Land-Based Empires (1450-1750)

Empires Expand (1450-1750)

• Land-based empires expanded using gunpowder weapons, giving them an advantage over tribal groups.
• Empires used centralized bureaucracies like the Devshirme system and tribute tax systems.
• Examples:
  • Safavids: Shi'a Islam
  • Ottomans: Sunni Islam
  • Europe: Divine Right
  • China: Mandate of Heaven
• Economic motivations included control of trade routes like the Silk Road and Indian Ocean.

Empires: Administration (1450-1750)

• Rulers legitimized power through:
  • Religion (Divine Right of Kings in Europe, Mandate of Heaven)
  • Art and architecture (Taj Mahal, Palace of Versailles)
  • Bureaucracies (civil service exam, zamindars, Devshirme)
  • Control of nobility and elites

Empires: Belief Systems (1450-1750)

• Dominant religions: Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism.
• Religious justification for rule and syncretism (Sikhism - Islam + Hinduism).
• Changes:
  • Protestant Reformation (MLK - 95 Theses, Thirty Years War).
  • New branches: Lutheranism, Calvinism.
  • Catholic Counter-Reformation.

Comparison in Land-Based Empires (1450-1750)

• Increased influence through:
  • Military expansion using gunpowder (Ottomans, Mughals, Safavids, Russia).
  • Economic strategies:
    • Ottomans: Silk Road, Eastern Mediterranean.
    • Mughals: Taxation, Indian Ocean trade.
    • Qing: State-managed agriculture, tribute system.
    • Russia: Fur trade.
  • Religious legitimacy:
    • Safavids: Shi'a Islam.
    • Ottomans: Sunni Islam.
    • Mughals: Religious tolerance.
    • Qing: Confucianism.