APMWH Chapter 15

What group transformed south and Southwest Asia into regional empires?

Turkish warriors

What three major empires arose in south/southwest Asia?

Mughal, Ottoman, Safavid

What religion did the Mughal, Safavid, and Ottoman empires mainly practice?

Islam

What did all three empires start as?

Warrior principalities in frontier areas

What did all the empires do (in the span of their rule)?

Organize effective governmental apparatus and preside over prosperous societies under the guidance of good rulers

Where did the word Ottoman derive from?

Osman Bey, the founder of the dynasty.

Who was Osman Bey? What was his importance?

The founder of the Ottoman dynasty. It was named after him.

His succession continued until the dissolution of the empire

Why was the location of the Ottoman Empire convenient?

It was located on the border of the Byzantine empire, allowing the Ottomans to wage war against non-Muslims living there

What was the Ottoman’s first capital? How did it become that?

They captured the Anatolian city, Bursa, which became their first capital.

What did the Ottoman do in Gallipoli?

They seized it (it was a fortress) while helping someone claiming the Byzantine throne. The ghazi went with and aided the Ottomans in this.

What city became the Ottoman’s second capital? What was its importance?

Edirne (Adrianople)

It was a base for further expansion in the Balkans

What did Ottoman warriors do (when first building up the empire)?

• Settled in frontier districts

• Pushed boundaries

• Took spoils and gathered revenues that enriched the ghazi and the central government

What did Bursa become?

A major commercial and intellectual center with inns, schools, mosques, hospitals, etc

What drove Ottoman expansion?

Its military

How did the Ottoman military develop?

• Military leaders organized ghazi recruits

• Later added a professional cavalry force with heavy armor and financing.

• Later created forces with slave troops

What was the institution devshirme?

A requirement that Balkan Christians had to provide young boys to become the sultan’s slaves

How did devshirme affect people?

It forced young Christian boys from the Balkans to become slaves. They received special training, learned Turkish, and converted to Islam. Depending on their individual abilities, they entered civil administration or the military

What were soldiers know as? What did they gain a reputation for?

Janissaries

For pride, loyalty to the sultan, and readiness to use new military technology

What did Ottomans give their military forces to make them more effective?

Gunpowder weapons

What person led the capture of Constantinople?

Mehmed II (Mehmed the Conqueror)

Why did Constantinople become the Ottoman capital? What did they rename it?

Because of its location and heritage

Istanbul

What did Mehmed try to do with Constantinople (Istanbul)?

Tried to stimulate its role as a commercial center

What did Mehmed the Conqueror present himself as?

A warrior-sultan and the emperor/ruler of two seas (the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea) and two lands (Europe and Asia)

What was Mehmed the Conqueror’s legacy?

He laid the foundation for a tightly centralized absolute monarchy

He made many conquests and invasions in Eastern Europe

What did Mehmed the Conqueror plan to conquer? What happened?

He reportedly planned to sail across the Strait of Otranto, march on Rome, and capture the Pope. He launched an invasion on Italy and briefly occupied Otranto, but after he died, his successors abandoned plans for expansion into western Europe (and therefore Italy).

When did Ottoman expansion resume (after stopped after the death Mehmed the Conqueror)?

When Selim the Grim occupied Syria and Egypt

Who is Selim the Grim?

Süleyman the Magnificent’s father

An Ottoman sultan. He conquered many places

What did Süleyman promote during his reign?

Ottoman conquest in southwest Asia and Europe

What places were conquered under Süleyman’s rule?

• Baghdad

• Tigris/Euphrates valleys

• Rhodes

• Yemen

• Aden

What places were sieged under Süleyman’s rule? What places/groups were attacked through the military?

Vienna and Malta

He also dispatched forces to attack a Portuguese fleet in India

Where did the Ottoman navy have fleets?

In the Aegean and Black seas

How did Süleyman partly get the Ottoman navy?

Inherited it from the Mamluk rulers in Egypt

What did Khayr al-Din Barbarossa Pasha do?

• Challenged Spanish forces in Tunisia and Algeria

• Placed a pirate fleet under the Ottoman flag

• Became Süleyman’s leading admiral

Who was Süleyman’s leading admiral?

Khayr al-Din Barbarossa Pasha

What did the Ottoman navy allow Süleyman to do?

• Challenge Christian vessels in the Mediterranean

• Challenge Portuguese fleets in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean

What was Ismail’s childhood like? What did he want?

When he was 12, he left Gilan where he had been hidden from his family’s enemies. He sought revenge

What title did Ismail claim?

the Persian imperial title, shah

What did shah Ismail and his successors do that is useful for today?

Make accounts of their rise to power

What did shah Ismail’s ancestry trace to?

A leader of the Sufi order in northwest Persia, Safi al-Din

What is the goal of Sufism?

To establish a personal relationship between God and the human soul

What was the importance of Sadi al-Din’s tomb/shrine?

It became the home of Shah Ismail’s family

It was the religious headquarters of the Safavid empire, and was the center of its campaign to gain political power

Why is it called the “Safavid” empire?

After Safi al-Din, who was a holy man and an ancestor of Ismail

How did the Safavids gain support?

They changed their religious preferences to gain popular support

What religion did the Safavids settle on? Why?

(Twelver) Shiism

It appealed to the nomadic Turkish tribes moving there after the Mongol era

What was Twelver Shiism based on?

The idea that there were twelve infallible imams (religious leaders) after Muhammad, starting with Ali

The 12th imam went into hiding to escape persecution. Twelver Shiites believed that he was alive and would one day return to reclaim power and spread the religion

What did Ismail’s father instruct his followers to do?

Wear a red hat with twelve pleats in memory of the twelve Shiite imams

Who were the qizilbash?

Those who wore red hats with twelve pleats in memory of the twelve Shiite imams

What did Safavid propaganda suggest? What were the peoples’ views of this?

That Ismail was the hidden imam or an incarnation of Allah

Most Shiite and Muslims saw the claims as wrong, but the qizilbash accepted them because they resembled the Turkish tradition that leadership was associated with divine military leaders

Why did the qizilbash accept the claims that Ismail was the hidden imam or an incarnation of Allah?

Because the claims resembled the Turkish tradition that leadership was associated with divine military leaders

What did the qizilbash believe about Ismail? Result?

That he would make them invincible in battle

They were extremely loyal to the Safavid cause

What gave Ismail’s rule a distinct identity?

• Its mix of Shiite and Turkish traditions

• Because the conversion to Shiite was mandatory for the mostly Sunni population

Why did the Safavids/Ismail create powerful enemies?

• Because the conversion to Shiite was mandatory for the mostly Sunni population

• believed that the 1st legitimate to Mohammed was Abu Bakr not Ali

• Sunni feared Safavid propaganda reaching the territory of nomadic Turks

What happened when Selim the Grim became sultan?

• Launched persecution of Shiites in the Ottoman Empire

• Prepared for the full-scale invasion of Safavid territory

(he was a Sunni Ottoman)

What did the Ottomans use in the Battle of Chaldiran? What did it do for them?

Heavy artillery and firearms

It have them a technological advantage

What was the Battle of Chaldiran?

a battle where Ottomans faced the Safavids. In it, Qizilbash (Safavid) cavalry attacked the Ottoman line. There were lots of casualties. When Ismail slipped away, the Ottomans temporarily occupied Tabriz. This badly damaged the Safavid state, but the Ottomans didn’t have the resources to destroy it.

What happened when Ismail slipped away from the Battle of Chaldiran?

the Ottomans temporarily occupied Tabriz

Why were the Ottomans that invaded the Safavid empire unable to destroy the empire, and only damage it?

the Ottomans didn’t have the resources to destroy it

What did Shah Abbas the Great do with his reign?

Revitalized the Safavid empire

Where did Shah Abbas move the Safavid capital? Why?

Isfahan

Because of its more central location

Who did Shah Abbas seek assistance from? Why?

Europeans

For help against the Ottomans and the Portuguese in the Persian Gulf

What did new military forces do for the Safavids? Examples?

It led the Safavids to many wins

• Attacked and defeated the nomadic Uzbeks

• Expelled the Portuguese

• Engaged the Ottomans in wars

What did campaigns bring for the Safavid empire?

Most of northwestern Iran, Caucasus, and Mesopotamia under Safavid rule

Who was Zahir al-Din Muhammad?

Babur

A Chaghatai Turk that claimed descent from Chingis’s Khan and Tamerlane.

Where did Babur appear?

Northern India

Babur make little pretense to be ___

Anything more than an adventurer and soldier of fortune (the same as his ancestors)

Who was Babur’s father?

A prince of Farghana (in Uzbekistan)

What was Babur’s ambition?

To transform his inheritance into a central Asian empire

What kept Babur from extending his authority?

Relatives and Uzbek enemies didn’t like his ambitions and kept him from doing it

Where was the furthest Babur extended his authority?

Kabul and Quandahar (Afghanistan)

Where did Babur turn his attention?

India

How did Babur conquer India?

Using gunpowder artillery and firearms, they mounted invasions. They conquered Delhi

Why did the Mughals dislike newly conquered India? What did Babur do?

Because of the hot and humid climate. They wanted to take the spoils of war and leave. Babur made them to stay

Why did Babur want to stay in India?

He wanted to use the wealth of India to build a central Asian empire like Tamerlane had done

What did Babur establish before his death?

A loosely knit empire from Kabul to Bengal. He founded the Mughal dynasty that eventually embraced most of India

Who was Babur’s grandson?

Akbar

When/how did Akbar get power?

Akbar murdered Adham Kahn (a figure of court and commander of the Mughal army) during an argument, and took control of the Mughal government. He did not tolerate challenges to his rule

How did Akbar transform the government?

He created a centralized administrative structure where ministries regulated provinces of the empire

What consolidated Mughal power?

Military campaigns

What kingdom did the Mughal empire absorb? What did this do?

The Hindu kingdom, Vijayanagar

Laid the foundation for Mughal expansion in southern India

What was Akbar interested in?

Religion and philosophy

What was Akbar’s policy on religion? Why?

He was religiously tolerant

He hoped it would reduce tensions between the Hindus and Muslims in India

What religion did Akbar encourage? What was it?

A syncretic religion, the “divine faith”

It was a religion that focused on the emperor as a ruler common to all groups

What was special about Akbar? Why was this ironic?

He was illiterate. This was ironic because he enjoyed religion, philosophy, and literature

Who did the Mughal empire reach its extent under?

Aurangzeb

What did Aurangzeb do during his reign?

Waged a campaign to push Mughal authority into southern India

Where did the Mughal empire rule?

The entire Indian subcontinent except for a small region on the southern tip

Why was the Mughal empire a “troubled” empire?

There were many rebellions and religious tensions generated conflicts between Hindus and Muslims

What religion did Aurangzeb practice? What did he do with the religious policies of the Mughal empire?

Islam

He did away with Akbar’s religious tolerance. he demolished Hindu temples and replaced them with mosques. He imposed a tax on Hindus to encourage Islam conversion

What did the promotion of Islam do? (Mughal)

• It appealed to Mughals and Indian Muslims

• It provoked hostility among Hindus

• It enabled local leaders to organize resistance and rebel against authority

What did the administration in the Safavid, Mughal, and Ottoman empires rely on?

Bureaucracies that drew inspiration from Turkish/Mongol steppe traditions and Islam

In what policies were the Safavid, Mughal, and Ottoman empires similar?

Economic

How were the Safavid, Mughal, and Ottoman empires similar in religion/cultures?

They sought ways to maintain peace in societies with many religions and cultures

What did the rulers of Safavid, Mughal, and Ottoman empires all want to do?

They sought to enhance regime legitimacy through public welfare and association with literary and artistic talent

What did the rulers of Safavid, Mughal, and Ottoman empires regard as their personal possessions? Why?

Military creations (by the right of their conquest)

What did the rulers of Safavid, Mughal, and Ottoman empires regulate/control?

• Armies

• Who occupied government positions

• Adopted and made policies

• Granted use of land to peasant families hereditarily (in return for fixed taxes)

Where did emperors and their families get money from? What did revenues go to?

From crown lands

Revenues from other lands supported military and administration officials

Where did prestige and authority of the dynasties come from?

Piety and military prowess of rulers and ancestors

Which empire was a prominent leader of the Sufi order?

The Safavid empire

Which empires associated with famous Sufis?

Ottoman and Mughal empires

What did devotion to Islam in the Safavid, Mughal, and Ottoman empires encourage?

The spread of the faith (by the rulers)