The foreign relations of the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
were characterized by competition with the
Persian Empire
The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, wikt:𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎶, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an History of Iran#Classical antiquity, ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Bas ...
to the east,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
to the north, and
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
to the west. The control over European minorities began to collapse after 1800, with Greece being the first to break free, followed by Serbia. Egypt was lost in 1798–1805. In the early 20th century
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
annexed
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
, the
Bulgarian Declaration of Independence
The ''de jure'' independence of Bulgaria ( bg, Независимост на България, ''Nezavisimost na Bǎlgariya'') from the Ottoman Empire was proclaimed on in the old capital of Tarnovo by Prince Ferdinand of Bulgaria, who afte ...
soon followed. The Ottomans lost nearly all their European territory in the
First Balkan War
The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...
(1912–1913). The Ottoman Empire allied itself with Germany in the First World War, and lost. The British successfully mobilized
Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism ( ar, القومية العربية, al-Qawmīya al-ʿArabīya) is a nationalist ideology that asserts the Arabs are a nation and promotes the unity of Arab people, celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language an ...
. The Ottoman Empire thereby lost its Arab possessions, and itself soon collapsed in the early 1920s. For the period after 1923 see
Foreign relations of Turkey
Physically bridging Europe and Asia, Turkey is a secular country that has pursued a Western-oriented foreign policy.Robins, Philip. Turkey and the Middle East. London: Royal Institute of International Affairs and New York: Council on Foreign R ...
.
Structure
The Ottoman Empire's diplomatic structure was unconventional and departed in many ways from its European counterparts. Traditionally, foreign affairs were conducted by the ''
Reis ül-Küttab
The ''Reis ül-Küttab'' ( ota, رئيس الكتاب), or ''Reis Efendi'' (), was a senior post in the administration of the Ottoman Empire. Translated as "chief of the scribes" or "head clerk", the holder of the post was originally the head of th ...
'' (Chief Clerk or Secretary of State) who also had other duties. In 1836, a
Foreign Ministry In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...
was created.
Finance
After 1600 wars were increasingly expensive and the Empire never had an efficient system of taxation. The
Porte
Porte may refer to:
*Sublime Porte, the central government of the Ottoman empire
*Porte, Piedmont, a municipality in the Piedmont region of Italy
*John Cyril Porte, British/Irish aviator
*Richie Porte, Australian professional cyclist who competes ...
relied on loans from merchants and
tax farming
Farming or tax-farming is a technique of financial management in which the management of a variable revenue stream is assigned by legal contract to a third party and the holder of the revenue stream receives fixed periodic rents from the contrac ...
, whereby local; elites collected taxes (and kept their share). The winner in a war acquired new territory—the local leadership usually stayed the same, only they now collected taxes for the winning government. The war's loser often paid cash reparations to the winner, who thereby recouped the cost of the war.
Ambassadors
Ambassadors from the Ottoman Empire were usually appointed on a temporary and limited basis, as opposed to the resident ambassadors sent by other European nations.
[Watson, 218.] The Ottomans sent 145 temporary envoys to Venice between 1384 and 1600.
[Yurdusev et al., '' Ottoman Diplomacy'' p. 27.] The first resident Ottoman ambassador was not seen until
Yusuf Agah Efendi was sent to London in 1793.
[Yurdusev et al., 2.][Yurdusev et al., 30.]
Ambassadors to the Ottoman Empire began arriving shortly after the
fall of Constantinople
The Fall of Constantinople, also known as the Conquest of Constantinople, was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire. The city fell on 29 May 1453 as part of the culmination of a 53-day siege which had begun o ...
. The first was
Bartelemi Marcello from Venice in 1454. The French ambassador
Jean de La Forêt
Jean de La Forêt, also Jean de La Forest or Jehan de la Forest (died 1537), was the first official French Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, serving from 1534 to 1537.''Catholics and Sultans: The Church and the Ottoman Empire 1453-1923'' by Charle ...
later arrived in 1535.
[Yurdusev et al., 39.] In 1583, the ambassadors from Venice and France would attempt unsuccessfully to block
William Harborne
William Harborne of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk (c.1542–1617) was a diplomat, businessman, and English Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, appointed by Queen Elizabeth I of England.
Establishment of the English Embassy in Constantinople
Following ...
of England from taking up residence in Istanbul. This move was repeated by Venice, France and England in trying to block Dutch ambassador
Cornelius Haga
Corneli(u)s Haga ( Schiedam, 28 January 1578 – The Hague, 12 August 1654) was the first ambassador of the Dutch Republic to the Ottoman Empire.
Early life
Cornelius Haga was born in Schiedam. His father was Dirk Lambrechtszoon, merchant and m ...
in 1612.
[Yurdusev et al., 39–40.]
Capitulations
Capitulations were trade deals with other countries. They were a unique practice of Muslim diplomacy that was adopted by Ottoman rulers. In legal and technical terms, they were unilateral agreements made by the Sultan to a nation's merchants. These agreements were temporary, and subject to renewal by subsequent Sultans.
[Yurdusev et al., 41.][Watson, 217.] The origins of the capitulations comes from
Harun al Rashid
Abu Ja'far Harun ibn Muhammad al-Mahdi ( ar
, أبو جعفر هارون ابن محمد المهدي) or Harun ibn al-Mahdi (; or 766 – 24 March 809), famously known as Harun al-Rashid ( ar, هَارُون الرَشِيد, translit=Hārūn ...
and his dealings with the
Frankish kingdoms
Francia, also called the Kingdom of the Franks ( la, Regnum Francorum), Frankish Kingdom, Frankland or Frankish Empire ( la, Imperium Francorum), was the largest post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks dur ...
, but they were also used by both his successors and by the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
.
In June 1580 came the first capitulatory agreement with England. England acquired privileges formerly limited to France and Venice. The Porte broadened English extraterritorial rights by successive renewals and expansions (in 1603, 1606, 1624, 1641, 1662, and 1675).
The Ottoman-French Treaty of 1740 marked the apogee of French influence in the Ottoman Empire in the eighteenth century. In the following years the French had an unchallenged position in Levant trade and in transportation between Ottoman ports. Near contemporary Ottoman capitulations to European powers such as Britain and Holland (1737), the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (1740), Denmark (1756), and Prussia (1761) were to offset and balance the capitulations granted to France in 1740.
Military organization
Sultan
Selim III in 1789 to 1807 set up the "
Nizam-i Cedid
The Nizam-i Cedid ( ota, نظام جديد, Niẓām-ı Cedīd, lit=new order) was a series of reforms carried out by Ottoman Sultan Selim III during the late 18th and the early 19th centuries in a drive to catch up militarily and politically wi ...
"
ew orderarmy to replace the inefficient and outmoded imperial army. The old system depended on
Janissaries
A Janissary ( ota, یڭیچری, yeŋiçeri, , ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman Sultan's household troops and the first modern standing army in Europe. The corps was most likely established under sultan Orhan ( ...
, who had largely lost their military effectiveness. Selim closely followed Western military forms. It would be expensive for a new army, so a new treasury
Irad-i Cedid'was established . The result was the Porte now had an efficient, European-trained army equipped with modern weapons. However it had fewer than 10,000 soldiers in an era when Western armies were ten to fifty times larger. Furthermore, the Sultan was upsetting the well-established traditional political powers. As a result, it was rarely used, apart from its use against Napoleon's expeditionary force at Gaza and Rosetta. The new army was dissolved by reactionary elements with the overthrow of Selim in 1807, but it became the model of the new Ottoman Army created later in the 19th century.
1200–1500
About 1250 CE the Seljuk Turks were overwhelmed by a Mongol invasion, and they lost control of Anatolia. By 1290,
Osman I
Osman I or Osman Ghazi ( ota, عثمان غازى, translit= ʿOsmān Ġāzī; tr, I. Osman or ''Osman Gazi''; died 1323/4), sometimes transliterated archaically as Othman, was the founder of the Ottoman Empire (first known as the Ottoman Bey ...
established supremacy over neighboring Turkish tribes, forming the start of the Ottoman Empire. The Byzantine Empire was shrinking, but it held tenaciously onto its capital at Constantinople.
The Ottoman domain became increasingly powerful and by 1400 was a crucial part of the European states system and actively played a role in their affairs, due in part to their coterminous periods of development.
[Yurdusev et al., 21.] In 1413–1421,
Mehmed I
Mehmed I ( 1386 – 26 May 1421), also known as Mehmed Çelebi ( ota, چلبی محمد, "the noble-born") or Kirişçi ( el, Κυριτζής, Kyritzis, "lord's son"), was the Ottoman sultan from 1413 to 1421. The fourth son of Sultan Bayezid ...
"The Restorer" reestablished central authority in Anatolia. He expanded the Ottoman presence in Europe by the conquest of Wallachia in 1415. Venice destroyed the Turkish fleet of Gallipoli in 1416, as the Ottomans lost a naval war. In the reign of
Murad II
Murad II ( ota, مراد ثانى, Murād-ı sānī, tr, II. Murad, 16 June 1404 – 3 February 1451) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1421 to 1444 and again from 1446 to 1451.
Murad II's reign was a period of important economic deve ...
(1421–1451) there were successful naval wars with Venice and Milan. The Byzantine Empire lost virtually all its territory in Anatolia. However, the Ottomans failed in their attempted invasions of Serbia and Hungary; they besieged Constantinople. Christians from Central Europe launch the last Crusade in 1443–1444, pushing the Ottomans out of Serbia and Wallachia. This Crusade ended in defeat when the Ottomans were victorious at Varna in November 1444.
Mehmed the Conqueror
Mehmed II ( ota, محمد ثانى, translit=Meḥmed-i s̱ānī; tr, II. Mehmed, ; 30 March 14323 May 1481), commonly known as Mehmed the Conqueror ( ota, ابو الفتح, Ebū'l-fetḥ, lit=the Father of Conquest, links=no; tr, Fâtih Su ...
(1444–1446, and 1451–1481) scored the most famous victory in Ottoman history when his army finally
on 29 May 1453, captured Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
and brought an end to the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
. Towards the end of the 15th century, the Ottomans began to play a larger role in the Italian Peninsula. In 1494, both the Papacy and the
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples ( la, Regnum Neapolitanum; it, Regno di Napoli; nap, Regno 'e Napule), also known as the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was ...
petitioned the Sultan directly for his assistance against
Charles VIII of France
Charles VIII, called the Affable (french: l'Affable; 30 June 1470 – 7 April 1498), was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. He succeeded his father Louis XI at the age of 13.Paul Murray Kendall, ''Louis XI: The Universal Spider'' (Ne ...
in the
First Italian War
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number 1 (number), one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, D ...
.
[Yurdusev et al., 22.] The Ottomans continue to expand, and on 28 July 1499 won their greatest naval victory over Venice, in the first battle of Lepanto.
1500–1800
Ottoman policy towards Europe during the 16th century was one of disruption against the
Habsburg dynasties. The Ottomans collaborated with
Francis I of France
Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once ...
and his Protestant allies in the 1530s while fighting the Habsburgs.
[Watson, 177.] Although the French had sought an alliance with the Ottomans as early as 1531, one was not concluded until 1536. The sultan then gave the French freedom of trade throughout the empire, and plans were drawn up for an invasion of Italy from both the north and the south in 1537.
[Inalcik, 36.]
Selim I
The most dramatic successes came during the short reign of
Selim I
Selim I ( ota, سليم الأول; tr, I. Selim; 10 October 1470 – 22 September 1520), known as Selim the Grim or Selim the Resolute ( tr, links=no, Yavuz Sultan Selim), was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1512 to 1520. Despite last ...
(1513– 1520), as Ottoman territories were nervous nearly doubled in size after decisive victories over the Persians and Egyptians.
Selim I defeated the
Mameluke
Mamluk ( ar, مملوك, mamlūk (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural), translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave", also transliterated as ''Mameluke'', ''mamluq'', ''mamluke'', ''mameluk'', ''mameluke'', ''mamaluke'', or ''marmeluke'') i ...
army that controlled Egypt in 1517. He conquered Egypt, leaving the Mamelukes as rulers there under a Turkish governor general. Selim I move south and took control of Mecca and the West Arabian Coast, suppressed revolts in Anatolia and Syria, and formed an alliance with Algiers. He died in 1520 as he was preparing an invasion of the island of Rhodes.
[Dupuy and Dupuy, ''The Encyclopedia of Military History'' (1977) pp 495–501.]
;Mughals
Babur
Babur ( fa, , lit= tiger, translit= Bābur; ; 14 February 148326 December 1530), born Mīrzā Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad, was the founder of the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. He was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through his ...
's early relations with the Ottomans were poor because the Selim I provided Babur's rival Ubaydullah Khan with powerful
matchlock
A matchlock or firelock is a historical type of firearm wherein the gunpowder is ignited by a burning piece of rope that is touched to the gunpowder by a mechanism that the musketeer activates by pulling a lever or trigger with his finger. Before ...
s and
cannon
A cannon is a large- caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder ...
s.
In 1507, when ordered to accept Selim I as his rightful
suzerain
Suzerainty () is the rights and obligations of a person, state or other polity who controls the foreign policy and relations of a tributary state, while allowing the tributary state to have internal autonomy. While the subordinate party is calle ...
, Babur refused and gathered
Qizilbash
Qizilbash or Kizilbash ( az, Qızılbaş; ota, قزيل باش; fa, قزلباش, Qezelbāš; tr, Kızılbaş, lit=Red head ) were a diverse array of mainly Turkoman Shia militant groups that flourished in Iranian Azerbaijan, Anatolia, the ...
servicemen in order to counter the forces of Ubaydullah Khan during the
Battle of Ghazdewan
The Battle of Ghazdewan occurred near the city of Ghijduvan, what is now Uzbekistan in November 1512 AD between Safavid army and Uzbek army.
Prelude
After Babur's defeat at the Battle of Kul Malek, he requested assistance from Biram Khan Kar ...
in 1512. In 1513, Selim I reconciled with Babur (fearing that he would join the
Safavids
Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...
), dispatched
Ustad Ali Quli
Ustad Ali Quli was a Ottoman Turkish commander of the Mughal Empire. Under the reign of Babur, he commanded the artillery for his army. At the Battle of Panipat and Battle of Khanwa, he commanded his cannon batteries. His role in these battles ...
and Mustafa Rumi, and many other Ottoman Turks, in order to assist Babur in his conquests; this particular assistance proved to be the basis of future Mughal-Ottoman relations.
From them, he also adopted the tactic of using matchlocks and cannons in field (rather than only in
siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition warfare, attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity con ...
s), which would give him an important advantage in India. Babur referred to this method as the "Ottoman device" due to its previous use by the
Ottomans
The Ottoman Turks ( tr, Osmanlı Türkleri), were the Turkic founding and sociopolitically the most dominant ethnic group of the Ottoman Empire ( 1299/1302–1922).
Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks remains scarce, ...
during the
Battle of Chaldiran
The Battle of Chaldiran ( fa, جنگ چالدران; tr, Çaldıran Savaşı) took place on 23 August 1514 and ended with a decisive victory for the Ottoman Empire over the Safavid Empire. As a result, the Ottomans annexed Eastern Anatolia an ...
.
Suleiman the Magnificent
Selim I's son Suleiman I became known as "
Suleiman the Magnificent
Suleiman I ( ota, سليمان اول, Süleyman-ı Evvel; tr, I. Süleyman; 6 November 14946 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the West and Suleiman the Lawgiver ( ota, قانونى سلطان سليمان, Ḳ ...
" for his long string of military conquests Suleiman consolidated Ottoman possessions in Europe and made the Danube the undisputed northern frontier.
The decisive Ottoman victory came at the
Battle of Mohács
The Battle of Mohács (; hu, mohácsi csata, tr, Mohaç Muharebesi or Mohaç Savaşı) was fought on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, Kingdom of Hungary, between the forces of the Kingdom of Hungary and its allies, led by Louis II, and thos ...
in 1526. The forces of the Kingdom of Hungary and its allies, led by Louis II was defeated by Suleiman's army. The result was the three-way partition of Hungary for several centuries between the Ottoman Empire, the Habsburg Monarchy, and the Principality of Transylvania. Louis II was killed, thus ending the Jagiellonian dynasty in Hungary and Bohemia. Its dynastic claims passed to the House of Habsburg.
Suleiman selected cooperative local leaders in the newly acquired Wallachian, Moldavian, and Transylvanian Christian territories. The role was to keep the peace, collect taxes, and in turn were protected by the Porte. Later sultans considered replacing these tributary princes with Ottoman Muslim governors but did not do so for political, military, and financial reasons. Suleiman's successes frightened the Europeans, but he failed to move north of the Danube, failed to take Vienna, failed to conquer Rome, and was unable to gain a foothold in Italy.
The defeats meant that the Ottoman Empire could not take advantage of the intellectual and technical advances made in Western Europe. Instead Suleiman's empire while large, failed to keep pace with the rapid advances taking place in Europe. According to John Norton, additional weaknesses of Suleiman included his conscription of Christian children, maltreatment of subject peoples, and obsession with his own prestige.
The Dutch allied with the Ottomans. Prince
William of Orange coordinated his strategic moves with those of the Ottomans during the Turkish negotiations with
Philip II of Spain
Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...
in the 1570s.
After the Habsburgs
inherited the Portuguese crown in 1580, Dutch forces attacked their Portuguese trading rivals while the Turks, supportive of the Dutch bid for independence, attacked the Habsburgs in Eastern Europe.
[Watson, 222.]
India, China, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia
In the 16th century, there emerged travelogues of both Ottoman travelers to
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
and
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
travelers to the Ottoman world.
A 16th century Chinese
gazetteer
A gazetteer is a geographical index or directory used in conjunction with a map or atlas.Aurousseau, 61. It typically contains information concerning the geographical makeup, social statistics and physical features of a country, region, or co ...
, ''Shaanxi tongzhi'', claims that there were Han-Chinese people living in a number of Ottoman controlled towns and cities such as
Beiruit,
Tartus
)
, settlement_type = City
, image_skyline =
, imagesize =
, image_caption = Tartus corniche Port of Tartus • Tartus beach and boulevard Cathedral of Our Lady of Tortosa • Al-Assad Stadium&n ...
,
Konya
Konya () is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium (), although the Seljuks also called it D ...
, and
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
.
According to the official history of the
Ming dynasty
The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...
, some self-proclaimed Ottoman envoys visited Beijing to pay tribute to the Ming emperor in 1524.
However, these envoys were most likely just Central and Western Asian merchants trying to conduct trade in China, since pretending to be envoys was the only way to enter the Chinese border pass.
One of these merchants was
Ali Akbar Khitai, who visited the
Ming dynasty
The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...
during the reign of
Emperor Zhengde.
Ali Akbar later wrote the book ''Khitay namah'' and dedicated it to Sultan Suleyman.
The ''
Ming Shilu
The ''Ming Shilu'' () contains the imperial annals of the emperors of the Ming dynasty (1368–1644). It is the single largest historical source for the dynasty. According to modern historians, it "plays an extremely important role in the histo ...
'' also records Ottoman envoys reaching China in 1423, 1425, 1427, 1443-1445, 1459, 1525-1527, 1543-1544, 1548, 1554, 1559, 1564, 1576, 1581, and 1618.
Some of these missions may have been from
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked cou ...
,
Moghulistan
Moghulistan (from fa, , ''Moghulestân'', mn, Моголистан), also called the Moghul Khanate or the Eastern Chagatai Khanate (), was a Mongol breakaway khanate of the Chagatai Khanate and a historical geographic area north of the Teng ...
, or
Kara Del
Kara Del or Qara Del was a Mongol-led kingdom that existed in Hami in present-day Xinjiang. It was founded by the Yuan prince Gunashiri, a descendant of Chagatai Khan, in the late 14th century (c.1389), and ruled by the Chagatayids thereafter un ...
because the Ottomans were known in China as the rulers of five realms:
Turfan
Turpan (also known as Turfan or Tulufan, , ug, تۇرپان) is a prefecture-level city located in the east of the autonomous region of Xinjiang, China. It has an area of and a population of 632,000 (2015).
Geonyms
The original name of the cit ...
,
Samarqand
fa, سمرقند
, native_name_lang =
, settlement_type = City
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from the top: Registan square, Shah-i-Zinda necropolis, Bibi-Khanym Mosque, view inside Shah-i-Zin ...
,
Mecca
Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...
, Rum and
Hami
Hami (Kumul) is a prefecture-level city in Eastern Xinjiang, China. It is well known as the home of sweet Hami melons. In early 2016, the former Hami county-level city was merged with Hami Prefecture to form the Hami prefecture-level city with t ...
.
According to traders in the
Gujarat Sultanate
The Gujarat Sultanate (or the Sultanate of Guzerat), was a Medieval Indian kingdom established in the early 15th century in Western India, primarily in the present-day state of Gujarat, India. The dynasty was founded by Sultan Zafar Khan Muza ...
, the Chinese Emperor ordered all
Chinese Muslims
Islam has been practiced in China since the 7th century CE.. Muslims are a minority group in China, representing 1.6-2 percent of the total population (21,667,000- 28,210,795) according to various estimates. Though Hui Muslims are the most numero ...
to read the
khutba
''Khutbah'' ( ar, خطبة ''khuṭbah'', tr, hutbe) serves as the primary formal occasion for public preaching in the Islamic tradition.
Such sermons occur regularly, as prescribed by the teachings of all legal schools. The Islamic tradition ...
in the name of the
Ottoman Sultan
The sultans of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı padişahları), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to its dissolution in 1922. At its hei ...
, thus preventing religious disputes from spreading across his territory.
The first exchange of diplomatic missions between the
Ottoman Sultans
The sultans of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı padişahları), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to its dissolution in 1922. At its hei ...
and the Muslim rulers of the
Indian
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
sub-continent dates back to the years 1481–82. Ottoman expeditions to the sultanates of
Gujarat
Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
,
Bijapur
Bijapur, officially known as Vijayapura, is the district headquarters of Bijapur district of the Karnataka state of India. It is also the headquarters for Bijapur Taluk. Bijapur city is well known for its historical monuments of architectural ...
, and
Ahmednagar
Ahmednagar (), is a city located in the Ahmednagar district in the state of Maharashtra, India, about 120 km northeast of Pune and 114 km from Aurangabad. Ahmednagar takes its name from Ahmad Nizam Shah I, who founded the town in 1494 ...
were motivated by mutual anti-
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
sentiment; Ottoman artillery contributed to the fall of the pro-Portuguese
Vijayanagara Empire
The Vijayanagara Empire, also called the Karnata Kingdom, was a Hinduism, Hindu empire based in the region of South India, which consisted the modern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and some parts of Telangana an ...
. Turkish-Indian relations soured when the Mughals conquered most of India, since the Mughal Empire was a symbolic threat to the Ottoman Empire's position as the universal caliphate, despite contemplation for a Mughal-Ottoman-
Uzbek alliance against Iran. After the Mughal Empire collapsed, Muslim rulers of Mysore like
Tipu Sultan
Tipu Sultan (born Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu, 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799), also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.Dalrymple, p. 243 He int ...
sought Ottoman aid in driving out the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
, but the Ottomans were weakened by wars with
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
and in no position to help.
The Inner Eurasian Muslim khanates of
Kazan
Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering a ...
,
Khwarazm
Khwarazm (; Old Persian: ''Hwârazmiya''; fa, خوارزم, ''Xwârazm'' or ''Xârazm'') or Chorasmia () is a large oasis region on the Amu Darya river delta in western Central Asia, bordered on the north by the (former) Aral Sea, on the ea ...
, and
Bukhara
Bukhara (Uzbek language, Uzbek: /, ; tg, Бухоро, ) is the List of cities in Uzbekistan, seventh-largest city in Uzbekistan, with a population of 280,187 , and the capital of Bukhara Region.
People have inhabited the region around Bukhara ...
were wary of Russian expansion and looked to the Ottomans for the maintenance of
Silk Road
The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and reli ...
contacts. With this purpose in mind, the Ottomans began to dig out a
Volga-Don canal, but quickly stopped after realizing its infeasibility. Nonetheless, the Russians agreed to grant Central Asian Muslim pilgrims safe passage into Ottoman territories after the
First Russo-Turkish War.
In the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the Uzbeks and Ottomans launched semi-coordinated
military offensives against Iran.
During the
Age of Exploration
The Age of Discovery (or the Age of Exploration), also known as the early modern period, was a period largely overlapping with the Age of Sail, approximately from the 15th century to the 17th century in European history, during which seafari ...
, the Ottomans assisted in anti-Catholic activity among the Sultanates of
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
. Relations with the
Aceh Sultanate
The Sultanate of Aceh, officially the Kingdom of Aceh Darussalam ( ace, Keurajeuën Acèh Darussalam; Jawoë: كاورجاون اچيه دارالسلام), was a sultanate centered in the modern-day Indonesian province of Aceh. It was a major ...
started in the 1530s but the affair later developed into an alliance by the 1570s. Thanks to the trade of arms for pepper, the Ottomans gained a foothold in Southeast Asia.
By the 1580s,
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
observers like Melchor Davalos were becoming increasingly alarmed at the number of Ottoman forces operating in the
Ternate Sultanate
The Sultanate of Ternate (Jawi alphabet: كسلطانن ترنتاي), previously also known as the Kingdom of Gapi is one of the oldest Muslim kingdoms in Indonesia besides Tidore, Jailolo, and Bacan. The Ternate kingdom was established by M ...
and
Brunei Sultanate; the Ottomans helped the
Bruneians to expel Spanish invaders once and for all after the
Castilian War. Similarly, the Ottomans allied with the
Sultanate of Demak to help mitigate Persian and Portuguese influence in
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
.
Relations with Java continued into the 17th century, even after the Sultanate of Demak was succeeded by the
Sultanate of Mataram
The Sultanate of Mataram () was the last major independent Javanese kingdom on the island of Java before it was colonised by the Dutch. It was the dominant political force radiating from the interior of Central Java from the late 16th cent ...
.
Maritime links between the Ottoman Empire and the
Toungoo Empire
The First Toungoo Empire ( my, တောင်ငူ ခေတ်, ; also known as the First Toungoo Dynasty, the Second Burmese Empire or simply the Toungoo Empire) was the dominant power in mainland Southeast Asia in the second half of the ...
of Burma were established as late as 1545, and persisted well into the 1580s.
Africa
The Ottomans spread the use of firearms into
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
and
Bornu, but Bornu and Morocco later allied against the Ottomans. Conversely, the initially hostile
Ethiopians
Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...
expelled Catholics in the 17th century and joined the Ottoman fold. The
Ajuran and
Adal
Adal may refer to:
*A short form for Germanic names in ''aþala-'' (Old High German ''adal-''), "nobility, pedigree"; see Othalan
**Adál Maldonado (1948-2020), Puerto Rican artist
**Adal Ramones (born 1969), Mexican television show host
**Adal He ...
Sultanates both allied with the Ottomans against the Portuguese, as well as the
Swahilis, while the
Funj Sultanate
The Funj Sultanate, also known as Funjistan, Sultanate of Sennar (after its capital Sennar) or Blue Sultanate due to the traditional Sudanese convention of referring to black people as blue () was a monarchy in what is now Sudan, northwestern E ...
saw the Ottomans as a threat.
Russo-Turkish War (1676–1681)
The small-scale inconclusive war with Russia in 1676–1681 was a defensive move by Russia after the Ottomans expanded into
Podolia
Podolia or Podilia ( uk, Поділля, Podillia, ; russian: Подолье, Podolye; ro, Podolia; pl, Podole; german: Podolien; be, Падолле, Padollie; lt, Podolė), is a historic region in Eastern Europe, located in the west-central ...
during the
Polish–Turkish War of 1672–1676. The Porte wanted to take over all of the
Right-bank Ukraine
Right-bank Ukraine ( uk , Правобережна Україна, ''Pravoberezhna Ukrayina''; russian: Правобережная Украина, ''Pravoberezhnaya Ukraina''; pl, Prawobrzeżna Ukraina, sk, Pravobrežná Ukrajina, hu, Jobb p ...
with the support of its vassal,
Hetman
( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders.
Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military co ...
Petro Doroshenko
Petro Doroshenko ( uk, Петро Дорофійович Дорошенко, russian: Пётр Дорофе́евич Дороше́нко, pl, Piotr Doroszenko; 1627–1698) was a Cossack political and military leader, Hetman of Right-bank Ukr ...
. A combination of Russian and Ukrainian forces defeated Doroshenko and his Turkish-
Tatar
The Tatars ()[Tatar]
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different army in 1676. The invaders were badly defeated by the Russians in 1677 at
Chyhyryn
Chyhyryn ( uk, Чигирин, ) is a city and historic site located in Cherkasy Raion of Cherkasy Oblast of central Ukraine. From 1648 to 1669 the city was a Hetman residence. After a forced relocation of the Ruthenian Orthodox metropolitan see ...
and lost again in their attack on Chyhyryn in 1678. In 1679–1680, the Russians repelled the attacks of the
Crimean Tatars
, flag = Flag of the Crimean Tatar people.svg
, flag_caption = Flag of Crimean Tatars
, image = Love, Peace, Traditions.jpg
, caption = Crimean Tatars in traditional clothing in front of the Khan's Palace
...
and signed the
Bakhchisaray Peace Treaty on 3 January 1681, which would establish the Russo-Turkish border by the Dnieper.
Great Turkish War: 1683–1699
![OttomanEmpire1683](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/OttomanEmpire1683.png)
The
Great Turkish War
The Great Turkish War (german: Großer Türkenkrieg), also called the Wars of the Holy League ( tr, Kutsal İttifak Savaşları), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Pola ...
or the "War of the Holy League" was a series of conflicts between the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
and ad hoc European coalition the
Holy League (Latin: ''Sacra Ligua''). The Turks lost. The coalition was organized by
Pope Innocent XI
Pope Innocent XI ( la, Innocentius XI; it, Innocenzo XI; 16 May 1611 – 12 August 1689), born Benedetto Odescalchi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 21 September 1676 to his death on August 12, 1689.
Poli ...
and included the
Papal States
The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...
, the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
under Habsburg Emperor
Leopold I, the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...
of
John III Sobieski
John III Sobieski ( pl, Jan III Sobieski; lt, Jonas III Sobieskis; la, Ioannes III Sobiscius; 17 August 1629 – 17 June 1696) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death in 1696.
Born into Polish nobility, Sobie ...
, and the
Venetian Republic
The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...
;
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
joined the League in 1686. Intensive fighting began in 1683 when Ottoman commander
Kara Mustafa
Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha ( ota, مرزيفونلى قره مصطفى پاشا, tr, Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Paşa; "Mustafa Pasha the Courageous of Merzifon"; 1634/1635 – 25 December 1683) was an Ottoman nobleman, military figure and G ...
brought an army of 200,000 soldiers to besiege, Vienna. The issue was control of Central and Eastern Europe. By September, the invaders were defeated in full retreat down the Danube. It ended with the signing of the
Treaty of Karlowitz
The Treaty of Karlowitz was signed in Karlowitz, Military Frontier of Archduchy of Austria (present-day Sremski Karlovci, Serbia), on 26 January 1699, concluding the Great Turkish War of 1683–1697 in which the Ottoman Empire was defeated by the ...
in 1699. The war was a defeat for the Ottoman Empire, which for the first time lost large amounts of territory. It lost lands in Hungary and Poland, as well as part of the western Balkans. The war marked the first time Russia was involved in a western European alliance.
Wars with Russia, 1768–1774
Following a border incident at Balta, Sultan
Mustafa III declared war
A declaration of war is a formal act by which one state announces existing or impending war activity against another. The declaration is a performative speech act (or the signing of a document) by an authorized party of a national government, i ...
on Russia on 25 September 1768. The Turks formed an alliance with the Polish opposition forces of the
Bar Confederation
The Bar Confederation ( pl, Konfederacja barska; 1768–1772) was an association of Polish nobles (szlachta) formed at the fortress of Bar in Podolia (now part of Ukraine) in 1768 to defend the internal and external independence of the Polish ...
, while Russia was supported by Great Britain, which offered naval advisers to the Russian navy.
[Brian L. Davies, ''The Russo-Turkish War, 1768-1774: Catherine II and the Ottoman Empire'' (Bloomsbury, 2016).]
![Chesmabattle](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/53/Chesmabattle.jpg)
The Polish opposition was defeated by
Alexander Suvorov
Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov (russian: Алекса́ндр Васи́льевич Суво́ров, Aleksándr Vasíl'yevich Suvórov; or 1730) was a Russian general in service of the Russian Empire. He was Count of Rymnik, Count of the Holy ...
. He was then transferred to the Ottoman theatre of operations, where in 1773 and 1774 he won several minor and major battles following the previous grand successes of the Russian Field-Marshal
Pyotr Rumyantsev
Count Pyotr Alexandrovich Rumyantsev-Zadunaisky (russian: Пётр Алекса́ндрович Румя́нцев-Задунайский; – ) was one of the foremost Russian generals of the 18th century. He governed Little Russia in the name ...
at
Larga and
Kagula.
Naval operations of the
Russian Baltic Fleet
, image = Great emblem of the Baltic fleet.svg
, image_size = 150
, caption = Baltic Fleet Great ensign
, dates = 18 May 1703 – present
, country =
, allegiance = (1703–1721) (1721–1917) (1917–1922) (1922–1991)(1991–present)
...
in the Mediterranean yielded victories under the command of
Aleksey Grigoryevich Orlov. In 1771, Egypt and Syria rebelled against the Ottoman rule, while the Russian fleet totally destroyed the
Ottoman Navy at the
battle of Chesma
The naval Battle of Chesme took place on 5–7 July 1770 during the Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774) near and in Çeşme (Chesme or Chesma) Bay, in the area between the western tip of Anatolia and the island of Chios, which was the site of a numb ...
.
On 21 July 1774, the defeated Ottomans signed the
Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca
The Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca ( tr, Küçük Kaynarca Antlaşması; russian: Кючук-Кайнарджийский мир), formerly often written Kuchuk-Kainarji, was a peace treaty signed on 21 July 1774, in Küçük Kaynarca (today Kayna ...
, which formally granted independence to the
Crimean Khanate
The Crimean Khanate ( crh, , or ), officially the Great Horde and Desht-i Kipchak () and in old European historiography and geography known as Little Tartary ( la, Tartaria Minor), was a Crimean Tatars, Crimean Tatar state existing from 1441 to ...
; in reality it became dependent on Russia. Russia received 4.5 million rubles and two key seaports allowing the direct access to the
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...
.
The supply of Ottoman forces operating in Moldavia and Wallachia was a major challenge that required well organized logistics. An army of 60,000 soldiers and 40,000 horses required a half-million kilograms of food per day. The Ottoman forces fared better than the Russians, but the expenses crippled both national treasuries. Supplies on both sides came using fixed prices, taxes, and confiscation.
19th century
As the 19th century progressed, the Ottoman Empire grew weaker and Britain increasingly became its protector, even fighting the
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
in the 1850s to help it out against Russia. Three British leaders played major roles.
Lord Palmerston
Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, (20 October 1784 – 18 October 1865) was a British statesman who was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century. Palmerston dominated British foreign policy during the period ...
in the 1830–65 period considered the Ottoman Empire an essential component in the balance of power and was the most favourable toward Constantinople.
William Gladstone in the 1870s sought to build a Concert of Europe that would support the survival of the empire. In the 1880s and 1890s
Lord Salisbury
Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury (; 3 February 183022 August 1903) was a British statesman and Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom three times for a total of over thirteen y ...
contemplated an orderly dismemberment of it, in such a way as to reduce rivalry between the greater powers.
Selim III
![TurkischeHauptArmeeHochenleitterBGHistory](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/TurkischeHauptArmeeHochenleitterBGHistory.png)
Selim III (1789–1807) in 1789 found that the Empire had been considerably reduced due to conflicts outside the realm. From the north Russia had taken the Black Sea through the
Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca
The Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca ( tr, Küçük Kaynarca Antlaşması; russian: Кючук-Кайнарджийский мир), formerly often written Kuchuk-Kainarji, was a peace treaty signed on 21 July 1774, in Küçük Kaynarca (today Kayna ...
in 1774. Selim realized the importance of diplomatic relations with other nations, and pushed for permanent embassies in the courts of all the great nations of Europe, a hard task because of religious prejudice towards Muslims. Even with the religious obstacles, resident embassies were established in London, Paris, Berlin and Vienna. Selim, a cultured poet and musician, carried on an extended correspondence with
Louis XVI
Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...
of France. Although distressed by the establishment of the republic in France, Ottoman government was soothed by French representatives in Constantinople who maintained the goodwill of various influential personages.
In July 1798, however, French forces under Napoleon landed in
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
, and Selim declared war on France. In alliance with Russia and Britain, the Turks were in periodic conflict with the French on both land and sea until March 1801. Peace came in June 1802, The following year brought trouble in the
Balkan
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
s. For decades a sultan's word had had no power in outlying provinces, prompting Selim's reforms of the military in order to reimpose central control. This desire was not fulfilled. One rebellious leader was Austrian-backed
Osman Pazvantoğlu
Osman Pazvantoğlu (1758 – January 27, 1807 in Vidin) was an Ottoman soldier, governor of Vidin after 1794, and a rebel against Ottoman rule.
He is also remembered as the friend of Rigas Feraios, a Greek revolutionary poet, whom he tried to r ...
, whose invasion of
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia (; ro, Țara Românească, lit=The Romanian Land' or 'The Romanian Country, ; archaic: ', Romanian Cyrillic alphabet: ) is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and so ...
in 1801 inspired Russian intervention, resulting in greater autonomy for the Dunubian provinces. Serbian conditions also deteriorated. They took a fateful turn with the return of the hated
Janissaries
A Janissary ( ota, یڭیچری, yeŋiçeri, , ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman Sultan's household troops and the first modern standing army in Europe. The corps was most likely established under sultan Orhan ( ...
, ousted 8 years before. These forces murdered Selim's enlightened governor, ending the best rule this province had had in the last 100 years. Neither arms nor diplomacy could restore Ottoman authority.
Loss of Egypt: 1798–1805
The brief
French invasion of Egypt
The French campaign in Egypt and Syria (1798–1801) was Napoleon Bonaparte's campaign in the Ottoman territories of Egypt and Syria, proclaimed to defend French trade interests, to establish scientific enterprise in the region. It was the ...
led by
Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
began in 1798. Napoleon won early victories and made an initially successful expedition into Syria. The British Royal Navy sank the French fleet at
Battle of the Nile
The Battle of the Nile (also known as the Battle of Aboukir Bay; french: Bataille d'Aboukir) was a major naval battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the Navy of the French Republic at Aboukir Bay on the Mediterranean coast off the ...
. Napoleon managed to escape with a small staff in 1799, leaving the army behind. When peace with Britain came (briefly) in 1803 Napoleon brought home his
Armée d'Orient. The expulsion of the French in 1801 by Ottoman,
Mamluk
Mamluk ( ar, مملوك, mamlūk (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural), translated as "one who is owned", meaning " slave", also transliterated as ''Mameluke'', ''mamluq'', ''mamluke'', ''mameluk'', ''mameluke'', ''mamaluke'', or ''marmeluke'') ...
, and British forces was followed by four years of anarchy in which Ottomans, Mamluks, and
Albanians
The Albanians (; sq, Shqiptarët ) are an ethnic group and nation native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They primarily live in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Se ...
— who were nominally in the service of the Ottomans – wrestled for power. Out of this chaos, the commander of the Albanian regiment,
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...
(
Kavalali Mehmed Ali Pasha) emerged as a dominant figure and in 1805 was acknowledged by the Sultan as his "viceroy" in Egypt; the title implied subordination to the Sultan but this was in fact a polite fiction: Ottoman power in Egypt was finished and Muhammad Ali, an ambitious and able leader, established a dynasty in Egypt that lasted until 1952.
Russo-Turkish War (1806–1812)
French influence with the Sublime Porte led the Sultan into defying both St. Petersburg and London, and instead joined
Napoleon's Continental System. War was declared on Russia on 27 December and on Britain in March 1807. The Ottomans did poorly. Constantinople negotiated for peace in the
Treaty of Bucharest (1812)
The Treaty of Bucharest between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire, was signed on 28 May 1812, in Manuc's Inn in Bucharest, and ratified on 5 July 1812, at the end of the Russo-Turkish War of 1806–1812. The Ottomans had done poorly in ...
. The Porte above all wanted to stay out of the impending conflict between Napoleon and Russia. The Russians wanted no side war and thus they made peace in order to be free for the potential war with France. The Treaty of Bucharest ceded to Russia the eastern half of the
Principality of Moldavia
Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and former principality in Central ...
, as well as
Bessarabia
Bessarabia (; Gagauz: ''Besarabiya''; Romanian: ''Basarabia''; Ukrainian: ''Бессара́бія'') is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Be ...
. Russia obtained trading rights on the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
. The Porte ended hostilities and granted autonomy to
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
. In
Transcaucasia
The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Arme ...
, the Ottomans renounced their claims to most of western
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
. Russia returned control of
Akhalkalaki
Akhalkalaki ( ka, ახალქალაქი, tr; hy, Ախալքալաք / Նոր-Քաղաք, translit=Axalk’alak’ / Nor-K’aġak’) is a town in Georgia's southern region of Samtskhe–Javakheti and the administrative centre of the Ak ...
,
Poti
Poti ( ka, ფოთი ; Mingrelian: ფუთი; Laz: ჶაში/Faşi or ფაში/Paşi) is a port city in Georgia, located on the eastern Black Sea coast in the region of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti in the west of the country. Built near t ...
, and
Anapa
Anapa (russian: Ана́па, ) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the northern coast of the Black Sea near the Sea of Azov. Population:
History
The area around Anapa was settled in antiquity. It was originally a major seaport ( ...
. The Ottomans had extricated themselves from a potentially disastrous war with a slight loss of territory. This treaty became the basis for future Russo-Ottoman relations.
Greek War of Independence 1821–1830
The
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. The Greeks were later assisted by ...
was a successful uprising waged by Greek revolutionaries against the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
between 1821 and 1830. The Greeks were factionalized and fought their own civil war. The Greeks won widespread support from elite opinion in Europe, and were aided militarily and diplomatically by Great Britain,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and Russia. The Ottomans were aided militarily by Egypt.
Greece came under Ottoman rule in the late 15th century. During the following centuries, there were sporadic but unsuccessful
Greek uprisings against Ottoman rule. In 1814, a secret organization called
Filiki Eteria
Filiki Eteria or Society of Friends ( el, Φιλικὴ Ἑταιρεία ''or'' ) was a secret organization founded in 1814 in Odessa, whose purpose was to overthrow the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman rule of Greece and establish an independent Greek ...
(Society of Friends) was founded with the aim of liberating Greece, encouraged by the revolutionary fervor gripping Europe in that period. The Filiki Eteria planned to launch revolts in the
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...
, the
Danubian Principalities
The Danubian Principalities ( ro, Principatele Dunărene, sr, Дунавске кнежевине, translit=Dunavske kneževine) was a conventional name given to the Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia, which emerged in the early 14th ce ...
, and Constantinople itself, which had a large Greek element. The first revolt began on 6 March/21 February 1821 in the Danubian Principalities, but it was soon put down by the Ottomans. The events in the north urged the Greeks in the Peloponnese (
Morea
The Morea ( el, Μορέας or ) was the name of the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece during the Middle Ages and the early modern period. The name was used for the Byzantine province known as the Despotate of the Morea, by the Ottoman ...
) into action and on 17 March 1821, the
Maniots
The Maniots or Maniates ( el, Μανιάτες) are the inhabitants of Mani Peninsula, located in western Laconia and eastern Messenia, in the southern Peloponnese, Greece. They were also formerly known as Mainotes and the peninsula as ''Maina''. ...
were first to declare war. In September 1821, the Greeks under the leadership of
Theodoros Kolokotronis
Theodoros Kolokotronis ( el, Θεόδωρος Κολοκοτρώνης; 3 April 1770 – 4 February 1843) was a Greek general and the pre-eminent leader of the Greek War of Independence (1821–1829) against the Ottoman Empire. Kolokotronis's g ...
captured
Tripolitsa
Tripoli ( el, Τρίπολη, ''Trípoli'', formerly , ''Trípolis''; earlier ''Tripolitsá'') is a city in the central part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. It is the capital of the Peloponnese region as well as of the regional unit of Arcadi ...
. Revolts in
Crete
Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...
,
Macedonia, and
Central Greece
Continental Greece ( el, Στερεά Ελλάδα, Stereá Elláda; formerly , ''Chérsos Ellás''), colloquially known as Roúmeli (Ρούμελη), is a traditional geographic region of Greece. In English, the area is usually called Central ...
broke out, but were eventually suppressed. Meanwhile, makeshift Greek fleets achieved success against the
Ottoman Navy in the
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea ; tr, Ege Denizi (Greek language, Greek: Αιγαίο Πέλαγος: "Egéo Pélagos", Turkish language, Turkish: "Ege Denizi" or "Adalar Denizi") is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It ...
and prevented Ottoman reinforcements from arriving by sea.
Tensions soon developed among different Greek factions, leading to two consecutive civil wars. The
Ottoman Sultan
The sultans of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı padişahları), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to its dissolution in 1922. At its hei ...
called in
Muhammad Ali of Egypt
Muhammad Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha, also known as Muhammad Ali of Egypt and the Sudan ( sq, Mehmet Ali Pasha, ar, محمد علي باشا, ; ota, محمد علی پاشا المسعود بن آغا; ; 4 March 1769 – 2 August 1849), was ...
, who sent his son
Ibrahim Pasha to Greece with an army to suppress the revolt in return for territorial gains. Ibrahim landed in the Peloponnese in February 1825 and brought most of the peninsula under Egyptian control by the end of that year. Despite a
failed invasion of Mani, Athens also fell and the revolution looked all but lost.
At that point, the three Great Powers—Russia, Britain and France—decided to intervene, sending their naval squadrons to Greece in 1827. Following news that the combined Ottoman–Egyptian fleet was going to attack the island of
Hydra, the allied fleets intercepted the Ottoman navy and won a decisive victory at the
Battle of Navarino
The Battle of Navarino was a naval battle fought on 20 October (O. S. 8 October) 1827, during the Greek War of Independence (1821–29), in Navarino Bay (modern Pylos), on the west coast of the Peloponnese peninsula, in the Ionian Sea. Allied fo ...
. In 1828 the Egyptian army withdrew under pressure of a
French expeditionary force. The Ottoman garrisons in the Peloponnese surrendered, and the Greek revolutionaries proceeded to retake central Greece. Russia invaded the Ottoman Empire and forced it to accept Greek autonomy in the
Treaty of Adrianople (1829)
The Treaty of Adrianople (also called the Treaty of Edirne) concluded the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–29, between Imperial Russia and the Ottoman Empire. The terms favored Russia, which gained access to the mouths of the Danube and new territ ...
. After nine years of war, Greece was finally recognized as an independent state under the
London Protocol of February 1830. Further negotiations in 1832 led to the
London Conference and the
Treaty of Constantinople; these defined the final borders of the new state and established
Prince Otto
''Prince Otto: A Romance'' is a novel written by Robert Louis Stevenson, first published in 1885.
The novel was largely written during 1883. Stevenson referred to ''Prince Otto'' as "my hardest effort", one of the chapters was rewritten eight tim ...
of Bavaria as the first king of Greece.
Serbian Revolution and Autonomous Principality (1804–1878)
Serbia gained considerable internal autonomy from the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
in two uprisings in
1804
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Haiti gains independence from France, and becomes the first black republic, having the only successful slave revolt ever.
* February 4 – The Sokoto Caliphate is founded in West Africa.
* Februa ...
(led by
Đorđe Petrović Đorđe ( sr-Cyrl, Ђорђе;transliterated Djordje) is a Serbian given name, a Serbian variant, derived from Greek '' Georgios'' (''George'' in English). Other variants include: Đurđe, Đurađ, Đura, Đuro, Georgije. It may refer to:
* Đor ...
– Karađorđe) and
1815
Events
January
* January 2 – Lord Byron marries Anna Isabella Milbanke in Seaham, county of Durham, England.
* January 3 – Austria, Britain, and Bourbon-restored France form a secret defensive alliance treaty against Prussi ...
(led by
Miloš Obrenović
Miloš, Milos, Miłosz or spelling variations thereof is a masculine given name and a surname. It may refer to:
Given name
Sportsmen
* Miłosz Bernatajtys, Polish rower
* Miloš Bogunović, Serbian footballer
* Miloš Budaković, Serbian f ...
). Ottoman troops continued to garrison the capital,
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
, until 1867. The Serbs launched not only a national revolution but a social one as well. Complete independence arrived in 1878. Serbian activists promoted ethnic nationalism in the Balkans, targeting both the remnants of the Ottoman Empire and the equally fragile Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Serbia followed Montenegro against the Ottomans, and one full independence from the Congress of Berlin in 1878. Serbia played a central role in the Balkan wars of the early 20th century, which practically eliminated the Ottoman presence in Europe
Russo-Turkish War (1828–29)
The Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829 was sparked by the Greek War of Independence of 1821–1829. War broke out after the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II closed the Dardanelles to Russian ships and revoked the 1826 Akkerman Convention in retaliation for Russian participation in October 1827 in the Battle of Navarino. The results included Russian victory, Treaty of Adrianople, Russian occupation of Danubian Principalities, Greek victory and independence from the Ottoman Empire
Persian Gulf
Britain planned bases in the Persian Gulf region to protect India. Yemen was the first choice, since it was a convenient port. By 1800 the Porte permitted the creation of British trading stations in
Mocha, Yemen
Mokha ( ar, المُخا, al-Mukhā), also spelled Mocha, or Mukha, is a port city on the Red Sea coast of Yemen. Until Aden and al Hudaydah eclipsed it in the 19th century, Mokha was the principal port for Yemen's capital, Sanaa. Long known fo ...
. British intrigues with local leaders troubled the Porte which in 1818 asked Muhammad Ali to pacify the region. The British government worked with Ali to take over the strategically significant port of
Aden
Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...
, despite opposition from Constantinople.
The Ottomans were concerned about the British expansion from
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
into the
Red Sea
The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; T ...
and
Arabia
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
. They returned to the
Tihamah
Tihamah or Tihama ( ar, تِهَامَةُ ') refers to the Red Sea coastal plain of the Arabian Peninsula from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Bab el Mandeb.
Etymology
Tihāmat is the Proto-Semitic language's term for 'sea'. Tiamat (or Tehom, in mas ...
in 1849 after an absence of two centuries.
Financial crisis
Economic stagnation prevailed in Ottoman lands areas in the 1840s and 1850s at a time when rapid industrialization characterized Britain and Western Europe—areas that also expanded their commerce in the Levant. The Porte had serious economic problems—stagnant tax revenue, inflation, growing expenses. Despite the sultan's fear of British penetration, it borrowed heavily from banks in Paris and London and did not set up its own banks.
Crimean War 1854–56
The Crimean War (1854–56) was fought between Russia on the one hand and an alliance of Britain, France, Sardinia, and the Ottoman Empire on the other. Russia was defeated but the casualties were very heavy on all sides, and historians look at the entire episode as a series of blunders.
The war began with Russian demands to protect Christian sites in the Holy Land. The churches quickly settled that problem, but it escalated out of hand as Russia put continuous pressure on the Ottomans. Diplomatic efforts failed. The Sultan declared war against Russia in October 1851. Following an Ottoman naval disaster in November, Britain and France declared war against Russia. It proved quite difficult to reach Russian territory, and the Royal Navy could not defeat the Russian defences in the Baltic. Most of the battles took place in the Crimean peninsula, which the Allies finally seized. London, shocked to discover that France was secretly negotiating with Russia to form a postwar alliance to dominate Europe, dropped its plans to attack St. Petersburg and instead signed a one-sided armistice with Russia that achieved almost none of its war aims.
![Edouard Dubufe Congrès de Paris](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/Edouard_Dubufe_Congr%C3%A8s_de_Paris.jpg)
The
Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France:
Treaties
1200s and 1300s
* Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade
* Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France
* Trea ...
signed 30 March 1856, ended the war. Russia gave up a little land and relinquished its claim to a protectorate over the Christians in the Ottoman domains. The Black Sea was demilitarized, and an international commission was set up to guarantee freedom of commerce and navigation on the Danube River. Moldavia and Wallachia remained under nominal Ottoman rule, but would be granted independent constitutions and national assemblies. However, by 1870, the Russians had regained most of their concessions.
The war helped modernize warfare by introducing major new technologies such as railways, the telegraph, and modern nursing methods. The Ottoman Empire and Russia, with their weak industrial bases, could not keep up with the major powers, so they could no longer promote stability. This opened the way for
Napoleon III
Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...
in France and
Otto von Bismarck
Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (, ; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898), born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck, was a conservative German statesman and diplomat. From his origins in the upper class of J ...
in Prussia to launch a series of wars in the 1860s that reshaped Europe.
Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)
The
Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 saw the Ottomans lose to a coalition led by the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
and composed of
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
,
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
,
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
, and
Montenegro
)
, image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Podgorica
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, official_languages = M ...
. Russia and its allies declared war in order to gain access to the Mediterranean through the Turkish Straits. The main battles were fought on land in Anatolia/Caucasus and Rumelia. After losing the siege at Plevna, the Ottomans gave up and signed the punitive
Treaty of San Stefano
The 1878 Treaty of San Stefano (russian: Сан-Стефанский мир; Peace of San-Stefano, ; Peace treaty of San-Stefano, or ) was a treaty between the Russian and Ottoman empires at the conclusion of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-18 ...
. That treaty built up a powerful Bulgaria. The European powers rejected that solution and met at the
Congress of Berlin
The Congress of Berlin (13 June – 13 July 1878) was a diplomatic conference to reorganise the states in the Balkan Peninsula after the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78, which had been won by Russia against the Ottoman Empire. Represented at th ...
. Even though the Porte was not invited the powers returned half the Ottoman losses at the
Treaty of Berlin in July 1878. The war originated in emerging Balkan nationalism and Orthodox Christian religion. Additional factors included Russian goals of recovering territorial losses endured during the Crimean War of 1853–56, re-establishing itself in the Black Sea and supporting the political movement attempting to free Balkan nations from the Ottoman Empire. As a result, Russia succeeded in claiming provinces in the Caucasus (
Kars
Kars (; ku, Qers; ) is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. Its population is 73,836 in 2011. Kars was in the ancient region known as ''Chorzene'', (in Greek Χορζηνή) in classical historiography ( Strabo), part of ...
and
Batum
Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ) is the second largest city of Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast of the Black Sea in Georgia's southwest. It is situated in a subtropical zone at the foot of t ...
). Russia also annexed the
Budjak
Budjak or Budzhak ( Bulgarian and Ukrainian: Буджак; ro, Bugeac; Gagauz and Turkish: ''Bucak''), historically part of Bessarabia until 1812, is a historical region in Ukraine and Moldova. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube ...
region. The principalities of
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
,
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
, and
Montenegro
)
, image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Podgorica
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, official_languages = M ...
, each of which had ''de facto'' sovereignty for some time, formally proclaimed independence from the Porte. After almost five centuries of Ottoman domination (1396–1878), a Bulgarian state re-emerged: the
Principality of Bulgaria
The Principality of Bulgaria ( bg, Княжество България, Knyazhestvo Balgariya) was a vassal state under the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire. It was established by the Treaty of Berlin in 1878.
After the Russo-Turkish War ende ...
, covering the land between the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
River and the
Balkan Mountains
The Balkan mountain range (, , known locally also as Stara planina) is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula in Southeastern Europe. The range is conventionally taken to begin at the peak of Vrashka Chuka on the border betw ...
(except Northern
Dobrudja
Dobruja or Dobrudja (; bg, Добруджа, Dobrudzha or ''Dobrudža''; ro, Dobrogea, or ; tr, Dobruca) is a historical region in the Balkans that has been divided since the 19th century between the territories of Bulgaria and Romania. I ...
which was given to Romania), as well as the region of
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...
, which became Bulgaria's capital. The Congress of Berlin also allowed
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
to
occupy Bosnia and Herzegovina and Great Britain to take over
Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...
.
A surprising consequence came in Hungary (part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire). Despite memories of the terrible defeat at
Mohács
Mohács (; Croatian and Bunjevac: ''Mohač''; german: Mohatsch; sr, Мохач; tr, Mohaç) is a town in Baranya County, Hungary, on the right bank of the Danube.
Etymology
The name probably comes from the Slavic ''*Mъchačь'',''*Mocháč'': ...
in 1526, elite Hungarian attitudes were become strongly anti-Russian This led to active support for the Turks in the media, but only in a peaceful way, since the foreign policy of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy remained neutral.
British takeover of Egypt, 1882
The most decisive event emerged from the
Anglo-Egyptian War
The British conquest of Egypt (1882), also known as Anglo-Egyptian War (), occurred in 1882 between Egyptian and Sudanese forces under Ahmed ‘Urabi and the United Kingdom. It ended a nationalist uprising against the Khedive Tewfik Pasha. It ...
, which resulted in the occupation of Egypt. although the Ottoman Empire was the nominal owner, in practice Britain made all the decisions. In 1914, Britain went to war with the Ottomans and ended their nominal role. Historian
A. J. P. Taylor
Alan John Percivale Taylor (25 March 1906 – 7 September 1990) was a British historian who specialised in 19th- and 20th-century European diplomacy. Both a journalist and a broadcaster, he became well known to millions through his televis ...
says that the seizure, which lasted seven decades, "was a great event; indeed, the only real event in international relations between the Battle of Sedan and the defeat of Russia and the Russo-Japanese war."
Taylor emphasizes long-term impact:
:The British occupation of Egypt altered the balance of power. It not only gave the British security for their route to India; it made them masters of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East; it made it unnecessary for them to stand in the front line against Russia at the Straits....And thus prepared the way for the Franco-Russian Alliance ten years later.
20th century
In 1897 the population was 19 million, of whom 14 million (74%) were Muslim. An additional 20 million lived in provinces which remained under the sultan's nominal suzerainty but were entirely outside his actual power. One by one the Porte lost nominal authority. They included Egypt, Tunisia, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Lebanon.
Entry in to World War I
Germany for years had worked to develop closer ties to the Ottoman Empire. In 1914, the old Ottoman enemy Russia was at war with Germany and Austria-Hungary, and Constantinople distrusted London for its role in Egypt. Conquest of Constantinople was a main Russian war goal. The Porte was neutral at first but leaned toward Germany. Its old protector Britain was no longer a close ally. The Ottoman entry into World War I began when two recently purchased ships of its navy, still manned by their German crews and commanded by their German admiral, carried out the
Black Sea Raid, a surprise attack against Russian ports, on 29 October 1914. Russia replied by declaring war on 1 November 1914 and Russia's allies, Britain and France, then declared war on the Ottoman Empire on 5 November 1914.
There were a number of factors that conspired to influence the Ottoman government, and encourage them into entering the war. According to Kemal Karpat:
: Ottoman entry into the war was not the consequence of careful preparation and long debate in the parliament (which was recessed) and press. It was the result of a hasty decision by a handful of elitist leaders who disregarded democratic procedures, lacked long-range political vision, and fell easy victim to German machinations and their own utopian expectations of recovering the lost territories in the Balkans. The Ottoman entry into war prolonged it for two years and allowed the Bolshevik revolution to incubate and then explode in 1917, which in turn profoundly impacted the course of world history in the 20th century.
This decision ultimately led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Ottomans, the
Armenian genocide
The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was ...
, the
dissolution of the empire, and the
abolition of the Islamic
Caliphate
A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...
.
[Yiğit Akın, ''When the War Came Home: The Ottomans' Great War and the Devastation of an Empire''. (Stanford Up, 2018]
excerpt
See also
*
International relations, 1648–1814
*
International relations of the Great Powers (1814–1919)
International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations".
International may also refer to:
Music Albums
* ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011
* ''International'' (New Order album), 2002
* ''International'' (The T ...
*
Diplomatic history of World War I
The diplomatic history of World War I covers the non-military interactions among the major players during World War I. For the domestic histories of participants see home front during World War I. For a longer-term perspective see international rel ...
*
British foreign policy in the Middle East
British foreign policy in the Middle East has involved multiple considerations, particularly over the last two and a half centuries. These included maintaining access to British India, blocking Russian or French threats to that access, protecting ...
**
Stratford Canning, 1st Viscount Stratford de Redcliffe
Stratford Canning, 1st Viscount Stratford de Redcliffe, (4 November 1786 – 14 August 1880) was a British diplomat who became best known as the longtime British Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. A cousin of George Canning, he served as Envoy ...
British ambassador
*
Persian-Ottoman relations
*
Russia–Turkey relations
Russia–Turkey relations (russian: Российско–турецкие отношения; tr, Rusya–Türkiye ilişkileri) are the bilateral relations between Russia and Turkey and their antecedent states. Relations between the two are rat ...
**
History of the Russo-Turkish wars
The Russo-Turkish wars (or Ottoman–Russian wars) were a series of twelve wars fought between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 20th centuries. It was one of the longest series of military conflicts in European histor ...
*
Ottoman Empire–United States relations
*
List of diplomatic missions of the Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire's embassies were first established in the 1830s.Kuneralp, Sinan. "Ottoman Diplomatic and Consular Personnel in the United States of America, 1867-1917." In: Criss, Nur Bilge, Selçuk Esenbel, Tony Greenwood, and Louis Mazzari (e ...
*
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ottoman Empire)
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( Ottoman Turkish: ''Hariciye Nezâreti''; french: Ministère des Affaires Étrangères) was the department of the Imperial Government responsible for the foreign relations of the Ottoman Empire, from its establish ...
*
Foreign relations of Turkey
Physically bridging Europe and Asia, Turkey is a secular country that has pursued a Western-oriented foreign policy.Robins, Philip. Turkey and the Middle East. London: Royal Institute of International Affairs and New York: Council on Foreign R ...
*
Military of the Ottoman Empire
The military of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu'nun silahlı kuvvetleri) was the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire.
Army
The military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the ...
*
State organisation of the Ottoman Empire
*
Decline and modernization of the Ottoman Empire
In the late eighteenth century, the Ottoman Empire (Ottoman Old Regime) faced numerous enemies. In response to these threats, the empire initiated a period of internal reform which came to be known as the Tanzimat, which succeeded in significan ...
References
Further reading
* Aksan, Virginia. ''Ottoman Wars, 1700–1870: An Empire Besieged'' (Routledge, 2014
excerpt* Anderson, M.S. ''The Eastern Question 1774–1923'' (1966)
* Bailey, Frank E. "The Economics of British Foreign Policy, 1825–50." ''Journal of Modern History'' 12.4 (1940): 449–484, focus on Ottomans
online* Bailey, Frank Edgar. ''British policy and the Turkish reform movement: a study in Anglo-Turkish relations, 1826–1853'' (Harvard UP, 1942).
* Bloxham, Donald. ''The great game of genocide: imperialism, nationalism, and the destruction of the Ottoman Armenians'' (Oxford UP, 2005).
* Dávid, Géza–Fodor, Pál (eds.): Hungarian–Ottoman Military and Diplomatic Relations in the Age of Süleyman the Magnificent (ELTE, Budapest, 1994) https://tti.abtk.hu/kiadvanyok/kiadvanytar/david-geza-fodor-pal-eds-hungarian-ottoman-military-and-diplomatic-relations-in-the-age-of-suleyman-the-magnificent/download
* Davison, Roderic H. ''Nineteenth century Ottoman diplomacy and reforms'' (Isis Press, 1999).
* Dupuy, R. Ernest and Trevor N. Dupuy. ''The Encyclopedia of Military History from 3500 B.C. to the Present'' (1986 and other editions), passim and 1463–1464.
* Finkel, Caroline. ''Osman’s Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1923'' (Basic, 2005
excerpt
* Geyikdağı, Necla. "The Evolution of British Commercial Diplomacy in the Ottoman Empire." ''İktisat ve Sosyal Bilimlerde Güncel Araştırmalar'' 1.1: 9–46
online in English* Geyikdağı, N. ''Foreign Investment in the Ottoman Empire: International Trade and Relations 1854–1914'' (I.B. Tauris, 2011).
* Hale, William. ''Turkish foreign policy since 1774'' (Routledge, 2012) pp 8–33 on Ottomans
excerpt
* Hall, Richard C. ed. ''War in the Balkans: An Encyclopedic History from the Fall of the Ottoman Empire to the Breakup of Yugoslavia'' (2014)
*
* Horn, David Bayne. ''Great Britain and Europe in the eighteenth century'' (1967), covers 1603 to 1702; pp 352–77.
*
Hurewitz, Jacob C. "Ottoman diplomacy and the European state system." ''Middle East Journal'' (1961) 15#2: 141–15
online
* Inalcik, Halil. ''The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300–1600''. (Praeger, 1971). .
* Karpat, Kemal H. "The entry of the ottoman empire into world war I." ''Belleten'' 68.253 (2004): 1–40
online* Kent, Marian. "Agent of empire? The National Bank of Turkey and British foreign policy." ''Historical Journal'' 18.2 (1975): 367–38
online
* Kent, Marian, ed. ''The Great Powers and the end of the Ottoman Empire'' (Routledge, 2005).
* Langer, William L. ''The Diplomacy of Imperialism 1890–1902'' (1965).
* Macfie, Alexander Lyon. ''The Eastern Question 1774–1923'' (2nd ed Routledge, 2014).
* Marriott, J. A. R. ''The Eastern question: an historical study in European diplomacy'' (1940
online
*Mátyás király levelei
iplomatic letters of Matthias Corvinus-some of them to Emperos Mehmed II and Emperor Bayezid II Külügyi osztály / közreadó Fraknói Vilmos
tartalma: Első kötet, 1458-1479; Második kötet, 1480-1490. https://mek.oszk.hu/07100/07105/# [6 letter for the Ottoman Sultans, 1 for pasha of Sendro, 1 for prince Cem Volume I: letter 259. (381 p),260(pasha of Sendro), 263, letter, Volume II: letter:140.(242.p)to Cem, 169(1484? to Bayezid II), 174 (29. p), 247.(1480? to Mehmed II. (p 388),
* Merriman, Roger Bigelow. ''Suleiman the Magnificent, 1520–1566'' (Harvard UP, 1944
online* Miller, William. ''The Ottoman Empire and its successors, 1801–1922'' (2nd ed 1927
online strong on foreign policy
* Palmer, Alan. ''The Decline and Fall of the Ottoman Empire'' (1994).
* Pálosfalvi, Tamás. ''From Nicopolis to Mohács: A History of Ottoman-Hungarian Warfare, 1389–1526'' (Brill, 2018)
* Pamuk, Şevket. ''The Ottoman Empire and European Capitalism, 1820–1913: Trade, Investment and Production'' (Cambridge UP, 1987).
* Quataert, Donald. ''The Ottoman Empire, 1700–1922'' (Cambridge UP, 2000).
*I Rakoczi György es a Porta Levelek es diplomaciai iratok
Rakoczi I and the Porta[=Ottoman government. Letters and diplomatic documents">eorge> Rakoczi I and the Porta[=Ottoman government. Letters and diplomatic documentshttps://vmek.oszk.hu/mobil/konyvoldal.phtml?id=20116#_home
* Rodogno, Davide. ''Against Massacre: Humanitarian Interventions in the Ottoman Empire, 1815–1914'' (Princeton UP, 2012).
* Shaw, Stanford J. ''Between Old and New: The Ottoman Empire Under Sultan Selim III, 1789–1807'' (Harvard UP, 1971)
* Shaw, Stanford J., and Ezel Kural Shaw. ''History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey'' (2 vol. Cambridge UP, 1976)..
* Talbot, Michael. ''British-Ottoman Relations, 1661–1807: Commerce and Diplomatic Practice in Eighteenth-Century Istanbul' (Boydell Press, 2007
online*Tardy, Lajos: Beyond the Ottoman Empire : 14th-16th century Hungarian [and Habsburg Anti-Ottoman] diplomacy in the East 1978 Szeged JATE transl. by János Boris[from Emperor Sigismund to Emperor Rudolph].
* Adam Watson, Watson, Adam. ''The evolution of international society: a comparative historical analysis''. (Routledge, 1992). .
* Yaycioglu, Ali. "Révolutions De Constantinople: France and the Ottoman World in the Age of Revolutions". in ''French Mediterraneans: Transnational and Imperial Histories,'' ed by Patricia M. E. Lorcin and Todd Shepard (U of Nebraska Press, 2016), pp. 21–51
online* Yurdusev, A. Nuri et al. ''Ottoman Diplomacy: Conventional or Unconventional?''. (Palgrave Macmillan, 2004). .
*
Primary sources
* Anderson, M.S. ed. ''The great powers and the Near East, 1774–1923'' (Edward Arnold, 1970).
* Bourne, Kenneth, ed. ''The Foreign Policy of Victorian England 1830–1902'' (1970); 147 primary documents, plus 194-page introduction
online free to borrow* Hurewitz, J. C. ed. ''The Middle East and North Africa in world politics: A documentary record'' ''vol 1: European expansion: 1535–1914'' (1975); ''vol 2: A Documentary Record 1914–1956'' (195
vol 2 online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foreign Relations Of The Ottoman Empire
Foreign relations of Turkey