The Ottoman Empire1299 - 1915

The Audacious Ottomans

The Ottoman Empire started in what is now Turkey and through a profound campaign of conquest, extended to parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia. Its primary purpose was to gain land and to spread the Islamic teachings of its rulers. They were the longest continuous dynasty in history.

1299: Osman I Starts on the Offensive

Osman (whom the Ottoman Empire is named after) fearlessly leads an assault against the Seljuks and wins. He becmes the first ruler of the Ottoman Dynasty.

1326: Ottoman Capital Moved to Bursa

Osman and his troops decimate Bursa, a large city in northwest Turkey, and make it the capital of the Empire.

1362 – 1389: The Reign of Murad I

After the death of his father, Orhan, in 1362, Murad comes to power. He lives up to the family legacy, conquering and killing as usual and establishes the system of Janissaries, which are highly-skilled and elite royal guards.

1389: Battle of Kosovo

The Ottoman troops, led by Sultan Murad I (the grandson of Osman I), annihilate the Serbians and conquer most of Serbia. However, the Ottomans suffer many casualties, one of which being their fearless leader Murad, substantially setting back their progress.

1396: Battle of Nicopolis

A gruesome battle between a sundry army, made up of Hungarian, Bulgarian, Wallachian, French, Burgundian, and German forces, and the ferocious Ottomans, results in Ottoman victory, the siege of the Danubian fortress of Nicopolis, the destruction of the Second Bulgarian Empire, and the utter conquest of Bulgaria.

1453: Constantinople Finally Falls

Mehmed II captures Constantinople and renames it Istanbul-the capital of the Ottoman empire, kills the emperor Constantine XI, and finally subdues both the Byzantine Empire and the Romans. The fall of Constantinople is said to have marked the end of the Middle Ages.

1460 – 1473: Mehmed II Goes on a Conquering Spree

• 1460: Mehmed conquers Morea.• 1461: Mehmed conquers Trabzon.• 1463: Bosnia is conquered.• 1473: The Battle of Otlukbeli takes

place and Mehmed defeats Uzun Hasan.

Expanding the Ottoman empire.

1517: Selim I Bring Egypt Under Ottoman Rule

During the Battle of Ridaniya, Selim defeats Turman bay II of the Mamlik Sultanate of Egypt and takes the powerful Arabic title of caliph.

1520 - 1566: Suleiman Rules

After the death of Selim I, Suleiman the Magnificent (I) succeeds the throne. Suleiman not only eradicates entire armies and conquers prominent countries, but he instigates the Ottoman “Golden Age.” As a distinguished poet, goldsmith, and catalyst of culture, Suleiman empoweres artists, architects, and scholars.

1521: Belgrade Falls to Suleiman

Suleiman personally leads his army and captures Belgrade. Furthering Ottoman expansion and strengthening authority over Europe.

1522: Hospitallers Driven from Rhodes

Suleiman heroically defeats the Hospitallers and conquers Rhodes.

1529: Siege of Vienna

The Siege of Vienna, an attempt by Suleiman the Magnificent to capture Vienna, Austria, indicates the apex of the Ottoman empire’s expansion. Despite the Ottoman empire’s prolific power, they are unable to take Vienna. However, Suleiman’s attack is not completely in vain, for the daring maneuver maintains the Ottoman’s control of the southern Pannonian Plain and leaves a substantial amount of damage in its wake.

1538: The Sea Battle of Preveza

The Battle of Preveza, between the impeccable Ottoman navy and a fleet of Christian alliance, promptly resolves with the hasty obliteration of the Ottoman's enemies.

1550: The Sultanate of Women Begins

The Sultanate of Women, a one-hundred and thirty year long period where women wielded an inordinate amount of political influence over both state affairs and the male Sultans, is, as sexist as this may sound, argued to have notably contributed to the great decline of the empire.

1571: Defeat at the Battle of Lepanto

The Battle of Lepanto takes place after a fleet of the Holy League, a Catholic coalition of various maritime states, defeats the main fleet of the Ottoman navy off the western coast of Greece. In an attempt at swift retaliation, Ottoman forces collide with the Holy League. The ambush results in the further destruction of even more Ottoman fleets and the prevention of Ottoman expansion further along the European side of the Mediterranean.

1610: Kuyucu Murat Pasha Ends the Jelali Revolts

The Jelali Revolts are a series of rebellions in Anatolia against Ottoman authority. The revolts are the rebellious product of the oppressed peasant class who are fed up with harsh Ottoman rule, degenerate officials, and the outdated timariot system. The suppression of the Jelali Revolts is a devastating blow to the Turkmens, whom revolted.

1612: Treaty of Nasuh Pasha

The Treaty of Nauh Pasha is a treaty between the Ottoman Empire and Safavid Persia. The terms of the contract basically prompt the Ottomans to fork over some territory gained by the Treaty of Istanbul in 1590, and in return, the Persians must pay an annual accolade of 59,000 kilograms of silk.

1660: The Great Fire of Istanbul Breaks Out

A devastating conflagration sweeps over Istanbul, destroying a great deal of homes, property, and moral, temporarily slowing the advancement of the empire.

1683: Ottomans Attack Vienna

After Vienna’s besiege by the Ottoman Empire for two months straight, the Holy Roman Empire and the Holy League are bloodthirsty. An extensive series of attacks brought on by Sobieski, leader of the opposing army, lays waste to the Ottomans, freeing Europe from the Ottoman Turks and solidifying Christianity as the main religion for all of Europe.

1807: Reformist Sultan Selim III Dethroned

The Ottoman government, in a state of vast corruption, rejects Selim III’s noble ideas for reform. They dethrone, imprison, and eventually murder him to ensure their unethical well being.

1821 - 1832: The Greek War of Independence

The Greek War of Independence or Greek Revolution, a revolutionary war waged by a party rebellious Greeks known as the Filiki Eteria, results in the defeat of the Ottoman Empire and independence for Greece.

1826: An Auspicious Incident

After the suppression of yet another brisk revolt by the Janissaries, Mahmud II permanently disbands the century-old Janissary corps by killing the leaders of the revolt and exiling and imprisoning insubordinate members.

1854: The Crimean War

The Crimean War, a conflict in which Russia loses to an authoritative alliance of France, Britain, Sardinia, and the Ottoman empire, is one of the first wars to be majorly documented by writers and photographers. Can you imagine fighting for your life while somebody clicks away in the background? “Before you finish killing that guy can you look at the camera and say, ‘Cheeeeese?’”

1877: Russo-Turkish War Begins

The Russo-Turkish War is a conflict between the Ottoman Empire and the Eastern Orthodox coalition, an alliance formed between the Russian Empire and several Balkan countries. The Russo-Turkish war starts because Balkans feel they have a right to independence, and Russia wants to recover lost land from the Crimean War. The War results in the Russian obtainment of Kars, Batumi, and several other provinces in the Caucasus and the furthered independence of the Balkans.

1878: San Stefano Treaty Forced Onto Ottomans by

RussiaThe San Stefano Treaty is a treaty whipped up by Russia, ensuring that the Ottoman Empire release their tight grip over the Balkans and let them form an independent vassal state known as the Principality of Bulgaria. The treaty is reluctantly signed and after nearly 500 years of Ottoman oppression, Bulgaria becomes free.

1909: Sultans Overthrown by Young Turks

The Young Turks Revolution of 1909 reprieves the suspension of Ottoman parliament and the Ottoman constitution of 1876, which had both been banned by Sultan Abdulhamid II. The victorious revolution marks the beginning of the Second Constitutional Era.

1912: The First Balkan War

The First Balkan War pits the Balkan League, comprised of Siberia, Greece, Montenegro, and Bulgaria, against the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Empire, who are both strategically and numerically inferior, suffer a crushing defeat and loose the remainder of their European territories.

1914: World War I Begins

World War I, a major, world-wide conflict between the Central Powers and the Allied Powers, form on June 28th, 1914. Turkey officially enters the war on the 28th of October when they bomb Russian Black Sea ports, placing them on the side of the Central Powers.

1915: The Gallipoli Campaign

The Gallipoli Campaign is fought on the Gallipoli peninsula in the Ottoman Empire. The attack, waged by Russia and Allied powers in an attempt at conquering the glorious Ottoman capital, Constantinople, results in Ottoman victory and is revered as one of the greatest Ottoman victories during the war.

1918: The Ottomans Exit World War I

An armistice in October, 1918 ends the fighting between the Ottoman Empire and Allies. The Ottoman Empire has been weakened by the monumental war and is at risk of invasion and conquest by the Allies. However, the Allies spare further bloodshed, and leave Sultan Mehmed VI in peace, in hopes that the retention of his power will ensure post war stability. Although the Ottoman rule endures World War I, they suffer a great loss of territory due to depleted recourses and uncommitted leaders.

1922: Mohammed IV Flees

The last Sultan, Mohammed IV, driven out by enemy forces, flees Constantinople.

1924: Nothing More

All connections with Sultans are cut off from Turkey, and New Republic, lead by Ataturk, takes over.

The Obliterated OttomansThe Ottoman Empire certainty did not go from “audacious” to “obliterated” in a blink of an eye. The resilient empire embarked on a grandiose campaign of conquest, but eventually fell due to a variety of factors: the ongoing struggle of their fragile economy that greatly lacked in manufacturing, the age-old mistake of over expanding and spreading themselves too thin, to the point at which they did not have enough jurisdiction over anywhere, and lastly, a substantial amount of setbacks and defeats (pretty much the majority of what went on after 1683).

You may have noticed the random red oval/sphere/scrap in the top right corner throughout the presentation. No, this is not meant to be a distraction from my work, but a representation of the Ottoman Empire. Like a balloon, the Ottomans expanded and grew bigger and bigger, sucking in whole countries at a time, similar to a way that a balloon would suck in air. However, what happens to balloons that suck in too much air? They pop. Like a balloon that got too big for its britches, the Ottoman Empire spread itself too thin, to the point at which it could not administer even basic authority over its conquered land, and, under pressure from various opponents, the Ottoman Empire went out with the inevitable, resounding, “POP!”