New Asian Empire
Section 1
Objectives for
Monday, October 5th
• Read Chapter 3 Section 1: The
Ottoman and Safavid Empires – Pages
101-105.
– Prepare for Daily Spark
• Study Quia Vocabulary
– Vocabulary quiz Friday
New Asian Empire
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New Asian Empire
Section 1
The Ottoman and Safavid Empires
Preview
• Starting Points Map: Asian Empires
• Main Idea / Reading Focus
• The Ottoman Empire
• Faces of History: Suleyman
• Map: The Ottoman Empire
• The Safavid Empire
• Map: The Safavid Empire
New Asian Empire
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New Asian Empire
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The Ottoman and Safavid Empires
Main Idea
The Ottoman and Safavid empires flourished under powerful
rulers who expanded the territory and cultural influence of their
empires.
Reading Focus
• How did the Ottomans build a powerful empire, and what were
their cultural achievements?
• How was the Safavid Empire founded and enlarged, and what
cultural elements did it combine?
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New Asian Empire
The Ottoman Empire
Mongol conquests of the 1200s ripped apart the Seljuk Turk empire.
Small, independent Turkish states formed in the region.
In the late 1200s, a great chieftain arose from one of the states and
went on to found the powerful Ottoman Empire.
Growth of the Empire
Ottomans
• Early 1300s, Anatolia bordered by
declining Christian Byzantine
Empire to west, Muslim empires to
east; to north, Russia
• Nomadic people, ghazis, “warriors
for the Islam faith”
• Turks of Anatolia mainly Muslim,
nomadic, militaristic society
• Ghazi leader Osman I had built
strong state in Anatolia by 1300
• Osman, descendants came to be
known as Ottomans to Westerners
Their power grew quickly, and by the mid-1300s the Ottomans
controlled much of Anatolia.
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Sultans
Expanding Empire
Military Might
• Osman’s son, Orhan I, became
second Ottoman ruler; declared
himself sultan, Arabic for “ruler”
• Under Orhan, later sultans,
Ottoman forces swept into
Balkans, attacked Byzantine
Empire
• 1361, took Adrianople, second
most important Byzantine city;
renamed Edirne, made it capital
• By early 1400s, Ottomans
controlled much of Balkan
Peninsula
• Military key to Ottoman success
• Ottomans enslaved Christian
boys from conquered areas
• Boys converted to Islam,
trained as elite soldiers,
Janissaries; loyal only to sultan
• Practice called blood tax by
many Christians
• Ottomans also adopted
gunpowder weapons
• Now possible to take cities
defended by heavy walls
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Invasion and Decline
• Despite strong military, Ottomans experienced
setback
• Central Asian conqueror Timur attacked
– Because of leg injury, known as Timur the Lame; in Europe,
Tamerlane
– In 1402 army crushed Ottoman forces at Battle of Ankara
• Timur soon withdrew
– Ottoman empire left in shambles
– Ruler dead
– Bloody power struggle followed, weakened empire
New Asian Empire
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Fall of Constantinople
Expansion period
• Following period of decline, spectacular phase of expansion began
• Mid-1400s, reign of Mehmed II, strong military leader
• Mehmed II determined to take Constantinople, Byzantine capital
Bosporus Strait
• Ottomans had captured lands around Constantinople, but not city itself
• Constantinople controlled Bosporus Strait, trade route between Asia, Europe
• Control of waterway provided great wealth, divided Ottoman Empire
Mehmed the Conqueror
• 1453, Ottomans led major land, sea assault against Constantinople
• Used massive cannons to batter city’s walls; city fell after two month siege
• Byzantine Empire no longer existed; Mehmed became known as “the
Conqueror;” claimed center of eastern Christianity for Islam
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Pillaging the City
• Mehmed made Constantinople his capital, named Istanbul
• Allowed soldiers to pillage city for three days
• Many residents killed or enslaved
• Then rebuilt Constantinople into Muslim city
Rebuilding the City
• Mehmed had palaces, mosques built
• Turned Hagia Sophia, Orthodox Christian cathedral, into mosque
• Moved people from across empire to repopulate city
• Soon city again major trade center with people of many cultures
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New Asian Empire
Height of the Empire
Expansion and Threats
• Expansion continued
• Met new threat in Persia—the
Safavid Empire
• In 1514 Ottoman forces crushed
Safavids at Battle of Chaldiran
• Next swept through Syrian, into
Egypt in North Africa
• Soon after captured Mecca,
Medina, holy cities of Islam
• Empire reached height under
Suleyman I, known in West as
Suleyman “the Magnificent”
Suleyman the Lawgiver
• During Suleyman’s forty-six year
reign, Ottoman forces pushed
through Hungary up to Vienna
• Navy gained control of eastern
Mediterranean, North African
coast
• Impressive domestic
achievements
• Reformed tax system, overhauled
government bureaucracy,
improved court system, legal code
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Society and Culture
Rule of Sultans
• Ottoman sultan ruled over vast, diverse empire; had immense power, issued
all laws, made all major decisions
• Numerous officials advised sultan—considered his slaves; had to be loyal to
sultan, practice Islam, follow Ottoman customs
Classes
• Privileged ruling class one of two classes—second class, everyone else
• Included people of many cultures, languages, religions
• Ottomans governed diverse subjects with tolerance
Religious Freedom
• Non-Muslims had to pay heavy taxes, endure restrictions; did not have to
serve in military—Muslims had to join military, but did not pay taxes
• Religious freedom allowed; some groups required to form millets, or religious
communities; each millet followed own laws, chose own leaders
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New Asian Empire
Rich Culture
Great Buildings
• Mixing of peoples created rich
Ottoman culture, reached peak
under Suleyman
• Magnificent mosques, palaces,
many with Byzantine influence
Empire’s Decline
• After Suleyman’s reign, empire
declined
• One cause was method of
dealing with heirs
• New sultans killed brothers to
eliminate rivals until 1600s
Mosque of Suleyman
• Sinan, master designer of
Mosque of Suleyman, Istanbul
• Graceful solution of problem of
combining round dome,
rectangular building
Inexperienced Sultans
• Heirs locked in royal palace;
released to become sultan but
had no experience
• Despite periodic reform efforts,
series of weak sultans resulted
• Empire lasted to early 1900s
New Asian Empire
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New Asian Empire
Analyze
Why is Suleyman’s reign considered the
height of the Ottoman Empire?
Answer(s): because Suleyman expanded the
empire, built bridges and mosques, and reformed
the administration and laws of the empire
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New Asian Empire
The Safavid Empire
East of the Ottomans, Persian Muslims called the Safavids began building an
empire around 1500. The Safavids soon came into conflict with the Ottomans
and other Muslims. The conflict related to Islam’s split into rival Sunni and
Shia sects. The Safavids were Shia; most other Muslims were Sunnis.
Growth of the Empire
Official Religion
• 14-year old Esma’il,
founder of Safavid
Empire
• Gained control of
what is now Iran, part
of Iraq
• Father died fighting
Sunni Muslims
• Took Persian title of
shah, “king” of
Safavid Empire
• 1501, took up sword,
joined by father’s
supporters, led army
in Persian conquests
• Made Shiism official
religion
• Advisers concerned
Persian Tradition
• Sunnis majority in
empire
• Blending of Shia
religion, Persian
tradition gave Safavid
state unique identity
• Laid foundation for
national culture of
present day Iran
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New Asian Empire
Esma’il and Shiism
• Shiism sharply distinguished Safavid state from Sunni neighbors,
notably Ottomans to west, Uzbeks to northeast
• Esma’il dreamed of converting all Sunnis to Shiism
• Battled Uzbeks with some success; suffered crushing defeat by
Ottomans in Battle of Chaldiran, 1514
• Safavid army no match for Ottomans’ superior gunpowder weapons
‘Abbas
• 1524, Esma’il died; later shahs
struggled to keep empire together
• 1588, greatest Safavid leader,
‘Abbas became shah
• Reformed government,
strengthened military, acquired
modern gunpowder weapons
Ottoman Model
• Copied Ottoman model, had slave
youths captured in Russia trained
to be soldiers
• Under ‘Abbas, Safavids defeated
Uzbeks, gained back land lost to
Ottomans
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Culture and Economy
Golden Age
•
•
•
•
•
‘Abbas’ achievements produced golden age in Safavid culture
Brought in Chinese potters to improve quality of glazed tile, ceramics
Safavids created public spaces with graceful arches, lush gardens
Colorful tiles, domes decorated mosques
During 1600s capital of Esfahan one of world’s magnificent cities
Major Muslim Civilization
• Culture helped economy; ‘Abbas encouraged traditional products
• Hand-woven Persian carpets became important industry, export
• Trade goods brought wealth, helped establish Safavid Empire as
major Muslim civilization
• Safavid Empire lasted until 1722
New Asian Empire
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New Asian Empire
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Compare and Contrast
How were the achievements of Esma’il and
‘Abbas similar, and how were they
different?
Answer(s): Both leaders focused on military.
'Abbas had more success in battle because he
acquired gunpowder weapons.