AP World History POD #17 – Sick Old Man of Europe

Eastern Question

Class Discussion Notes

Bulliet et. al – “The Crimean War and Its Aftermath”, pp. 667-670

Historical Setting

• “Since the reign of Peter the Great, the Russian Empire had been attempting to expand southward at the Ottomans’ expense. By 1815 Russia had pried the Georgian region of the Caucasus away from the Ottomans, and the threat of Russian intervention had prevented the Ottomans from crushing Serbian independence. When Muhammad Ali’s Egyptian army invaded Syria in 1833, Russia signed a treaty in support of the Ottomans. In return, the sultan recognized Russia’s claim to being the protector of all of the empire’s Orthodox subjects. This set the stage for an obscure dispute that resulted in war.” (Bulliet, p. 667)

Eastern Question

• Should the Ottoman Empire continue to exist?

• If NOT, who should take over its territory

• These were the essential questions being debated by the European powers in the middle of the 19th century

Eastern Answer

• The European powers (including Russia) agreed to save the Ottoman Empire in 1839

• Great Britain while agreeing, became suspicious of Russian behaviors and motivations in the region

Crimean War (1853-1856)

• Fought in Romania, on the Black Sea, and on the Crimean Peninsula

• Great Britain, France, Piedmont-Sardinia and the Ottoman Empire vs. Russia

• Austria-Hungary mediated the outcome

Siege of Sevastopol

• Britain and France trapped the Russian fleet in the Black Sea

• Russian commanders decided to sink the fleet to block the approaches to Sevastopol, the main Russian base in the Crimea

• British and French troops were still able to land in Sevastopol and laid siege

• Corruption and a lack of railways in Russia prevented the city from being resupplied

• The Russian army too weak and suffered from disease

Immediate Impact of the Crimean War• Russian Czar Nicholas I died, defeat was

imminent and Alexander II was forced to sue for peace after the fall of Sevastopol

• The Czar and his government already beset by demands for the reform of serfdom, education and the military were further discredited

• Britain and France launched successful propaganda campaigns to support the war effort and newspapers were able to assist in mobilizing the home front

Long Term Impact of the Crimean War• The Crimean War marked the transition from

traditional to modern warfare• Traditional War – front lines of infantry with a

cavalry to smash through the enemy lines – barrel loaded rifles were awkward to load allowing the cavalry time to attack

• Modern War – cavalry units would be destroyed by the new rapid fire rifles that loaded at the breech rather than down the barrel

Ottoman Commercial Expansion

• “The Ottoman imperial bank was founded in 1840, and a few years later currency reform pegged the value of Ottoman gold coins to the British pound. Sweeping changes in the 1850s expedited the creation of banks, insurance companies, and legal firms throughout the empire. Bustling trade also encouraged a migration from country to city between 1850 and 1880. … However, the commercial vigor and urbanization could not make up for declining revenue and chronic insolvency and corruption of the imperial government.” (Bulliet, p. 668)

Foreign Debt

• In an attempt to solve its fiscal crisis, the Ottoman government became dependent on European loans

• In exchange the Ottomans lowered tariffs (taxes) to favor European imports and allowed European banks to open in Ottoman cities

• Europeans enjoyed extraterritoriality (the right to be subject to their own laws and exempt from Ottoman jurisdiction)

• Increasing foreign debt created inflationary trends

Young Ottomans

• “The decline of Ottoman power and prosperity had a strong impact on a group of well-educated young urban men who aspired to wealth and influence. They doubted that the empire’s rulers and the Tanzimat officials who worked for them would ever stand up to European domination. Though lacking a sophisticated organization, these Young Ottomans (sometimes called Young Turks, though the term properly applies to a later movement) promoted a mixture of liberal ideas derived from Europe, pride in Ottoman independence, and modernist views of Islam. Prominent Young Ottomans helped draft a constitution that was promulgated in 1876 by a new and as yet untried sultan, Abdul Hamid II.” (Bulliet, pp. 668 & 670)