We ended the last segment with an introduction to the Ottomans. In 1299, Osman, the founder of the dynasty, became the chief of a Ghazi tribe holding a podunk fiefdom in northwestern Anatolia (essentially modern Turkey.) Nine generations and two and a half centuries later, the Ottoman Empire would be a world power on par with, if not superior to England, France, or Spain. Its ruler, Suleiman The Magnificent, was a contemporary monarch with, and close in age to: Henry VIII, Frances I, and Charles V. How to account for such progress?
The first 10 Sultans were, for the most part, excellent leaders. The Ottomans’ method of choosing successors was effective. The current ruler would have multiple wives and sons. When he died, the most capable and ruthless son would find a way to seize power and usually would have all his brothers killed, typically by strangling. Rarely did the eldest son prevail. In cases where male siblings survived a brother’s ascension to the sultanate, it usually resulted in conflict and disorder in the realm. It was accepted that royal fratricide was in the best interest of the nation.
There was a power vacuum in the region. The Mongols crushed the Seljuk Empire’s army in 1243 but had chosen to make the western border of their empire about midway into Anatolia. The Byzantine Empire had been so ravaged by the Crusaders in 1204, that it never really recovered. And the Mamelukes in Egypt had so much internal fighting and unrest, they could not venture into Anatolia. So, an opportunity existed for new enterprising leaders to make hay.
The early Ottoman leaders changed the business model of their state. Four or five Ghazi states, of which the Ottomans were one, emerged from the destruction of the Seljuk Empire. A ghazi state possessed as the reason for its existence a duty to do battle against the infidel. Their business model was to ride out on raids to the frontiers of Islam and bring back rich plunder. This worked well during a time of chaos. But as order returned, the lucrative raids ceased, and most ghazi states lacked the solid internal economy to continue. The Ottomans went from simply raiding to capturing, holding, and wisely administering conquered territory and cities.
The Ottomans attracted and welcomed competent people from throughout the region through moral integrity and tolerance. As ghazis, they had a merit-based society. To be a ghazi, one had to prove his worth by deeds and by evidence of good character. Quoting Fisher: “Another feature of ghazi life was recognition and acceptance of the futuwwa, a set of rules by which the virtuous life should be lived. Mutual fidelity among the membership was particularly emphasized. Likewise, almost every ghazi brotherhood recognized a spiritual leader….the early arrival of Muslim lawyers and theologians tempered the ghazi crusading fervor so that Orhan (the 2nd Sultan) accepted the older Muslim practice of allowing Christians and Jews to live in Muslim land by paying taxes and special tribute.” The tolerance of Christians and Jews remained a feature of the Ottoman Empire throughout its history.
They conquered Constantinople and made it the Empire’s Capital. Muawiya, the fourth Caliph of Islam, besieged Constantinople for four years in the late 670’s. Muawiya recognized the strategic importance of this great city straddling Europe and Asia to the Muslim Empire. Nearly a dozen more attempts and nine centuries would pass before Constantinople would finally fall to a Muslim conqueror.
In 1452, Mehmed II assembled a fleet of 400 ships, and an army of 170,000 soldiers armed with 70 canons including the largest cannon yet cast in the world. Even though Constantinople was only a shadow of its former self, its defenses were still formidable. The great solid stone walls were 15’ thick and 40’ high. The massive iron sea chain protecting the Golden Horn remained impenetrable. To circumvent the chain, Mehmed had to build an oiled wooden ramp to portage his ships into the Golden Horn. The Byzantine army and population continued to resist valiantly until they learned that their Emperor, Constantine IX, had offered to submit to the Latin pope in exchange for support from the West. The Byzantine citizenry preferred to submit to a Muslim leader rather than to Latin Christians.
On May 29, 1453, Constantinople was conquered by Mehmed II. No doubt, there was some initial slaughtering and looting by the Muslim invaders. Afterall, the Byzantines had rejected Mehmed’s offer to surrender and avoid bloodshed. After a time, Mehmed entered the City and restored order.
This is a link to a YouTube video that provides a good synopsis of the history of Constantinople and its fall to the Ottomans.
This was a huge psychological blow to the West. After two millennia, the Roman Empire had finally come to an end. Quoting Fisher: “To the Muslims, the Fall of Constantinople was a great and glorious achievement … Its acquisition served as the keystone in creating the Ottoman Empire.” The City was renamed Istanbul.
Mehmed II worked hard to please and attract Christians and Jews to Istanbul. Constantinople had been dying for centuries and was only half populated. Mehmed focused on repopulating the City. Christians were encouraged to reside in Istanbul and allowed to live according to their own ways and laws as long as they did not infringe on the Muslims. The Church Patriarch was dead, so Mehmed appointed a new Patriarch who was favored by the citizens. There were very few Jews in Constantinople when it fell. Mehmed reached out and recruited Jews to move there. In time, Jews seem to have become so well accepted by the Ottomans that it infuriated the Christians, who felt that the Jews had gained too much influence in the Ottoman Empire.
The Myth that Arabs/Muslims and Jews have always been arch enemies is wrong. Time and again, we see in the history of the Middle East, that the Jews preferred living under Muslim rulers rather than under Christians. And Eastern Christians preferred living under Muslims rather than under Latin Christians. This myth that Arabs/Muslims have been at war with the Jews since the days of Abraham is totally debunked by true history.
In the next segment, we will pick up with Sulieman The Magnificent and make as much progress as possible toward the decline and fall of the Ottoman Empire.
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