Royal Families & Key Leaders
- Selim II
- son of Suleiman the Magnificent, however, rules very differently from his father; refrains from fighting and has an unstable government.
- Mustafa II
- Ahmed III
- Mahmud I
- put on the throne by a Janissary revolt
- introduced the baroque style to the Ottoman Empire
- in war with Persia
- war with Russia in 1736, and then later with HRE in 1739
- Mehmed IV
- military campaigns against Austria and Poland.
- faced military defeat and was dethroned.
Public Works and Projects
- The majority of Ottoman public works were represented by mosques.
- These mosques were a fusion of traditional Islamic mosque structure combined with Byzantine architectural styles.
- An important project was transforming the Hagia Sophia into a mosque since they thought it was too beautiful to destroy.
- toward the beginning of the 18th century, the upper-class started to use public areas more, resulting in the building of more fountains and waterside residences
Role of Religion & Religious Makeup
- The Ottoman Empire was Sunni Islam
- Only Muslims were able to hold positions of power in the empire
- Had Devshirme system where Christians boys from Eastern Europe had the chance of becoming elite guards of the Janissaries for the sultan if they left their family and became Muslim
Attempts at Expansion/ Military Conflict
Key Leaders
- restored the authority of the state
- gave up most of executive power to Grand Vizier
- Long War- 1593-1606, between Austria and the Ottoman, ended with a status quo
- War with Venice- 1645-1669, ended with the conquest of Crete
- War with the Hapsburg- 1657-1662, Ottomans annexed the Western part of the Hungary
- In general the were a lots of mini skirmishes with the Safavid in the East
- Great Turkish War- 1683-1699, Polish and Austrians formed an alliance to defeat the Ottomans, and they retook Hungary
- Russo-Turkish War- 1710-1711, Russian tried to attack the Ottmans but were defeated pretty badly.
- Empire was peaceful during his reign (Tulip Era)
- influenced by the French baroque style
The OG
Mufasa
- constructing of baroque-style mosques
- conflicts with Persia, Russia and HRE
Overall, the sultans of the Ottoman empire in the 17-18th centuries were very much lackadaisical in comparison to those of a different time period.
Role of Nobility
- The nobility, much like other states, was given various jobs and titles by the sultan in order to prevent revolts.
- Ex: Captain of Janissaries, Chief palace guard, etc.
- The chief nobility were, most importantly, part of the Divan who was led by the Grand Vizier
- The Divan was the sultan's cabinet giving their opinion on various matters in the government.
- However the Sultan did not have to listen to the Divan and sometimes told them what he thought and they carried it out for him
Key Terms
- Janissaries- Powerful elite foot soldiers directly under the control of the Sultan himself. These soldiers were often recruited at a young age from christian families.
- Istanbul (Constantinople)- Capital city of the Ottoman Empire, not only being a massive trading hub between the Middle East and Europe, but at the same time one of the largest cities in the world.
- Grand Vizier- Similar to a prime minister, the grand vizier conducted state affairs and managed the state under the sultan's name. He was also in charge of the rest of the Viziers and bureaucracy as well.
House of Hohenzollern Presents...
Ottoman Empire
winnin' since 1453