The Ottoman Empire, 1300-1650: The Structure of Power (European History in Perspective)

by Colin Imber

Paperback, 2004

Status

Available

Call number

956.1

Genres

Politics, Government, Law and Public Policy

Nonfiction

Collection

Don

Publication

Palgrave Macmillan (2004), 432 pages

Description

An essential introductory textbook that provides students with an authoritative survey of the history of the Ottoman Empire: from its obscure origins in the fourteenth century, through its rise to world-power status, to the troubled times of the seventeenth century. Colin Imber explores how the Sultans governed their realms and the limits on their authority. This is an ideal core text for modules on Ottoman History or the Ottoman Empire - or a supplementary text for broader modules on Mediterranean History, Early Modern History, Islamic History, Middle Eastern History, Turkish History or Imperial History - which may be offered at the upper levels of an undergraduate History, Turkish, European Studies or Middle Eastern Studies degree. In addition it is a crucial resource for students who may be studying the Ottoman Empire for the first time as part of a taught postgraduate degree in Early Modern History, Turkish, or Islamic Studies.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member Shrike58

A good all-around survey of the Ottoman empire, from its origins as a nomadic horde to its late seventeenth century apogee. Organized on a thematic basis, the author gives you a survey history of events, before considering how the various structures of the state (the dynasty, administrative bodies,

military, etc.) evolved over time.

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LibraryThing member thcson

This book made me wonder on what basis historians select their topics when they set out to write a general history spanning multiple centuries. I suppose the decision must be influenced at least by the available source material and by the historians own interests. The author of this book shows some

fascination with dates and names. In the first chapter of this book he provides an aptly titled "chronology", which is just a long list of sultans and battles with no claim to originality and no semblance of analysis. I suppose this section could have been intended for new students who need to establish a secure chronology to keep their source material in order. But for the general reader the names and regnal years of Ottoman rulers are hardly at all relevant for understanding the Ottoman empire, so I skipped this section.

The reason why I bought this book was that it promised an account of how Ottoman government worked. Fortunately, this turned out to be true. Chapters 2-8 provide reasonably good analyses of sultanic reproduction and inheritance, taxation, and the functions of the legal system and other state officials. From a geographical perspective the analysis seems to be a bit uneven, as it discloses far more details about Anatolia and the Balkans than about the Arab provinces. But I presume this has to do with limitations in the source material. Other gaps are also left unfilled, but the author nevertheless manages to discusses a broad spectrum of problems and solutions in Ottoman government in an informative manner, so this book can be recommended to readers interested in how dynastic empires functioned.

Towards the end of the book the author shifts to military subjects, discussing the army and the fleet, their personnel and tactics in some detail. This seems to be purely a result of his idiosyncratic interest - the discussion is not in any way connected to the earlier chapters on government, and it can hardly be of much interest to anyone except military historians. In a short concluding chapter, the author again return to matters of government as he discusses the constraints of sultanic authority. Overall, a little more structure and clarity would have been desirable, but I can still endorse this book to readers who would like to know something about Ottoman government.

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