Ottoman Empire Research Articles

Raiders, Sultans, and the Legacy of Conquest: Byzantine Perspectives on the Ottoman Expansion

The transition from the Byzantine Empire to the Ottoman Empire marks a pivotal period in history, characterized by cultural exchange, conflict, and territorial expansion. This article attempts to examine Byzantine perspectives on the emergence and growth of the Ottoman Empire, primarily relying on the narrations from the works of Byzantine historians Chalkokondyles and Doukas. By analyzing their accounts, it becomes evident that the Byzantines viewed the Ottomans through a complex lens, acknowledging their military prowess while also condemning their methods of conquest. Key themes explored include the origins of the Ottomans, the tactics of Ottoman cavalry raiders, and the portrayal of Ottoman rulers. Contrary to the notion of Ottoman warriors as holy crusaders, Chalkokondyles and Doukas depict them as economically motivated plunderers, driven by a desire for wealth and slaves rather than religious motivations. Additionally, the Byzantine historians offer varied assessments of Ottoman sultans, praising those who exhibited goodwill towards the Byzantine Empire while criticizing those who posed a threat. Ultimately, this analysis challenges prevailing narratives about the Ottomans and underscores the importance of Byzantine sources in shaping our understanding of this transformative era in history.

Difficulties in rebuilding historic bridges after conflicts: the case of the Mosul stone bridge

Historic bridges are crucial city landmarks, requiring expert input to preserve them in accordance with international policies and approaches. This ensures the protection of their historical and architectural value and their preservation for as long as possible. During conflict and war, bridges often suffer significant damage, leading to extensive destruction or complete demolition. The historic stone bridge over the Al-Khosar River in Mosul, constructed during the Ottoman era in 1856, sustained direct damage during the military operations in 2017, resulting in the substantial destruction of parts of the bridge. The objective of this study is to examine the challenges and constraints encountered during the reconstruction of this significant urban landmark. To this end, the architectural and engineering aspects of the project will be analysed, while also highlighting the difficulties in adhering to the standards and requirements set forth in international conventions and legislation pertaining to the preservation of historical urban landmarks and the protection of these structures from extinction. Subsequently, a series of conclusions and recommendations will be presented, offering insights to inform future endeavours involving the restoration of similarly invaluable edifices.

Esad Feyzi (1874-1902): Turkey's Pioneering Radiologist.

Dr. Esad Feyzi was a pioneering physician who lived in the 19th-century Ottoman Empire and made significant contributions to the field of medicine. Despite passing away at the young age of 28, he achieved notable scientific advancements during his lifetime. Most prominently, he developed the first X-ray device in his country despite the limited resources available to him. Alongside his classmate, Dr. Rıfat Osman, he was among the first to utilize radiological applications in the treatment of wounded soldiers during wartime, a feat accomplished while he was still a student. In this context, Dr. Esad Feyzi is regarded as a significant leader in the field of radiology within Turkish medical history, influencing advancements in this field up to the present day. The purpose of this article is to provide a brief introduction to the life of Dr. Esad Feyzi.

Türkçülüyün Azərbaycan Ədəbi Düşüncəsinə Təsiri

The emergence of Turkism in Azerbaijani literature occurred after the rise of literary Turkism in Ottoman Turkey, where it first developed and flourished. Although ideas of Turkification or a return to Turkism, as proposed by Ottoman thinkers, writers, and educators, initially sparked debate, over time these ideas evolved into an ideology and eventually a well-established concept. Unlike political Turkism, literary Turkism gained widespread acceptance among the people through the works of writers and poets, who awakened national feelings and patriotism. The ideas of literary Turkism gradually transcended Ottoman Turkey’s borders, spreading into the Azerbaijani literary environment and influencing Azerbaijani writers and poets. In Azerbaijan, people discussed these ideas, which piqued their interest through newspapers, magazines, and books published in Istanbul. Azerbaijani writers and thinkers, inspired by these ideas, promoted them in their writings and sought to make them widespread. Even earlier, Mirza Fatali Akhundov, by creating works in his native language, laid the foundation for Turkism in terms of writing and language, albeit indirectly. After him, Hasan bey Zardabi, Ahmad bey Aghaoghlu, and especially Ali bey Huseynzadeh, contributed significantly to this movement through their writings. This paper explores the emergence, development, and dissemination of literary Turkism in Azerbaijan.

The Life of Science and Thought in the Period of Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror

The Ottoman Empire was one of the principalities established in Anatolia after the Mongol invasion. The principality embarked on a conquest movement in the border region to make room for Turkmen coming from the east. In this process, after becoming politically stronger, it fought with both Byzantium and Anatolian principalities and gave importance to science, art, and education. As a result, it attracted the attention of scholars in the region in a short time. Because the Seljuks had left a great scientific heritage. It was only natural that this legacy would be passed on to the state that held political sovereignty. In time, the Ottoman Principality became the center of this heritage. With Fatih, the state entered a new phase and claimed the heritage of both the East and the West. This study will examine the impact of the new understanding that began with Fatih on Ottoman scientific thought and education. In addition, the influence of the Fatih complex on the later madrasas and educational institutions will be tried to be revealed. Our sources are the Fatih Foundation, and the studies based on it.

ARCHITECTURAL AND STRUCTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF MİMAR SİNAN MOSQUES: A CLASSIFICATION STUDY

With the conquest of Istanbul, the Ottoman Empire synthesized the building culture of Islam and the Seljuks with Byzantine architecture and built magnificent structures. The domed central space is an important element of Turkish mosque architecture, and many original attempts were made in this direction. In the 16th century, when Ottoman architecture reached its most glorious age, the idea of creating a clear space was put into practice in the Ottoman period by removing the closed courts shaped around the central dome used in Seljuk architecture in terms of plan construction. The centralist fiction developed with Mimar Sinan and reached its highest point with the Selimiye Mosque. The subject of this study is the domed mosques built by Mimar Sinan. Within the scope of the research, first, a list of mosques designed and built by Mimar Sinan was prepared, and a literature review was conducted. These buildings were evaluated typologically in terms of their construction dates, plan types, last congregation features, number of minarets and minaret balconies, and construction materials. These buildings' structural features and transition elements to the dome were also classified. In this way, it is aimed to associate the mosques designed and built by Mimar Sinan typologically.

Traces of Ottoman Modernization in Abdullah Fréres' Street Photographs of Istanbul

The history of photography is also the history of modernity and modernization. In other words, it is both an important element and proof of modernity. Street photographs, on the other hand, are visual documents that can present objective images of daily life through the public sphere. This study aims to examine the modernization steps of the Ottoman Empire in the second half of the 19th century through Abdullah Fréres’ Istanbul street photographs and to make a visual analysis of the change in the multinational society structure. Following the invention of photography in 1839, the documentation of Ottoman modernization through photography is as important as written documents in terms of objective history reading. The visual reading was made through street images in this study because street photographs reflect reality directly and provide rich visual data. The reason why Abdullah Fréres’, the court photographer of that era, photographs were preferred is that the siblings took many street photographs in different periods and regions of Istanbul during their careers between 1858 and 1899. The visual analysis was limited to thirteen Istanbul street photographs, as the photography studios of the period were mostly in the Pera region of the capital Istanbul and it was thought that it would be appropriate to bring a geographical limitation to the study. It is thought that the study will contribute to both the theory of photography and the field of history, as it is evidence that a multi-layered visual history reading can be made through the early examples of street photography in the Ottoman capital. As a result of the study, it was found that the street photographs signed by Abdullah Fréres carried traces of the reforms in the second half of the 19th century and this transformation process progressed slowly.

Ossetes in Ottoman Anatolia: Resettlement and Construction of a Diasporic Homeland (the Second Half of the XIX–the Beginning of the XX c.)

The article examines the processes of immigration (muhajirism) of Ossetes to the Ottoman Empire in the mid-XIX century and their subsequent internal migrations in Eastern and Central Anatolia. It evaluates the specifics of economic, social, and ethnopolitical adaptation and integration of the migrants and the construction of their own socio-cultural diasporic space in their new homeland. Particular attention is paid to the characteristics of the relationships of Ossetes with the indigenous population of the regions of settlement and with other North Caucasian muhajirs.

Andalusian and Classical Ottoman Mosque Architecture Features

Cultures have met and influenced each other throughout history, and new and original products have emerged. Andalusian works, which were formed under the influence of Islamic and Christian architectural culture in history, and Ottoman architectural works, which were put forward by considering aesthetics and symmetry, are worth examining and are the subject of many scientific studies. In this study, the characteristics of Andalusian and Ottoman mosque architectures, which represent two peaks in Islamic civilization, were examined and compared. There is a perfect harmony between the multi-column and horseshoe-shaped arches in Andalusian mosques, but this situation creates a dim image. In terms of external appearance, it is reported that the mosques face north, and there is one square-based minaret here. The minarets, which have survived to the present day, have the appearance of a high building and terraces on the upper parts used for observation purposes. In the Ottoman Empire, minarets were built more than once in mosques built by dynasty members and in sultanate mosques, giving the city an aesthetic appearance and being symmetrical with the mosque. In this study, architectural features of mosques in terms of columns, plan, facade arrangement, light order and amount, mortar figures, plant and flower figures, tile decoration, Kufic script, use of bricks, number of minarets, the shape of minarets, arch, color type, and construction process. These features were compared and discussed in the light of social and cultural effects. Keywords: Andalusia; Ottoman; Architecture; Mosque; Culture.

Aviation Themed Films in Turkish Cinema

Some researchers describe aviation and cinema as fields developed in parallel timelines (Paris,1995; Crompton, 2007; Carlson, 2012; Ferguson, 2015). Aviation films attract audiences' attention across eras and typically emerge as political productions based on national codes and nationalist discourse. Art, particularly cinema, can be seen as one of the essential ideological instruments in establishing national consciousness. The role of art as a state policy becomes increasingly significant during the founding period of the Republic of Türkiye as a means of national identity. The state-initiated cinema activities shortly after its invention in the Ottoman Empire and continued them during the Republic's early years. Although the events recorded in the early periods were deemed necessary for the state, it cannot be said that the new regime and national identity were effectively constructed through cinema as much as other arts. However, the relationship between art, politics, and cinema was recognized over time, and productions in this field began to be produced. The present study assumes that cinema as a political tool is vital in nation-building. The study aims to examine the political function of aviation-themed Turkish films, with a specific focus on Hürkuş Göklerdeki Kahraman (2018) (Hürkuş: Hero of the Sky), a fictional action aviation film directed by Kudret Sabancı. This film serves as a compelling case study for our research. The production was analyzed through ideological and historical film criticism.

FROM PAST TO PRESENT: A SOCIOCULTURAL PERSPECTIVE ON JEWS OF URFA

ABSTRACT: The expulsion from Spain led to the Ottoman State becoming a peaceful refuge for Jewish communities. Over time, Ottoman Jewry evolved into one of the most culturally diverse religious minority groups and was widely dispersed throughout the State. Additionally, Jewish communities thrived in various Arab provinces and different regions of Anatolia. Notably, there were ancient Jewish settlements in the eastern part of the initial Ottoman State, which later became Turkey. The Jewish community of Urfa, residing in the eastern part of the country, was one of the oldest religious minority groups in the region. This study aims to thoroughly examine the historical background, social and cultural relationships, and the migration process of the Urfa Jewish Community, which transitioned from the eastern region of Turkey to settle in Israel. Furthermore, the study seeks to shed light on aspects of their lifestyle, religious beliefs, and interactions with other local groups and cultures within the multicultural environment of Urfa. This research has entailed anthropological fieldwork conducted in Israel between the years 2011-2012, with a focus on a socio-cultural perspective. Ultimately, the objective is to elevate the visibility of these historically overlooked local people of Urfa and bring attention to their unique cultural heritage within the academic discourse. Keywords: Jews, Ethnography, Urfa, Culture, Migration, Memory

Mumia: Luxury Between Art and Medicine in Safavid Iran and Ottoman Turkey

Abstract Mumia, a kind of omnipotent panacea or simply cure-all drug, was a highly valued rare substance with a long and complex history that nevertheless fell into oblivion towards the end of the eighteenth century. From ancient times to the early modern period, a range of naturally found materials and substances related to the preservation of or parts of human and animal corpses have been associated with mumia, mummy, and related words. Used as a drug for a range of illnesses and conditions, in the sixteenth century mineral mumia extracted from mountains in Iran was believed to have extraordinary potency. This article examines a selection of sources that discuss mumia’s substance, collection, use, and exchange. A rediscovery of this material expands the vocabulary of early modern visual and material culture. More significantly, as a forgotten, non-global object, mumia also highlights the limits and the conceptual boundaries of that vocabulary.

The Yafo (Jaffa) Harbor: The Course of the Seawalls during the Crusader and Ottoman Periods and Remains of the Wharf from the Days of the British Mandate (Hebrew; English summary)

The Yafo (Jaffa) Harbor: The Course of the Seawalls during the Crusader and Ottoman Periods and Remains of the Wharf from the Days of the British Mandate (Hebrew; English summary)

The question of sustainability through reuse in the case of the population-exchange heritage: a critical look at the reuse types and conservation status of the Bursa churches

ABSTRACT This article examines the architectural and socio-cultural changes of the Bursa churches after the 1923 Population Exchange between Türkiye and Greece. Church architecture emerged in Anatolia in the 4th century CE and continued to develop throughout the Byzantine and Ottoman periods. If the takeover of Anatolian cities by the Ottoman state constituted the first significant historical threshold for the reuse of churches as mosques, the Turkish-Greek Population Exchange in 1923 constituted the second threshold. The Bursa Churches were subjected to physical and socio-cultural changes after 1923. Taking into account the current literature on reuse which highlights adaptive reuse practices that decrease energy use, and carbon emissions and contribute to social, cultural and economic sustainability; this study focuses on the critical evaluation of some early twentieth-century reuse practices of churches in Türkiye in terms of their contribution to the social and economic sustainability framework. As a methodology, to evaluate the social, economic and architectural sustainability of the Bursa churches, four different methods were used, and the data collected was holistically assessed to understand the sustainability of the reuse of the Bursa Churches. The four methods integrally utilized are multiple case studies, literature review and archival research, preparation of architectural drawings and conducting interviews. The results show that the introduction and removal of certain religious architectural elements during the conversion of the monuments vary for each structure. From the viewpoint of architectural conservation and sustainability of the monuments, the change in the social structure resulted in the architectural change as well as the change in the spirit of the place. On the other hand, due to economic reasons, the conversion process in the early years of the Turkish Republic was realized with minimum intervention. The paper ends with suggestions to enhance this unique heritage's social, economic, and physical sustainability.

An Archival Investigation into the Imposition of Bans and Censorship on the Works of Jurji Zaydan during the Ottoman Era

The Lebanese-Ottoman writer, Jurji Zaydan, was criticized for prioritizing the study of Isrâiliyat in his historical works, in line with his positivist methodology. This paper analyzes the criticisms and opinions of Jurji Zaydan’s work in the Ottoman Archives. This study utilizes the qualitative research method of document analysis. Zaydan's Târîhu't-Temedduni'l-Islâmî, Fetâtu Ğassân and Târih-i Umûmî/et-Târîhu'l-Âm were banned from being published, distributed brought into the Ottoman Empire. Understanding Zaydan’s thought requires awareness of the cultural climate of the Enlightenment (Nahda) and Tanzimat reforms, Arabs populations’ attempts to negotiate increased independence, as well as the effects of nationalism, socialism and liberalism on the late Ottoman Empire. From the mid-19th century onwards, British and French colonial policies promoted scientific positivism, including theories of Social Darwinism and racialized theories of civilization. This study navigates Zaydan’s thought within the context of these colonial policies and the historical effect of social engineering on intellectuals from the Eastern Mediterranean to the Indian Subcontinent.

Resonance Of Reformist-Modernist Islamic Thought in Interpretation and Its Influence on The Development of Interpretation in Indonesia

At the end of the Ottoman rule, Muslims experienced extraordinary setbacks in various fields. This is suspected to be due to several factors, including the difficulty of Muslims in understanding Islam, the spread of an understanding of Islam which seems old-fashioned, and the practice of practicing Islamic teachings which is considered quite deviant. One of the causes of all these causes is that the verses of the Quran that are understood are not in accordance with the context of the times. This research aims to explain interpretations with reformist-modernist nuances in the context of ideology, influence, relevant interpreters, and criticism of traditional Islam. The research method used is qualitative with descriptive analysis based on literature study. The conclusion of this research shows that the development of reformist tafsir emerged as a response to the decline of Muslims in all aspects of life. Reformers such as Jamaluddin Al-Afghani, Muhammad Abduh and Rasyid Rida had a significant influence on the development of tafsir with reformist-modernist nuances. Prominent mufassir in the archipelago who helped develop interpretations with reformist nuances include A. Hassan, Oemar Bakri, Buya Hamka, and KH. Bisri Musthofa..The leaders of the reformist movement also criticized many traditionalists who they considered to prioritize blind taqlid and were exposed to bid'ah and khurafat.

From Arming to Fighting? The Steps to War, Mutual Military Buildups and Dispute Onset in the Greece-Ottoman Empire/Turkey Rivalries

Recent developments in the operationalization of mutual military buildups raise some questions about the findings of the quantitative literature on the association of mutual military buildups (MMB) and militarized dispute (MID) onset in the Greece-Ottoman Empire and Greece-Turkey dyads. We use the novel data to evaluate that relationship, working within the Steps to War explanatory framework. The Greece-Ottoman Empire and Greece-Turkey cases are puzzles for the framework, since on the one had they have a frequent presence of the Steps to War but have far fewer wars than we would expect. Our analysis indicates that despite that puzzling incongruity the Greece - Ottoman Empire and Greece-Turkey cases are good fits for the Steps to War, except when it comes to the role of mutual military buildups. We find indicators that while the other factors of Steps to War have a positive combined association with MID onset, the inclusion of mutual military buildups renders such an association statistically insignificant. On the other hand, we do find indicators that mutual military buildups may contribute to the transition from Lesser to Severe Rivalry, as per the Steps to Rivalry. Finally, the dyads reach infection periods that make war more likely as per the Steps to War. But many expected wars do not take place. We posit two possible explanations for future research: deterrence, or major power managerial coordination.

Resounding 1923

The introduction provides an overview of the concepts and topics explored in this themed issue. It begins by reflecting on practices of commemoration and the significance of 1923 in modern Turkish history. It then discusses the concept of “modernities” in relation to the Ottoman Empire and post-Ottoman nation-states, both in terms of musical developments and broader political and cultural processes. It emphasizes continuities and interactions between Ottoman and post-Ottoman periods, as well as between Europe and Turkey, and highlights the global diversity of experiences of modernity as demonstrated by a range of scholarship in musicology and other fields. The final section summarizes the contributions to the themed issue.

Gazza Rüştiye School

Abstract One of the modernisation movements in the 19th century of the Ottoman Empire was the setting up of rüştiye schools. The first of these was the one which was opened in Davut Pasha School in İstanbul, by Ahmet Kemal Efendi, in 1847. Following the success of this first initiative, the number of rüştiyes was increased. In 1863, there were 13 schools in Istanbul, one of which was for girls. The other 48 rüştiyes were located in the provinces, and The Maarif-i Umumiye Regulation published in 1869 was influential in this propagation. When in 1873, the number of rüştiyes had reached 307, throughout the country, and at the end of the Sultan Abdülhamid II era, this number became 619. Rüştiye school in Gaza, the subject of this article, was one of them. This study, based on the Ottoman archival documents, examines the opening of Gaza Rüştiye School, the early staff appointed there, provisions of teaching materials matching the modern standards, and rewards given to the teachers. The other point examined is to detect the academic achievements of the students via the exam tables inherited from this school. Within this context, it has been tried to present an instance of an institutional educational history study of the Gaza Rüştiye School, specific to the effort to establish a modern educational understanding in Gaza town.

Transcultural Memory in the Study of Folk Music in Turkey

In this article, I argue that gramophone records by first-generation Armenian immigrants in the United States can be considered some of the earliest field recordings, so much so as if they had been collected from local people in Anatolia. Although such 78-rpm records have not received sufficient disciplinary interest as field recordings in ethnomusicology due to their commercial nature, they are among the earliest sound recordings from any region of the world. Not only because they are commercial, but also because they constructed counternarratives against the “national music” project of the Republican era, these recordings have also been ignored in the music historiography of Turkey. The content of the folk songs recorded in the diaspora is very similar to those collected by state-led recording expeditions in Turkey from the 1920s to 1950s. However, the diasporic recordings are more multilingual, reflecting the ethnic, religious, and cultural plurality of the Ottoman Empire. Emphasizing their performative and relational nature, I propose that 78-rpm records of the Ottoman diaspora (focusing especially on recordings of Armenian migrants from Harput/Kharpert) reconstruct the local space and function as sites of transcultural memory as defined by multilingualism and the effective use of makam music.