Historical Study: The Rise and Fall of the Ottoman Empire

For the past week now I have emerged myself into the third game of the Ezio Trilogy, AC: Revelations. I will soon have a full review of this game but first as I always do I have to hit on it's historical setting. This last chapter in the trilogy sends Ezio east from his homeland of Italy and into the flourishing city of Constantinople. Set in 1511, the city has become an epicenter of culture and the capital of the mighty Ottoman Empire. As I began this game I was very excited to explore the famous city of Constantinople (modern day Istanbul), yet furthermore to learn about a historical topic I know very little about, the Ottoman Empire.

I suppose I have always been most drawn to the study of European and American history and know very little about Eastern/Asian history. However that is something I intend to change here, especially as an admirer of not just western history but world history. I have recently demonstrated this global expansion with my studies of the South American Wars of Independence and a deep emergence into ancient Egyptian history. So now in an effort to further expand my cultural awareness I'd like to divert my attention to the Middle East. It's no question that this region is very controversial to this day, however I'd like to stay away from the politics. I just want to focus on the region's ancient history, primarily the mighty Ottoman Empire. I can honestly say I know very little on this topic and would like to do a full study; from it's early roots, to its rise, and to it's fall.

The Ancient Middle East

The Middle East has always been a very intriguing historical region often driven by religious matters. Consider it's early rise to power with Cyrus the Great and the mighty Persian Empire in the 6th century. Under King Nebuchadnezzar, the city of Babylon had become the new center of culture, in the likes of Cairo. Until they were later defeated by the Greek and Macedonian armies. Persian power later returned in the 6th century under the Islamic prophet Muhammad who established a mighty caliphate (I hope to further explore both these historical eras at some point.) Years later during the Crusades the Middle East became the highly contested lands of the holy wars between Christianity and Islam. At the center of all this was always the holy city of Jerusalem that was desired by Jews, Muslims, and Christians alike.

However by the 1300s the Muslims had united into a powerful Ottoman Empire and were able to consolidate their control of the region. They were finally able to set their eyes on the most desirable city in the region, that of Constantinople. The city was under the control of the Roman/Byzantine Empire and served as the strategic gateway of Europe and Asia. The key turning point for the contested region came at the Siege of Constantinople of 1453. This was a defining victory for the Ottoman Empire over the Byzantine Empire, which essentially expelled Christian control and ushered in a new era of Ottoman supremacy in the Middle East.

The City of Constantinople

I remember the term "Constantinople" always stuck with me as a kid from the catchy Tiny Tunes cover song, "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)". It wasn't until several years later that I understood the parody of the song, and came to understand the present-day, cultural-city of Istanbul once known as Constantinople.

Perhaps it's most iconic claim to fame is the Haggai Sophia, which I have often praised as among my favorite architectural wonders. Just like the Eiffel Tower is to Paris or the Colosseum is to Rome, the Haggai Sophia is the defining symbol of the city of Istanbul. It is a city rich of culture and history which I would very much like to visit someday in my lifetime.

It is perhaps one of the most interesting cities in all of history, that has undergone more transformations than any other. Much of this is due to it's strategic location as the key portal between Europe and Asia as well as the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. The city was first founded by Thracians in the 13th century BC and was referred to as Lygos. The city was later colonized by the ancient Greeks in 657 BC and renamed as the city of Byzantium. However the city did not reach it's glorious potential until it was conquered by the Romans.

In the year 196 CE, the mighty Roman Empire under the rule of Septimus Severus, conquered the city of Byzantium thus further extending their territory. However it was not until 330 CE, that the Roman emperor Constantine the Great decided to rename the city from Byzantium to Constantinople and it became the new capital of the Roman Empire. At this point the Roman Empire had begun to lose their power in the west and so their new stronghold became in the east, where they transformed into the Byzantine Empire by 395.

Constantinople became the capital of the Byzantine Empire, which was essentially the continuation of the Roman Empire located in the eastern region of Europe now. During this time the city began to flourish and quickly became one of the largest and most wealthy cities in all of Europe. In the likes of Rome it had many notable architectural wonders built at this time such as the Haggai Sophia, the Galata Tower, and the Hippodrome.

In 1054 however the city became the epicenter of the Great Schism which essentially broke away from the Roman Catholic Church and established the Eastern Orthodox Church. With this event the city of Constantinople had become the capital of the Orthodox faith, much to the dislike of the Latin Roman church.

This Schism eventually gave way to the Fourth Crusade in 1204, in which the Latin Christian army sacked the city of Constantinople. This was the first time in nearly 900 years, that the impenetrable city was sacked. The city was quickly restored back to Byzantine control, however the sacking marked a turning point for the mighty Byzantine Empire. This sudden decline gave way to a new rising power in the east.

The Rise of the Ottoman Empire

During the Middle Ages, the region of Turkey was controlled by the Seljuk Empire centered in the city of Anatolia. The Seljuk Empire was able to win control of the region from the Byzantine Empire during the 1st Crusade in 1095-1099. The city of Anatolia was controlled by the Turkish-Persian state known as the Sultanate of Rum. However after several other Crusades against the Christians the Muslims began to lose their power and eventually succumbed to Mongol invasions in 1243. By this point the region had been divided into smaller principalities one of which was from the region of Bithynia led by the tribal leader known as Osman (of which the name Ottoman is derived from).

By the early 1300s, the Ottoman army began winning various battles and conquering the region of Anatolia. One of their first major victories against the Byzantine Empire came at the Battle of Bapheus in 1302. Soon after they extended their control throughout the Turkish region and by 1326 had won control of the city of Bursa, which became their new capital. They then conquered territory in eastern Europe, throughout the Balkans and brought an end to the Serbian Empire at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. In 1396 they furthered their conquest of the Mediterranean by winning the Battle of Nicopolis, and essentially bringing an end to the Crusades.

By the early 1400s the Ottomans had established themselves as the new military power of the Middle East. Much of their success was accredited to their religious warriors who fought in the name of Islam. However by this point the final objective to mark their dominance in the region was to sack the city of Constantinople. The city served as the capitol of their greatest enemy, the Byzantine Empire, yet also a strategic city of trade. However their plans to move on Constantinople were thwarted from the east by Mongal attacks. 

In 1402 the unstoppable Ottoman conquest came to a harsh halt at the hands of the Mongol warlord Timur at the Battle of Ankara. The Ottoman Empire became engaged in a civil war, whilst their leader was imprisoned by the Timurid Empire. By 1413 however a new Ottoman leader emerged in Mehmed I who was able to bring an end to the internal conflict and restore Ottoman power. By the 1430s they were able to return to their conquest campaigns and recapture lost territory in the Balkans. By the 1440s the Roman Pope realized the threat the Ottomans posed and called for a crusade against them. The Kingdoms of Poland and Hungary answered the pope's call yet were repelled various times by the Ottoman leader, Murad II. By this point the Ottoman's had regained their military control of the region and had the city of Constantinople surrounded.

The Siege of Constantinople

It seemed quite inevitable that the city of Constantinople would be swallowed up since the Byzantine Empire was in major decline by the 1300s. However the city was one of the best fortifications in all of Europe. Throughout it's 900 year history, it had already survived many sieges from Scandinavians and various Arab empires. The walls were only breached once during the 4th Crusade by the Venetian crusaders yet were later restored to the Byzantines. Furthermore the Byzantine Army had the full support of the Roman pope who sent various Italian armies to support their stand against the Ottomans.

In 1453 the Ottoman Army began their historic siege of Constantinople led by their young leader, Sultan Mehmed II, the son of Murad II. The siege lasted for 53 days, by which the Ottomans used modern weapons such as gunpowder and super-sized cannons to wreak havoc on the walls. They also had a massive fleet which attacked from the sea, and an elite fighting force known as the Jannisaries. After 53 days of sheer bombardment the Byzantine/Italian armies simply became overwhelmed. On May 29th, the Ottomans began their all-out offensive attack on the city. The Byzantine Emperor, Constantine XI Palaiologos led a glorious final assault of 7000 men against the Ottoman army, yet was killed in the fighting. By the end of the day the Ottoman's had won the battle and had sacked the city of Constantinople.

This fall of Constantinople marked the abrupt end of the Byzantine Empire, furthermore the Roman Empire which had been the ultimate power of Europe for nearly 1700 years. It also marked the official arrival of the Ottoman Empire as a new superpower of Europe and Asia. Sultan Mehmed II established the city of Constantinople as the new center of his Empire, and thus began a thriving period of cultural and economic prosperity.

The Golden Age under Suleiman the Magnificent

After the siege of the city and the days of plunder, Mehmed the Conqueror instituted a new era of religious tolerance. Muslims made up the majority of the Empire, however Orthodox Christians and Jews were still welcomed to coexist. In 1459 Mehmed commissioned the Topaki Palace be built as the center of government in Constantinople. This New Palace was a complex of imperial buildings, courtyards, harems, and residences for the leading officials such as the sultan and his viziers. The completion of the palace represented a new dawn of Ottoman architecture and culture. In the years that followed the Ottoman Empire built many significant monuments and mosques (in the likes of the classical Haggai Sophia), all thanks to their flourishing economic trade location.

From 1512-1520 Sultan Selim expanded the empire's territory with conquests in the eastern regions of Iran and the southern regions of Egypt. In 1520 his son, Suleiman became sultan and ushered in a golden age of 40 years for the Ottoman Empire. After various military conquests, in 1526 Suleiman defeated the Hungarian Kingdom at the Battle of Mohacs which brought a historic end to the Ottoman-Hungarian Wars that had waged since 1366. With the fall of the Hungarian Kingdom the Ottoman Empire was able to stretch their territory even further into eastern Europe and now controlled the major city of Budapest.

The Ottoman advance into eastern Europe was eventually halted at the city of Vienna after several failed sieges in 1529 and 1532. Suleiman was however still able to further expand his territory into the Middle East with the capture of the city of Baghdad. In 1555 he agreed to the Treaty of Amaysa with the Persian Safavid Empire that gave the Ottoman Empire control of Iraq and the Persian Gulf. He also achieved victory over the Spanish Empire with the siege of Castelnuovo that gave them control of Montenegro and halted the Holy League's advance in the Mediterranean Sea. By the 1540s the Ottoman Empire had established a strong alliance with the French Kingdom in opposition to the Holy Roman Empire (particularly the Habsburg Monarchy).

Besides his many military conquests Suleiman also oversaw a period of economic and cultural prosperity. He instituted a strong system of legal reform in accordance with the Sacred Law of Islam that improved the society's education and infrastructure. He also was a patron of the arts and was a renown poet and goldsmith. He encouraged artistic, literary, and architectural development during his reign. He broke with tradition and married a Christian woman from his harem, Roxelana who later converted to Islam and was known for her red hair. By the end of his reign he governed a massive territory expanding 3 continents and nearly 25 million people, and forever became known as the Magnificent.

The Turning Point
 
By the 17th century the invention of coffee became a major commodity of the Ottoman Empire, traded all across the Indian Ocean with Egypt and later Europe. While their economy continued to flourish however their military conquests came to a standstill at the hands of the Habsburg monarchy and the Persian Safavids. The Great Turkish War of 1683-1699 marked a turning point for their vast empire, of which they suffered a terrible defeat at the Battle of Vienna. The Holy Roman Empire was able to drive the Ottoman's out of the Balkan territory once and for all at this point.

Also during this time the Russian Tsardom became a new rising threat in the east under the leadership of Peter the Great. During the Great Northern War, the Swedish Empire called on help from the Ottomans against the Russian expansion. The Ottomans were able to defeat the Russian Tsardom in 1711 at Moldavia, however this was only a minor victory in a long conflict to come. By the mid 18th century the Ottoman Empire found themselves squeezed by the Habsburg Dynasty to their west and the Russian Tsardom to their east and continued to lose territory they had conquered.

By the early 19th century things grew worse for the Ottoman Empire as a wave of nationalism began throughout their territories in eastern Europe. Much of this sentiment came from the notion that the Ottoman Empire could no longer compete with Russia's more modern military. Beginning with the Serbian Revolution of 1804, many other regions followed suit and waged wars of independence such as Greece and Romania. Other smaller nations in the region sought help from Russia to establish their national identity. By the mid 19th century there was no question that the Ottoman Empire was in decline and they were referred to as the "sick man" of Europe.

The Fall of the Ottoman Empire

By the 1860s the Ottoman Empire had not only fell behind in their military affairs yet also in their economic endeavors. Debt became a major factor for the empire's infrastructure and following the Crimean War the Ottoman state was forced to declare bankruptcy in 1875. In an effort to modernize their government, a new constitution was ratified in 1876 led by the Young Turk Movement. This essentially established a democratic/politically system similar to the western European model. However this effort was too little too late, and the Ottoman continued to lose territory and endured various military coups from within.

During the Ottoman decline, perhaps one of their darkest dealings was that of the Armenian people. Presuming that the Armenian ethnicity was a minority that sided with Russia, the Ottoman Empire began conducting massacres and genocides of their kind. The first of these instances was the Hamidian Massacre in 1894-1896 that resulted in nearly 300,000 Armenians massacred. Years later during WWI the Ottomans carried out the 2nd most atrocious genocides in modern history, after the Holocaut. The Armenian Genocide of 1914-1923 resulted in 1.5 million deaths at the hands of the falling Ottoman Empire.

In a final effort to restore some control the Ottoman Empire joined forces with Germany and Austria to make up the Central Powers during WWI. They began their military efforts against Russia and throughout the Middle East. Soon after they were opposed on their western front against the allied forces of Britain and France. The Ottomans were able to achieve several victories early on in the war such as at Gallipoli in 1915 however ultimately their military was vastly inferior to that of the allied powers. Furthermore their internal struggles only continued to grow during this major war.

In 1916 the Arab Revolt began aided by the British Empire, and the leadership of the famous TE Lawrence of Arabia. The goal of the revolution was to establish a unified Arab state and dissolve the Ottoman Empire. By 1918 their defeat in WWI marked the end of the Ottoman Empire and their territory was partitioned among the British and the French. However upon the collapse of the Ottoman Empire a new Turkish nationalist movement arose and in 1917 they began a war of independence. This military effort was met with minimal resistance from the occupying British and French armies, and in 1921 they withdrew their forces and Turkey was established as a national state. By 1924 the Ottoman state was officially abolished after it's 600 year reign and was replaced by the nation of Turkey. In 1930 the capital city of Constantinople was renamed to Istanbul and today remains as the largest city in Europe.