Decline of Ottomans and
Qing China
Ch 26
I. Introduction
 China
 Declined and reemerged… and declined again
 China continued its cycle of prosperity and decline
 Nomads were a problem
 Period of general prosperity under the Manchu nomads
 Greatly declined due to outside influences
 Numerous rebellions and uprisings erupted near the end of
reign
I. Introduction
 Ottoman Empire
 Prosperous 400 + years
 Started loosing territory in early 17th century
 Went through numerous reforms to try to stop the
decline
II. Ottoman Empire
 Ottoman empire suffered from weak rulers
 Janissaries and religious leaders tried to gain more
power
 Ayan (wealthy land-owners) cheated sultans
 Europeans brought decline of merchants
 Decreased treasury
 Couldn’t pay soldiers and buy supplies
II. Ottoman Empire
 Europeans take over outer boundaries
 Russian gain warm water port on Black Sea
 Revolts in Greece, Serbia and Balkans
 Dominance in the Mediterranean Sea
 Attempts at reforms
 Power struggle between types of reforms
 Religious and social changes competed
 Some preferred to go back to traditional religious values
and rule
 Westernization- ambassadors, military and politics
II. Ottoman Empire
 Reformers
 Sultan Selim III
 Improve administration
 Angered bureaucracy
 New Army and Navy- angered Janissaries
 Overthrown by Janissaries in 1807
II. Ottoman Empire
 Sultan Mahmud II
 Built small well trained private army
 Wiped out Janissaries
 Agents incited mutiny-Janissaries riot- Slaughtered with
their families in the streets
 Expanded and Westernized military
 European advisors
 Creates ambassadors to Europe
 Ulama- pushed for traditional theocracy
II. Ottoman Empire
 Tansimat reforms (1839-1876)
 Westernized Education
 Postal Office, Telegraph and Railroads
 Removed tariffs- destroyed merchants/artisans
 Abdul Hamid (1878-1908)
 Tried to restrict power of others
 Despotic Absolutism
 Restricted civil liberties- killed/tortured dissidents
 Still westernized army and built rail between Baghdad
and Berlin
II. Ottoman Empire
 Ottoman Society for Union and Progress
 Paris in 1889
 Political agitators- young Turks
 Started to overthrow sultanate but became divided
 Then WWI distracted them
 Eventually called the “Sick man of Europe”
III. Egypt and Sudan
 Tried to reverse decline of Ottoman empire
 Egypt
 Napoleon invaded Egypt in 1798
 Not interested in Egypt but India
 Slaughtered Mamluk forces
 Murad underestimated the French
 Had to retreat due to British destroying French fleet
III. Egypt and Sudan
 Muhammad Ali (1801)
 Reformed military
 French officers, French tactics and weapons and
conscription of peasants
 Told peasants to work harder to pay for military
 Descendants- Khedives- 1952
III. Egypt and Sudan
 Europeans cause more problems for Egypt
 Push for Cotton
 Europeans loaned numerous amounts to Khedives
 Couldn’t manage their money
 Pushed for the building of the Suez Canal
III. Egypt and Sudan
 Al Afghani (1839-1897)and Muhammad Abduh
(1849-1905)
 Pushed for borrowing technology from Europe
 Argued that the Europeans became great due to Islamic
innovation
 Qur’an is not the only source of all truth
 Ahmad Orabi
 Led a revolt in 1882 due to dismissal of Egyptian
soldiers
 Khedives helped by British and crushed Orabi’s forces
III. Egypt and Sudan
 Mahdi
 Muhammad Achmad declared Mahdi (deliverer)
 Jihad on “corrupt” Egyptians and Europeans
 Khalifa Abdalli
 Took over after Muhammad died of Typhus
 Forbade drinking, smoking and dancing
 Strict punishment for immorality
 Continued Jihad until General Kitchener slaughtered the
Mahdi forces at the battle of Omdurman (1898)
IV. Last Chinese Dynasty
 Manchu nomads consistently raided northern China
but were not united
 Nurhaci (1559-1626)
 United tribes and formed the banner armies
 Conquered Manchuria
 Reorganized the Manchu to follow Chinese
rule/culture
IV. Last Chinese Dynasty
 Qing Empire
 Ming Dynasty was weak and asked Manchus to help
fight rebellion
 Big Mistake
 Conquered in 1644
 Manchu rule
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Kept civil service exam
Pardoned rebels from early conquest
Adopted Confucian rituals
Son of Heaven Ideology
Patrons of arts and Confucianism (Kangxi)
IV. Last Chinese Dynasty
 Qing society
 Hierarchal ranking
 Women not as valuable
 Infantcide
 Tried to help farmers/peasants
 10% of budget to repairing/building dikes, canals, roads
and irrigation
 Diversified crops
 Tea
 Brought large amounts of European silver in economy
 Compradors- wealthy merchant class
IV. Last Chinese Dynasty
 Qing Decline
 Corruption
 Cheating on exams
 Bureaucracy based on who you know and not what you
know
 Money went to wealthy and not military
 Dikes, irrigation and roads crumbled
 Famine and disease
IV. Last Chinese Dynasty
 Opium
 Huge cash crop from India
 Way to turn the tides of European bullion going into
China
 Huge amounts left china
 1% addicted
 Chinese tried to outlaw- didn’t work
 Lin Zexu- enforced laws
 Opium War 1839-1841
 British won and increase Opium trade
 Later forced open trade and diplomatic exchange
IV. Last Chinese Dynasty
 Rebellions
 Taiping Rebellion
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Hong Xiuquan
Massive rebellion in south (1850-1864)
Attacked Confucianism and scholar-gentry
Influenced Self-strengthening movement

Westernization of Chinese infrastructure
 Boxer Rebellion 1898-1901
 Sought to rid China of European influence
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Attacked foreigners and their religions
Put down by the British
 Eventually collapsed in 1911 when a republic was
established
V. Conclusion
 China no longer was ruled by a dynasty
 Ottoman empire continued decline until it occupied
only modern day Turkey
 Westernization of China and Muslim world