The Ottoman Empire in the eyes of foreign chronicles

(observations).
The Ottoman Empire has been one of the most interesting cases to study,
because of her charm, diversity and flexibility. Her quick rise to power was
unprecedented to the point that it threatened the Christian Europe at its very
heart. From these sources we have the Ottoman Empire from the specter of
the European Lupe. These sources give to us a detailed account of the
ottoman state at that time from the military strength all the way to internal
political affairs happening within the Sublime Porte.
In the first source the Ambassador analyzes the state of the Ottoman army
from the sultans 400 camels all the way to the geo-political game with
Persia. He states that the Turkish warrior spirit combined with the
psychological feeling of fighting in the name of Islam as a Ghazi warrior
enables him to overcome the harsh circumentstances and difficulties that he
may face on the way. In the other hand he points out the lack of spirit and
will to fight from the makes the Christian solider inferior to the Turk. He
continues with compare and contrast the Ottoman military might in one hand
and the scattered but yet strong Christian Resistance in the other. In such
comparisons he gives light to some of the ways in which the Ottoman Army
was organized during 1500, he basically says that a combination of
organization, discipline, high troop morale, and the system of merit makes
the Ottoman army a formidable force ready to head on the Christian Europe.
He says that Shiite Safavid Persia, hostile to the Ottomans in the east has
given the Christian Europe a rest bite, but not for long as he would point out.
According to Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq observation it is the honor, judgeship
and the reward for good service that stands at the very core of the ottoman
efficiency. Indirectly when he makes the comparison he is trying to tell
Europe that if you want to defeat the Ottomans you are going to need to
adopt their style of combat efficacy.
In the second document the Venetian observations show a more detailed
view of the ottoman army, starting from the payment methods all the way to
the naval forces. The siege of Scutari (Shkodra) was a major contributor in
discovering the ottoman armys system of interior organization. The
janissaries were without a doubt the most well payed troops, the fiercest and
the bravest on the battlefield. From the observations the Ottoman navy was
perhaps even more formidable then the land troops, with capabilities to call

huge fleets in a very short number of time making the ottoman navy the
most formidable navy in the world.
In the third source from the chronicles of Gianfrancesco Morosin and Lorenzo
Bernardo we gain valuable insight in uncovering the strong points and the
floss of the Ottoman system. Religious zeal was a major contributor on the
rise of the Ottomans, combined with obedience and frugality.