A state geared to warfare

Military leaders played a dominant role in the ottoman state, and the economy wa
s geared to warfare and expansion. The Turkic cavalry gradually developed into a
warrior aristocracy. They gained land control and peasant producers and from th
e 1400s onward, worked with religious leaders and administrators of other social
groups to gain control and spread ottoman bureaucracy. From the mid-1400s onwar
d, imperial armies were dominated by troops of janissaries. The janissaries cont
rolled the artillery weaponry that became vital to ottoman success and became th
e most powerful part of the Ottoman Empire s military machine. The janissaries tri
ed to turn military service into political power. By the late 1400s they were de
eply involved in court politics and by the mid-1500s, could kill off sultans and
decide which of their sons would be the heir to his status.
The sultans and their court
Most ottoman rulers were absolute monarchs. Commerce within the empire was owned
by Christians and Jews who were addressed as Dhimmis or people of the book ; and wer
e persecuted greatly by Ottoman rulers. Like the Abbasid caliphs, Ottoman rulers
grew farther from their people as the empire s Territory expanded. This lead to a
dministrators lower than the sultan called Wazirs being appointed to run the grand
bureaucracy. Wazirs were the overall head in reality, possessing more power tha
n the Sultan himself. The ottomans suffered greatly however, because they inheri
ted Islamic political succession principles that were vague and greatly conteste
d. Having many claimants to the throne had a sultan s sons often go to war with ea
ch other. Those defeated typically fled to a Christian or Muslim territories tha
t were hostile towards Ottomans, essentially starting military rallying points t
o overthrow the son who had won the wars.
Constantinople restored and the flowering of Ottoman culture
The ottoman capital at Constantinople encompassed all of the elements of their o
utlying territories. After conquest of it in 1453 under Mehmes II, it was a prio
rity of his to restore the city and add more culture to it. New mosques were bui
lt and the cathedral of Saint Sophia was converted into one of the grandest mosq
ues in the Islamic world. Each sultan after Mehmes wanted to follow in his steps
and enhance the beauty of the city. Along with mosques, rulers made Constantino
ple into more of a city than a religious epicenter by building mansions, houses,
schools and hospitals. Public gardens were also constructed to add to the beaut
y of Constantinople. Its harbors and the golden horn were crowded with merchants
. The grand bazaars were filled with foreign traders from as far as England. A l
arge portion of the population was of the artisan or merchant class. The regime
regulated commercial exchanges heavily and government inspectors were sent to do
these jobs. The Ottomans left considerable legacies in poetry, pottery, carpet
making, and mainly and most notably, Architecture.

Quiz Questions
What did the Janissaries convert into political influence?
How would a new sultan come to power when there are many claimants (keep in mind

these claimants are all the sons of the sultan)?

Who was in power during the conquest of Constantinople and wanted to restore the
city after taking it?