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Definition: Ottoman Empire from Collins English Dictionary

n

1 the former Turkish empire in Europe, Asia, and Africa, which lasted from the late 13th century until the end of World War I Also called: Turkish Empire

Ottoman Empire

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
(ŏt'ӘmӘn), vast state founded in the late 13th cent. by Turkish tribes in Anatolia and ruled by the descendants of Osman I until its dissolution in 1918. Modern Turkey formed only part of the empire, but the terms “Turkey” and “Ottoman Empire” were often used interchangeably. Economically, socially, and militarily, Turkey was a medieval state, unaffected by the developments in the rest of Europe. Turkish domination over the northern part of Africa (except Tripoli and Egypt) was never well defined or effective, and the eastern border was inconstant, shifting according to frequent wars with Persia. Of the vassal princes, only the khans of Crimea were generally loyal. The sultans themselves had sunk into indolence and depravity. Until the ascension (1603) of Ahmad I, the succession to the throne was habitually contested by all the sons of the deceased sultan, and it was the patriotic duty of the victor to kill his rivals in order to restore order. Although this practice was barbarous, …
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Full text Article Ottoman Empire

From Philip's Encyclopedia
Former Turkish state that controlled much of SE Europe, the Middle East and North Africa between the 14th and 20th centuries. It was founded by Osman I (r.1290-1326). He ruled a small principality in Anatolia, which he greatly enlarged at the expense of the Byzantine Empire . The contest with the…
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Full text Article Ottoman Empire

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Muslim empire of the Turks from 1300 to 1920, the successor of the Seljuk Empire . It was founded by Osman I and reached its height with Suleiman in the 16th century. From 1453 its capital city was Istamboul ( Istanbul ; formerly Constantinople ). At its greatest extent the Ottoman Empire's…
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Full text Article Ottoman Empire

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
(ŏt'ӘmӘn), vast state founded in the late 13th cent. by Turkish tribes in Anatolia and ruled by the descendants of Osman I until its dissolution in 1918. Modern Turkey formed only part of the empire, but the terms “Turkey” and “Ottoman Empire” were often used interchangeably. Economically, socially, …
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Full text Article Ottoman Empire

From Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
The dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, 1807–1924....
Former empire centred in Anatolia . It was named for Osman I (1259–1326), a Turkish Muslim prince in Bithynia who conquered neighbouring regions once held by the Seljūq dynasty and founded his own ruling line c. 1300. Ottoman troops first invaded Europe in 1345, sweeping through the Balkans. Though…
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OTTOMAN EMPIRE
In the wake of the Mongol invasions in 1243 that broke up the Seljuk Turk Empire, Anatolia was filled with small, rival principalities. The group that finally rose to the top was led by Osman, or Othman, who resided in the north-central part of the peninsula at Sogut. According to legend, Sogut's…
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Full text Article Ottoman Empire

From Encyclopedia of Empire
Ottoman Empire: expansion.
imperial history imperialism and conquest minorities nationalism political history protests revolution and social change social history The Ottoman Empire was one of the world's longest enduring empires, ruling over three continents for more than six centuries from the late medieval era to the early…
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1299–1453 In the 13th century a nomadic Turkish tribesman named Ertogrul established control over large parts of northwest Anatolia. The Ottoman Empire took its name from his son Osman (r. 1280–1324); Ottoman was an Italian corruption of Osmanli . As the Seljuk dynasty and other Turkish dynasties, …
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Full text Article Ottoman Empire

From Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary
Former sultanate in Europe, Asia, and Africa, incl. at greatest extent Syria, Egypt, Iraq, Barbary States, Balkan States, Palestine, part of Arabia, and part of Russia and Hungary; ✽ Constantinople. Originated under Osman I c. 1300 as one of the small states that developed among the Turkish tribes…
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The Ottoman Empire was a centralized absolute regime ruled from the top by the sultan. As in other nomadic and Islamic empires, the Ottomans never developed a legal procedure for accession and this was to be a source of instability and weakness. The first sultans were among the most able sons of the…
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After the Ottoman sultan Mehmet II captured Constantinople on May 26, 1453, a new policy regarding minorities was initiated. The Ottomans organized each non-Muslim religious minority, mainly Christians and Jews, into a separate national administration, called a millet (pl. milletler ). The head of…
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