Ch24/Sec1: The Ottoman Empire
Egypt & the Napoleonic Example, 1798-1840
Napoleonic Invasion
Napoleon invaded Egypt in 1798
Defeated the Mamluk forces
French withdrew in 1801, leaving a power vacuum 
Muhammad Ali
 Commander in Ottoman army
 Sent by Sultan to regain control of Egypt
 Took place of governor in 1805
 Removed Mamluks from power in 1811
2. Military Reforms: based on the French military practices
 Conscription army
 Military schools that taught modern European techniques
 Officers trained in France
3. Egyptian military power
•
Removed the Saudi clan from Mecca & Medina
•
Involved in Greek War for independence
•
Attacked Anatolia
Withdraw after European British navy became involved
•
Family of Ali ruled Egypt until 1952
B. Ottoman Reform & the European Model, 1807-1853
1. First attempt at reform
•
Sultan Selim III (r.1789-1807)
•
Attempted to reform military, centralize power, standardize
taxes
•
Failed due to resistance by Janissaries and ulama
•
Failed reforms led to military uprising
•
Selim was jailed & executed in 1807
2. Reform reconsidered
•
Sultan Mahmud (r.1808-1839) saw that empire was backward &
weakening
Success of Ali in Egypt
Greek independence in 1829
A.
1.
•
•
•
 Created new artillery unit in 1826  Janissaries revolted 
artillery unit bombarded Janissary barracks  Janissary corps
dissolved
3. Tanzimat: “reorganization”
- Public trials
- Equality before the law
- Conscription into the army (regardless of religion)
- Ended tax farming
- New law codes modeled on European, no Shari’a law
C. The Crimean War & Its Aftermath, 1853-1877
1. Conflict with Russia
- Russia wanted access to the Black Sea
- Free access to Mediterranean
- Expanded south at the expense of the Ottomans
- Russia claimed to be protector of all Orthodox citizens in the
Ottoman Empire
2. The Crimean War
• Began as dispute over access to churches in Jerusalem
• Russia invaded the Balkans
• Britain, France & Kingdom of Sardinia & Piedmont allied
with Ottomans
• War fought in Romania, on the Black Sea and Crimean
Peninsula
3. Effects of the War
• Russian expansion to the south blocked
• Tsar weakened
• First time propaganda used to generate support for war
England and France
• Transition to modern warfare
High casualties
Breech loading rifle
End of the significance of cavalry forces
4. Problems associated with the reforms
• Dependence on foreign loans
• Trade deficit
• Inflation
• In the 1860s and 1870s, discussion of a law that would have
permitted all men to vote
- Muslims worried that the Ottoman Empire was no longer a
Muslim society.
- contributed to Muslim hostilities against Christians in the
Ottoman territories
5. The decline of Ottoman power and wealth
• Young Ottomans
Goals
- a group of educated urban men
- Constitutionalism
- liberal reform
- creation of a Turkish national state
•
A constitution was granted in 1876
•
a coup soon placed a more conservative ruler on the throne
•
The Ottoman Empire continued its weakened existence under
the sponsorship of the Western powers until 1922.