Gunpowder empires vocab

Gunpowder Empires- Important land-based empires (Russia, Ming and Qing China, Japan, the Ottoman Empire, the Safavid Empire, and the Mughal Empire) that used canon/artillery effectively to subjugate their enemies and build control. The three latter empires were Islamic, and together they represent the height of Muslim political and military power in world history.

Autocratic- Relating to a ruler who has absolute power

Ottoman empire- Islamic state founded by Osman in northwestern Anatolia. It encompassed lands in the middle east, north Africa, the Caucasus, and eastern Europe

Suleiman the magnificent or Suleiman Kanunu "the lawgiver"- The most illustrious sultan of the Ottoman Empire. He significantly expanded the empire in the Balkans and eastern Mediterranean.

Mehmet- Ottoman sultan that conquered Constantinople in 1453

Janissaries- Infantry, originally of slave origin, armed with firearms and constituting the elite of the ottoman army until the corps was abolished in 1826

Devshirme- A system that took place under the Ottoman Empire, introduced under Sultan Murad 2 in the 1420's. The sultan would collect Christian boys from the Balkans and turn them into his slaves

Siege of Vienna- Suleiman commanded the greatest Ottoman assault against Europe, conquering Belgrade in 1521, laying siege to Vienna in 1529, and retreating only when the onset of winder made it impractical to stay. Had Vienna fallen, some historians speculate that the Ottomans may well have overrun the weak Holy Roman Empire.

Tulip period- Last years of the reign of ottoman sultan Ahmed III, during which European styles and attitudes became briefly popular in Istanbul

Safavid empire- Iranian kingdom established by Ismal Safavi, who declared Iran a Shi'ite state

Shi’ites- Muslims belonging to the branch of Islam believing that god vests leadership of the community in a descendent of Muhammad's son-in-law Ali. The state religion of Iran

Hidden imam- Last in a series of 12 descendants of Muhammad's son-in-law Ali, whom Shi’ites consider divinely appointed leaders of the Muslim community. In occlusion he is expected to return as a messiah at the end of time

Ismail- Founder of the Safavid Empire; declared official religion Twelver Shi’ism

Shah Abbas I- The fifth and most renowned ruler of the Safavid dynasty in Iran (used better cannons, more efficient military, and brought European advisors to assist him in his wars with the Ottomans). He moved the royal Capitol to Isfahan far inland (away from the sea-based trade that was transforming the world.

Mughal empire- Muslim state exercising dominion over most of India

Akbar- Most illustrious sultan of the Mughal empire in India. He expanded the empire and pursued a policy of conciliation with Hindus (tolerant of Hinduism, but the responsibility of Mughal rulers to Islam was always clear).

Mansabs- In India, grants of land given in return for service by rulers of the Mughal empire

Rajputs- Members of a mainly Hindu warrior caste from northwest India. The Mughal emperors drew most of their Hindu officials from this caste and Akbar married a princes from this caste.

Achen sultanate- Muslim kingdom in northern Sumatra. Main center of Islamic expansion in Southeast Asia, it declined after the Dutch seized Malacca from Portugal

Oman- Arab state based in Musqat, at the main port in the southeast region of the Arabic peninsula. It succeeded Portugal as the power in the western Indian Ocean

Nawab- A Muslim prince allied to British India; technically a semi-autonomous deputy of the Mughal emperor

Swahili- Bantu language with Arabic loanwords spoken in coastal regions of east Africa

Batavia- Fort established as headquarters of Dutch east India company operations in Indonesia; today the city of Jakarta

Sikhism- A monotheistic religion founded in Punjab in the 15th century by Guru Nanak; faced oppression by the Islamic Mughal Empire

Sati- Hindu practice of suicide of widows by jumping into their husband’s funerals pyres

Taj Mahal- monument for Mughal Shah Jahan’s wife; example of role women played and influence

Muscovy- Russian principality that emerged gradually during the era of Mongol domination. Dynasty ruled 1276-1598

Tsar (czar)- From Latin, Caesar, this Russian title for a monarch was first used in reference to Russian ruler by Ivan III

Siberia- The extreme north-eastern sector of Asia

Cossacks- Peoples of the Russian Empire who lived outside the farming villages, often as herders, mercenaries, or outlaws. Led the conquest of Siberia in the 16^th and 17^th centuries.

Serf- In Russia, agricultural laborer legally bound to lord’s property; some worked as artisans and in factories; not abolished in Russia until 1861.

Peter the Great- Russian tsar (1689-1725); He enthusiastically introduced Western languages and technologies to the Russian elite, moving the capital from Moscow to the new city of St. Petersburg (helped modernized Russia)