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The Ottoman Empire was one of the mightiest and longest-lasting dynasties in world history. This Islamic-run superpower ruled large areas of the Middle East, Eastern Europe and North Africa for more than 600 years. The chief leader, known as the Sultan, was given absolute religious and political authority over his people. While Western Europeans generally viewed them as a threat, many historians regard the Ottoman Empire as a source of great regional stability and security, as well as important achievements in the arts, science, religion and culture.

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Only 80 years separate the modern Middle East from the forgotten and long-lived Ottoman Empire. Over a time span of six hundred years, from about 1300 to 1923, the Ottoman Empire expanded into the largest political entity in Europe and western Asia and then imploded and disappeared into the back pages of history. At its height, the Empire controlled much of southeastern Europe, most of the area of the present day Middle East, and parts of North Africa. In the 13th century, the region of Anatolia (most of the Asian part of present day Turkey) was controlled by the Byzantine Empire in the northwest and the Seljuk Turks in the southwest. Osman I, a leader of the Turkish tribes in Anatolia, founded the Ottoman Empire around 1299. The term “Ottoman” is derived from Osman’s name, which was “Uthman” in Arabic. The Ottoman Turks set up a formal government and expanded their territory under the leadership of Osman I, Orhan, Murad I and Bayezid I. In 1453, Mehmed II the Conqueror led the Ottoman Turks in seizing the ancient city of Constantinople, the Byzantine Empire’s capital. This put an end to the 1,000-year reign of the Byzantine Empire.

RISE OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

By 1517, Bayezid’s son, Selim I, brought Syria, Arabia, Palestine, and Egypt under Ottoman control. The Ottoman Empire reached its peak between 1520 and 1566, during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent. This period was marked by great power, stability and wealth. Suleiman created a uniform system of law and welcomed different forms of arts and literature. Many Muslims considered Suleiman a religious leader as well as a political ruler. Throughout Sultan Suleiman’s rule, the empire expanded and included areas of Eastern Europe.

OTTOMAN ART AND SCIENCE In the arts, there is a paucity of extant objects from the early Ottoman period, but it is apparent from surviving buildings that Byzantine, Mamluk, and Persian traditions were integrated to form a distinctly Ottoman artistic vocabulary. Significant changes came about with the establishment of the new capital in former Byzantine Constantinople.