The Ottoman Empire was an imperial state that was founded in 1299 after growing out of the breakdown of several Turkish tribes. The empire then grew to include many areas in what is now present-day Europe. It eventually became one of the largest, most powerful and longest-lasting empires in the history of the world. At its peak, the Ottoman Empire included the areas of Turkey, Egypt, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Macedonia, Hungary, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and parts of the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa.
It had a maximum area of 7.6 million square miles (19.9 million square kilometers) in 1595. The Ottoman Empire began to decline in the 18th century, but a portion of its land became what is now Turkey.
Origin and Growth
- The Ottoman Empire began in the late 1200s during the breakup of the Seljuk Turk Empire. After that empire broke up, the Ottoman Turks began to take control of the other states belonging to the former empire and by the late 1400s, all other Turkish dynasties were controlled by the Ottoman Turks.
- In the early days of the Ottoman Empire, the main goal of its leaders was expansion. The earliest phases of Ottoman expansion occurred under Osman I, Orkhan, and Murad I. Bursa, one of the Ottoman Empire's earliest capitals, fell in 1326. In the late 1300s, several important victories gained more land for the Ottomans and Europe began to prepare for Ottoman expansion.
- After some military defeats in the early 1400s, the Ottomans regained their power under Muhammad I. In 1453, they captured Constantinople. The Ottoman Empire then entered its height and what is known as the Period of Great Expansion, during which time the empire came to include the lands of over ten different European and Middle Eastern states. It is believed that the Ottoman Empire was able to grow so rapidly because other countries were weak and unorganized, and also because the Ottomans had advanced military organization and tactics for the time.
- In the 1500s, the Ottoman Empire's expansion continued with the defeat of the Mamluks in Egypt and Syria in 1517, Algiers in 1518, and Hungary in 1526 and 1541. In addition, parts of Greece also fell under Ottoman control in the 1500s.
- In 1535, the reign of Sulayman I began and Turkey gained more power than it had under previous leaders. During the reign of Sulayman I, the Turkish judicial system was reorganized and Turkish culture began to grow significantly. Following Sulayman I's death, the empire began to lose power when its military was defeated during the Battle of Lepanto in 1571.
