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Unit 10: Gunpowder Empires Name: _____________________________________ Teacher: ___________________________ IB/AP World History 9 Commack High School Please Note: You are responsible for all information in this packet, supplemental handouts provided in class as well as your homework, class webpage and class discussions. Introduction to Gunpowder Empires The Mongol invasions of the 13th and 14th centuries destroyed the Muslim unity of the Abbasids and the power of many regional dynasties. Three new Muslim dynasties arose to bring a new flowering to Islamic civilization. The greatest, the Ottoman Empire, reached its peak in the 17th century; to the east the Safavids ruled in Persia and Afghanistan, and the Mughals ruled much of India. Together the three empires possessed great military and political power; they also produced an artistic and cultural renaissance within Islam. All three dynasties originated from Turkic nomadic cultures; each possessed religious fervor and zeal for conversion. They built empires through military conquest based upon the effective use of firearms. Each was ruled by an absolute monarch and drew revenues from taxation of agrarian populations. There were differences. The Mughals ruled mostly non-Muslim peoples, the Safavids mostly Muslims, and the Ottomans a mixture of Muslims and Christians. The Safavids were Shi'a Muslims; the others were Sunni. The Ottomans: The Turkic peoples entered Anatolia after the Mongols defeated the Seljuks of eastern Anatolia in the mid- 13th century. After a period of turmoil a tribe led by Osman secured dominance establishing the Ottomans. Under Mehmed II they captured Constantinople in 1453 and ended the Byzantine Empire. They spread into Syria, Egypt, North Africa, and even temporarily laid siege to the city of Vienna in Austria. Their navy dominated the eastern Mediterranean. Military leaders had a dominant role in the Ottoman state, a society geared to war and expansion. The Turkic horsemen became a warrior aristocracy supported by control of conquered land and peasants. When their power shrank before that of an expanding central bureaucracy, they built up regional power bases. From mid- 15th century imperial armies were dominated by Janissary infantry divisions composed of conscripted youths from conquered lands. Their control of artillery and firearms gave them great power. Ottoman rulers survived challenges to their authority by playing off the competing factions within their state. Muslim, Christian, and Jewish merchants were important. The latter two were "peoples of the book" who often were satisfied with the sound administration of their Muslim rulers. A large bureaucracy headed by a vizier had great power in the state. Early rulers and their sons participated in the administration. Unfortunately, there were no rules for dynastic secession, which led to heated struggles for the position of the Sultan and often the execution of rivals. The imperial capital at Constantinople combined the disparate cultures under Ottoman rule. The new rulers restored the city after 1453; the church of Hagia Sophia became one of Islam's grandest mosques. Adding to the city's splendor, Suleyman the Magnificent built the great Suleymaniye mosque in the 16th century. Constantinople became the commercial center dealing in products from Asia, Africa, and Europe. Many urban inhabitants belonged to merchant and artisan classes. The government closely regulated both activities. Handicrafts were encouraged. Imperial workshops produced numerous products, and public works employed many artisans. By the 17th century the Turkish language became the preferred vehicle for literature and the government. The Ottomans left a significant artistic legacy in poetry, ceramics, carpet manufacturing, and architecture. Women were subordinate to fathers and husbands and had few outlets, especially among the elite, for expression outside of the household. What was the geographic and historical context for the founding of the Ottoman Empire? Objective: Describe the geographic context for founding of the Ottoman Empire. ➡ Directions: Examine the images below, then complete the questions that follow. Think Like a Geographer Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Greece#/media/File:Territorial_changes_of_the_Ottoman_Empire_1566.jpg See Think Wonder List three things you see in the maps Based on your observations, what do you think caused the changes in the maps Write two questions you have about the maps above. above. above. At the height of its power, the Ottoman Empire under Suleiman (1520-1566) controlled large territory in three continents: _________________________________, _______________________________, and _______________________________. Based on your knowledge of previous empires, how do you predict the Ottoman empire was able to gain control of large territories across three continents? The Rise of the Ottoman Empire ➡ Directions: Examine the timeline and images below, then respond to the questions. Contextualize The Ottomans were a Muslim Turkish-speaking nomadic people who migrated from Central Asia in northwestern Asia Minor. They quickly conquered other societies and expanded their empire. 1096-1290s: The Crusades were fought between Muslims and Christians. 1. Using your prior knowledge, what sparked the Crusades? 2. How did the Crusades affect the relationship between Christians and Muslims? The Battle of Ager Sanguinis, medieval miniature Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ager_Sanguinis#/media/File:Battle-of-Ager- Sanguinis.jpg 1326: A leader named Osman and his Turkish warriors (Ottomans) took over areas of Asia Minor and the Balkan Peninsula in Eastern Europe near the Byzantine Empire. 3. How might Christian leaders of the Byzantine Empire feel about the Muslim Ottomans taking over territory so close to the Byzantine Empire? Explain. An imagined portrait of Osman I. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osman_I#/media/File:Osman_Gazi2.jpg 1453: Under the leader, Mehmet II, the Ottomans continue to expand and capture the capital of the Byzantine Empire, Constantinople. Constantinople was renamed Istanbul and became the new capital of the Ottoman Empire. Hagia Sophia, a church, was turned into a mosque. After a 54 day siege and using a 27-foot cannon hauled by oxen and an advanced army with muskets [guns], Constantinople fell to the Ottomans. 4. What message do you think the conquest of the Byzantine Empire sent to the rest of Europe? 5. Why did the Ottomans convert the Hagia Sophia into a mosque? 6. Why was this conquest a turning point in global history? The entry of Sultan Mehmed II into Constantinople Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mehmed_the_Conqueror#/media/File:Zonaro_GatesofConst.jpg 7. Based on this map to your right, why was Constantinople so important to the Ottomans? Source: Farah and Karls, World History, The Human Experience, Glencoe/McGraw-Hill (adapted) from the NYS Global History and Geography Regents Examination, August 2007. 1520-1566: The Ottoman Empire had a golden age under the sultan named Suleiman. The Ottomans called Suleiman “The Lawgiver” and Europeans called him “The Magnificent.” Suleiman also developed laws and enforced the Islamic law of sharia. Suleiman had several accomplishments: Took on bold military campaigns that increased the amount of territory controlled by the Ottomans Increased naval strength which allowed them to conquer parts of North Africa Oversaw achievements of Ottoman civilization in the fields of law, literature, art, and architecture Built strong fortresses to defend his territories Adorned and modernized the cities of the Islamic world (including Mecca, Damascus, and Baghdad) with mosques, bridges, aqueducts, and other public works 8. What are common characteristics of golden ages? Suleiman I 9. What were some of Suleiman’s achievements? Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suleiman_the_Magnificent#/media/File:EmperorSuleiman.jpg 10. Based on the information provided, could Suleiman’s rule of the Ottoman Empire be considered a Golden Age? Why or why not? 1529: Suleiman’s army attacked the city of Vienna, which at the time was located in the Holy Roman Empire and today is located in modern-day Austria . This sent fear throughout Europe 11. How might the siege of Vienna because it demonstrated how strong the Ottoman Empire had become and showed that they were affect how Europe viewed the Ottoman a threat to European states. The Ottomans were unsuccessful in conquering Vienna, but they Empire? continued to be seen as a threatening empire seeking to conquer Europe. Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/28/OttomanEmpire1683.png As the Ottoman Empire grew, new people, particularly non-Muslims, became part of the empire. The Ottoman Empire was diverse and composed of three major religious and ethnic groups: Flashback: What is one similarity between Muslims, Christians and Jews?_________________________________________________. Although conversion to Islam was not demanded of the conquered, many Christians and a few Jews voluntarily converted to have full rights in the empire. Those who did not convert continued to practice their old religions without restriction. For centuries, the Ottoman Empire was the refuge of the Jewish people of Europe, who did not have the freedom of religion in Europe that the citizens of the Ottoman Empire did. Jews expelled from Spain in 1492 found refuge in the Balkans and elsewhere in Ottoman territory, where the sultan decreed they should be welcomed. Source: http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Ottoman_Empire
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