Political Administration in the Middle East before the 20th Century

1
Political Administration in the Middle East
before the20th Century

• A very brief snapshot

2
Pre-Ottoman politics

• 7th century Rise of Islam and Islamic Empires
• Umayyad Empire, 661-750 (capital at Damascus)
• Abbasid Empire, 749-1258
• (capital at Baghdad)
• Other dynasties the Mongols

Ibn Battuta, a 14th century traveler from
Tangiers.
3
Who were the Ottomans?

• Founded ruled one of the worlds biggest and
  longest-lived empires
• 1300-1918
• Muslim Turkish dynasty Osmanlilar
• Encompassed territory from Europe to N. Africa

Mehmet the Conquerer riding his horse in front of
Aya Sofia church after conquering Constantinople
in 1453. Source http//www.osmanli700.gen.tr/engl
ish/album/picturesindex.html
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A map of the expansion of the Ottoman Empire
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A map of the contraction of the Ottoman Empire
Source Encyclopedia Brittanica, from
http//www.naqshbandi.org/ottomans/maps/
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Map of the Ottoman Empire at its height
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About the Empire

• Loosely administered
• Muslim empire
• Sultan as Caliph, or protector of the Faith (but
  not seen as divine)
• Multi-National, Multi-lingual, Multi-Ethnic
• Turks, Arabs, Greeks, Kurds, Jews, Armenians,
  Bulgarians, Albanians, Croats, Serbs, etc.
• Until 1850, 50 of the Empires population lived
  in the Balkans
• State did NOT attempt to create cultural
  conformity.
• Multiple religions within the empire
• Christians and Jews given special status as
  people of the book, or Dhimmis

8
Ottoman Political Administration

• The Sultan/Caliph
• Grand Vizier and the bureaucracy (Istanbul)
• Ottoman Army
• Governors (Local notables) ruled the provinces
• By 18th-19th century most drawn from powerful
  local families
• Ulema religious elite

A miniature portrait of Sultan Murat III, from
the 16th c.
9
Source http//history.binghamton.edu/hist275/Map
20List.htm
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The states role

•   Defend the borders of the empire
• Protect the faith (Islam)
•   Collect taxes
•   Maintain public peace

  
An illuminated page from the Quran by Ahmet
Karahisari , from the Topkapi Palace collection.
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Socio-political groups in the Ottoman Age

• Settled peasants and villagers
• Tribes
• Nomads
• Prominent local families
• Guilds merchants
• Local religious orders and religious leaders

Picture of a Bulgarian woman in 19th century
finery. Source Ottoman archives from the Turkish
Library.
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Socio-political groups

• Ottoman officials governors, judges, financial
  officials, rural police
• Classes the working classes and the wealthy the
  rulers and the ruled

From the Turkish National Library/Ottoman
Cultural Heritage by Pictures
13
The status of women

• Two worlds (haremlik and selamlik)
• Varying status, but generally viewed as
  subservient to men in need of protection
• Upper-class women tended to veil working women
  often did not

A woman of Topkapi Palace, 19th century. The
painting is entitled Palace lady and is painted
by Pierre D. Guilement, from the Dolmabahce
Palace Collection.
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Connections between state and society

• Taxes
• Administration-
• state-provincial relations
• Codes of Law
• Standards for conduct and dress
• Religious institutes and religious frameworks
• Administered schools, social welfare programs,
  courts, etc.

The Grand Husseini Mosque in Amman, Jordan,
originally built in the 7th century.
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State-minority relations under the Ottomans

• Dhimmi status for Christians and Jews
• Forced conversions discouraged
• Special protection
• 2nd class status
• Head tax on non-Muslim males
• Periodic persecution
• The Millet system
• Christian Jewish communities largely
  self-governing, with head of community as liaison
  between the sultan and the community

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An evolving EmpireMain phases of Ottoman rule

• Classical Period (1300-1683) Rise, expansion and
  consolidation
• Political power primarily in hands of the Sultan
• Middle Period (1680s-1798) Ottoman integration
  into the world economy territorial retraction
• Shift in power from sultan to offices of the
  vizier
• Provinces virtually autonomous
• Long 19th century (1798-1918) Emergence of the
  modern Ottoman state
• State under pressure from Imperialist Europe
• Redefinition in status of religious minorities
  and women
• Newly centralized State State begins taking over
  many new tasks

17
The flight of Hazerfan Ahmet Çelebi from the
Tower of Galata. Source http//www.osmanli700.gen
.tr/english/album/picturesindex.html _ _
A painting by Levni of an 19th c. female subject
of the Empire.
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An Ottoman map of Istanbul, from Topkapi Palace,
Istanbul.