Title: Political Configurations in the Middle East before the 20th Century
1Political Configurations in the Middle East
before the20th Century
2Pre-Ottoman politics
- 7th century Rise of Islam and Islamic Empires
- Umayyad Empire, 661-750 (capital at Damascus)
- Abbasid Empire, 749-1258
- (capital at Baghdad)
- Other dynasties the Mongols
Ibn Battuta, a 14th century traveler from
Tangiers.
3Who were the Ottomans?
- Founded ruled one of the worlds biggest and
longest-lived empires - Seat of government in Istanbul
- 1300-1918
- Muslim Turkish dynasty Osmanlilar
- But drew on many previous dynastic bureaucratic
traditions - Encompassed territory from Europe to N. Africa
Mehmet the Conquerer riding his horse in front of
Aya Sofia church after conquering Constantinople
in 1453. Source http//www.osmanli700.gen.tr/engl
ish/album/picturesindex.html
4A map of the expansion of the Ottoman Empire
5A map of the Ottoman Empire at its height (around
1680)
Source http//www.skidmore.edu/academics/arthisto
ry/ah369/ottoman.html
6Another map of the Ottoman Empire at its height
7A map of the contraction of the Ottoman Empire
Source Encyclopedia Brittanica, from
http//www.naqshbandi.org/ottomans/maps/
8Important points about the Empire
- Bureaucratic sultanate, but actual rule mostly
de-centralized - Muslim empire
- Sultan as Caliph, or protector of the Faith (but
not seen as divine) - Multi-National, Multi-lingual, Multi-Ethnic,
Multiple Religions - Turks, Arabs, Greeks, Kurds, Jews, Armenians,
Bulgarians, Albanians, Croats, Serbs, etc. - Until 1850, 50 of the Empires population lived
in the Balkans - State did NOT attempt to create cultural or
religious conformity. - Main social division between the ruling class
(askeri) and ordinary people (reaya), NOT between
nationalities
9State-minority relations under the Ottomans
- Dhimmi status for Christians and Jews
- Forced conversions discouraged
- Special protection for people of the book BUT
- 2nd class status
- Head tax on non-Muslim males (cizye)
- Periodic persecution
- The Millet system
- Christian Jewish communities largely
self-governing, with head of community as liaison
between the sultan and the community
10Ottoman Political Administration
A miniature portrait of Sultan Murat III, from
the 16th c.
Note that the actual power hierarchy of these
groups could vary considerably over time
11The states main duties (what people expected
from it)
- Defend the borders of the empire
- Protect the faith access to the holy sites
(Islam) - Maintain public peace
- Access to justice
- Individual right of petition
How does this differ from our current-day
expectations for states?
An illuminated page from the Quran by Ahmet
Karahisari , from the Topkapi Palace collection.
12Connections between state and society
- Taxes
- Administration-
- state-provincial relations
- Codes of Law
- Standards for conduct and dress
- Religious institutes and religious frameworks
- Administered schools, social welfare programs,
courts, etc.
The Grand Husseini Mosque in Amman, Jordan,
originally built in the 7th century.
13Who would you meet if you went traveling through
Ottoman lands? Socio-political groups in the
Ottoman Age
- Settled peasants and villagers
- Tribes
- Nomads
- Prominent local families
- Guilds merchants
- Local religious orders and religious leaders
- Ottoman officials
Picture of a Bulgarian woman in 19th century
finery. Source Ottoman archives from the Turkish
Library.
14The status and influence of women
- Two worlds (haremlik and selamlik)
- Harem (sacred)
- Living space
- Support system
- Family politics
- Political influence
- valide sultan, patrons of arts, regents, key
administrators - Role and status varies with socio-economic status
- Upper-class women tended to veil working women
often did not
The extremely influential Kosem Sultan, b. 1585 -
1651
15Socio-political groups in the Ottoman Empire
slaves
- Elite slave groups
- Devsirme system
- Soldier slaves (Janissaries)
- Administrators
- Palace slaves
- White and black castrated men (eunuchs)
- The Chief Black Eunuch (Kizlar Agasi)
- Agricultural, domestic, industrial slaves
- Status highly variable and flexible
From left to right, Head of the Black Eunuchs
The 30th Ottoman Sovereign Custodian of the
Arms of the Sovereign Chief Lackey Who Keeps and
Carries the Dresses of the Sovereign. - From the
Turkish National library.
16An evolving EmpireMain phases of Ottoman rule
- Classical Period (1300-1683) Rise, expansion and
consolidation - Political power primarily in hands of the Sultan
- Middle Period (1680s-1798) Ottoman integration
into the world economy territorial retraction - Shift in power from sultan to offices of the
vizier - Provinces virtually autonomous
- Long 19th century (1798-1918) Emergence of the
modern Ottoman state - State under pressure from Imperialist Europe
- Redefinition in status of religious minorities
and women - Newly centralized State State begins taking over
many new tasks
17The flight of Hazerfan Ahmet Çelebi from the
Tower of Galata. Source http//www.osmanli700.gen
.tr/english/album/picturesindex.html _ _
A painting by Levni of an 19th c. female subject
of the Empire.
18An Ottoman map of Istanbul, from Topkapi Palace,
Istanbul.
19Source http//history.binghamton.edu/hist275/Map
20List.htm