THE GUNPOWDER EMPIRES

Essential Question: What were the achievements of the “Gunpowder Empires” of the Ottomans, Safavids, and Mughals?

The Safavid Empire (Iran) The Mughal Empire (India) The Ottoman Empire (Turkey) Three of the great empires of history—the Ottomans in Turkey, the Safavids in Persia, and the Mughals in India—emerged in the Muslim world between the 14th and the 18th centuries. As powerful societies moved to expand their empires, Turkish, Persian, Mongol, and Arab ways of life blended. The result was a flowering of Islamic culture that peaked in the 16th century. The rulers of all three great Muslim empires of this era based their authority on Islam. They based their power on strong armies, advanced technology, and loyal administrative officers. From 1300 to 1700, three “Gunpowder Empires” dominated parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia

These three empires were unique but shared some similarities:

Three of the great empires of history—the Ottomans in Turkey, the Safavids in Persia, and the Mughals in India—emerged in the Muslim world between the 14th and the 18th centuries. As powerful societies moved to expand their empires, Turkish, Persian, Mongol, and Arab ways of life blended. The result was a flowering of Islamic culture that peaked in the 16th century. The rulers of all three great Muslim empires of this era based their authority on Islam. They based their power on strong armies, advanced technology, and loyal administrative officers. All three empires were able to conquer neighboring people by forming strong armies that used rifles and artillery; this gave them the nickname “Gunpowder Empires”

AN EXAMPLE OF SAFAVID ARCHITECTURE All three empires blended their cultures with neighboring societies to create a high point of Islamic culture (cultural diffusion) AN EXAMPLE OF SAFAVID ARCHITECTURE

All three empires were Islamic and ruled by Muslim leaders, with well-organized governments made up of loyal bureaucrats

THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

The Ottoman Empire Begins Around 1300, the Muslim Turks of Anatolia were unified and formed the Ottoman Empire (the name came from an early leader named Osman)

The Ottomans used muskets and cannons to form a powerful army and expand their territory

The Ottoman army included 30,000 elite soldiers called janissaries; these fierce soldier-slaves were trained to be completely loyal to their Ottoman Turk rulers zanbūrak Janissaries were usually Bosnian, Bulgarian, Greek, Serbian, or Albanian by blood and Christian by religion; they were taken from their homes at an early age, forced to convert to Islam, and trained to be soldiers

The Byzantine Empire had been around since the fall of the old Roman Empire in the late 400s; Byzantine territory increased and decreased over the years, depending on the outcomes of its wars with neighboring people, such as the Seljuk Turks

By the 1400s, Byzantine territory was chiseled away to almost nothing, except for its capital city, Constantinople

The Byzantine Empire Ends and the Ottoman Empire Begins Constantinople finally fell to the Turks in 1453

With the fall of Constantinople, the Byzantine Empire was conquered by the Seljuk Turks

The Byzantine people (which included Greeks, Syrians, Armenians, Georgians, Jews, Hellenized Asiatic tribes, and others) were made subjects of the new Ottoman Empire; a thousand years of Byzantine rule was over

By the late 1600s, the Ottomans expanded a great deal, taking over much of the Middle East, some of Northern Africa, and a large part of Eastern Europe

Ottoman kings/emperors were called sultans and they governed with absolute power

By the mid-1500s, Suleyman was the most powerful king in the world The greatest Ottoman sultan was Suleyman the Magnificent, who came to power in 1520 By the mid-1500s, Suleyman was the most powerful king in the world

Under Suleyman, the Ottoman Empire reached its height, expanding deep into Eastern Europe Suleyman’s fleet ruled the Mediterranean Sea and controlled the Silk Road trade routes that connected Europe and Asia

Suleyman was stopped by the Holy Roman Empire (various German kingdoms) from taking over ALL of Europe after the unsuccessful Siege of Vienna in 1529; this would be the limit of Ottoman power in Europe

Suleyman’s greatest accomplishment was creating a stable government for the Ottoman Empire He was known as “Suleyman the Lawgiver” because he created a law code that governed criminal and civil issues within his empire

He created a simplified and fair tax system to raise money for his empire He granted freedom of worship to Christians and Jews living in the empire, wisely showing tolerance of his subjects’ ways

Ottoman miniature painting Art, poetry, and architecture flourished under Suleyman as the Ottomans experienced a cultural “golden age” Sinan’s Mosque of Suleyman in Istanbul is the largest mosque in the Ottoman Empire Ottoman miniature painting Mosque of Suleyman by architect, Sinan

Scene from a Turkish movie about Suleyman: the sultan has his son Mustafa strangled To maintain their power against rivals within their own families, Suleyman and other Ottoman sultans executed and/or jailed their sons and brothers, which led to progressively weaker leaders as the most capable sons were eliminated

The Decline of the Ottoman Empire Despite Suleyman’s magnificent social and cultural achievements, the Ottoman Empire was losing ground. Suleyman killed his ablest son and drove another into exile. His third son, the incompetent Selim II, inherited the throne. Suleyman set the pattern for later sultans to gain and hold power. It became customary for each new sultan to have his brothers strangled. The sultan would then keep his sons prisoner in the harem, cutting them off from education or contact with the world. This practice produced a long line of weak sultans who eventually brought ruin on the empire. However, the Ottoman Empire continued to influence the world into the early 20th century. By the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the Ottoman Empire was so weak it was known as the “Sick Man of Europe” and would end in 1922

THE SAFAVID EMPIRE

41a - describe the geographical extent of the Ottoman Empire during the rule of Suleiman the Magnificent, the Safavid Empire during the reign of Shah Abbas I, and the Mughal Empire during the reigns of Babur and Akbar 41b - explain the ways in which these Muslim empires influenced religion, law and the arts in their parts of the world The Safavids were Turks living in Persia who built a powerful gunpowder army and created an empire in modern-day Iran

Unlike the Ottomans (who were Sunni Muslims), the rulers of the Safavid Empire believed in Shi’a Islam and strictly converted the people they conquered The Safavid Empire

Safavid rulers were called shahs, which is the Persian title for king

Abbas borrowed ideas from outside groups to improve the Safavid Empire The greatest ruler of the Safavid Empire was Shah Abbas, who came to power in 1587 Abbas borrowed ideas from outside groups to improve the Safavid Empire

He used the Ottoman idea of janissaries, used merit to employ government workers, and introduced religious toleration (which helped Safavids trade with European Christians)

Art flourished, especially carpets that blended Persian and European designs; these became luxury items highly desired by Europeans

The Decline of the Safavid Empire Like the Ottomans, Shah Abbas blinded or killed his most capable sons in order to keep power As a result, weak leaders led to a rapid decline of the Safavid Empire

The Decline of the Safavid Empire While the Ottoman Empire lasted until 1922, the Safavid Empire fell in 1747 In finding a successor, Shah Abbas made the same mistake the Ottoman monarch Suleyman made. He killed or blinded his ablest sons. His incompetent grandson, Safi, succeeded Abbas. This pampered young prince led the Safavids down the same road to decline that the Ottomans had taken, only more quickly. In 1736, however, Nadir Shah Afshar conquered land all the way to India and created an expanded empire. But Nadir Shah was so cruel that one of his own troops assassinated him. With Nadir Shah’s death in 1747, the Safavid Empire fell apart.

THE MUGHAL EMPIRE

The Mughals were Muslims who descended from Turks, Afghans, and Mongols living in Central Asia

Like the Ottomans and Safavids, the Mughals built a powerful army with guns and cannons

In 1494, Babur became king of the Mughals; he expanded the army and began invasions into India to create his empire

In 1556, Babur’s grandson Akbar became king of the Mughal Empire and expanded the empire into almost all of India

Akbar was the greatest of all the Mughal rulers Akbar’s greatest achievement was cultural blending and religious toleration he instilled in his empire He held religious discussions with Hindu and Muslim scholars

Akbar had many wives, including Muslims, Hindus, and Christians Akbar ended the tax that non-Muslims were required to pay, creating a fair and affordable tax system Because he was Muslim ruling in a largely Hindu region, Akbar allowed non-Muslims to worship freely Akbar had many wives, including Muslims, Hindus, and Christians

The best example of Akbar’s tolerance was his creation of a new religion called the Divine Faith The Divine Faith was an example of syncretism because it blended ideas from Islam, Hinduism, Christianity, and Zoroastrianism IMAGE: Mughal Emperor Akbar (r. 1556-1605) holds a religious assembly in the Ibadat Khana (House of Worship) in Fatehpur Sikri; the two men dressed in black are the Jesuit missionaries Rodolfo Acquaviva and Francisco Henriques illustration to the Akbarnama, miniature painting by Nar Singh, ca. 1605 Din–i–Ilahi or "divine faith," describes the religious teachings developed by the third emperor of the Mughal Empire, Akbar the Great, in the late–16th century. Akbar's teachings had their foundations in regular discussions at the Ibadat Khana, "The House of Worship," in Fatehpur Sikri, where he hosted religious leaders and theologians of various faiths, including Hindus, Muslims, Christians and Jains. Seeking a common ground among religions, his teachings synthesize ideas from multiple faiths, do not have a sacred scripture and include a form of sun–worship that reflects Hindu and Zoroastrian influences. Virtues of celibacy, kindness and piety are encouraged, and vices of lust and pride are condemned. Despite transcendent aims, Din–i–Ilahi centered primarily on Akbar as a divine personage and did not attract many followers outside the realm of Akbar's court.

Akbar hoped the Divine Faith would end conflicts between Muslims and Hindus The Divine Faith never attracted many Muslim or Hindu converts… when Akbar died, so did the Divine Faith

During Akbar’s reign, art flourished

Mughal artists were known for their colorful paintings called miniatures

Mughal architecture was known for blending of Hindu and Islamic designs

The greatest example of Mughal architecture is the Taj Mahal, which was built in 1631 by Jahan

The Decline of the Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire grew weak by 1700, as rulers spent too much money on palaces and war while famine brought starvation to millions The Empire’s Decline and Decay By the end of Aurangzeb’s reign, he had drained the empire of its resources. Over 2 million people died in a famine while Aurangzeb was away waging war. Most of his subjects felt little or no loyalty to him. As the power of the central state weakened, the power of local lords grew. After Aurangzeb’s death, his sons fought a war of succession. In fact, three emperors reigned in the first 12 years after Aurangzeb died. By the end of this period, the Mughal emperor was nothing but a wealthy figurehead. He ruled not a united empire but a patchwork of independent states. In 1806 Shah Alam’s son Akbar Shah II acceded to the much diminished empire of the Mughals and ruled until 1837. His son Bahadur Shah Zafar would be the last emperor of Mughals before the British deposed him in 1858 and the Mughal dynasty would officially come to an end.

The Decline of the Mughal Empire Also, the large population of Hindus in India began to revolt against their Muslim rulers

The Decline of the Mughal Empire Great Britain took advantage of this weakness, conquered India, and removed the last Mughal emperor from power in 1858

These empires provided new contributions in law, art, and religion CONCLUSIONS The Ottomans, Safavids, and Mughals built large Islamic empires using gunpowder militaries Their decline by the 1800s allowed newly industrialized European nations to dominate Asia These empires provided new contributions in law, art, and religion

 Brooks Baggett Revamped and redone by Christopher Jaskowiak Originally created by Brooks Baggett