After the conquest of Constantinople in 1453, the sultans of the Ottoman Empire laid claim to represent the legitimate Roman emperors. This claim was based on the right of conquest and mainly rested o
15th-century portrait of Mehmed II by Gentile Bellini
Mosaic depicting Sultan Mehmed II (left) and Patriarch Gennadios II (right)
Sultan Suleiman I wearing his Venetian Helmet, a four-tiered crown designed to stress that he outranked even the pope (who wore a three-tiered crown)
The 1876 Ottoman constitution (Kanun-i esasi). The official Greek translation established the sultan's Greek title as soultanos (σουλτάνος) and padisach (παδισαχ), rather than basileus (βασιλεύς).
Ottoman Turks
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The Ottoman Turks were a Oghuz Turkic ethnic group in Anatolia. Originally from Central Asia, they migrated to Anatolia in the 13th century and founded the Ottoman Empire, in which they remained socio
Painting of Ottoman Turkish sipahis at the Battle of Vienna.
Ottoman miniature from 1579/1580 depicting Oghuz chieftain Osman I, who founded the House of Osman and the Ottoman Empire around 1299. Located at Topkapı Sarayı Müzesi in the city of Istanbul.