Ottoman Empire
Definition
The Ottoman Empire was a state that controlled much of Southeastern Europe, Western Asia, and Northern Africa between the 14th and early 20th centuries. It was founded at the end of the 13th century in northwestern Anatolia by Osman I.
Analogy
Think of the Ottoman Empire as a giant octopus with its tentacles reaching out to different parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Just like an octopus adapts to its environment for survival, so did the empire by absorbing various cultures and traditions.
Related terms
Suleiman the Magnificent: He was an influential sultan during the peak period of the Ottoman Empire's power who is known for significant legal reform.
Janissaries: They were elite infantry units that formed part of the household troops and bodyguards to the sultan in the Ottoman Empire.
Byzantine Empire: This was an empire based in modern-day Turkey (formerly Constantinople) which fell to Ottomans marking their rise.
"Ottoman Empire" appears in:
Study guides (13)
AP World History: Modern - 1.2 Developments in Dar al-Islam from 1200-1450
AP World History: Modern - 3.1 Expansion of Land-Based Empires
AP World History: Modern - 3.3 Belief Systems of Land-Based Empires
AP World History: Modern - 3.4 Comparison in Land-Based Empires
AP World History: Modern - 4.7 Changing Social Hierarchies: Class and Race from 1450-1750
AP World History: Modern - 5.2 Nationalism and Revolutions from 1750-1900
AP World History: Modern - 5.6 Government's Role in Industrialization from 1750-1900
AP World History: Modern - 6.6 Causes of Migration from 1750 to 1900
AP World History: Modern - 7.1 Shifting Power After 1900
AP World History: Modern - 7.2 Causes of World War I
AP World History: Modern - 7.5 Unresolved Tensions After World War I
AP World History: Modern - 7.9 Causation in Global Conflict
AP World History: Modern - 8.1 Setting the Stage for the Cold War and Decolonization
Practice Questions (20+)
- When the Ottoman Empire began expanding into the Indian Ocean in the 16th Century which country was the primary rival there?
- Which group was expelled from Spain and Portugal and accepted in the Ottoman Empire?
- Which of the following nations left the Ottoman Empire BEFORE the end of WWI?
- What was a significant challenge faced by the Ottoman Empire in the early 1900s?
- Which of the following was the greatest threat to the Ottoman Empire in the 1800s?
- How might Middle Eastern history be different if the Ottoman Empire hadn't disintegrated after World War I?
- What could've been a potential consequence if Ottoman Empire didn't control the Silk Road during the 15th Century?
- What were the key differences in the expansion strategies of the Russian and Ottoman empires in the 16th century?
- Which aspect of government differentiated Tokugawa Shogunate from Ottoman Empire during the early modern period?
- How did the Ottoman Empire system of government change in response to the increasing power of regional governors in the 17th century?
- How did the governance strategies of the Mughal Empire contrast with those of the Ottoman Empire?
- What would possibly be the impact on the Ottoman Empire's power status in Europe if they had won the Battle of Vienna in 1683?
- What religious change occurred with the rise of the Ottoman empire?
- Which belief system in the Ottoman Empire allowed religious diversity, provided non-Muslims paid a special tax?
- Which belief system was central to the governance and societal structure of the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century?
- What would likely have happened to the Ottoman Empire's political and religious structure had Mehmed II failed in his siege of Constantinople in 1453?
- Which of the following policies did the Mughal Empire in India and the Ottoman Empire in Turkey both implement to maintain control over their diverse territories?
- Which of the following demonstrates a common strategy used by both the Russian and Ottoman Empires to consolidate their rule in newly acquired territories during the 15th-18th centuries?
- What impact may result from the Ottoman Empire choosing not to expand into southeast Europe?
- Which factor noted in the decline of the Ottoman Empire also played a significant role in the downfall of Portuguese maritime empire?
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