Islamic Gunpowder EmpiresCh. 26 Ottomans & Safavids

2012

Islamic Gunpowder Empires• Mongol conquests of the 13th and 14th centuries

destroyed remaining Muslim unity in southern Asia • Three new early modern empires emerged:

– Ottoman– Safavid– Mughal

• All were Muslim, had strong militaries and employed gunpowder technology

• These are the first post-Mongol Islamic empires to use gunpowder weapons extensively. Most militaries shifting to gunpowder at this point: Chinese invented it, Europe imported it from Mongols.

The Ottoman Empire

Credit: Jennifer Martinez, “The Evolution of the Middle East”

Crest of the Ottoman Empire

The empire lasted

641 years from

1281 to 1922

Rise of Ottoman Empire

Osman established the Ottoman Empire in northwestern Anatolia in 1300.

He and his successors: – Consolidated control over Anatolia – Fought Christian enemies in Greece and

in the Balkans. – Captured Serbia and the Byzantine

capital of Constantinople in 1453.– Established a general border with Iran.

Monumental architecture usually is categorized as “cultural.” How can it also be

categorized as “political?”

• How can monumental architecture display political power of a ruler?

• How can monumental architecture legitimize political power of a ruler?

• Answer these two questions by analyzing architecture of the Ottoman and Safavid Empires.

Hagia SophiaBuilt by Emperor Justinian. Remember we studied the Hagia Sophia in Chapter 14 way back in August? What do you already know about this example of monumental architecture?

Hagia Sophia(Formerly Saint Sophia)•Hagia Sophia is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey. •From the date of its dedication in 360 until 1453, it served as the Greek Patriarchal cathedral of Constantinople, except between 1204 and 1261, when it was converted to a Roman Catholic cathedral under the Latin Patriarch of Constantinople of the Western Crusader established Latin Empire. •The building was a mosque from 29 May 1453 until 1931, when it was secularized. It was opened as a museum on 1 February 1935.

• Can you determine which elements are from the Byzantine Empire and which reflect the Ottoman Empire?

• More pictures of the Hagia Sophia:• http

://www.tumblr.com/tagged/hagia-sophia

Suleymaniye (Mosque of Suleiman)

Do you see any of the artistic elements of (religious) Islamic art :

geometric, calligraphy, vegetal, or figural?

Blue Mosque of Istanbul

Blue MosqueThe Sultan Ahmet Mosque was built by Sultan Ahmet I between 1609 and 1616.The mosque is popularly known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior.The beautiful geometric interior of the Blue Mosque was designed by Sedefkar Mehmet Aga, a student of the great Ottoman architect Sinan. Istanbul Turkey

Topkapi Palace, Istanbul

Image of Close up of golden doors in the interior of the Topkapi Palace

Tile Panel Topkapi Palace, Istabul

Tile Panel Topkapi Palace, Istabul

• This large ceramic tile was made by Sahkulu, a famous painter. Sahkulu mastered the technique of executing his drawings in cobalt pigment on fritware ceramic.

• -This tile panel was a gift to the Sultan as part of a system of exchanging of gifts between the sultan and his establishment. The sultan had to maintain his superiority by outdoing his subjects in the lavishness of his gifts; condescension is expressed in the term “in’am” used for the sultan’s gifts, as the word indicates a favor done to a social inferior.

• -The main component of the “favors” done to the court craftsmen at festival time was cash, and the substantial sums the received in return must have been a significant part of their annual income.

• “Gifts of the Sultan,” p. 163

Decline of the Ottoman Empire

• Problems developed within the Ottoman empire including poor leadership and corruption

• The rising power of European nations also led to its decline

• The Ottomans were cut off from global trade routes, limiting cultural diffusion and new ideas

• By the 1700’s, European technology surpassed that of the Ottomans

• European nations began to industrialize while the Ottomans remained lagged behind.

Other Major Islamic Empires

Safavid (Persia) and Mughal (India) The Safavid Empire was mostly

Shi’ite and a rival of the Ottoman Empire.

The Mughal Empire was an empire in which a Muslim minority controlled a Hindu majority creating a very complex culture.

The Rise of the Safavids• Sufi commander Ismail leads Turkic followers to take

most of what is now Iran. His armies took two years to conquer the region and in 1501, they took Tabriz and he was declared Shah.

• He declared Shi’a Islam to be state religion and used brutal force to make Iran a Shiite land included forced conversions and destruction of the Sunni population of Baghdad

• Safavids and Ottomans rivaled for power and in 1514, their face off was at the Battle of Chaldiran

• The Ottomans used artillery to defeat the Safavids and this set a set “border” between the empires which remains the border between Iran and Iraq today

• Shahs from then on adopt the use of artillery to military and expand empire to the northeast- bringing Christians under Safavid rule.

Abbas the Great and Safavid Golden Age

•Had army of Persians and another army modeled after Ottoman janissaries and both armies were equipped with modern artillery- hence “Gunpowder empire”.

•Promoted religious tolerance by bringing members of Christian religious orders into the empire and fostered cultural exchange

•Built new capital at Isfahan- used Chinese potters to produce glazed building tiles and Armenian immigrants to weave carpets

•Employed a mix of Chinese and Safavid artists created metalwork, miniature paintings, calligraphy, glasswork, tiles, and pottery

•Early Safavid carpets are based on Persian themes but over time, they incorporate European designs after Abbas sends artists to Italy to study under Renaissance artists like Raphael