CHAPTER 15:The Muslim Empires

SECTION ONE

The BIG Idea:

COMPETITION AMONG COUNTRIES

The Ottoman Empire grew strong as it expanded its

borders.

RISE OF THE OTTOMAN TURKS

• In the late thirteenth century a new group of Turks called the Ottomans under their leader Osman began to build power in the northwest corner of the Anatolian Peninsula.

RISE OF THE OTTOMAN TURKS

• The Turks under Osman became known as the Ottoman dynasty and began to expand into land that had belonged to the Byzantine Empire.

• The Ottoman rulers built a strong military by developing an elite guard called janissaries.

THE LIFE OF A JANISSARY

• The janissaries were often Christians who were recruited and then converted to Islam.

• The janissaries were foot soldiers who were trained with fire arms.

• Because of their mastery of fire arms, the Ottomans were able to gain more land, invading the Balkans and Bulgaria by 1390.

• Over the next 300 years, the Ottoman rule expanded to Western Asia, Northern Africa and Europe.

• The Ottoman empire was known as a “gunpowder empire” because it unified the regions that it conquered.

THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE

• Under the leadership of Mehmed II, the Ottomans surrounded Constantinople (the capital of the Byzantine Empire) and attacked in 1453, using cannons to launch 1,200 pound stones at the city.

• The battle lasted two months, but eventually the Ottomans took the city.

THE OTTOMAN WORLD

• Religion• Like Many people of the Anatolian

Peninsula, the Ottomans were Sunni Muslims.

• Leadership• At the head of the Ottoman system

was the sultan, who was the supreme authority in both a political and religious sense.

• Ottoman sultans also claimed to be the Sunni caliph (successor to Muhamed) but they often gave their religious duties to advisors known as ulema, who also ran the legal system.

• The position of sultan was passed from father to son, but not necessarily the oldest son, which often caused struggles for power and the losers were often executed.

• As the Ottoman empire expanded, the Sultan became more like a king, and was surrounded by more advisors. This meant that the sultan was increasingly isolated from his people.

• The Topkapi Palace in İstanbul (the new name for Constantinople) was the center of the sultan’s power.

THE IMPEREAL SULTANS

• The sultans private domain was called the harem where the sultan and his wives lived. The sultan often chose four wives as his favorites.

• The sultans chief minister was known as the grand vizier, and who led the meetings of government while sultan sat behind a screen communicating only with the grand vizier.

THE IMPEREAL SULTANS

• The Ottoman empire was divided into provinces and districts each governed by officials and aided by bureaucrats who were trained at a special school in İstanbul.

• One of the types of bureaucrats was the pasha who was in charge of collecting taxes and maintain law and order.

THE IMPEREAL SULTANS

• Ottoman sultans were great patrons of the arts.

• Like earlier Muslim cultures, the greatest contributions of Ottoman art were in the field of Architecture, especially its mosques which often incorporated elements of design from the Christian churches from İstanbul's former life as Constantinople.

ART AND ARCHITECTURE

• The greatest Ottoman architect was Sinan, who is remembered for building 81 mosques.

• Each of his mosques was topped with a large domed roof and the main building was often surrounded by four minarets, or four towers.

ART AND ARCHITECTURE

• Selimiye Mosque, built by Sinan in 1575.

ART AND ARCHITECTURE

• Women in the Ottoman empire, although technically subject to the same restrictions as in other Muslim societies, were often in a better position.

• Ottoman women could own property, could not be forced into marriage and in some cases served as senior government officials like governors.

SOCIETY AND THE ROLE OF WOMEN

• The Ottoman Empire reached its high point under Süleyman I.

• Unfortunately Süleyman executed his two most able sons on suspicions of treason, his only remaining son Selim II to become sultan. This was the beginning of many problems for the Ottoman empire.

PROBLEMS IN THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

• Beginning with Selim II, many problems arose:

• Sultans became less involved, and training of officials declined.

• Jobs went to the sons and daughters of the elite and a privileged group emerged.

• Constant wars depleted the imperial treasury.

• As a result of all of the internal problems of the Ottoman Empire, the Ottomans were never able to gain any land in Europe after 1683 when an attempt to conquer Austria and Hungary was unsuccessful.

• The Ottomans were never a threat in Europe again

PROBLEMS IN THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

• How could new weapons technology affect an empire’s growth?

FOCUS QUESTION – Chapter 15.1

?

CHAPTER 15:The Muslim Empires

SECTION TWO

The BIG Idea:

IDEAS, BELIEFS AND VALUES

The Şafavids used their faith as a unifying force.

The Şafavids Empire

• Since the 1300’s Persia had fallen into Anarchy, and not until the 1500’s did a new dynasty known as the Şafavids arise.

• Unlike many of their Islamic neighbors, the Şafavids were strict Shia Muslims.

The Şafavid Empire

• The Şafavid dynasty was founded by Shāh Esmā’īl.

• Although he was just a teenager Shāh Esmā’īl used his forces to seize much of present day Iran and Iraq.

• When he took this land he called himself shah, which means “king.”

The Şafavid Empire

• After gaining power Shāh Esmā’īl, sent preachers into the Ottoman Empire trying to convert people from Sunni Islam to Shia Islam.

• His attempt to convert Turks in Ottoman lands led to a long period of back and forth battles between the Ottomans and the Şafavids.

• As a result of the ongoing battles between the Sunni Ottoman Empire and the Shia Şafavid Empire, anytime the Şafavids conquered new land they forced to convert to the Shia faith.

• Many Sunnis were either killed or exiled, but for those who remained the Shia faith became a unifying force.

• Under Shāh ‘Abbās who ruled from 1588 to 1629, the Şafavids reached the high point of their glory. He achieved this glory by doing several things.

Glory and Decline

• Shāh ‘Abbās was responsible for the highpoint of Şafavid glory because:

• He strengthened the army by giving them the latest weapons, which allowed them to take back Azerbaijan (the Şafavid homeland.)

• He allowed more intellectual freedom in the Şafavid Empire.

• What factors help to unify an empire?

FOCUS QUESTION – Chapter 15.2

?