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Causes of the fall of the Ottoman Empire. How the Ottoman Empire was born and how it died

The Ottoman Empire arose in 1299 in the north-west of Asia Minor and existed for 624 years, managing to conquer many peoples and become one of the greatest powers in human history.

From place to quarry

The position of the Turks at the end of the 13th century looked hopeless, if only because of the presence of Byzantium and Persia in the neighborhood. Plus the sultans of Konya (the capital of Lycaonia - a region in Asia Minor), depending on whom, albeit formally, the Turks were.

However, all this did not prevent Osman (1288-1326) from territorially expanding and strengthening his young state. By the way, the Turks began to be called Ottomans after the name of their first sultan.
Osman was actively involved in the development of internal culture and treated others with care. Therefore, many Greek cities located in Asia Minor preferred to voluntarily recognize his supremacy. In this way they “killed two birds with one stone”: they received protection and preserved their traditions.
Osman's son, Orhan I (1326-1359), brilliantly continued his father's work. Having announced that he was going to unite all the faithful under his rule, the Sultan set out to conquer not the countries of the east, which would be logical, but the western lands. And Byzantium was the first to stand in his way.

By this time, the empire was in decline, which the Turkish Sultan took advantage of. Like a cold-blooded butcher, he "chopped off" area after area from the Byzantine "body". Soon the entire northwestern part of Asia Minor came under Turkish rule. They also established themselves on the European coast of the Aegean and Marmara Seas, as well as the Dardanelles. And the territory of Byzantium was reduced to Constantinople and its environs.
Subsequent sultans continued the expansion of Eastern Europe, where they successfully fought against Serbia and Macedonia. And Bayazet (1389 -1402) was “marked” by the defeat of the Christian army, which King Sigismund of Hungary led in the Crusade against the Turks.

From defeat to triumph

Under the same Bayazet, one of the most severe defeats of the Ottoman army occurred. The Sultan personally opposed Timur's army and in the Battle of Ankara (1402) he was defeated, and he himself was captured, where he died.
The heirs tried by hook or by crook to ascend to the throne. The state was on the verge of collapse due to internal unrest. It was only under Murad II (1421-1451) that the situation stabilized and the Turks were able to regain control of the lost Greek cities and conquer part of Albania. The Sultan dreamed of finally dealing with Byzantium, but did not have time. His son, Mehmed II (1451-1481), was destined to become the killer of the Orthodox empire.

On May 29, 1453, the hour of X came for Byzantium. The Turks besieged Constantinople for two months. Such a short time was enough to break the city's inhabitants. Instead of everyone taking up arms, the townspeople simply prayed to God for help, without leaving their churches for days. The last emperor, Constantine Palaiologos, asked the Pope for help, but he demanded in return the unification of churches. Konstantin refused.

Perhaps the city would have held out longer if not for the betrayal. One of the officials agreed to the bribe and opened the gate. He did not take into account one important fact - in addition to the female harem, the Turkish Sultan also had a male harem. That's where the pretty son of the traitor ended up.
The city fell. The civilized world froze. Now all the states of both Europe and Asia realized that the time had come for a new superpower - the Ottoman Empire.

European campaigns and confrontations with Russia

The Turks did not even think of stopping there. After the death of Byzantium, no one blocked their path to rich and unfaithful Europe, even conditionally.
Soon, Serbia (except for Belgrade, but the Turks would capture it in the 16th century), the Duchy of Athens (and, accordingly, most of all of Greece), the island of Lesbos, Wallachia, and Bosnia were annexed to the empire.

In Eastern Europe, the territorial appetites of the Turks intersected with the interests of Venice. The ruler of the latter quickly gained the support of Naples, the Pope and Karaman (Khanate in Asia Minor). The confrontation lasted 16 years and ended in complete victory for the Ottomans. After that, no one stopped them from “getting” the remaining Greek cities and islands, as well as annexing Albania and Herzegovina. The Turks were so keen on expanding their borders that they even successfully attacked the Crimean Khanate.
Panic began in Europe. Pope Sixtus IV began to make plans for the evacuation of Rome, and at the same time hastened to declare a Crusade against the Ottoman Empire. Only Hungary responded to the call. In 1481, Mehmed II died and the era of great conquests came to a temporary end.
In the 16th century, when internal unrest in the empire subsided, the Turks again turned their weapons on their neighbors. First there was a war with Persia. Although the Turks won it, their territorial gains were insignificant.
After success in North African Tripoli and Algeria, Sultan Suleiman invaded Austria and Hungary in 1527 and besieged Vienna two years later. It was not possible to take it - bad weather and widespread illness prevented it.
As for relations with Russia, the interests of states collided for the first time in Crimea.

The first war took place in 1568 and ended in 1570 with the victory of Russia. The empires fought with each other for 350 years (1568 - 1918) - one war occurred on average every quarter of a century.
During this time there were 12 wars (including the Azov War, the Prut Campaign, the Crimean and Caucasian Fronts during the First World War). And in most cases, victory remained with Russia.

Dawn and sunset of the Janissaries

When talking about the Ottoman Empire, one cannot fail to mention its regular troops - the Janissaries.
In 1365, by personal order of Sultan Murad I, the Janissary infantry was formed. It was staffed by Christians (Bulgarians, Greeks, Serbs, and so on) aged from eight to sixteen years. This is how the devshirme—the blood tax—worked, which was imposed on the non-believing peoples of the empire. It is interesting that at first life for the Janissaries was quite difficult. They lived in monasteries-barracks, they were forbidden to start a family or any kind of household.
But gradually the Janissaries from an elite branch of the army began to turn into a highly paid burden for the state. In addition, these troops took part in hostilities less and less often.

The decomposition began in 1683, when Muslim children began to be taken into the Janissaries along with Christian children. Rich Turks sent their children there, thereby solving the issue of their successful future - they could make a good career. It was the Muslim Janissaries who began to start families and engage in crafts, as well as trade. Gradually they turned into a greedy, arrogant political force that interfered in state affairs and participated in the overthrow of unwanted sultans.
The agony continued until 1826, when Sultan Mahmud II abolished the Janissaries.

Death of the Ottoman Empire

Frequent unrest, inflated ambitions, cruelty and constant participation in any wars could not but affect the fate of the Ottoman Empire. The 20th century turned out to be especially critical, in which Turkey was increasingly torn apart by internal contradictions and the separatist spirit of the population. Because of this, the country fell far behind the West technically, and therefore began to lose the territories it had once conquered.

The fateful decision for the empire was its participation in the First World War. The Allies defeated the Turkish troops and organized a division of its territory. On October 29, 1923, a new state emerged - the Turkish Republic. Its first president was Mustafa Kemal (later, he changed his surname to Ataturk - “father of the Turks”). Thus ended the history of the once great Ottoman Empire.

Thanks to the achievements of the Renaissance, Western Europe was ahead of the Ottoman Empire in the military field, in the fields of science, technology and economics. The balance between the empire and Europe was upset, and Russia’s position strengthened in the new balance of forces. Turkey also suffered from the emergence of new trade routes from Europe to Asia in the 17th century, when the Mediterranean basin became less important.

The Ottoman Empire sought to recapture its glittering past from the days of Mehmed II the Conqueror and Suleiman I the Magnificent. The 18th century became the harbinger of modernity - deeply rooted in tradition, but taking Europe as a model. The modernization of the empire's power began with military affairs and the economy during the tulip era in 1718-1730. and continued until the First World War, when a constitutional monarchy was established. Sometimes these changes were seen as a clash between Asia and Europe, East and West, old and new, faith and science, backwardness and progress. There was a conflict between tradition and modernity in public and private life; sometimes modernization was defined as decline, decay, colonization, and cultural disintegration. In fact, not a single sultan, when embarking on reforms, sought to isolate or decline the state. Reforms were necessary and inevitable. Both the Sultan and his advisers realized that the empire was shrinking and getting out of control, so they tried to preserve it even to their own detriment.

The main reason for the collapse of the Ottoman Empire was economic crisis of the 17th century. After the Vienna disaster in 1683, there was a decline in public mood, and constant failures in wars began in the 18th century. The state was no longer able to finance the next military campaigns; at the same time, regression occurred in all spheres of public life, while science and technology of the Enlightenment period were developing in Europe. The 19th century is called the century of struggle for the existence of the Ottoman Empire. The reforms did not bring the expected results, since after the French Revolution there was a rise in the empire national liberation movement in the Balkans and the Middle East. European countries openly or covertly supported this struggle, contributing to the collapse of the political unity of the country, which was a mosaic of nationalities and cultures.

Riots flared up among the Turkish population, their bloody suppression did not contribute to support for the dynasty among the masses. In the 50s XIX century, the “new Ottomans”, in order to restore peace in society, put forward the idea of Ottomanism, proclaiming that they were all Ottoman people, regardless of their origin. However, the ideas of Ottomanism did not find a response among the national minorities who fought for independence - Arabs, Bulgarians, Serbs, Armenians, Kurds... In the 70s. In the 19th century, to prevent the loss of the remaining territories, attempts were made to rally society around the ideas of Islamism. Abdul-Hamid II took significant measures in this direction, but all these undertakings were forgotten after his death. In turn, the Union and Progress party, after the government was headed by Mehmed V, began promoting the ideas of Turkism. This was yet another dramatic attempt to maintain the unity of the state through ideology, but none of these attempts were accepted.

Namık Kemal, a poet and writer of the Tanzi-mata era, presented the problem of the loss of Austrian and Hungarian lands by the empire:

“We opposed guns with guns, against firearms with scimitars, against bayonets with sticks, we replaced caution with deceit, logic with verse, progress with ideology, agreement with change, solidarity with disengagement, thought with emptiness.”.

A different opinion was held by the historian Enver Caral, who believed that at the first stage of modernization there were insufficient ideological prerequisites and that no scientific analysis was carried out of the reasons for the empire’s lag behind Western Europe. He considered the lack of self-criticism, which existed in Europe, to be the most important causes of conflicts in Ottoman society. He called another significant reason the lack of dialogue between the intelligentsia and the people, which would support modernization, as was the case in Europe.
The Europeanization of a society that did not want to give up religion and traditions, was proud of its roots and perceived Europeanization as a loss of values became a big problem.

At the same time, the Turkish historian Ilber Orgayli reports that Ottoman dignitaries were inclined to adopt the legislation of Western Europe in full form, but did not accept European philosophy. And changes without a philosophical basis occurred slowly and unpredictably. This is what happened when the French administrative system was adopted during the Tanzimat era, but without ideology. In addition, many elements of the system were not satisfactory; for example, the parliamentary structure did not arouse much enthusiasm. To carry out reforms, a certain mentality must develop in society, and the level of culture must be sufficient to cope with the task. Thus, the Ottoman Empire, in the process of modernization, faced the same social and political problems that were in Russia in the 18th century and in Japan, India and Iran in the 19th century.

Attempts at revival could not be carried out due to with a lack of developed economy- neither production, nor infrastructure, nor trade exchange were developed. At the same time, in society, despite extensive reforms in the field of education, there was a feeling of great lack of trained personnel. Moreover, the reforms carried out in Istanbul were not systematically spread across all territories and all levels of society.

The legend says: “The Slav Roksolana, who brazenly invaded the Ottoman family, weakened her influence and removed most of the worthy political figures and associates of Sultan Suleiman from the road, thereby greatly shaking the stable political and economic situation of the state. She also contributed to the emergence of genetically inferior descendants of the great ruler, Suleiman the Magnificent, giving birth to five sons, the first of whom died young, the second was so weak that he did not even survive the age of two, the third quickly became a complete alcoholic, the fourth turned into a traitor and went against his father, and the fifth was very ill from birth, and also died at a young age, without even being able to have a single child. Then Roksolana literally forced the Sultan to marry herself, violating a large number of traditions that had been in effect since the founding of the state and served as a guarantee of its stability. She marked the beginning of such a phenomenon as the "Women's Sultanate", which further weakened the competitiveness of the Ottoman Empire in the world political arena. Roksolana's son, Selim, who inherited the throne, was a completely unpromising ruler and left behind even more worthless offspring. As a result, the Ottoman Empire soon completely collapsed. Roxolana's grandson Murad III turned out to be such an unworthy sultan that devout Muslims were no longer surprised by the surging crop failures, inflation, Janissary revolts, or open sale of government positions. It’s scary to even imagine what disaster this woman would have brought to her homeland if the Tatars hadn’t dragged her away from her native place on the Tatar’s lasso. Having destroyed the Ottoman Empire, she saved Ukraine. Honor and glory to her for this!”

Historical facts:

Before talking directly about the refutation of the legend, I would like to note several general historical facts concerning the Ottoman Empire before and after the generation of Hurrem Sultan. Since it is precisely because of ignorance or misunderstanding of the key historical moments of this state that people begin to believe in such legends.

The Ottoman Empire was founded in 1299, when a man who went down in history as the first Sultan of the Ottoman Empire under the name Osman I Ghazi declared the independence of his small country from the Seljuks and took the title of Sultan (although a number of sources note that this was the first time such a title was officially worn only his grandson is Murad I). Soon he managed to conquer the entire western part of Asia Minor. Osman I was born in 1258 in a Byzantine province called Bithynia. He died of natural causes in the city of Bursa (sometimes mistakenly considered the first capital of the Ottoman state) in 1326. After this, power passed to his son, known as Orhan I Ghazi. Under him, a small Turkic tribe finally turned into a strong state with a modern (at that time) army.

Throughout the history of its existence, the Ottoman Empire changed 4 capitals:
Söğüt (the real first capital of the Ottomans), 1299-1329;
Bursa (former Byzantine fortress of Brusa), 1329-1365;
Edirne (formerly the city of Adrianople), 1365-1453;
Constantinople (now the city of Istanbul), 1453-1922.

Returning to what is written in the legend, it must be said that the last wedding of the current Sultan before the era of Suleiman Kanuni took place in 1389 (more than 140 years before Hurrem’s wedding). Sultan Bayazid I the Lightning, who ascended the throne, married the daughter of a Serbian prince, whose name was Olivera. It was after the tragic events that happened to them at the very beginning of the 15th century that official marriages of current sultans became an extremely undesirable phenomenon for the next century and a half. But from this side there is no talk of any violation of traditions “in force since the founding of the state.” The ninth legend already spoke in detail about the fate of Shehzade Selim, and separate articles will be devoted to all the other children of Hurrem. In addition, it should be noted the high level of infant mortality in those days, from which even the conditions of the ruling dynasty could not save. As you know, some time before Khyurrem appeared in the harem, Suleiman lost his two sons, who, due to illness, did not live half their time before coming of age. Khyurrem's second son, Shehzade Abdullah, unfortunately, was no exception. As for the “Women’s Sultanate”, here we can say with confidence that this era, although it did not carry exclusively positive aspects, was the cause of the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, and even more so the consequence of any decline, such a phenomenon as The “Women's Sultanate” could not appear. Also, due to a number of factors, which will be discussed a little later, Hurrem could not be its founder or in any way be considered a member of the “Women’s Sultanate”.

Historians divide the entire existence of the Ottoman Empire into seven main periods:
The formation of the Ottoman Empire (1299-1402) - the period of the reign of the first four sultans of the empire (Osman, Orhan, Murad and Bayezid).
The Ottoman Interregnum (1402-1413) was an eleven-year period that began in 1402 after the defeat of the Ottomans at the Battle of Angora and the tragedy of Sultan Bayezid I and his wife in captivity by Tamerlane. During this period, there was a struggle for power between the sons of Bayezid, from which only in 1413 the youngest son Mehmed I Celebi emerged victorious.
The rise of the Ottoman Empire (1413-1453) was the reign of Sultan Mehmed I, as well as his son Murad II and grandson Mehmed II, which ended with the capture of Constantinople and the complete destruction of the Byzantine Empire by Mehmed II, who received the nickname "Fatih" (Conqueror).
Rise of the Ottoman Empire (1453-1683) – a period of major expansion of the Ottoman Empire's borders, continuing the reign of Mehmed II, (including the reign of Suleiman I and his son Selim II), and ending with the complete defeat of the Ottomans at the Battle of Vienna during the reign of Mehmed IV, (son of Ibrahim I Crazy).
The Stagnation of the Ottoman Empire (1683-1827) was a period that lasted 144 years, which began after the Christian victory at the Battle of Vienna forever ended the Ottoman Empire's wars of conquest on European soil. The onset of a period of stagnation meant a stop in the territorial and economic development of the empire.
The decline of the Ottoman Empire (1828-1908) - a period that actually has the word “decline” in its official name, is characterized by the loss of a huge amount of territory of the Ottoman state; the Tanzimat era also begins, which consists in the systematization and laying down of the basic laws of the country.
The collapse of the Ottoman Empire (1908-1922) - the period of reign of the last two monarchs of the Ottoman state, the brothers Mehmed V and Mehmed VI, which began after the change in the form of government of the state to a constitutional monarchy, and lasted until the complete cessation of the existence of the Ottoman Empire (the period also covers the participation of the Ottoman states in the First World War).

Also in the historical literature of each state studying the history of the Ottoman Empire, there is a division into smaller periods that are part of the seven main ones, and often it is somewhat different from each other in different states. But it should immediately be noted that this is an official division of precisely periods of territorial and economic development of the country, and not a crisis of family relations of the ruling dynasty. Moreover, the period that lasts throughout the life of Alexandra Anastasia Lisowska, as well as all her children and grandchildren, (despite the slight military-technical lag behind European countries that began in the 17th century) is called the “Growth of the Ottoman Empire,” and in no case not “collapse” or “decline,” which, as noted above, will begin only in the 19th century.

Historians call the main and most serious reason for the collapse of the Ottoman Empire the defeat in the First World War (in which this state participated as part of the Quadruple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria), caused by the superior human and economic resources of the Entente countries.
The Ottoman Empire (officially the “Great Ottoman State”) lasted exactly 623 years, and the collapse of this state occurred 364 years after the death of Haseki Hurrem. She died on April 18, 1558, and the day the Ottoman Empire ceased to exist can be called November 1, 1922, when the Grand National Assembly of Turkey adopted a law on the separation of the sultanate and the caliphate (while the sultanate was abolished). On November 17, Mehmed VI Vahideddin, the last (36th) Ottoman monarch, left Istanbul on a British warship, the battleship Malaya. On July 24, 1923, the Treaty of Lausanne was signed, which recognized the full independence of Turkey. On October 29, 1923, Turkey was proclaimed a republic, and Mustafa Kemal, who later took the name Ataturk, was elected its first president.
How Haseki Hurrem Sultan and her children and grandchildren, who lived three and a half centuries before these events, were involved in this remains a mystery to the authors of the article.

Source VKontakte group: muhtesemyuzyil

For more than 600 years, the Ottoman Empire, once founded by Osman I Ghazi, kept all of Europe and Asia in fear. Initially a small state on the territory of Asia Minor, over the next six centuries it expanded its influence over an impressive part of the Mediterranean basin. In the 16th century, the Ottomans owned lands in Southeast Europe, Western Asia and the Caucasus, North and East Africa.

However, any empire will sooner or later be destroyed.

Reasons for the collapse of the Ottoman Empire

Of course, the empire does not fall apart in one day. The reasons for the decline accumulated over several centuries.

Some historians are inclined to consider the reign of Sultan Ahmet I as a turning point, after which the throne began to be inherited according to seniority, and not according to the merits of the heirs. The weakness of character and commitment to the human weaknesses of subsequent rulers became the reason for the unprecedented flourishing of corruption in the state.

Bribery and the sale of preferences led to increased discontent, including among the Janissaries, on whom the Sultanate always relied. In May 1622, Osman II, who ruled at the time, was killed during the Janissary uprising. He became the first sultan to be killed by his subjects.

The backwardness of the economy became the cornerstone in the collapse of the empire. Accustomed to living off conquest and the plunder of its neighbors, the Sublime Porte missed the key point in changing the economic paradigm. Europe made a qualitative leap in industrial development, introducing new technologies, and the Porte still remained a medieval feudal state

The opening of new sea trade routes reduced the influence of the Ottoman Empire on trade between the West and the East. The Empire supplied only raw materials, while importing almost all industrial goods.

Unlike European states, which equipped their armies with various technological innovations, the Ottomans preferred to fight the old fashioned way. In addition, the Janissaries, on whom the state relied during the war, were a poorly controlled mass. Constant riots of dissatisfied Janissaries kept each new sultan who ascended the throne in fear.

Countless wars depleted the state budget, the deficit of which by the end of the 17th century approached 200 million. This situation caused several major defeats for the once invincible empire.

Military defeats

Back at the end of the 17th century, Türkiye began to gradually narrow its borders. According to the Treaty of Karlowitz in 1699, it lost a significant part of its lands, after which it actually stopped trying to move west.

The second half of the 18th century was marked by new territorial losses. These processes continued at the beginning of the 19th century, and in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-78, the Porte suffered a complete defeat, as a result of which several new states appeared on the map of Europe, breaking away from its territory and declaring independence.

The final significant blow for the Ottoman Empire was the defeat in the First Balkan War of 1912-13, which resulted in the loss of almost all territories on the Balkan Peninsula.

Feeling its weakening, the Ottoman Empire begins to look for allies and tries to rely on help from Germany. However, instead it is drawn into the First World War, as a result of which it loses an even more significant part of its possessions. The Brilliant Porte suffered a humiliating fall: the Armistice of Mudros, signed in October 1918, represented an almost unconditional surrender.

The final point in the collapse of the Great Ottoman Empire was set by the Treaty of Sèvres in 1920, which was never ratified by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey.

Creation of the Turkish Republic

Attempts by the Entente countries to forcibly implement the terms of the Treaty of Sèvres, which actually dismembered Turkey, forced the progressive part of Turkish society, led by Mustafa Kemal, to enter into a decisive struggle against the occupiers.

In April 1920, a new parliament was formed, declaring itself the only legitimate authority in the country - the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. Under the leadership of Kemal, who later received the nickname Atatürk (father of the people), the sultanate was abolished and a republic was subsequently proclaimed.

After the advance of the Greek army was stopped in 1921, Turkish troops launched a counteroffensive and liberated all of Anatolia. The Treaty of Lausanne, signed in 1923, although it contained some concessions to the Entente countries, nevertheless marked the recognition of Turkey's independence in the international arena.

The six-hundred-year-old Ottoman Empire fell and on its ruins the Turkish Republic was born, which faced many years of reforms in all spheres of life.

The Ottoman Empire arose in 1299 in the north-west of Asia Minor and existed for 624 years, managing to conquer many peoples and become one of the greatest powers in human history.

From place to quarry

Osman's son, Orhan I (1326-1359), brilliantly continued his father's work. Having announced that he was going to unite all the faithful under his rule, the Sultan set out to conquer not the countries of the east, which would be logical, but the western lands. And Byzantium was the first to stand in his way.

Subsequent sultans continued the expansion of Eastern Europe, where they successfully fought against Serbia and Macedonia. And Bayazet (1389 -1402) was “marked” by the defeat of the Christian army, which King Sigismund of Hungary led in the Crusade against the Turks.

From defeat to triumph

The heirs tried by hook or by crook to ascend to the throne. The state was on the verge of collapse due to internal unrest. It was only under Murad II (1421-1451) that the situation stabilized and the Turks were able to regain control of the lost Greek cities and conquer part of Albania. The Sultan dreamed of finally dealing with Byzantium, but did not have time. His son, Mehmed II (1451-1481), was destined to become the killer of the Orthodox empire.

The city fell. The civilized world froze. Now all the states of both Europe and Asia realized that the time had come for a new superpower - the Ottoman Empire.

European campaigns and confrontations with Russia

The confrontation lasted 16 years and ended in complete victory for the Ottomans. After that, no one stopped them from “getting” the remaining Greek cities and islands, as well as annexing Albania and Herzegovina. The Turks were so keen on expanding their borders that they even successfully attacked the Crimean Khanate.

Panic began in Europe. Pope Sixtus IV began to make plans for the evacuation of Rome, and at the same time hastened to declare a Crusade against the Ottoman Empire. Only Hungary responded to the call. In 1481, Mehmed II died and the era of great conquests came to a temporary end.

In the 16th century, when internal unrest in the empire subsided, the Turks again turned their weapons on their neighbors. First there was a war with Persia. Although the Turks won it, their territorial gains were insignificant.

After success in North African Tripoli and Algeria, Sultan Suleiman invaded Austria and Hungary in 1527 and besieged Vienna two years later. It was not possible to take it - bad weather and widespread illness prevented it.

As for relations with Russia, the interests of states collided for the first time in Crimea.
The first war took place in 1568 and ended in 1570 with the victory of Russia. The empires fought with each other for 350 years (1568 - 1918) - one war occurred on average every quarter of a century.

During this time there were 12 wars (including the Azov War, the Prut Campaign, the Crimean and Caucasian Fronts during the First World War). And in most cases, victory remained with Russia.

Dawn and sunset of the Janissaries

In 1365, by personal order of Sultan Murad I, the Janissary infantry was formed.
It was staffed by Christians (Bulgarians, Greeks, Serbs, and so on) aged from eight to sixteen years. This is how the devshirme—the blood tax—worked, which was imposed on the non-believing peoples of the empire. It is interesting that at first life for the Janissaries was quite difficult. They lived in monasteries-barracks, they were forbidden to start a family or any kind of household.

But gradually the Janissaries from an elite branch of the army began to turn into a highly paid burden for the state. In addition, these troops took part in hostilities less and less often.

It was the Muslim Janissaries who began to start families and engage in crafts, as well as trade. Gradually they turned into a greedy, arrogant political force that interfered in state affairs and participated in the overthrow of unwanted sultans.

The agony continued until 1826, when Sultan Mahmud II abolished the Janissaries.

Death of the Ottoman Empire

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