Ottoman Empire Rise

From Regional Power to Empire

• The Seljukids, joined by Turkmen mercenaries, eventually acted independently, leading to the birth of the Ottoman dynasty with Osman I as its founder
• Osman I expanded his territory, seizing Bapheus in 1302 and Bursa in 1323, establishing a Sunni power near the Dardanelles, with conquest fueling further expansion through economic hubs, war spoils, and slaves

Crossing the Dardanelles

• The Ottomans sought to cross the Dardanelles to access the Adriatic
• Murad I conquered Andrinople in 1363, making it his capital and forced Byzantine Emperor John V Palaiologos into submission
• Victory at Kosovo Polje in 1389, and Bayezid I's psychological victory at Nicopolis in 1396, were followed by an abandonment of Balkan expansion after a defeat against Tamerlane at Ankara in 1402
• Hungary, the last Christian bastion, lost its sovereignty in 1526
• A final crusade led by Ladislas Jagiellon failed at Varna in 1444
• Mehmed II consolidated power in Anatolia against the Shia Safavids

The Capture of Constantinople in 1453

• Constantinople, a fortified and predominantly Christian Orthodox city, was defended by 7,000 men
• Mehmed II transported ships over land to surprise the Byzantines
• With 80,000 to 100,000 men, he won on May 29, 1453, and Constantine XI died in battle
• Mehmed II, the Fathi (conqueror), limited pillaging to one day and maintained tolerance towards communities like the Genoese
• Constantinople became a prosperous capital, repopulated by Turkish, Greek, and Jewish populations from Anatolia
• By the end of the 16th century, the city had between 150,000 and 200,000 inhabitants

Territorial Consolidation of the Empire

• The Ottoman Empire weakened Genoa and Venice
• Genoa gradually lost its trading posts to Venice and the Ottomans
• Venice negotiated commercial rights, but non-compliance led to seven wars
• Kosovo fell in 1455, and Belgrade was besieged in 1456, but the Ottomans withdrew
• In 1458, Mahmud Pasha intervened in the succession of the Despotate of Serbia, leading to its annexation and transformation into a sandjak in 1459, a territorial division led by a sandjakbey
• Ottoman territorial gains included the capture of Trebizond in 1461, along with the start of the Veneto-Ottoman wars in 1463
• Conquests took place in Albania and on the Adriatic coast in 1466, along with raids in Herzegovina and Northern Italy in 1467
• The capture of Negroponte in 1470, attacks on Shkodër and Istria in 1478, and a failed attempt on Rhodes in 1480 led to the capture and loss of Otranto between 1480 and 1481

A Muslim World Divided by Ottoman Hegemonic Ambitions

• Bayezid II (1481-1512) reigned during a period of consolidation

Bayezid II: Reign of Consolidation

• Bayezid II, known as "the Saint", acceded to the throne thanks to the law of fratricide established by Mehmed II
• His brother Cem, supported by the Grand Vizier, sought refuge with the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem before being handed over to France, remaining captive until 1495
• After Cem's death, Bayezid II resumed hostilities against Venice, seizing Lepanto and Navarino
• In the east, he faced defeat against the Safavids under Shah Ismail
• In 1512, he was overthrown by his son Selim with the support of the Janissaries

Selim I (1512-1520)

• Selim I, already advanced in age upon his accession, was a violent sultan and former governor of Trebizond
• He led numerous campaigns against the Safavids

Selim I and the Mamluks

• With his son Suleiman, he strengthened Ottoman power by suppressing two groups deemed heretical by two fatwas, including the Safavids of Ismail between 1514 and 1516
• Victory at Chaldiran forced Ismail to flee
• Selim I attacked the Mamluks, who controlled Egypt and part of Arabia
• The capture of Syria in 1516, followed by Cairo in 1517, led to the execution of the Mamluk Sultan, making Selim the sole Sunni Sultan
• In 1519, the corsair Hayreddin Barbarossa pledged allegiance to Selim, allying Algiers with the Ottoman Empire

Zenith of Expansion

• Suleiman the Magnificent ascended to power, along with his Grand Vizier, Ibrahim Pasha

Suleiman the Magnificent and Ibrahim Pasha

• Ibrahim Pasha, originally from Greece, was captured and sold in Manisa, where Suleiman was governor
• They became friends, and when Suleiman became sultan, Ibrahim became head of the private chamber, overseeing the sultan's private life, and later became Grand Vizier

Ottoman Hungary: From Belgrade to Mohács

• Mathias Corvinus (1443-1490), King of Hungary elected in 1458, was a prince-knight who tried to maintain Hungarian suzerainty in Bosnia and rivaled the Ottomans and Frederick III of Habsburg
• After his death in 1490, Hungary lost ground in Poland and Silesia
• His successor, Louis II Jagellon, became king in 1516
• His marriage to Anne Jagellon strengthened ties with the Habsburgs, but in 1520, he refused to pay tribute to the Ottoman Sultan, triggering Suleiman's response
• Suleiman seized Belgrade in 1521
• In 1526, taking advantage of Hungarian instability and the lack of imperial aid, Suleiman invaded Hungary with 60,000 men and 300 cannons, defeating Louis II Jagellon at Mohács and seizing Buda in September

Ottoman Military Power

• In parallel, Suleiman besieged Rhodes in 1522, held by the Order of Saint John
• After a long bombardment and heavy Turkish losses (45,000 men), the island capitulated on December 20
• The Hospitallers wandered the Mediterranean before Charles V offered them Tripoli and Malta
• The military was divided into two groups: the military and administrative elite (askeri) and the civilian population (reaya)
• Janissaries, created by Murad I, were soldier-slaves from the devshirme system, recruited among Christian populations in the Balkans
• Initially a small troop of 2,000 men in Kosovo, they became a regular force under the command of an Aga
• Converted to Islam and trained in Anatolia, some entered the imperial administration
• The cavalry was based on the timar system, where sipahis were attached to lands financing their equipment
• By 1525, there were 10,000, then 45,000 under Suleiman, before falling to 11,000 in the 17th century
• The Ottoman navy developed slowly, initially defensively, then offensively
• Under the command of the Kapudan Pasha, the fleet reached 180 ships in 1475
• Hayreddin Barbarossa, lord of Algiers, pledged allegiance to the Empire and participated in naval campaigns, notably in Egypt under Selim I

Government and Administration

• The empire was headed by the DIVAN, this was a council of representatives from the provinces (beyerbey), the grand vizier, the sultan, the ulemas, the military leaders (kapudan pacha and aga), and magistrates (kadi asker = judge)

The Grand Vizir

• Between 1453 and 1579, the post of Grand Vizier saw 33 appointments, averaging four years each
• Initially, viziers came from the ranks of the ulema, but Mehmet II favored slaves of the Porte (kapi kullari) who were collected through the devshirme system
• The Empire favored integration rather than exclusion, adapting to local customs. It maintained the elites of conquered territories under the supervision of a Kadi Asker and fostered multi-ethnic coexistence with population movements

Financial Prosperity

• The Empire efficiently managed its revenues, which were expanded through capturing resources and indirect control over key economic zones

Provinces of the Ottoman Empire

• Registers ordered supplies for the capital to centralize the empire
• The leaders of a province were called beyerbey
• There were 32 provinces in 1609, where each pacha was appointed temporarily for 3 years
• Vassal provinces beyond the Danube lacked the presence of Ottoman agents, the dominance was still effective though

Ottoman Tolerance of Religious Minorities

• From the 14th century onward, an Islamic proselytizing process took place, especially in the Balkans
• Conversions often occurred due to the pressure of conquest, in order to avoid massacres or the jizya tax
• The Orthodox Christians experienced mentalities against the union

Pilgrims to the Holy Land

• Pilgrims to Jerusalem contributed to the empire
• After 1530, interest decreased and Martin Luther criticized the pilgrimages
• Pilgrims were accommodated by monks guaranteed by janissaries

Limitations of the Empire

• The center point of the empire became weak, and the outer provinces became difficult to control

Expansion Limits

• The Austrian competed against the empire over time in Bude in 1528, which caused war
• Baghdad was taken in 1534

Imperal system

• The legend of the sultanat Ottoman was known, which brought symbolic power over the Spanish
• Ambassadors in Constantinople have made influence of the beliefs and opinions of others through corruption and tyranny

Decline of the Empire

• After 1579 the Vizier lost influence and the Sultan abandoned the way things were traditionally run
• Weaknesses involved debt and trade issues
• Territorial slippage was present with a multitude of revolutions breaking out