THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

Question 1

What is the key takeaway of the ottoman empire?

Answer 1

the sixteenth century, the Ottoman Empire was at its imperial zenitn (at it’s height)
- They had power + centralization

defeats at Vienna (1529) and Lepanto (1571)

• military exploits, and legal and cultural accomplishment made it one of the strongest, wealthiest, and most cohesive entities on the world stage.

Question 2

Where did the name “ottoman” come from?

Answer 2

Osman Sultan

Question 3

What is the Ottoman Empire?

Answer 3

• Turkish migration from Central Asia to Anatolia (middle east- close to Europe) in the Middle Ages, forming several small states (Driven west by the Mongols)
• Subsequent sultans expand Ottoman territory
  Main Things: conquest of Constantinople, expansion into Central Europe, failed siege of Vienna, expansion into North Africa, huge loss at Battle of Lepanto

17th century - Losing power

Question 4

How many sultans oversaw the empire?

Answer 4

Traditional phrasing is there were 10 sultans who built the Empire to its zenith and 10 that oversaw its fall

Question 5

How did the Ottoman’s own territory?

Answer 5

Often outright owned a lot

• If not they had Vassals who pay tribute to ottomans (like half own- pay to avoid being taken over?)

Question 6

What was the old succession law to become sultan?

Answer 6

When Sultan, send sons away to govern
- After sultan dies, first son to make it back is crowned
- Then he has to kill his brothers (don’t want a civil war)

Question 7

How did SULEIMAN THE MAGNIFICENT earn his name?

Answer 7

“Magnificent” is a European title; to Ottomans he is known as the “lawgiver”

*Harmonized Ottoman law
*Reformed succession pattern = heirs stay in the harem, no more practical experience, no more fratricide (all brothers of sultan is killed)

Question 8

What were Suleiman the Magnificent’s 2 main accomplishments?

Answer 8

1. Military expansion
   *Europe: Belgrade, Rhodes, and most of Hungary
   *Middle East: Baghdad, most of Iraq
   *North Africa: conquered most of it, but failed to capture Tunis
2. Culture
   *Poet and patron of the art
   *Famously, a lover of tulips

Question 9

Explain Suleiman the Magnificent’s 2 important relationships?

Answer 9

1. Ibrahim
   -Man
   - Suleiman was probably queer!
2. Roxelana
   - Woman
   - Said to be monogamous with her
   - She got Ibrahim killed

• They were both Caucasian (mountain)
• Both enslaved

Question 10

What provided the Ottomans a massive advantage militarily?

Answer 10

Mounted Calvary
- Readily adapted to new military technology (gunpowder, large guns) and were able to access it more easily because of their advantageous geographic location

AND

Standing armies: Ottomans had professional fighters (and granted them special privileges to conquered loot and land (like first trained military, other countries were just sending teen farmers)

Question 11

How did other cities respond to the looming threat of the Ottomans?

Answer 11

They developed a reputation of being unbeatable, which encouraged neighbouring countries to become vassals and tributaries rather than risk invasion

Question 12

Did other countries have standing armies?

Answer 12

*France had a small standing army, but disbanded most regiments; Hungary’s standing army arose because of Ottoman proximity

*England and Spain did not have standing armies until the 17th century

Question 13

What are Janissaries?

Answer 13

: conscripted infantry force made up of forced converts to Islam, eventually becomes the most powerful political force in the Ottoman Empire

Question 14

How was the Ottoman empire governed?

Answer 14

Government composed of the sultan and his household staff (scribes, advisers, accountants, etc.) = the sultan is the sole governing authority

*Advisers: Grand Vizier (like Prime Minister) and nobles
*The sultan protects the flock (i.e. the ordinary people

Question 15

How were provinces governed?

Answer 15

Local governance by qadis (provincial governors) working alongside beys (military leaders)

*In theory they are checks on each other’s power: the qadi cannot enact punishment and the bey cannot order an execution unless the qadi has tried the case
*Qadis are directly answerable to the sultan
*Rebellion was possible and sultans could be overthrown

Question 16

How were Vassal states connected to the empire?

Answer 16

paid taxes to the sultan and contributed to military campaigns

Question 17

What are the three different court systems in the Ottoman empire?

Answer 17

Three court systems:

1. one for Muslims,
2. one for non-Muslims,
   *Non-Muslim courts = different courts for Jews and Christian (You are judged by rules or religion you are apart of)
3. the “trade court” (Sultan rule)

Question 18

What is the difference between Sharia law and Kanun law?

Answer 18

Sharia: Islamic Law

Kanun: Law made by the Sultan = high degree of centralization
*Suleiman’s legal reform takes all the decisions made by prior sultans, reconciles all contradictions, and creates a single, unified code
*These laws can be vetoed by Islamic law scholars, but this is very rare

Question 19

What does the term “the shopping mall” refer to with legal systems?

Answer 19

Multiple legal systems = “the shopping mall” where you can pick your court
*You can try your case in front of any court (e.g. Jews can have a business dispute tried before an Islamic court)

Question 20

What is a positive outcome for historians with the legal system?

Answer 20

One outcome for historians is that there is a huge wealth of Ottoman legal documentation

Question 21

What is the Millet system in the Ottoman empire?

Answer 21

each religious group organized into autonomous communities
*The head of that community answers to the sultan

Question 22

What were People of the Book?

Answer 22

: followers of Abrahamic religion

Question 23

Were people of the book offered protections?

Answer 23

Yes!

Provided certain protections for Jews, Christians, and non-Sunni Muslims, including:
*No forced conversions (except via the Janissary program)
*No conscription for Muslim wars
*Equality under property and contract law

Question 24

Were people of the book offered these protections for free?

Answer 24

Came with certain responsibilities, including:
*Paying a tax that replaced the obligatory charity Muslims performed

Question 25

Why were there so many Jewish people here?

Answer 25

15th – 16th century: influx of Jews fleeing expulsions
*Jewish trading networks contribute to the wealth of the Ottoman Empire

Question 26

Who was Mimar Sinan?

Answer 26

Chief Architect & engineer to Suleiman the Magnificent
*Designed many mosques
*His masterpiece: Selimiye Mosque, Edirn

Question 27

Did the Ottomans build public buildings?

Answer 27

Yes!

*Public baths
*Mosque compounds, which typically included hospitals and schools
*Way stations for trade caravans

(Also renovated sites)

Question 28

Which two styles heavily influenced the Ottoman Architecture styles?

Answer 28

Classical Ottoman architecture combines Byzantine and Islamic styles

Question 29

What was “The Harem” in the Ottoman empire?

Answer 29

part of the palace where the wives, female relatives, and concubines lived

Question 30

How did the elite women live in the Ottoman empire?

Answer 30

Lived isolated lives (only male contact is relatives and eunuch)

Potentially influence men (known to the public)

Mostly illiterate

Question 31

How did ordinary women live in the Ottoman empire?

Answer 31

documentary evidence in legal records

*Inheriting property and businesses from husbands and fathers

*Pursuing business interests

*Divorce is possible

*Most women were illiterate

Question 32

How did the Ottomans influence trading?

Answer 32

Ottoman trade tariffs push people into the Atlantic and around the Cape of Good Hope
*Ottomans are the gatekeepers of the Silk Road
*Encouraging Western European exploration to try and find a different route

Question 33

Initially, the Ottoman did not have strong maritime technology. Once they developed it, where did they go?

Answer 33

Indian Ocean: trade with the Mughals, competing with the Portuguese in India and Aceh
(Competing with Portuguese directly) (Portuguese went around to avoid having to pay Ottomans)

(Tried to recapture trade)

Question 34

How does the excursions into the Indian ocean influence the Ottoman empire?

Answer 34

Crossroad of trade and new ideas (science, technology, culture, etc.)
*Adopting advantageous technologies that pass through their territory

Question 35

What limited maritime technology did they use?

Answer 35

Limited maritime technology: reliant on galleys (oars and sail)

Question 36

What two consumables did the Ottomans popularize?

Answer 36

coffee and tobacco

Question 37

Who were the Habsburgs?

Answer 37

powerful European family governing both Spain and Austria
*This is a huge family with many branches
*Very Catholic

Question 38

How did the Ottoman empire expansion threaten the Habsburgs?

Answer 38

*Ottoman expansion threatens Habsburg expansion in Central Europe

*The family had held Austria, but Sulieman’s war of conquest against Hungary and Bohemia inadvertently causes these lands to pass to the Habsburgs

*1526: King Louis II of Hungary, Bohemia, and Croatia dies in battle against the Ottomans and Ferdinand I inherits what remains of Hungary. The Bohemian Estates decide that Ferdinand should also be king of Bohemia.

*The siege of Vienna (1529) solidifies Habsburg – Ottoman enmity

I think: Ottomans and Habsburgs fought over Hungary, Boemia, and Croatia

Question 39

Many popes in 16th century? Explain the two important ones:

• Pope Clement VII (1478 – 1534)
• Pius V (1504 –1572)

Answer 39

• Pope Clement VII (1478 – 1534):
  
  • is Pope during the initial phase of Suleiman’s expansion into Central Europe
  • Catherine du Medici’s uncle
  • More concerned with the Sack of Rome and lining things up for his family connection
  • Personal problems (didn’t rlly deal with Ottomans)
• Pius V (1504 –1572):
  
  • is Pope during Suleiman’s expansion into the Adriatic
  • Founds the Holy League to repel Ottoman forces = afraid of repeating the Fall of Constantinople
    *Huge success at the Battle of Lepant0

Question 40

What is France’s relationship with the Ottomans?

Answer 40

1536: Francis I of France signs alliance with Suleiman = mutual hatred of the Habsburgs

*Not much comes of this in early modernity, but the alliance lasts until Napoleon invades Egypt
*France intermittently supports the Ottomans and the alliance deters the Habsburgs from making a bid for France
*Exchange of diplomatic envoys and scientific information

Question 41

What is England’s relationship with the Ottomans?

Answer 41

: Elizabeth I’s ongoing letter correspondence with Murad III (Suleiman’s grandson)*Presents Protestant England and the Muslim Ottomans as united against Catholicism and idolatry

*Produced a very lucrative trade relationship in which England provided metal for munitions and received gold and sugar = cuts out nations like Spain

*Network of diplomats in England and throughout Ottoman territory = Ottoman Empire safer for English Protestants than Catholic territory

Question 42

How did ordinary people feel about the Ottomans?

Answer 42

1. “Better Turkish than Popish” – Dutch Reformed slogan
   *Expressing that life would be better under the sultan than under the Catholic king of Spain
2. In general, there was a lot of fear and distrust of the Ottomans and Muslims in general
   *As we move into the 17th century, we see a rise in apocalyptic theology in which Muslims are taken as enemies of Christianity = the sultan is often depicted as the Antichrist
   *If you are protestant, the Pope is more commonly the Antichrist

Question 43

What is the SIEGE OF VIENNA?

Answer 43

Fail!

They arrive late in the year, and the rain turns siege into mudfest
- Horses = slipping and sliding
- PPl sick and hungry

Habsburg = ended up looking more powerful (Ferdinand becomes king of Hungary) (unifies a Habsburg-Papacy anti-Ottoman front)

In Vienna: They dug holes under Ottomans holes to collapse and ruin plans

Question 44

What is the BATTLE OF LEPANTO?

Answer 44

Pope doesn’t want Ottoman’s Navy taking over Mediterranean

Engage Naval battle with pope

Wind changes -> Ottomans start losing
- Run out of ammo, start throwing cargo at christians - ex. apples and oranges)

• First big loss in like a century
• Moral victory of pope (Damaged Ottoman’s invincibility