STANDARD 12 SSWH12 The student will examine the origins and contributions of the Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal empires.

a. Describe the geographical extent of the Ottoman Empire during the rule of Suleyman the Magnificent, the Safavid Empire during the reign of Shah Abbas I, and the Mughal Empire during the reigns of Babur and Akbar.

b. Explain the ways in which these Muslim empires influenced religion, law, and the arts in their parts of the world.

Suleyman the Magnificent Suleyman came to power in 1520 and ruled for 46 years. Suleyman was a great military leader who captured the European city of Belgrade in 1521.

The next year, Turkish forces captured the island of Rhodes in the Mediterranean Sea giving them domination over the eastern Mediterranean. Using their massive naval forces, the Ottomans captured the city of Tripoli on the north African coast.

They continued to conquer people along the coastlines of North Africa which was very important. Although they never went into the interior parts of Africa, they were still able to control all trade routes that went from the coast into the interior parts of Africa.

In 1526, Suleyman advanced into Hungary and Austria causing central Europe to go into a panic. His armies eventually pushed to the edge of Vienna, Austria.

He reigned from Istanbul, Turkey and waged war with central Europeans, North Africans, and Central Asians. He was the most powerful monarch on earth besides Charles V, head of the Hapsburg Empire in Europe.

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GOVERNMENT Keeping the Ottoman Empire together was Suleyman’s biggest achievement. He created a law code to handle both criminal and civil actions. He reduced government bureaucracy and simplified the tax system. This made daily life for the citizens much easier.

Christian areas conquered Religion: Christian areas conquered Christian boys were kidnapped and brainwashed. Trained, educate them and convert them to Islam. An elite force of 30,000 soldiers known as janissaries was trained

As a practicing Muslim, Suleyman granted freedom of worship for other religions = little conflict.

Arts Suleyman liked the arts. He studied, poetry, history, geography, astronomy, mathematics and architecture. world’s best architect at the time, Sinan, (Albania) to build the Mosque of Suleyman.

It is topped with domes and included 4 schools, library, bath and a hospital. Art and architecture also flourished during this time and has been likened to the European Renaissance. Painters and Poets used Persia and Arabia as a model.

Safavid Empire during the reign of Shah Abbas I Shah Abbas took the throne in 1587. He created a golden age of culture that drew from the best Ottoman, Persian and Arab worlds. Shah Abbas reformed some aspects of the empire.

Military- limited the power of the military, created two new armies that would be loyal to him alone, one being made up of Persians the other of Christian recruits that he modeled after the Ottoman janissaries. Both armies were equipped with modern weapons.

Government- he punished corruption severely and promoted only those officials who proved competent and loyal, he was known to hire foreigners to fill gov’t positions.

To convince European merchants of his religious tolerance, he brought in Christian religious orders to the empire Europeans moved into the land. This caused a large exchange of art, trade and industry between the Europeans and Safavid empire.

Safavid moved the capital to Esfahan which is almost directly south of current day Tehran, Iran. The city covered 4 ½ miles and was considered to be one of the prettiest in the world. Foreign and Safavid artist both worked on the construction of the city.

- Armenians wove carpets -300 Chinese potters produced glazed building tiles Shah Abbas brought in many Chinese artists and had them work side by side with Safavid artists.

They created intricate metal works, pottery, glass work, calligraphy, and tile work. This started a collaboration between Chinese and Persian artists.

The most important Western influence on the Safavids though was the demand for Persian carpets. This changed weaving from a local craft to a national industry.

At first carpets reflected Persian themes but as the empire grew, the designs became more culturally blended. In the 16th century, Shah Abbas, sent artist to Europe to study under Raphael. Rugs began to show European influence after the artists returned.

The empire declined after Shah Abbas’ death The empire declined after Shah Abbas’ death. This was in large part because he had made the same mistake the Ottoman ruler Suleyman had made by killing or blinding his best sons. Because he had done this, his spoiled grand son took over control of the empire. He was hated so much that one of his own soldiers assassinated him.

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Mughal Empire under the rule of Babur At the age of 14, Babur inherited the kingdom in the area that is now Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. The year was 1494 and soon after he got the kingdom, his elders took it away.

Babur had to move south while doing so, built an army Babur had to move south while doing so, built an army. In the following years, he swept south down into India and laid the foundation for the vast Mughal empire.

Babur was a great military general Babur was a great military general. He once won a battle against the sultan of Delhi who had 100,000 when he only had 12,000 soldiers. After his death, his incompetent son took over control and lost most of the empire his father had gained. His grandson, Akbar, took over control after his father passed away.

Mughal Empire under the rule of Akbar Akbar which means “Greatest One”, ruled from 1556-1605. Akbar- military power was the root of his strength.

Just like the Safavids and Ottomans did, Akbar equipped his troops with heavy artillery. He used cannons to take on cities with walls to expand into the Deccan Plateau area.

He appointed some rajputs as officers which helped him turn potential enemies into allies. This military and political wisdom allowed Akbar to unify a land of around 100 million people. More than all of Europe combined.

Religion under Akbar Akbar was a Muslim who practiced religious freedom. He allowed his wives to practice whatever religion they desired. He married two Hindus, a Christian and a Muslim.

He abolished taxes on the Hindu pilgrims and the tax on non-Muslims known as the jizya. He even appointed a Spanish Jesuit to tutor his second son.

Government under Akbar He ruled through a bureaucracy of officials. Everyone could rise to a high office in government including Natives, Hindus, Muslims and foreigners. This type of policy allowed for a high quality of government.

His chief finance minister was Hindu; created a graduated tax system very similar to the one the U.S. uses today. It was based off the crops the peasants grew.

He gave land to his bureaucrats but when they died, he took it back and redistributed as he saw fit. Therefore, the officials saw no point in devoting themselves to the land.

Culture As the empire expanded, many cultures had influences such as art, education, politics, and language. Persian was the language of the courts and high culture but Hindi was the language of the common people.

Hindi is a mixture of Persian and local languages Hindi is a mixture of Persian and local languages. Urdu was the language of the soldiers and is now the official language of Pakistan today. Urdu is a mixture of Arabic, Hindi and Persian languages.

Arts & Literature The arts flourished in the Mughal court in the form of book illustrations. These were called miniatures which were small, highly detailed paintings.

Literature also enjoyed a revival under the reign of Akbar Literature also enjoyed a revival under the reign of Akbar. Poets told stories and the epic story Ramayana was written. (Close to the Iliad, Hindu version)

Architecture Akbar loved architecture and the style developed under his rule is still known as Akbar period architecture. The stonework is massive and portrays Hindu themes.

The capital city of Fatehpur Sikri is the best example of this type of architecture. He had this red sandstone city built to thank a holy man for predicting the birth of his first son.