3.2

Principles of Imperial Legitimacy and Centralization (1450-1750)

• General Context: Between $1450$ and $1750$, land-based empires developed various methods to legitimize and consolidate their authority. Centralization of power typically involved controlling taxes, the military, and religious aspects.

• Administrative Methods:     * Bureaucratic Elites: Rulers used specialized groups to oversee specific sections of the empire.     * Professional Militaries: Developing a standing army loyal to the central government rather than local lords.

• Global Examples of Solidification:     * Inca: Constructed grand temples to reinforce religious and political power.     * Japan: Paid salaries to the samurai (military elite) to ensure loyalty.     * Ottoman Empire: Utilized the devshirme system to recruit a captive bureaucracy.

Centralization of Power in Europe

• Divine Right of Kings:     * Promoted by King James I of England ($1566-1625$), who claimed that the "state of monarchy is the supremest thing upon earth."     * Belief that kings are God’s lieutenants and sit upon God’s throne; they are even called "gods" by God himself.     * Under this philosophy, the king is both a religious and political authority, existing outside the law and any earthly authority.

• England's Justices of the Peace:     * The Tudor Dynasty ($1485-1603$) relied on these officials, who were selected by the landed gentry.     * Oath of Office: They swore to "do equal right to the poor and to the rich after your cunning wit, and power, and after the laws and customs of the realm."     * Role: Maintained peace in English counties, settled legal matters, and carried out monarchical laws. Their power grew significantly, eventually occupying seats in the House of Commons and weakening feudal lords.

• Limits on Power: The English Bill of Rights ($1689$):     * Signed by William and Mary.     * Guaranteed individual civil liberties (e.g., legal process required for arrest).     * Protected against tyranny by requiring Parliament’s agreement for raising an army or levying taxes.

French Absolutism and the Sun King

• Concept of Absolutism: A system directed by one source of power (the king) with complete authority.

• Developmental Leaders:     * Henry IV ($1589-1610$): Followed advisor Jean Bodin’s theories on the divine right.     * Louis XIII ($1610-1643$) and Cardinal Richelieu: Centralized the government further through the "intendant" system.

• The Intendant System:     * Bureaucratic elites (royal officials) sent to provinces to execute central orders.     * Sometimes called "tax farmers" because they oversaw the collection of royal taxes.

• Louis XIV (The Sun King, $1643-1715$):     * Declared "L'etat, c'est moi" (I am the state).     * Combined lawmaking and the justice system into his own person.     * Versailles: Forced nobles to reside in his palace to prevent independent plotting or rebellion.

Comparative Analysis: Emperor Kangxi and Louis XIV

• Emperor Kangxi (China):     * Ruled for $61$ years (Qing Dynasty).     * Supported Western education and the study of sciences.     * Opened ports to international trade and extended control over Tibet.

• King Louis XIV (France):     * Ruled for $72$ years.     * Known as Louis the Great.     * Built the Palace of Versailles and expanded eastern borders.

• Shared Attributes:     * Both became rulers during childhood.     * Both spoke multiple languages and supported the arts.     * Both loved landscape gardens and ruled during their respective empires' golden ages.

Centralizing the Russian Empire

• Social Hierarchy:     1. Boyars: Top noble landowning class.     2. Merchants.     3. Peasants: Eventually sank into serfdom.

• Serfdom: Peasants received land and protection from nobles but were bound to the land. Land transfers included control over the serfs residing there.

• Ivan IV (The Terrible):     * Defeated the Boyars of Novgorod who opposed his expansion.     * Confiscated boyar lands and forced them to relocate to Moscow.     * Oprichnina: A paramilitary force dressed in black, recruited from lower-level bureaucrats and merchants to ensure loyalty to the tsar. Their methods preceded the Russian secret police.

• Peter I (Peter the Great, $1682-1725$):     * Consolidation: Forced his half-sister Sophia into a convent and integrated the rebel Streltsy (elite boyar military) into the regular army.     * Administrative Reform: Divided Russia into $8$ (later $50$) provinces. Officials received salaries to eliminate the "feeding off the land" system (corruption/bribes).     * Senate: Created a council to advise government officials in his absence.

The Ottoman Devshirme System

• Recruitment: Christian boys ($8-20$ years old) were recruited by force from conquered European/Balkan lands.

• Legal Basis: Islamic law forbade the enslavement of "people of the book" (Muslims and Jews), necessitating the recruitment of Christians.

• Tribute: Slaves were considered tribute, traditionally valued at $rac{1}{5}$ of a conquered land's wealth.

• Janissaries: The most famous elite military group within the Ottoman army.

• Roles: Boys received high-level education; some became scribes, tax collectors, diplomats, or the sultan's bodyguards.

• Upward Mobility: Despite being "slaves of the state," the position offered significant power; some parents requested their sons be taken.

Governance and Consolidation in Asia

• Ming Dynasty ($1368-1644$): Focused on erasing Mongol influence from the Yuan period. Reintroduced the civil service exam and national school systems.

• Qing Dynasty: Experienced later corruption; high taxes led to rebellion, which was suppressed by harsh military force.

• Japan's Unification:     * Oda Nobunaga: Used Portuguese muskets to take over Kyoto ($1568$) and unified $rac{1}{3}$ of Japan.     * Toyotomi Hideyoshi: Expanded control over most of Japan (d. $1598$).     * Tokugawa Ieyasu ($1600-1616$): Established the capital at Edo (Tokyo) and founded the Tokugawa Shogunate, beginning the "Period of Great Peace."     * Tokugawa Control: Divided Japan into $250$ "hans" (territories). Implemented a system where daimyo maintained residences in Edo and home territories; families stayed in Edo as hostages to prevent rebellion.

• Mughal Empire and Akbar ($1556-1605$):     * Established a efficient government at Delhi.     * Zamindars: Paid government officials for taxation and construction. Eventually given land grants and kept a portion of peasant taxes (usually $rac{1}{3}$ of produce).     * Decline: Later zamindars became corrupt, keeping more tax money and building loyal private armies.

Legitimizing Authority through Art and Architecture

• St. Petersburg (Russia):     * Seized on the Baltic Sea from Sweden to provide a warm-water port.     * Built with forced labor (peasants/POWs) on a rectangular grid unlike Moscow.     * Winter Palace: Designed in European rather than Byzantine style to show admiration for Western rulers.

• Mughal Architecture:     * Shah Jahan ($1628-1658$): Built the Taj Mahal as a tomb for his wife.     * Combined Islamic calligraphy, ceramics, and manuscript illumination with local arts into airy, geometric structures.

• Songhai Empire: Askia the Great ($1493$):     * Promoted Islam as the official religion to unite the empire.     * Made an elaborate pilgrimage to Mecca, similar to Mansa Musa.

• Ottoman Achievements:     * Istanbul: Renamed Constantinople; remained the end of the Silk Road.     * Topkapi Palace: Royal residence begun by Mehmed II.     * Suleymaniye Mosque: Magnificent structure in Istanbul ordered by Suleiman I.     * Cultural Preservation: Restored Saint Sophia (Hagia Sophia) as a grand mosque; famous for miniature paintings and illuminated manuscripts.

• Versailles (France): Political instrument with $700$ rooms, $30,000$ acres of gardens, and $1,400$ fountains. It accommodated hundreds of guests and $1,000$ employees, legitimizing Louis XIV’s power.

Financing Empires

• Russian Taxation: Peter the Great established state shipyards and iron mines in the Ural Mountains. When industry failed to meet military costs, he replaced the land tax with a "head tax" ($1718$), increasing peasant oppression.

• Tax Farming:     * Used in the Ottoman and Mughal empires.     * Private collectors/local officials skimmed money, becoming wealthy and corrupt, contributing to long-term economic decline.

• Tax Collection in the Ming Dynasty: Private citizens (wealthy families) collected land taxes. Rates were low, paid in grains or silver. Excessive imperial spending and war late in the dynasty ($1580$) led to bankruptcy.

• Tribute Systems:     * Demanded recognition of power/allegiance.     * China: Korea served as a tributary state.     * Mexica (Aztecs): Stationed officials in capitals to collect tribute from conquered lands.     * Songhai: Assigned governors to tributary states in the Niger Valley so long as local officials obeyed policies.