The Decline of the Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire was one of the most powerful Empires in history for several centuries, however, as the saying goes, what goes up must come down. The Ottoman Empire weakened because of internal and external factors, a process which sped up during the 1800s. Internal weakening caused the Empire to lose stability and made them more vulnerable to external attacks. Military instability caused the Empire to experience internal problems and weakened the foundation of the Empire, which created an environment perfect for external military defeat to occur. The Ottomans emphasis and devotion to tradition, and their cultural and religious differences caused their relations with the rest of Europe to be feeble. The Ottoman Empire was at one point one of the most dominant Empires, however, in the 1800s the Empire experienced a decline as a result of a lack of advancement, corruption in the government, a decline in military power, which facilitated external attacks, along with negative feelings towards them and poor relations with other countries; this resulted in isolation from the West.

From the 16th to the 18th centuries, Europe was on the road to progress in all areas of life and new ideas were developed which challenged the old and brought about a newer less traditional society; this established a contrast with the more traditional Ottoman Empire. The Scientific Revolution which took place in the 16th century changed the way the European people viewed life as a whole. The Scientific Revolution brought about ideas about the universe, such as the planetary system, in which many believed to have the Sun as its center, which contradicted the old religious views, that was previously accepted, in which the Earth was at the center.[1] New ideas about knowledge and acquiring knowledge through experience and observation, as opposed to the Bible, which had traditionally been the only method, became more common.[2] This new perspective on life caused people to view society from a different perspective. This became known as the Enlightenment, which took place in the 18th century and triggered major reforms and the development of liberal ideas. They believed in the idea of progress and three basic essentials which were freedom, rights, and equality, and enforced reason over tradition.[3] The rest of the world was unable to compete with the scientific advances of the Europeans, with the Ottomans being no exception. The Ottomans, who were primarily an Islamic Empire, were not affected by the new inclination towards knowledge that clashed with the traditional Catholic Church. The Ottomans were a traditional Empire, in which the Islamic religion was of great importance. They were not involved in the scientific advancements and the development of these new and Enlightened ideas and consequently began to gradually fall behind. The Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment, which did not occur in the Ottoman Empire, caused the Empire's advancement to become almost idle, while the European nations steadily moved forward.

Ottoman relations with the West were fairly equal and constant during the 16th to the 18th centuries, as a result of regular trading and trade routes to Asia which went through the Ottoman Empire. European nations had been interested in exploring since the 15th century and had eventually begun exploring Asia in the 16th century. The Europeans who enjoyed the "luxury" goods of Asia, especially from China, began trading with them.[4] Trade was a common occurrence because of high demand for the Asian products in Europe. During that time much of the traveling in order to trade was done by land and the route to Asia from Europe lead straight through the Ottoman Empire.[6] Contact between the Ottoman Empire and the West was frequent, as a result. The Ottomans were also in contact with the West through alliances with other major powers during the 16th century. The profit which the Ottomans received as a result of trading with the Europeans and taxing them began to decline in the late 17th and 18th centuries. In 1699, because of the signing of Capitulations, which were "commercial treaties", the Europeans were given the right to trade freely in the Ottoman Empire and consequently did not have to pay [7] This sparked a decrease in revenue for the Ottomans and a decline in the relatively peaceful and tolerant relations among the Ottomans and the West. Trading with the West and trade routes which ran through the Ottoman Empire kept them in close contact with the West, from the 16th to the 18th centuries.

The Ottoman Empire declined because it was farther behind than the rest of Europe in most areas of life. Most European countries were involved in Imperialism, which was extending control to other regions outside their country, and were traveling the world in order to find resources. European merchants were furiously traveling around the world in search of raw materials which they could then profit from.[8] These merchants were part of the middle class which had emerged in Europe, and made up a large part of societies throughout Europe. There was a large growth in the middle class throughout Europe, however, in the Ottoman Empire the middle class was viewed as a threat to the authority of the Sultan and therefore they received little support.[9] The Sultans tried to stunt the growth of the middle class in their Empire. The Sultans were successful in stopping the growth of the middle class in the Ottoman Empire, all the while in Europe the middle class was growing in both wealth and influence.[10] With the emergence of the middle class and the increase in wealth among the population in most European countries, the people in the Ottoman Empire, in comparison, were poorer and lived a more "ancient" lifestyle. Overall, lifestyle had continued to develop and move forward in Europe and in comparison the Ottoman Empire seemed "backward" and primitive. The European trade routes had switched from land to sea which decreased contact between the Ottoman Empire and the West, and decreased their "importance" to the West. Lagging behind caused the people of the Ottoman Empire to resent the fact that they were part of the Empire, as well as simply make them weaker as an Empire because of their lack of advancements.

Corruption in the government in the Ottoman Empire was one of the main factors which contributed to decline of the Empire in the beginning of the 1800s. The Sultans, absolute ruler in an Islamic Empire, were responsible for the order of the Empire and were essentially the most powerful figures. The Sultans had discovered a quick and easy way of [11] Government officials known as Viziers were appointed through manipulation and palace favors, as opposed to honestly rising up the administrative ladder because of experience and ability.[12] This was the breeding ground upon which corruption in the government flourished. These Viziers were responsible for the city and the affairs of the province they governed.[13] The problem with giving someone a high position based on how much they paid was that they did not have the skills or experience to properly perform the job. Seeing the Sultans' example of selling to the highest bidder and trying simply to make [14] The Viziers became interested only in regaining the wealth they had lost from buying their positions. The Viziers, who had spent a great deal of money to purchase their position, recovered their fortunes by extorting huge sums of money from the people they ruled. [16] The business of the government had become corrupt and had become more of a self-serve business than one of governing. The taxes which they collected were spent on maintaining things which suited them and their needs, such as for the maintenance of harems, which was a group of females who were the sexual partners of a man, and courts rather than for the good of the public.[17] The corruption started at the highest level with the Sultans interested in quick money and self-gain and steadily made its way down the administrative ladder. The Empire weakened as a result of inadequate administration. This corruption caused overall weakening and disruption in the Government, which caused the entire Empire to feel the consequences.

The Ottoman Empire witnessed substantial loss in their military power, as a result of the Janissaries diminishing loyalty, which was the essence of the military. The military system of the Ottoman Empire was comprised mainly of a group of men who were known as the Janissaries, which was a highly regarded military group. The Janissaries were an influential group of approximately 15,000 to 20,000 people, who had with time acquired substantial privileges.[18] Although representing and defending the Ottoman Empire, they where not of Ottoman decent, but Europeans who were trained to be loyal to the Empire. The Janissaries were generally boys between the ages of 8 to 16, who came from European and Christian rural families, who had been taken to Istanbul, the capital of the Empire, where they were converted to Islam.[19] They were the glue which kept the military system together, and which made it so strong. The Janissaries who were loyal slaves to the Empire were highly trained and specialized in the use of gunpowder weapons.[20] However, starting in the mid 1600s the Janissaries began to slowly divide amongst themselves, which caused the military system to slowly weaken and eventually fall apart. The Janissaries began dividing into old versus young, and reformers versus anti-reformers, which continued for over a century.[21] The Sultans who were trying to implement reforms lost control over the Janissaries who resisted these changes because they would have meant a loss or decrease in many of their privileges. This caused extreme military weakness within the Empire, and essentially caused the military system to fall into disarray and chaos. This instability amongst them caused the Ottoman's to lose control over the Janissaries, who revolted a minimum of 12 times between 1622 and 1783.[22] By the beginning of the 1800s the Ottoman's had lost control of the Janissaries and the situation was so dire it became evident that things would only continue to decline. After the numerous revolts, realizing that there was no chance in correcting the situation the Sultans abolished Janissaries in 1826.[23] The internal disarray and unsuccessful attempts at reforms regarding the military caused the Janissaries who comprised the most vital and powerful part of their military system to lose their loyalty and essentially abandon the Empire. The conflicts between the Janissaries was an internal cause of military weakening which was detrimental to the Empire, which relied immensely on their military power to support the Empire, and set up an ideal environment for external military conflicts.

The decline in the military power of the Ottoman Empire was also caused by wars with other powerful Empires at the time, which caused them to lose control of certain areas of the Empire. The Russian Empire and Ottoman Empire were geographically neighbours and fought many wars. From 1806 to 1812, Russia and the Ottomans fought a major war called the Russo-Turkish War.[24] The Russians were allies with the British, another "super power" at the time, who sent their own forces to fight the war alongside Russia. In February of 1807, Admiral Duckworth, a naval officer who commanded the British naval squadron led them through Dardanelles, a strait between Europe and Asiatic Turkey and then threatened Istanbul.[25] The Ottomans also had an ally at the time, France, who came to their aid. Directed by the French Ambassador, Sebastiani, France helped in rebuilding and strengthening the fortification of Istanbul, so as to better protect the Ottoman Empire.[26] The French were successful in helping to rebuild and the British admiral had no choice but to withdraw from the war. This "defeat" for the Ottoman Empire, however, was not long lived, as Napoleon soon after decided he wanted to end France's war with England and quickly sacrificed their alliance with the Ottomans. Wanting to end the war against England in July, Napoleon made a deal with the Czar, the authoritarian ruler of Russia at Tilsit, a city in Russia, and decided to sacrifice Turkey.[27] The French and the Russians saw the weakness of the Ottoman Empire and their lack of allies and took advantage of this. The two Emperors quickly began planning the division of the European region of the Ottoman Empire. This resulted in the Eastern Balkan provinces being given to Russia, and the Western Balkans being given to France, with parts of Bosnia and Serbia being given to Austria, another powerful Empire at that time.[28] Wars with other Empires weakened their borders and their hold over many regions of the Empire. The loss of France as an ally was detrimental, as the Ottomans effectively had no allies now. The Ottomans were now facing the world alone. Loss of parts of their Empire, as a direct result of war made their increasing weakness visible to the Europeans, and decreased the size of the Empire.

Military conflict also occurred within the Empire, which weakened the Empire as a whole, especially the borders. Wars fought within the Ottoman borders were not restricted solely to Europe. In 1839, the Ottomans fought a war against Muhammad Ali, the ruler of Egypt, which resulted in the loss of Egypt from the Ottoman Empire.[29] Along with external attacks on the Empire, internal wars were fought which resulted in liberation and essentially a loss of land and therefore a decrease in the size of the Ottoman Empire. Slowly and steadily, parts of the Ottoman Empire, most commonly along the borders of the Empire began to break off of the Empire, as a direct result of military decline.

The Ottoman Empire also weakened because of negative feelings towards the Ottomans and basically non-existent relations with other European powers. Rebellions in Greece, a part of the Ottoman Empire at the time, which were encouraged by the Patriarch, the Orthodox Religious Leader, in Istanbul, caused the Ottomans to search for a way to suppress the rebellions. In 1821, Mahmud II, a Sultan of the Empire from 1808-1839, responded to the rebellions by having the Patriarch Grigorios V hung in Istanbul, on April 10.[30] Russia, which was primarily an Orthodox Empire saw this move as sacrilegious and insulting and abruptly ended their relations with the Ottomans as a result.[31] The Ottomans worsened their already feeble and relatively non-existent relations with the West, by attacking the Armenian population in the Empire. The Ottomans in an attempt at ethnically cleansing the Empire of the Armenian population further fueled negative views towards them. In the late 1800s the Ottomans massacred an estimated 100, 000 Armenians who were primarily Christian, which gave the Europeans one more reason to look down upon the Ottomans.[32] Europe, which was mainly a Christian Continent, started to view the Ottoman Empire as the "scum" of Europe. They began seeing them as being a threat to Christianity, because they were an Islamic Empire and had on several accounts attacked the Christian population in the Ottoman Empire. The fact that they were an Islamic Empire was seen as a bigger threat when they attacked the Orthodox church leader, which they saw as an insult, and made the fact that they were Islamic more evident. As well, the massacre of the Armenians was also seen by the Europeans as a strike against Christianity which caused them to want nothing to do with the Ottomans. The negative feelings towards the Ottomans which caused relations with other Empires to fall apart, greatly contributed to the overall decline of the Empire.

In conclusion, the decline of the Ottoman Empire was caused by multiple internal and external factors, which together were detrimental to the Empire and finally resulted in isolation which brought down the Empire. The corruption in the government caused the Empires foundation to weaken and the internal military problems caused the Empire to be defenseless, which allowed other Empires to successfully defeat them in battle. The overall lack of advancement in the Empire illustrated even more so the difference between them and the West, and made it easier for other European Empires to resent and defeat them. Their negative relations with other European Empires caused them to lose allies and ultimately become isolated. The decline of the Ottoman Empire which led to the liberation of the countries it its Empire has given us today's map. Many countries which now exist were formed or liberated as a direct result of the decline of the Ottoman Empire.

1] Arthur Haberman and Adrian Shubert, The West and the World; Contacts, Conflicts, Connections (Toronto: Gage Learning Corporation, 2002), 71.

[2] Ibid., 74.

[3] Ibid., 144.

[4] Ibid., 126.

[5] Ibid., 133.

[6] Ibid., 132.

[7] Ibid., 135.

[8] Frank E. Smitha, Decline of Islamic and Ottoman Empire, 2001,

, (Sept. 24, 2006).

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Ibid.

[12] Bernard Lewis, Istanbul and the Civilization of the Ottoman Empire (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1963), 174.

Publishing Co., Inc), 134.

[14] Smitha, Decline of Islamic and Ottoman Empire.

[15] Ottoman Empire, May 2001, , Nov 1, 2006.

[16] Ibid.

[17] Jacobs, Constantinople: City on the Golden Horn, 134.

[18] Haberman and Shubert, The West and the World; Contacts, Conflicts, Connections, 133.

[19] Ibid.

[20] Ibid.

[21] Jacobs, Constantinople: City on the Golden Horn, 134.

[22] Haberman and Shubert, The West and the World; Contacts, Conflicts, Connections, 134.

[23] Ibid.

[24] Bernard Lewis, What Went Wrong: Western Impact and Middle Eastern Response (New York: Oxford University Press, Inc., 2002), 33.

[25] Ibid.

[26] Ibid.

[27] Ibid.

[28] Ibid.

[29] Ottoman Empire.

[30] Jacobs, Constantinople: City on the Golden Horn, 135.

[31] Ibid.

[32] Ottoman Empire.