occupation of the island by the Great Powers. At this time, the city was renamed Heraklion, after the Roman port of Heracleum, in 1913, with the rest of Crete, Heraklion was incorporated into the Kingdom of Greece
27.
Kamianets-Podilskyi
–
Kamianets-Podilskyi is a city on the Smotrych River in western Ukraine, to the north-east of Chernivtsi. Formerly the administrative center of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast, the city is now the center of the Kamianets-Podilskyi Raion within the Khmelnytskyi Oblast. The city itself is designated as a separate district within the region. The current estimated population is around 101,728, the first part of the citys dual name originates from kamin or kamen, meaning stone in the Old East Slavic language. The second part of the name relates to the region of Podolia of which Kamianets-Podilskyi is considered to be the historic capital. The Smotrych River, a tributary of the Dniester, flows through the city, the total area of the city comprises 27.84 square kilometers. The city is located about 101 kilometres from the administrative center. Several historians consider that a city on this spot was founded by the ancient Dacians, who lived in what is now modern Romania, Moldova, and portions of Ukraine. Historians claim that the named the settlement Petridava or Klepidava, which originate from the Greek word petra or the Latin lapis meaning stone. Modern Kamianets-Podilskyi was first mentioned in 1062 as a town of the Kievan Rus state, in 1241, it was destroyed by the Mongolian invaders. In 1352, it was annexed by the Polish King Casimir III, in 1378 it became seat of a Roman Catholic Diocese. In 1432 King Sigismund I the Old granted Kamieniec Podolski city rights, in 1434 it became the capital of the Podolian Voivodship and the seat of local civil and military administration. The ancient castle was reconstructed and substantially expanded by the Polish kings to defend Poland from the southwest against Ottoman and Tatar invasions, during the free election period in Poland, Kamianets-Podilskyi, as one of the most influential cities of the state, enjoyed voting rights. After the Treaty of Buchach of 1672, Kamianets-Podilskyi was briefly part of the Ottoman Empire, to counter the Turkish threat to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, King Jan III Sobieski built a fortress nearby, Okopy Świętej Trójcy. In 1687, Poland attempted to control over Kamianets-Podilskyi and Podolia. In 1699, the city was back to Poland under King Augustus II the Strong according to the Treaty of Karlowitz. The fortress was enlarged and was regarded as the strongest in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The preserved ruins of the fortress still contain the iron cannonballs stuck in them from various sieges, after the Second Partition of Poland in 1793, the city belonged to the Russian Empire, where it was the capital of the Podolia Governorate
28.
Kara Mustafa Pasha
–
Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha was an Ottoman military leader and grand vizier who was a central character in the Ottoman Empires last attempts at expansion into both Central and Eastern Europe. Born to Albanian parents in Merzifon, Mustafa was educated in the household of Mehmed Köprülü, in 1659, he became governor of Silistria and subsequently held a number of important posts. Within ten years, he was acting as deputy for his brother-in-law and he served as a commander of ground troops in a war against Poland, negotiating a settlement with Jan Sobieski in 1676 that added the province of Podolia to the empire. The victory enabled the Ottomans to transform the Cossack regions of the southern Ukraine into a protectorate, when his brother-in-law Köprülü Fazıl Ahmed Pasha died that same year, Mustafa succeeded him as grand vizier. Kara Mustafa led several campaigns into Ukraine, attempting to shore up the position of the Cossack state of Right-Bank Ukraine. He established Ottoman garrisons in many of Ukraines cities, and conquered the traditional Cossack capital of Chyhyryn, in 1683, he launched a campaign northward into Austria in a last effort to expand the Ottoman Empire after more than 150 years of war. By mid-July, his 100, 000-man army had besieged Vienna, by September, he had taken a portion of the walls and appeared to be on his way to victory. The Ottomans retreated into Hungary, much of which was conquered by the Habsburgs. The defeat cost Mustafa his position, and ultimately, his life, on 25 December 1683, Kara Mustafa was executed in Belgrade at the order of Mehmed IV. He suffered death by strangulation with a cord, which was the method of capital punishment inflicted on high-ranking persons in the Ottoman Empire. His last words were, Am I to die. and As God pleases, the Foundation of Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha was one of the largest foundations ever founded both in Ottoman Empire and Turkey. According to the records, it was last managed by the descendants of Kara Mustafa Pasha. The Merzifonlu Karamustafaoğlu family name ended with the marriage of Yılmaz Merzifonlus only daughter, Kara Mustafa Pashas family and descendant tree can be found via Turkeys Directorate General of Foundations. In the 2012 Polish and Italian historical drama film September Eleven 1683 about the Battle of Vienna, Köprülü era of the Ottoman Empire Köprülü family List of Ottoman Grand Viziers Olnon, Merlijn. A Most Agreeable and Pleasant Creature, Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Paşa in the Correspondence of Justinus Colyer
29.
Mehmed IV
–
Mehmed IV was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1648 to 1687. He came to the throne at the age of seven after his father was overthrown in a coup, Mehmed went on to become the second longest reigning sultan in Ottoman history. Mehmed IV was known by contemporaries as a pious ruler. Under his reign the empire reached the height of its expansion in Europe. From a young age he developed a keen interest in hunting, in 1687 Mehmed was overthrown by soldiers disenchanted by the course of the ongoing War of the Holy League. He subsequently retired to Edirne, where he resided until his death in 1693. Soon after his birth, his father and mother quarreled, and Ibrahim was so enraged that he tore Mehmed from his mothers arms, fortunately, Mehmed was rescued by the harem servants. However, this left Mehmed with a scar on his head. Mehmed ascended to the throne in 1648 at the age of seven and it was under these circumstances that Mehmeds mother granted Köprülü Mehmed Pasha full executive powers as Grand Vizier. Köprülü took office on September 14,1656, Mehmed IV presided over the Köprülü era, an exceptionally stable period of Ottoman history. Sultan Mehmed IV is known as Avcı, the Hunter, as this outdoor exercise took up much of his time and his reign is notable for a revival of Ottoman fortunes led by the Grand Vizier Köprülü Mehmed and his son Fazıl Ahmed. They regained the Aegean islands from Venice, and Crete, during the Cretan War and they also fought successful campaigns against Transylvania and Poland. When Mehmed IV accepted the vassalage of Petro Doroshenko, Ottoman rule extended into Podolia and his next vizier, Köprülü Mehmeds adopted son Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa, led campaigns against Russia, conquering Chyhyryn in 1678. He next supported the 1683 Hungarian uprising of Imre Thököly against Austrian rule, marching a vast army through Hungary, after the second Battle of Mohács, the Ottoman Empire fell into deep crisis. There was a mutiny among the Ottoman troops, the commander and Grand Vizier Sarı Süleyman Pasha became frightened that he would be killed by his own troops and fled from his command, first to Belgrade and then to Istanbul. When the news of the defeat and the mutiny arrived in Istanbul in early September, Abaza Siyavuş Pasha was appointed as the commander, Sultan Mehmed IV appointed the commander of Istanbul Straits Köprülü Fazıl Mustafa Pasha as the Grand Viziers regent in Istanbul. He made consultations with the leaders of the army that existed, after these, on 8 November 1687 it was decided to depose Sultan Mehmed IV and to enthrone his brother Suleiman II as the new Sultan. Mehmed was deposed by the forces of Yeğen Osman and the janissaries
30.
Great Turkish War
–
The war was a defeat for the Ottoman Empire, which lost large amounts of territory in Central Europe. The war was significant in that it marked the first time Russia was involved in a western European alliance. After Bohdan Khmelnytskys rebellion, when the Tsardom of Russia acquired parts of Eastern Ukraine from the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and their leader, Petro Doroshenko, wanted to connect the rest of Ukraine with the Ottoman Empire, starting a rebellion against Hetman John Sobieski. Sultan Mehmed IV, who knew that the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was weakened due to conflicts, attacked Kamianets-Podilskyi. The small Polish force resisted the Siege of Kamenets for two weeks but was forced to capitulate. The Polish Army was too small to resist the Ottoman invasion, after three months, the Poles were forced to sign the Treaty of Buchach in which they agreed to surrender Kamyanets-Podilsky, Podolia and to pay tribute to the Ottoman Sultan. When the news about the defeat and treaty terms reached Warsaw, the Sejm refused to pay the tribute and organized an army under Jan Sobieski, subsequently. After King Michaels death in 1673, Jan Sobieski was elected king of Poland, he tried to defeat the Ottomans for four years. The war ended on 17 October 1676 with the Treaty of Żurawno in which the Turks only retained control over Kamianets-Podilskyi and this Turkish attack also led in 1676 to the beginning of the Russo-Turkish Wars. After a few years of peace, the Ottoman Empire attacked the Habsburg Empire, the Turks almost captured Vienna, but John III Sobieski led a Christian alliance that defeated them in the Battle of Vienna, stalling the Ottoman Empires hegemony in south-eastern Europe. A new Holy League was initiated by Pope Innocent XI and encompassed the Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the second Battle of Mohács was a crushing defeat for the Sultan. The Turks were more successful on the Polish front and were able to retain Podolia during their battles with the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, russias involvement marked the first time the country formally joined an alliance of European powers. This was the beginning of a series of Russo-Turkish Wars, which continued into the 20th century, as a result of the Crimean campaigns and Azov campaigns, Russia captured the key Ottoman fortress of Azov. Following the decisive Battle of Zenta in 1697 and lesser skirmishes, the Ottomans ceded most of Hungary, Transylvania and Slavonia to the Habsburg Empire while Podolia returned to Poland. Most of Dalmatia passed to Venice, along with the Morea, Serbs, as volunteers, massively joined the Austrian side. In the first half of 1688, the Habsburg army, together with units of Serbian Militia, captured Gyula, Lipova and Ineu from the Ottoman Empire. After Belgrade had been liberated from the Ottomans in 1688, Serbs from the territories in the south of Sava and Danube rivers began to join Serbian Militia units. However, with the rise of the Ottomans, during the 16th and early 17th centuries, they lost most of these, such as Cyprus and Euboea to the Turks
31.
Holy Roman Empire
–
The Holy Roman Empire was a multi-ethnic complex of territories in central Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806. On 25 December 800, Pope Leo III crowned the Frankish king Charlemagne as Emperor, reviving the title in Western Europe, more than three centuries after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The title was revived in 962 when Otto I was crowned emperor, fashioning himself as the successor of Charlemagne, some historians refer to the coronation of Charlemagne as the origin of the empire, while others prefer the coronation of Otto I as its beginning. Scholars generally concur, however, in relating an evolution of the institutions and principles constituting the empire, the office of Holy Roman Emperor was traditionally elective, although frequently controlled by dynasties. Emperor Francis II dissolved the empire on 6 August 1806, after the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine by Napoleon, before 1157, the realm was merely referred to as the Roman Empire. In a decree following the 1512 Diet of Cologne, the name was changed to Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, by the end of the 18th century, the term Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation had fallen out of official use. As Roman power in Gaul declined during the 5th century, local Germanic tribes assumed control, by the middle of the 8th century, however, the Merovingians had been reduced to figureheads, and the Carolingians, led by Charles Martel, had become the de facto rulers. In 751, Martel’s son Pepin became King of the Franks, the Carolingians would maintain a close alliance with the Papacy. In 768 Pepin’s son Charlemagne became King of the Franks and began an expansion of the realm. He eventually incorporated the territories of present-day France, Germany, northern Italy, on Christmas Day of 800, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne emperor, restoring the title in the west for the first time in over three centuries. After the death of Charles the Fat in 888, however, the Carolingian Empire broke apart, according to Regino of Prüm, the parts of the realm spewed forth kinglets, and each part elected a kinglet from its own bowels. After the death of Charles the Fat, those crowned emperor by the pope controlled only territories in Italy, the last such emperor was Berengar I of Italy, who died in 924. Around 900, autonomous stem duchies reemerged in East Francia, on his deathbed, Conrad yielded the crown to his main rival, Henry the Fowler of Saxony, who was elected king at the Diet of Fritzlar in 919. Henry reached a truce with the raiding Magyars, and in 933 he won a first victory against them in the Battle of Riade, Henry died in 936, but his descendants, the Liudolfing dynasty, would continue to rule the Eastern kingdom for roughly a century. Upon Henry the Fowlers death, Otto, his son and designated successor, was elected King in Aachen in 936 and he overcame a series of revolts from an elder brother and from several dukes. After that, the managed to control the appointment of dukes. In 951, Otto came to the aid of Adelaide, the queen of Italy, defeating her enemies, marrying her. In 955, Otto won a victory over the Magyars in the Battle of Lechfeld
32.
Tsardom of Russia
–
From 1551 to 1700, Russia grew 35,000 km2 per year. After a military victory over Sweden and Poland, he implemented substantial reforms and proclaimed the Russian Empire in 1721. While the oldest endonyms of the Grand Duchy of Moscow used in its documents were Rus and the Russian land, in the 1480s Russian state scribes Ivan Cherny and Mikhail Medovartsev mention Russia under the name Росиа, Medovartsev also mentions the sceptre of Russian lordship. In England of the 16th century, it was both as Russia and Muscovy. In Northern Europe and at the court of the Holy Roman Empire, however, muscovites refute this, saying that their country was originally called Russia. When they are asked what nation they are, they respond Russac, which means Russians, and when they are asked what place they are from, by the 16th century, the Russian ruler had emerged as a powerful, autocratic figure, a Tsar. By assuming that title, the sovereign of Moscow tried to emphasize that he was a ruler or emperor on par with the Byzantine emperor or the Mongol khan. At first, the Byzantine term autokrator expressed only the meaning of an independent ruler. Ivan IV was crowned Tsar and thus was recognized, at least by the Russian Orthodox Church and that concept was to resonate in the self-image of Russians in future centuries. The development of the Tsars autocratic powers reached a peak during the reign of Ivan IV, Ivan strengthened the position of the Tsar to an exceptional degree, demonstrating the risks of unrestrained power in the hands of a mentally unstable individual. Although apparently intelligent and energetic, Ivan suffered from breakdowns of paranoia and depression, Ivan IV became Grand Prince of Moscow in 1533 at the age of three. The Shuysky and Belsky factions of the boyars competed for control of the regency until Ivan assumed the throne in 1547, reflecting Moscows new imperial claims, Ivans coronation as Tsar was a ritual modeled after those of the Byzantine emperors. With the continuing assistance of a group of boyars, Ivan began his reign with a series of useful reforms, in the 1550s, he declared a new law code, revamped the military, and reorganized local government. These reforms undoubtedly were intended to strengthen the state in the face of continuous warfare, the key documents prepared by the so-called Select Council of advisors and promulgated during this period are as follows. Muscovy remained a fairly unknown society in Western Europe until Baron Sigismund von Herberstein published his Rerum Moscoviticarum Commentarii in 1549 and this provided a broad view of what had been a rarely visited and poorly reported state. In the 1630s, the Russian Tsardom was visited by Adam Olearius, whose lively, further information about Russia was circulated by English and Dutch merchants. One of them, Richard Chancellor, sailed to the White Sea in 1553, upon his return to England, the Muscovy Company was formed by himself, Sebastian Cabot, Sir Hugh Willoughby, and several London merchants. Ivan the Terrible used these merchants to exchange letters with Elizabeth I, despite the domestic turmoil of the 1530s and 1540s, Russia continued to wage wars and to expand
33.
Ottoman Hungary
–
Ottoman Hungary was the territory of Medieval Hungary which was ruled by the Ottoman Empire from 1541 to 1699. Ottoman rule covered mostly the central and southern territories of the former medieval Kingdom of Hungary as almost the entire region of the Great Hungarian Plain, under the reign of Louis II Jagiellon, internal dissentions divided the nobility. Provoked into war by diplomatic insult, Suleyman the Magnificent attacked the Kingdom of Hungary and he did not hesitate to launch an attack against the weakened kingdom, whose smaller, badly led army was defeated on 29 August 1526 at the Battle of Mohács. Thus he became influential in the Kingdom of Hungary, while his semi-vassal, named John I Zápolya, Suleyman went further and tried to crush Austrian forces, but his siege of Vienna in 1529 failed after the onset of winter forced his retreat. The title of king of Hungary was disputed between Zápolya and Ferdinand until 1540, whereas a great many of the 17,000 and 19,000 Ottoman soldiers in service in the Ottoman fortresses in the territory of present-day Hungary were Orthodox and Muslim Balkan Slavs. Southern Slavs were also acting as akıncıs and other light troops intended for pillaging in the territory of present-day Hungary, in these times, territory of present-day Hungary began to undergo changes due to the Ottoman occupation. Vast lands remained unpopulated and covered with woods, the life of the inhabitants on the Ottoman side was unsafe. Peasants fled to the woods and marshes, forming guerrilla bands, eventually, the territory of present-day Hungary became a drain on the Ottoman Empire, swallowing much of its revenue into the maintenance of a long chain of border forts. However, some parts of the economy flourished, in the huge unpopulated areas, townships bred cattle that were herded to south Germany and northern Italy - in some years they exported 500,000 head of cattle. Wine was traded to the Czech lands, Austria and Poland, following this treaty, the members of the Habsburg dynasty administered much enlarged Habsburg Kingdom of Hungary. In the 1540s the total of the four fortresses of Buda, Pest, Székesfehérvár. The number of Ottoman garrison troops stationed in Ottoman Hungary vary, in 1640 when the front remained relatively quiet,8,000 Janissary supported by an undocumented number of local recruits was sufficient to garrison the whole of the Eyalet of Budin. The territory was divided into Eyalets, which were divided into Sanjaks. At first, Ottoman-controlled territories in present-day Hungary were part of the Budin Eyalet, later, new eyalets were formed, Temeşvar Eyalet, Zigetvar Eyalet, Kanije Eyalet, Egir Eyalet, and Varat Eyalet. Likewise, Budin, Zigetvar, Kanije and Egir eyalets also included parts of present-day Serbia, Croatia, Slovakia, pashas and Sanjak-Beys were responsible for administration, jurisdiction and defense. The Ottomans only interest was to secure their hold on the territory, the Sublime Porte became the sole landowner and managed about 20 percent of the land for its own benefit, apportioning the rest among soldiers and civil servants. The Ottoman landlords were interested mainly in squeezing as much wealth from the land as quickly as possible, of major importance to the Sublime Porte was the collection of taxes. Taxation left little for the landlords to collect, Most of the nobility
34.
Battle of Zenta
–
In a surprise attack, Habsburg Imperial forces routed the Ottoman army which was crossing the river. At the cost of a few hundred losses, the Habsburg forces inflicted thousands of casualties on the Ottomans, dispersed the remainder and captured the Ottoman treasure. After the relief of the Habsburg capital in the Battle of Vienna of 1683, Austria enjoyed great success and by 1688 Belgrade, but as the war with the French demanded more troops, and the new grand vizier reorganized and reinvigorated the Ottoman Army, the success ended. Belgrade was recaptured by the Ottomans in 1690 and the following campaign was relatively indecisive. Subsequently, the Ottoman army commanded by Sultan Mustafa II won three victories at the Battle of Lugos, Battle of Ulaş, and Battle of Cenei. At the Battle of Zenta in 1697, the Austrians would be led by Eugene of Savoy in his first independent command, Prince Eugene was made commander in chief of the Army in the newly conquered Pannonian Plain on 5 July 1697. His army consisted of 70,000 men at full strength of whom only 35,000 were ready for battle, as the war chest was empty, Eugene had to borrow money in order to pay wages and to create a working medical service. The Habsburg Army consisted of German, Austrian, and Hungarian infantry and cavalry forces, thanks to Palatine Paul Eszterházy, the Habsburg Kingdom of Hungary contributed to Ottoman-Habsburg wars with 20,000 soldiers. Serb light cavalry and Serbian Militia conscripts also took part in the coalition, after the concentration took place, Eugene had an Imperial army of 50,000 to 55,000 men to face the Ottomans. On July 18, in the village of Kolut, Eugene held a review of his forces. Soon he left with forces to Petrovaradin via Sombor, during August, Eugene offered battle in the neighborhood of the fortress of Petrovaradin but the Ottomans, attempting to start a siege, refused to engage in battle. In September the Ottomans moved north in an attempt to capture the fortress of Szeged, there were few Kuruc cavalries in the Ottoman army under Imre Thököly, however most of them fought alongside the Austrians. Thököly was in charge of the Ottoman cavalry in battle, after the capture of Cafer Pasha by the imperial cavalry, the plan for the siege of Szeged was abandoned and the Sultan decided to return to winter quarters near Timişoara. When Eugene learned of these movements, he decided to force a battle, on 11 September 1697, the Ottoman army began to ford the river Tisa near Zenta, unaware that the Hungarian Imperial Army was nearby. The Imperial army was able to surprise and attack the Ottoman forces while they were in the process of crossing the river, after an intensive artillery bombardment, many Imperial Dragoon regiments dismounted and proceeded to the moat encircling and engaging the Ottoman camp. Ottoman troops behind the entrenchments retreated in confusion to the bridge, Austrian artillery targeted the Ottoman troops and slaughtered them. The left flank of the Imperial army attacked, penetrating between the Ottoman left flank and the bridge, cutting off their retreat, at the same time, Imperial forces attacked from the front and, after ferocious close-quarter fighting, broke through the trenches surrounding the Ottoman camp. Inside the camp, beyond the camp-wagons, the slaughter was terrible, Imperial soldiers pressed the attack relentlessly
