--- /dev/null
+__NOTOC__<noinclude>{{EuropeanHistoryTOC}}</noinclude>
+
+{| border="0" id="toc" style="margin: 0 auto;" align=center
+| [[#A|A]] [[#B|B]] [[#C|C]] [[#D|D]] [[#E|E]] [[#F|F]] [[#G|G]] [[#H|H]] [[#I|I]] [[#J|J]] [[#K|K]] [[#L|L]] [[#M|M]] [[#N|N]] [[#O|O]] [[#P|P]] [[#Q|Q]] [[#R|R]] [[#S|S]] [[#T|T]] [[#U|U]] [[#V|V]] [[#W|W]] [[#X|X]] [[#Y|Y]] [[#Z|Z]]
+|}
+
+
+
+==A==
+*'''[[w:Absolutism|Absolutism]]''' - Political theory that one person should hold all power; in some cases justified by "Divine Right of Kings."
+*'''[[w:Act of Supremacy|Act of Supremacy]]''' ''(1534)'' - Act of Parliament under King Henry VIII of England declaring the king as the head of the Church of England, making official the English Reformation; (1559) reinstatement of the original act by Queen Elizabeth I.
+*'''[[w:Adam Smith|Adam Smith]]''' ''(1723-1790)'' - Scottish economist and philosopher, author of ''The Wealth of Nations'', thought of as the father of capitalist economics.
+*'''[[w:Age of Enlightenment|Age of Enlightenment]]''' - An intellectual movement in 18th century Europe marked by rational thinking, in contrast with the superstition of the Dark Ages.
+*'''[[w:Albert Einstein|Albert Einstein]]''' ''(1879–1955)'' - Physicist who proposed the theory of relativity and made advances in quantum mechanics, statistical mechanics, and cosmology.
+*'''[[w:Alexander Kerensky|Alexander Kerensky]]''' ''(1881-1970)'' - The second prime minister of the Russian Provisional Government, immediately before the Bolsheviks and Lenin came to power.
+*'''[[w:Algeciras Conference|Algeciras Conference]]''' - Took place in 1906 in Algeciras, Spain. The purpose of the conference was to mediate the Moroccan dispute between France and Germany, and to assure the repayment of a large loan made to the Sultan in 1904. The Entente Cordiale between France and the United Kingdom gave the British a free hand in Egypt in exchange for a French free hand in Morocco. France tried to achieve a protectorate over Morocco, but was opposed by Germany.
+*'''[[w:Allied Powers|Allied Powers]]''' ''(World War I)'' - Russia, France, British Empire, Italy, and United States.
+*'''[[w:Anschluss|Anschluss]]''' ''(1938)'' - The inclusion of Austria in a "Greater Germany"; in contast with the ''Ausschluss'', the exclusion of Austria from Imperial Germany in 1871.
+*'''[[w:Ancien Régime|Ancien Régime]]''' ''("Old Order")'' - the social and political system established in France under the absolute monarchy; removed by the French Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Appeasement|Appeasement]]''' - Neville Chamberlain's policy of accepting conditions imposed by Nazi Germany.
+*'''[[w:April Theses|April Theses]]''' ''(1917)'' - Lenin's writings on how Russia should be governed and the future of the Bolsheviks.
+*'''[[w:Aristotelian (Ptolemaic) Cosmology|Aristotelian (Ptolemaic) Cosmology]]''' - The belief that Earth is at the center of the universe
+*'''[[w:Arms Race|Arms Race]]''' - A competition between two or more countries for military supremacy. This was perhaps most prominent during the Cold War, pitting the USA against the Soviet Union.
+*'''[[w:Aryans|Aryans]]''' - In Nazism and neo-Nazism, a non-Jewish Caucasian, especially one of Nordic type, supposed to be part of a master race.
+*'''[[w:Autarky|Autarky]]''' - An economy that does no trade with the outside world.
+*'''[[w:Avant-garde|Avant-garde]]''' - People or actions that are novel or experimental, particularly with respect to the arts and culture.
+*'''[[w:Avignon Papacy|Avignon Papacy]]''' ''(1305-1378)'' - Period during which the Papacy was moved from Rome to Avignon, France.
+
+==B==
+*'''[[w:Babylonian Captivity|Babylonian Captivity]]''' - A term referring to the Avignon Papacy which implies that the Popes were captives under the French kings.
+*'''[[w:Banalities|Banalities]]''' - Fees imposed by a feudal lord on serfs for the use of his facilities.
+*'''[[w:Baroque|Baroque]]''' - A cultural movement in art originating around 1600 in Rome; art designed for the illiterate rather than the well-informed ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Bastille|Bastille]]''' ''("Stronghold")'' - Generally refers to Bastille Saint-Antoine, demolished in the ''Storming of the Bastille'' at the start of the French Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Battle of Gallipoli|Battle of Gallipoli]]''' ''(1915)'' - Failed attempt by the Allies to capture the Ottoman capital of Constantinople. ''(World War I)''
+*'''[[w:Battle of Jutland|Battle of Jutland]]''' ''(1916)'' - Largest naval battle of World War I; fought in the North Sea between British and German fleets.
+*'''[[w:Battle of the Argonne|Battle of the Argonne]]''' ''(1918)'' - Biggest operation and victory of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in World War I; in the Verdun Sector.
+*'''[[w:Battle of the Somme|Battle of the Somme]]''' ''(1916)'' - Attempt by British and French forces to break through the German lines, to draw German forces away from Verdun.
+*'''[[w:Battle of Verdun|Battle of Verdun]]''' ''(Feb-Dec 1916)'' - Longest and possibly largest battle in history; resulted in over 1 million deaths and 450,000 wounded or missing.
+*'''[[w:Battle of Lepanto|Battle of Lepanto]]''' ''(1571)'' - The first major victory of any European power over the Ottoman Empire; destruction of most of the Ottoman Empire's ships resulted in its loss of control over the Mediterranean Sea.
+*'''[[w:Beer Hall Putsch|Beer Hall Putsch]]''' ''(1923)'' - An unsuccessful coup by Adolf Hitler and other leaders in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
+*'''[[w:Belgian Congo|Belgian Congo]]''' - An area of central Africa, which was under formal control of the Belgian parliament from 1908 to 1960. The Belgian administration was one of paternalistic colonialism in which the educational and political system was dominated by the Roman Catholic Church and Protestant churches.
+*'''[[w:Benjamin Disraeli|Benjamin Disraeli]]''' ''(1804-1881)'' - British author and Prime Minister, best known for his defense of the ''Corn Laws''.
+*'''[[w:Berlin Crisis|Berlin Crisis]]''' ''(1948-1949)'' - The Soviet blockade of West Berlin during the Cold War; abated after the Soviet Union did not act to stop American, British and French airlifts of food and other provisions to the Western-held sectors of Berlin
+*'''[[w:Bill of Rights 1689|Bill of Rights 1689]]''' - One of the fundamental documents of English law; agreed to by ''William and Mary'' in return for their being affirmed as co-rulers by the English Parliament after the Glorious Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Black Death|Black Death]]''' - The plague which killed one third of Europe's population in the 14th century.
+*'''[[w:Bloodless Revolution|Bloodless Revolution]]''' - A term used to refer to the ''Glorious Revolution''; the description is largely accurate of William's succession to the English throne, although his struggle to gain the Scottish and Irish thrones was far from bloodless.
+*'''[[w:Boer War|Boer War]]''' - Two wars, one in 1880-81 and the second from October 11, 1899 – 1902 both between the British and the settlers of Dutch origin (called Boere, Afrikaners or Voortrekkers) in South Africa that put an end to the two independent republics that they had founded.
+*'''[[w:Bolsheviks|Bolsheviks]]''' - A faction of the Russian revolutionary movement formed 1903 by followers of Vladimir Lenin, who believed in a small party of revolutionaries with a large fringe group of supporters.
+*'''[[w:Book of Common Prayer|Book of Common Prayer]]''' - The prayer book of the Church of England; was first published in 1544 and has been through many revisions.
+*'''[[w:Boxer-Rebellion|Boxer-Rebellion]]''' - Uprising against Western influence in China.
+*'''[[w:Burschenschaften|Burschenschaften]]''' - Liberal German associations of university students; helped initiate the ''Revolution of 1848 in Germany''.
+
+==C==
+*'''[[w:Cahiers de doléances|Cahier des doléances]]''' ''("Statement of Grievances")'' - documents drawn up by electors of the French States-General, since 1484, listing complaints with the state.
+*'''[[w:Calvinism|Calvinism]]''' - Protestant religion founded by John Calvin, centered upon "the sovereignty of God" ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Carbonari|Carbonari]]''' ''("coal-burners")'' - groups of secret revolutionary societies founded in early 19th century Italy, and instrumental in organizing revolution in Italy in 1820 and 1848.
+*'''[[w:Carlsbad Decrees|Carlsbad Decrees]]''' ''(1819)'' - A set of restrictions placed on Germans, under influence of Metternich of Austria; dissolved the Burschenschaften, provided for university inspectors and press censors.
+*'''[[w:Catholic monarchs|Catholic monarchs]]''' - The Spanish rulers Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdidand II of Aragon whose marriage marked the start of Christian dominance in Spain.
+*'''[[w:Cavaliers|Cavaliers]]''' - Supporters of Charles I of England in the English Civil War; also known as ''Royalists''.
+*'''[[w:Cecil Rhodes|Cecil Rhodes]]''' - (1853–1902) British imperialist and the effective founder of the state of Rhodesia (since 1980 known as Zimbabwe), named after himself. He profited greatly from southern Africa's natural resources, generally at the expense of the natives; severely racist.
+*'''[[w:Central Powers|Central Powers]]''' ''(World War I)'' - Dual Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria.
+*'''[[w:Cesare Beccaria|Cesare Beccaria]]''' ''(1735-1794)'' - Italian philosopher and mathematician, author of ''On Crimes and Punishments'' resulting in penal code reforms.
+*'''[[w:Charles Fourier|Charles Fourier]]''' ''(1772-1837)'' - French utopian socialist thinker; supported man's right to a minimum standard of life.
+*'''[[w:Charles I|Charles I]]''' (of England, Scotland) ''(1600-1649)'' - Struggled against Parliament, favoring absolutism, hostile to religious reform efforts; executed at the end of the English Civil War.
+*'''[[w:Chartism|Chartism]]''' - A movement for social and political reform in England, named from the ''People's Charter'' of 1838.
+*'''[[w:Cheka|Cheka]]''' ''(1917-1922)'' - The first of many Soviet secret police organizations.
+*'''[[w:Chivalry|Chivalry]]''' - Church-endorsed warrior code of ethics for knights, valuing bravery, loyalty, and self-sacrifice.
+*'''[[w:Cobden–Chevalier Treaty|Cobden–Chevalier Treaty]]''' ''(1860)'' - Treaty substantially lowering duties between the Britain and France, marking increasing cooperation between the two nations.
+*'''[[w:Classical|Classical]]''' - Pertaining to the culture of ancient Greece and Rome.
+*'''[[w:Classical liberalism|Classical liberalism]]''' - A political and economic philosophy, originally founded on the Enlightenment tradition that tries to circumscribe the limits of political power and to define and support individual rights.
+*'''[[w:Claude Henri de Saint-Simon|Claude Henri de Saint-Simon]]''' ''(1760-1825)'' - The founder of French socialism.
+*'''[[w:Comintern|Comintern]]''' ''(Communist International)'' - International Communist organization founded in March 1919 by Lenin, intended to fight for complete abolition of the State.
+*'''[[w:Committee of Public Safety|Committee of Public Safety]]''' - the executive government of France during the Reign of Terror of the French Revolution, established on April 6, 1793.
+*'''[[w:Common Market|Common Market]]''' - A customs union with common policies on product regulation, and freedom of movement of all the four factors of production (goods, services, capital and labour). It is established across most modern European nations.
+*'''[[w:Code Napoléon|Code Napoléon]]''' - ''(see Napoleonic code)''.
+*'''[[w:Collectivisation|Collectivisation]]''' - An agriculture system in which peasants are not paid wages, but instead receive a share of the farm's net output.
+*'''[[w:Committee of Public Safety|Committee of Public Safety]]''' - The executive government of France during the Reign of Terror of the French Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Communist Manifesto|Communist Manifesto]]''' - Document laying out the purposes of the Communist League, first published on February 21, 1848, by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.
+*'''[[w:Concordat of 1801|Concordat of 1801]]''' - Agreement between Napoléon and Pope Pius VII after Napoléon's coup d'état of France.
+*'''[[w:Congress of Berlin|Congress of Berlin]]''' - Prompted in 1878 by Otto von Bismarck to revise the Treaty of San Stefano. Proposed and ratified the Treaty of Berlin.
+*'''[[w:Congress of Vienna|Congress of Vienna]]''' ''(1814-1815)'' - a conference held in Vienna, Austria, to redraw Europe's political map after the defeat of Napoleonic France.
+*'''[[w:Consubstantiation|Consubstantiation]]''' - Lutheran belief that in the Eucharist sacrament, the spirit of Christ is present in the bread and wine, but they are not actually the body and blood of Christ ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Continental System|Continental System]]''' - Foreign economic warfare policy of Napoléon, consisting of an embargo against Great Britain, which failed.
+*'''[[w:Corn Laws|Corn Laws]]''' ''(1815-1846)'' - British import tariffs designed to protect farmers and landowners against foreign competition.
+*'''[[w:Corporative state|Corporative state]]''' - A political system in which legislative power is given to corporations that represent economic, industrial, and professional groups.
+*'''[[w:Corvée|Corvée]]''' - In feudal societies, an annual tax on a serf that is payable by labor; used to complete royal projects, to maintain roads, and for other purposes.
+*'''[[w:Council of Constance|Council of Constance]]''' ''(1414-1418)'' - Called for the abdication of all three popes of the Western Schism; successfully elected Martin V as the single pope, ending the Schism.
+*'''[[w:Council of Trent|Council of Trent]]''' ''(1545-1563)'' - Council of the Catholic Church to condemn Protestantism and to initiate some internal reform of Church corruption ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Count Cavour|Count Cavour]]''' ''(1810-1861)'' - Leader in the movement for Italian unification; first Prime Minister of Kingdom of Italy.
+*'''[[w:Coup d'état|Coup d'état]]''' - Sudden overthrow of a government, typically done by a small group that only replaces the top power figures.
+*'''[[w:Crédit Mobilier|Crédit Mobilier]]''' ''(1872)'' - Involved the Union Pacific Railroad and the Crédit Mobilier of America construction company. $47 million contracts had given Crédit Mobilier a profit of $21 million and left Union Pacific and other investors near bankruptcy. A Congressional investigation of thirteen members led to the censure of the board members and many political figures had their careers damaged.
+*'''[[w:Cuban Missile Crisis|Cuban Missile Crisis]]''' ''(1962)'' - Started on October 16, 1962, when U.S. reconnaissance was shown to U.S. President John F. Kennedy which revealed evidence for Soviet nuclear missile installations on the island, and lasted for 13 days until October 28, 1962, when Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev announced that the installations would be dismantled.
+
+==D==
+*'''[[w:Dante Alighieri|Dante Alighieri]]''' ''(1265-1321)'' - Author of ''The Divine Comedy'', a highly sarcastic work criticizing the Church; one of the first authors to write in vernacular.
+*'''[[w:David Hume|David Hume]]''' ''(1711-1776)'' - Philosopher and historian of the Scottish Enlightenment.
+*'''[[w:Decembrists|Decembrists]]''' - Officers of the Russian Army that led 3,000 soldiers in the Decembrist Revolt, an attempted uprising at Senate Square in December, 1825.
+*'''[[w:Declaration of Pillnitz|Declaration of Pillnitz]]''' ''(1791)'' - A statement issued by Emperor Leopold II and Frederick William II of Prussia, warning French revolutionaries to allow restoration to power of Louis XVI.
+*'''[[w:Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen|Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen]]''' ''(1789)'' - French Revolution document defining a set of individual rights, adopted by the National Constituent Assembly as a first step toward writing a constitution.
+*'''[[w:Defenestration of Prague|Defenestration of Prague]]''' (Second) ''(1618)'' - Act of revolt of the Bohemian aristocracy against the election of Ferdinand II, a Catholic zealot, as ruler of the Holy Roman Empire.
+*'''[[w:Deism|Deism]]''' - Belief in a God as the creator, based on reason instead of faith ''(Enlightenment)''.
+*'''[[w:Denis Diderot|Denis Diderot]]''' ''(1713-1784)'' - French writer and philosopher dealing with free will, editor-in-chief of the early encyclopedia, Encyclopédie ''(Enlightenment)''.
+*'''[[w:Destalinization|Destalinization]]''' - Actions taken by Khruschev in the Soviet Union to allow greater dissent and to speak out against the actions of former USSR President Stalin.
+*'''[[w:Détente|Détente]]''' - The relaxation of tensions between the Soviets and Americans.
+*'''[[w:Dialectical materialism|Dialectical materialism]]''' - The philosophical basis of Marxism as defined by later Communists; uses the concepts of thesis, antithesis and synthesis to explain the growth and development of human history.
+*'''[[w:Diggers|Diggers]]''' - A group begun by Gerrard Winstanley in 1649 during Oliver Cromwell's England; called for a social revolution toward a communistic and agrarian lifestyle based on Christian Nationalism.
+*'''[[w:Directory|Directory]]''' - A group of five men who held the executive power in France, according to the French Revolution constitution of 1795.
+*'''[[w:Duke of Alva|Duke of Alva]]''' - Commonly refers to ''Fernando Álvarez de Toledo'', the third Duke of Alva (or Alba).
+*'''[[w:Dutch East India Company|Dutch East India Company]]''' ''(1602-1798)'' - The first joint-stock company; granted a trade monopoly with Asia by the government of the Netherlands.
+*'''[[w:Dutch Revolt|Dutch Revolt]]''' - Term referring to the ''Eighty Years' War''.
+
+==E==
+*'''[[w:Edict of Nantes|Edict of Nantes]]''' ''(1598)'' - Declaration by Henry IV of France granting Huguenots substantial rights in a Catholic nation; introduction of religious tolerance ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Edict of Worms|Edict of Worms]]''' ''(1521)'' - Declaration by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at the end of the Diet of Worms that Martin Luther was an outlaw and a heretic ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Edmund Burke|Edmund Burke]]''' ''(1729-1797)'' - Irish philosopher, Whig politician, and founder of modern conservatism; criticized the French Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Eighty Years' War|Eighty Years' War]]''' ''(1568-1648)'' - A war of secession in which the Netherlands first gained independence as the Dutch Republic.
+*'''[[w:Emigration|Emigration]]''' - The action and the phenomenon of leaving one's native country to settle abroad. In particular, a large amount of emigration took place during the late 1800s in Europe.
+*'''[[w:Ems Telegram|Ems Telegram]]''' ''(1870)'' - Document edited by Otto von Bismarck to provoke the Franco-Prussian War.
+*'''[[w:Enclosure|Enclosure]]''' - The post-feudal process of enclosing open fields into individually owned fields; took off rapidly in 15th and 16th centuries as sheep farming became increasingly profitable.
+*'''[[w:Enlightenment|Enlightenment]]''' - ''(see Age of Enlightenment)''.
+*'''[[w:English Civil War|English Civil War]]''' ''(1642-1649)'' - A civil war fought between supporters of Charles I, (king of England, Scotland, and Ireland) and the Long Parliament led by Oliver Cromwell.
+*'''[[w:Erich Ludendorff|Erich Ludendorff]]''' ''(1865-1937)'' - German general responsible for capturing the forts of Liège, critical to the Schlieffen Plan.
+*'''[[w:Erich Maria Remarque|Erich Maria Remarque]]''' ''(1898-1970)'' - German soldier on the front lines of World War I, wrote ''All Quiet on the Western Front'' (1929).
+*'''[[w:Escorial|Escorial]]''' - Large palace, monastery, museum, and library near Madrid, Spain; commanded by King Philip II, promoting study in aid of the Counter-Reformation.
+*'''[[w:Estates-General|Estates-General]]''' - An assembly of the three classes, or Estates, of France before the French Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Excommunication|Excommunication]]''' - Suspension of one's membership in the religious community; banning from the Church.
+
+==F==
+*'''[[w:Factory Act|Factory Act]]''' ''(1833)'' - An attempt to establish normal working hours for workers in the textile industry.
+*'''[[w:Fall of Eagles|Fall of Eagles]]''' - Refers to the collapse of tsarist Russia.
+*'''[[w:Fascism|Fascism]]''' - Right-wing authoritarian political movement.
+*'''[[w:Fashoda Incident|Fashoda Incident]]''' - The climax of colonial disputes between imperial Britain and France in Eastern Africa; brought Britain and France to the verge of war but ended in a diplomatic victory for Britain.
+*'''[[w:February Revolution|February Revolution]]''' ''(1917)'' - The first stage of the Russian Revolution of 1917, consisting of riots in Petrograd which resulted in the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II.
+*'''[[w:Ferdinand Foch|Ferdinand Foch, General]]''' ''(1851-1929)'' - French soldier critical in stopping German advance during Spring 1918 and the Second Battle of Marne (July 1918); began the counter-attack leading to German defeat.
+*'''[[w:Ferdinand Lassalle|Ferdinand Lassalle]]''' ''(1825-1864)'' - German politician whose actions led to the formation of the Social Democratic Party, which was strongly opposed by Karl Marx.
+*'''[[w:Fernando Álvarez de Toledo|Fernando Álvarez de Toledo]]''' ''(1508-1583)'' - A Spanish general and governor of the Spanish Netherlands, nicknamed "the Iron Duke" for his cruelty; fought against Protestants in the Netherlands ''(Eighty Years' War)''.
+*'''[[w:Feudalism|Feudalism]]''' - Medieval system of holding land as a fief, provided by a lord to a vassal.
+*'''[[w:Fief|Fief]]''' - Revenue-producing property granted by a lord to a vassal ''(feudalism)''.
+*'''[[w:First Five-Year Plan|First Five-Year Plan]]''' - Outline the goals of the Soviet bureaucracy, focusing on heavy industry.
+*'''[[w:Flora Tristan|Flora Tristan]]''' ''(1803-1844)'' - One of the founders of modern feminism, author of several feminism works; grandmother of Paul Gauguin.
+*'''[[w:Fourteen Points|Fourteen Points]]''' - United States President Woodrow Wilson's outline for reconstructing Europe after World War I.
+*'''[[w:Francesco Sforza|Francesco Sforza]]''' ''(1401-1466)'' - Founder of the Sforza dynasty in Milan, Italy; successfully modernized the city, which became a center of Renaissance learning and culture.
+*'''[[w:Francis Bacon|Francis Bacon]]''' ''(1561-1626)'' - English philosopher, advocate of absolute duty to the sovereign, and defender of the Scientific Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Franco-Prussian War|Franco-Prussian War]]''' ''(1870-1871)'' - War fought between France and Prussia over a possible German claim to the Spanish throne.
+*'''[[w:French Academy of Sciences|French Academy of Sciences]]''' ''(1666)'' - Learned society founded by Louis XIV to encourage French scientific research.
+*'''[[w:Friedrich Engels|Friedrich Engels]]''' ''(1820-1895)'' - German Socialist philosopher who co-published The Communist Manifesto with Karl Marx.
+
+==G==
+*'''[[w:Galileo Galilei|Galileo Galilei]]''' ''(1564-1642)'' - First to use the telescope in astronomy; proved Copernicus' heliocentric theory ''(Scientific Revolution)''.
+*'''[[w:Geoffrey Chaucer|Geoffrey Chaucer]]''' ''(1340-1400)'' - Author of ''The Canterbury Tales'', a collection of stories exposing the materialism of a variety of English people.
+*'''[[w:Gestapo|Gestapo]]''' - The official secret police force of Nazi Germany, Geheime Staatspolizei ''(secret state police)''.
+*'''[[w:Girolamo Savonarola|Girolamo Savonarola]]''' ''(1452-1498)'' - Brief ruler of Florence known for religious anti-Renaissance preaching, book burning, and destruction of art.
+*'''[[w:Giuseppe Garibaldi|Giuseppe Garibaldi]]''' ''(1807-1885)'' - Italy's most famous soldier of the Risorgimento.
+*'''[[w:Giuseppe Mazzini|Giuseppe Mazzini]]''' ''(1805–1872)'' - Italian writer and politician who helped to bring about the modern, unified Italian state.
+*'''[[w:Glorious Revolution|Glorious Revolution]]''' ''(1688-1689)'' - The removal of Stuart king James II from the thrones of England, Scotland, and Ireland; replaced by ''William and Mary''; sometimes referred to as the ''Bloodless Revolution''.
+*'''[[w:Great Fear|Great Fear]]''' ''(1789)'' - Event at the start of the French Revolution; upon rumors that nobles planned to destroy the peasants' harvest, the peasants sacked nobles' castles and burned records of feudal obligations.
+*'''[[w:Great Purges|Great Purges]]''' - Campaigns of repression against social groups, often seen as a desire to consolidate the authority of Joseph Stalin.
+*'''[[w:Great Schism|Great Schism]]''' - Term used to refer to either the Western or Eastern Schism within the Catholic Church.
+*'''[[w:Gulag|Gulag]]''' - The branch of the Soviet police that operated forced labor camps and prisons.
+
+==H==
+*'''[[w:Heinrich Himmler|Heinrich Himmler]]''' ''(1900-1945)'' - The commander of the German Schutzstaffel and one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany; one of the key figures in the organization of the Holocaust.
+*'''[[w:Lord Palmerston|Henry Palmerston]]''' ''(1784-1865)'' - British Prime Minister and Liberal politician.
+*'''[[w:Philippe Pétain|Henri-Phillippe Petain, General]]''' ''(1856-1951)'' - A French soldier and Head of State of Vichy France. He became a French hero because of his military leadership in World War I. '''(ed: specifically...?)'''
+*'''[[w:Henry V|Henry V]]''' ''(1387-1422)'' - King of England ''(1413-1422)''; accepted by the English as heir to Charles VI and the French throne, thus adding conflict to the Hundred Years' War.
+*'''[[w:Hermann Goering|Hermann Goering]]''' ''(1893–1946)'' - A prominent and early member of the Nazi party, founder of the Gestapo, and one of the main architects of Nazi Germany.
+*'''[[w:Heresy|Heresy]]''' - Holding of beliefs which are contrary to those of organized religion.
+*'''[[w:Huguenot|Huguenot]]''' - Member of the Protestant Reformed Church of France ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Humanism|Humanism]]''' - A secular ideology centered on human interests, stressing the value of the individual ''(Renaissance)''.
+*'''[[w:Humanitarianism|Humanitarianism]]''' - The belief that the sole moral obligation of humankind is the improvement of human welfare.
+*'''[[w:Hundred Years' War|Hundred Years' War]]''' ''(1337-1453)'' - 116-year conflict between England and France.
+
+==I==
+*'''[[w:Ignatius of Loyola|Ignatius of Loyola]]''' ''(1491-1556)'' - Founder of the Society of Jesus, to strengthen the Church against Protestantism ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Il duce|Il duce]]''' ''(The Leader)'' - Name adopted by Italian prime minister Benito Mussolini in 1923 to position himself as the nation's supreme leader.
+*'''[[w:Impressionism|Impressionism]]''' - Art movement focused on creating an immediate visual impression, using primary colors and small strokes to simulate reflected light. ''(19th century)''
+*'''[[w:Imperialism|Imperialism]]''' - The policy of extending a nation's authority by territorial acquisition or by the establishment of economic and political hegemony over other nations.
+*'''[[w:Individualism|Individualism]]''' - Emphasis of the individual as opposed to a group; humanism ''(Renaissance)''.
+*'''[[w:Innocent III|Innocent III]]''' - Pope who organized the Fifth Crusade (1217); began the Papacy's interference in European affairs.
+*'''[[w:Easter Rising|Irish Easter Rebellion]]''' ''(Easter Monday, 1916)'' - An unsuccessful rebellion against British rule in Ireland.
+*'''[[w:Iron Curtain|Iron Curtain]]''' - Boundary which separated Western and Eastern Europe during the Cold War.
+*'''[[w:Isaac Newton|Isaac Newton]]''' ''(1643-1727)'' - English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher; credited for universal gravitation, laws of motion, and calculus ''(Scientific Revolution)''.
+
+==J==
+*'''[[w:James Hargreaves|James Hargreaves]]''' ''(1720-1778)'' - English inventor of the spinning jenny in 1764.
+*'''[[w:James Watt|James Watt]]''' ''(1736-1819)'' - Scottish engineer who improved the steam engine, a catalyst of the Industrial Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Jan Hus|Jan Hus]]''' ''(1369-1415)'' - Founder of the Hussites, with reform goals similar to those of John Wyclif; author of ''On the Church'', criticizing the Church; was burned at the stake.
+*'''[[w:Jean-Jacques Rousseau|Jean-Jacques Rousseau]]''' ''(1712-1778)'' - Swiss-French philosopher and political theorist; "noble savage" idea that man is good by nature but corrupted by society.
+*'''[[w:Jesuits|Jesuits]]''' - ''see Society of Jesus''
+*'''[[w:Joan of Arc|Joan of Arc]]''' ''(1412-1431)'' - Peasant girl who defended an English siege on Orléans during the Hundred Years' War; was captured and burned as a heretic.
+*'''[[w:Johann Tetzel|Johann Tetzel]]''' ''(1465-1519)'' - Dominican priest known for selling indulgences ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:John Calvin|John Calvin]]''' ''(1509-1564)'' - Founder of Calvinism in Geneva, Switzerland ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:John Kay|John Kay]]''' ''(1704-1780)'' - British inventor of the flying shuttle for weaving, a catalyst of the Industrial Revolution.
+*'''[[w:John Knox|John Knox]]''' ''(1505-1572)'' - A Protestant reformer who founded Presbyterianism in Scotland ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:John Locke|John Locke]]''' ''(1632-1704)'' - An English philosopher of the Enlightenment who wrote about "government with the consent of the governed" and man's natural rights; provided justification for the ''Glorious Revolution''.
+*'''[[w:John Wyclif|John Wyclif]]''' ''(1328-1384)'' - Initiator of the first English translation of the Bible, an important step toward the Protestant Reformation.
+*'''[[w:Joseph Joffre|Joseph Joffre, General]]''' ''(1852-1931)'' - Catalan French general; helped counter the Schlieffen Plan through retreat and counterattack at the First Battle of the Marne.
+
+==K==
+*'''[[w:Karl Marx|Karl Marx]]''' ''(1818-1883)'' - An influential German political theorist, whose writing on class conflict formed the basis of the communist and socialist movements.
+*'''[[w:Khruschev|Khruschev]]''' - See ''Nikita Khrushchev''
+*'''[[w:Kristallnacht|Kristallnacht]]''' ''(1938)'' - A massive nationwide pogrom in Germany, directed at Jewish citizens throughout the country.
+*'''[[w:Kulturkampf|Kulturkampf]]''' ''(Cultural Fight)'' - Attempt by Chancellor Otto von Bismarck to reduce Catholic influence in the early years of the 1871 German Empire.
+
+==L==
+*'''[[w:Laissez-Faire|Laissez-Faire]]''' - Libertarian philosophy of pure capitalism, without regulation of trade ''(Enlightenment)''.
+*'''[[w:Law of Maximum Général|Law of Maximum Général]]''' - A comprehensive program of wage and price controls in Revolutionary France.
+*'''[[w:Lay|Lay]]''' - in Catholicism, all non-clergy persons.
+*'''[[w:Lay investiture|Lay investiture]]''' - The induction of clerics by a king (a layman).
+*'''[[w:Vladimir Lenin|Lenin, Vladimir]]''' ''(1870-1924)'' - The leader of the Bolshevik party and the first Premier of the Soviet Union; enacted the New Economic Policy.
+*'''[[w:Leonardo da Vinci|Leonardo da Vinci]]''' ''(1452-1519)'' - Italian Renaissance architect, inventor, engineer, sculptor, and painter; most known for ''The Last Supper'' and ''Mona Lisa''; the archetype of the "Renaissance man."
+*'''[[w:Leopold III|Leopold III]]''' ''(1835–1909)'' - King of Belgium; founder of the Congo Free State, a private project to extract rubber and ivory.
+*'''[[w:Levée en masse|Levée en masse]]''' - French term for mass conscription, used to mobilize armies during the French Revolutionary Wars.
+*'''[[w:Lord|Lord]]''' - The owner of land who grants a fief to a vassal ''(feudal system)''.
+*'''[[w:Lorenzo de' Medici|Lorenzo de' Medici]]''' ''(1449-1492)'' - Ruler of the Florentine Republic during the Renaissance; Christian supporter of Platonism and humanism.
+*'''[[w:Louis Napoleon Bonaparte|Louis Napoleon Bonaparte]]''' ''(1808-1873)'' - The nephew of the Emperor Napoleon I of France; member of the Carbonari in his youth; elected President of the Second Republic of France in 1848; reigned as Emperor Napoleon III of the Second French Empire from 1852 to 1870.
+
+==M==
+*'''[[w:Machiavellian|Machiavellian]]''' - Having the qualities seen by Niccolò Machiavelli as ideal for a ruler; using ruthless authoritarian tactics to maintain power.
+*'''[[w:Manchurian Incident|Manchurian Incident]]''' ''(1931)'' - Japan's military accused Chinese dissidents of blowing up a sectin of a Japanese railroad in Manchuria, thus providing an excuse for the Japanese annexation of Manchuria.
+*'''[[w:Mannerism|Mannerism]]''' - Art after the High Renaissance in reaction to it, using exaggeration or distortion instead of balance and proportion.
+*'''[[w:Manor|Manor]]''' - The local jurisdiction of a lord over which he has legal and economic power ''(feudalism)''.
+*'''[[w:Marquis de Condorcet|Marquis de Condorcet]]''' ''(1743-1794)'' - French philosopher and mathematician, inventor of the Condorcet method, a voting system.
+*'''[[w:Marshall Plan|Marshall Plan]]''' - The primary plan of the United States for rebuilding the allied countries of Europe and repelling communism after World War II.
+*'''[[w:Martin Luther|Martin Luther]]''' ''(1483-1546)'' - German theologian and Augustinian monk who began Lutheranism and initiated the Protestant Reformation.
+*'''[[w:Meiji Restoration|Meiji Restoration]]''' ''(1866-1869)'' - Revolution in Japan; replaced the Tokugawa shogunate with imperial rule, and modernized the feudal country; provoked by the opening of Japan's ports to the West.
+*'''[[w:Mein Kampf|Mein Kampf]]''' ''(My Struggle)'' - A book written by Adolf Hitler, combining elements of autobiography with an exposition of Hitler's political ideology of nazism.
+*'''[[w:Mensheviks|Mensheviks]]''' - A faction of the Russian revolutionary movement formed 1903 by followers of Julius Martov, who believed in a large party of activists.
+*'''[[w:Mercantilism|Mercantilism]]''' - The economic theory that a country's economic prosperity depends on its supply of gold and silver, and that a country should export more than it imports.
+*'''[[w:Metternich|Metternich]]''' ''(1773-1858)'' - Austrian foreign minister during and after the Era of Napoleon.
+*'''[[w:Michaelangelo|Michaelangelo]]''' ''(1475-1564)'' - Renaissance painter, sculptor, poet and architect; most known for the fresco ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
+*'''[[w:Obshchina|Mir]]''' - In Russian, "peace," Connotes "community." '''(ed: relate this to the subject????)'''
+*'''[[w:Monasticism|Monasticism]]''' - Complete devotion to spiritual work.
+*'''[[w:Munich Agreement|Munich Agreement]]''' ''(1938)'' - An agreement regarding the Munich Crisis; discussed the future of Czechoslovakia and ended up surrendering much of that state to Nazi Germany, standing as a major example of appeasement.
+
+==N==
+*'''[[w:Napoléon Bonaparte|Napoléon Bonaparte]]''' ''(1769-1821)'' - General and politician of France who ruled as First Consul (1779–1804) and then as Emperor (1804–1814).
+*'''[[w:Napoleonic code|Napoleonic code]]''' - French code of civil law, established by Napoléon on March 21, 1804, to reform the French legal system in accordance with the principles of the French Revolution.
+*'''[[w:National Socialist German Workers' Party|National Socialist German Workers' Party]]''' - The Nazi party which was led to power in Germany by Adolf Hitler in 1933.
+*'''[[w:Nationalism|Nationalism]]''' - Ideology which sustains the nation as a concept of common identity among groups of people.
+*'''[[w:NATO|NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)]]''' ''(1769-1821)'' - An international organization for collective security established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, DC, on 4 April 1949.
+*'''[[w:Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact|Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact]]''' ''(1939)'' - A non-aggression treaty between foreign ministers Ribbentrop of Germany (Third Reich) and Molotov of Russia (Soviet Union).
+*'''[[w:Neo-platonism|Neo-platonism]]''' - Philosophy based on the teachings of Plato, which resurfaced during the Renaissance.
+*'''[[w:Neville Chamberlain|Neville Chamberlain]]''' ''(1869-1940)'' - British Prime Minister who maintained a policy of appeasement toward Nazi Germany.
+*'''[[w:New Economic Policy|New Economic Policy]]''' ''(NEP)'' ''(1921)'' - Lenin's system of economic reforms which restored private ownership to some parts of the economy.
+*'''[[w:New Model Army|New Model Army]]''' - An army of professional soldiers led by trained generals; formed by Roundheads upon passage of the Self-denying Ordinance in 1645; became famous for their Puritan religious zeal ''(English Civil War)''.
+*'''[[w:New Monarchs|New Monarchies]]''' - The states whose rulers in the 15th century began authoritarian rule using Machiavellian tactics ''(Northern Renaissance).
+*'''[[w:Niccolò Machiavelli|Niccolò Machiavelli]]''' ''(1469-1527)'' - Florentine political philosopher; author of ''The Prince'' ''(Renaissance)''.
+*'''[[w:Nicolaus Copernicus|Nicolaus Copernicus]]''' ''(1473-1543)'' - Astronomer and mathematician who developed the heliocentric theory of the solar system ''(Scientific Revolution)''.
+*'''[[w:Nietzsche's Superman|Nietzsche's Superman]]''' ''(Übermensch)'' - Concept that the strong and gifted should dominate over the weak.
+*'''[[w:Night of the Long Knives|Night of the Long Knives]]''' ''(1934)'' - A purge ordered by Adolf Hitler of potential political rivals in the Sturmabteilung.
+*'''[[w:Nihilism|Nihilism]]''' - Philosophy viewing the world and human existence as without meaning or purpose.
+*'''[[w:Nikita Khrushchev|Nikita Khrushchev]]''' - Leader of the Soviet Union after Stalin's death, from 1953 until 1964.
+*'''[[w:NKVD|NKVD]]''' - An agency best known for its function as secret police of the Soviet Union; also handled other matters such as transport, fire guards, border troops, etc.
+*'''[[w:No man's land|No man's land]]''' ''(World War I)'' - In trench warfare, land between two opposing trenches which provides no cover.
+
+==O==
+*'''[[w:October Revolution|October Revolution]]''' ''(1917)'' - The second stage of the Russian Revolution of 1917, led by Leon Trotsky; the first officially communist revolution, also known as the ''Bolshevik Revolution''.
+*'''[[w:Ancien Régime|Old Regime]]''' - see ''Ancien Régime''.
+*'''[[w:Oliver Cromwell|Oliver Cromwell]]''' ''(1599-1658)'' - Military leader and politician who led an overthrow of the British monarchy in the English Civil War; established the Commonwealth of England over which he ruled as Lord Protector.
+*'''[[w:Open-Door Policy|Open-Door Policy]]''' - Maintenance of equal commercial and industrial rights for all nations in China after the Opium War.
+*'''[[w:Opium War|Opium War]]''' ''(1834-1860)'' - Two wars between Britain and China over a Chinese attempt to eliminate the opium trade and reduce foreign influence within its borders.
+*'''[[w:Otto von Bismarck|Otto von Bismarck]]''' ''(1815-1898)'' - Prime Minister of Prussia who unified Germany and became the Chancellor of the German Empire.
+
+==P==
+*'''[[w:Pablo Picasso|Pablo Picasso]]''' ''(1881-1973)'' - Founder, along with Georges Braque, of Cubism.
+*'''[[w:Pagan|Pagan]]''' - Of or relating to classical, non-Christian religions.
+*'''[[w:Paris Commune|Paris Commune]]''' ''(1871)'' - Socialist government briefly ruling Paris, formed by a civil uprising of post-Franco-Prussian War revolutionaries.
+*'''[[w:Parlements|Parlements]]''' - Law courts of the ancien régime in France.
+*'''[[w:Parliamentarians|Parliamentarians]]''' - Anything associated with a parliament; sometimes refers to ''Roundheads'' ''(English Civil War)''.
+*'''[[w:Paris Peace Conference|Paris Peace Conference]]''' ''(1919)'' - A six-month international conference between the Allied and Associated Powers and their former enemies; proposed Treaty of Versailles.
+*'''[[w:Paul von Hindenburg|Paul von Hindenburg, General]]''' ''(1847-1934)'' - German war general; Reich President of Germany (1925–1934).
+*'''[[w:Peace of Westphalia|Peace of Westphalia]]''' ''(1648)'' - A series of treaties ending the Thirty Years' War.
+*'''[[w:Peasants' War|Peasants' War]]''' ''(1524-1526)'' - A mass of economic and religious revolts in Germany ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Peninsular War|Peninsular War]]''' ''(1808-1814)'' - A major conflict during the Napoleonic Wars, fought in the Iberian Peninsula; Spain, Portugal, and Britain vs. France.
+*'''[[w:Perspective|Perspective]]''' - Artistic technique used to give a painting the appearance of having three dimensions by depicting foreground objects larger than those of the background ''(Renaissance)''.
+*'''[[w:Philosophes|Philosophes]]''' - A group of French philosophers of the Enlightenment, including Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Voltaire.
+*'''[[w:Pierre-Joseph Proudhon|Pierre-Joseph Proudhon]]''' ''(1809-1865)'' - French anarchist, most famously asserting "Property is theft."
+*'''[[w:Politburo|Politburo]]''' ''(Political Bureau)'' - The executive organization for Communist Parties.
+*'''[[w:Politique|Politique]]''' - A term used in the 16th century to describe a head of state who put politics and the nation's well being before religion.
+*'''[[w:Popolo|Popolo]]''' - The poor, working class of Italy ''(Renaissance)''.
+*'''[[w:Predestination|Predestination]]''' - The religious idea that God's decisions determine destiny; particularly prevalent in Calvinism ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Presbyterianism|Presbyterianism]]''' - A Protestant church based on the teachings of John Calvin and established in Scotland by John Knox ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Proletariat|Proletariat]]''' - A lower social class; term used by Karl Marx to identify the working class.
+*'''[[w:Protectorate|Protectorate]]''' - A relationship of protection and partial control assumed by a superior power over a dependent country or region; the protected country or region.
+*'''[[w:Protestant Wind|Protestant Wind]]''' - Term used to refer to one of two incidents in which weather favored Protestants in battle: 1) the storm which wrecked the Spanish Armada, preventing an invasion of England (1588); 2) the favorable winds that enabled William III to land in England and depose the Catholic King James II (1688).
+
+==Q==
+*'''[[w:Queen Victoria|Queen Victoria]]''' ''(1819–1901)'' - Queen of the United Kingdom, reigning from 1837 until her death, longer than any other British monarch. As well as being queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, she was also the first monarch to use the title Empress of India. The reign of Victoria was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire. The Victorian Era was at the height of the Industrial Revolution, a period of great social, economic, and technological change in the United Kingdom.
+
+==R==
+*'''[[w:Raphael|Raphael]]''' ''(1483-1520)'' - Florentine painter and architect of the Italian High Renaissance.
+*'''[[w:Father Grigori Rasputin|Rasputin, Father Grigori]]''' ''(1872-1916)'' - Russian mystic having great influence over the wife of Tsar Nicholas II's wife Alexandra, ultimately leading to the downfall of the Romanov dynasty and the Bolshevik Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Rationalism|Rationalism]]''' - The philosophical idea that truth is derived from reason and analysis, instead of from faith and religious dogma (Renaissance).
+*'''[[w:Realism|Realism]]''' ''(Renaissance)'' - Depiction of images which is realistic instead of idealistic.
+*'''[[w:Realism|Realism]]''' ''(19th century)'' - Artistic movement originating in France as a reaction to ''Romanticism''; depiction of commonplace instead of idealized themes.
+*'''[[w:Realpolitick|Realpolitick]]''' ''(Politics of reality)'' - A term coined by Otto von Bismarck which refers to foreign politics based on practical concerns rather than theory or ethics.
+*'''[[w:Reconquista|Reconquista]]''' - The Spanish "reconquering" resulting in the removal of Jews and Muslims from the state, and a unification of Spain under Catholicism.
+*'''[[w:Red Guards|Red Guards]]''' ''(Russia)'' - The main strike force of the Bolsheviks, created in March 1917.
+*'''[[w:Reichstag|Reichstag]]''' ''(Imperial Diet)'' - Between 1871 and 1945, the German parliament.
+*'''[[w:Rembrandt van Rijn|Rembrandt van Rijn]]''' ''(1606-1669)'' - A baroque painter and engraver of the Netherlands during the Dutch Golden Age.
+*'''[[w:Renaissance|Renaissance]]''' - A cultural movement started in Italy in the 14th century marked by a rebirth of classic art and scientific learning of ancient Greece and Rome.
+*'''[[w:René Descartes|René Descartes]]''' ''(1596-1650)'' - Mathematician (inventor of the Cartesian coordinate system) and rationalist philosopher ("I think, therefore I am").
+*'''[[w:Risorgimento|Risorgimento]]''' ''(resurrection)'' - The gradual unification of Italy, culminating in the declaration of the Kingdom of Italy (1861) and the conquest of Rome (1870).
+*'''[[w:Rite of Spring|Rite of Spring]]''' - A ballet composed by Russian Igor Stravinsky; controversy due to its subject, pagan sacrifice.
+*'''[[w:Robert Owen|Robert Owen]]''' ''(1771-1858)'' - Welsh social reformer, father of the cooperative movement.
+*'''[[w:Robespierre|Robespierre]]''' ''(1758-1794)'' - One of the best known leaders of the French Revolutions; known as "the Incorruptible"; leader of the Committee of Public Safety.
+*'''[[w:Romanticism|Romanticism]]''' ''(18th century)'' - Artistic and intellectual movement, after the Enlightenment period, stressing strong emotion, imagination, freedom from classical correctness in art forms, and rebellion against social conventions.
+*'''[[w:Rotten borough|Rotten borough]]''' - A small British parliamentary constituency which could be 'controlled' by a patron and used to exercise undue and unrepresentative influence within parliament.
+*'''[[w:Roundheads|Roundheads]]''' - Puritans under Oliver Cromwell in the English Civil War; named after the round helmets they wore; also known as ''Parliamentarians''.
+*'''[[w:Royal Society of London|Royal Society of London]]''' ''(1660)'' - An institution of learning committed to open content, the free availability and flow of information.
+*'''[[w:Royalists|Royalists]]''' - An adherent of a monarch or royal family; sometimes refers to ''Cavaliers'' ''(English Civil War)''.
+*'''[[w:Russian Civil War|Russian Civil War]]''' ''(1918-1920)'' - Conflict between communists and monarchists, after the Russian Revolution of 1917.
+
+==S==
+*'''[[w:Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre|Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre]]''' ''(1572)'' - A wave of Catholic mob violence against the Huguenots, lasting for several months.
+*'''[[w:Sans-culottes|Sans-culottes]]''' ''(without knee-breeches)'' - Term referring to the ill-clad and ill-equipped volunteers of the French Revolutionary army.
+*'''[[w:Schleswig-Holstein|Schleswig-Holstein]]''' - A region of northern Germany which Denmark surrendered to Otto von Bismarck in 1865.
+*'''[[w:Schutzstaffel|Schutzstaffel (SS)]]''' ''(Protective Squadron)'' - A large paramilitary organization that belonged to the Nazi party.
+*'''[[w:Secularism|Secularism]]''' - Concern with worldly ideas, as science and rationalism, instead of religion and superstition ''(Renaissance)''.
+*'''[[w:Self-denying Ordinance|Self-denying Ordinance]]''' ''(1645)'' - A Bill passed by English Parliament, depriving members of Parliament from holding command in the army or navy, to promote professionalism in the armed forces; aided creation of the New Model Army ''(English Civil War)''.
+*'''[[w:Sepoy mutiny|Sepoy mutiny]]''' ''(1857–1858)'' - Rebellions against British colonial rule in India; caused the end of the British East India Company's rule in India, and led to a century of direct rule of India by Britain.
+*'''[[w:Sigmund Freud|Sigmund Freud]]''' ''(1856-1939)'' - Austrian neurologist credited for psychoanalysis and the theory of unconscious motives.
+*'''[[w:Simony|Simony]]''' - The ecclesiastical crime of paying for offices or positions in the hierarchy of a church ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Sir Richard Arkwright|Sir Richard Arkwright]]''' ''(1732-1792)'' - English inventor of the Water Frame, a water-powered cotton mill.
+*'''[[w:Sir Thomas More|Sir Thomas More]]''' - Author of ''Utopia'', a novel which extols the hypothetical ideal society, by the Northern Renaissance ideals of humanism and Christianity.
+*'''[[w:Social Darwinism|Social Darwinism]]''' - The application of Darwinism to the study of human society, specifically a theory in sociology that individuals or groups achieve advantage over others as the result of genetic or biological superiority.
+*'''[[w:Society of Jesus|Society of Jesus]]''' - A Roman Catholic Order founded in 1534 by Ignatius of Loyola ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Spanish Civil War|Spanish Civil War]]''' ''(1936–1939)'' - The result of the complex political and even cultural rift in Spain.
+*'''[[w:Sphere of Influence|Sphere of Influence]]''' - A territorial area over which political or economic influence is wielded by one nation.
+*'''[[w:Joseph Stalin|Stalin, Joseph]]''' ''(1879-1953)'' - Bolshevik revolutionary who ruled the Soviet Union after the death of Lenin; responsible for the Great Purge and five year plans.
+*'''[[w:States-General|States-General]]''' - ''(see Estates-General)''.
+*'''[[w:Subsistence|Subsistence]]''' - Production of food only in quantities needed for survival, without the creation of surpluses.
+*'''[[w:Sudetenland|Sudetenland]]''' - The region inhabited mostly by Sudeten Germans in various places of Bohemia, Moravia, and Silesia; became part of Czechoslovakia in 1945.
+*'''[[w:Suez Canal|Suez Canal]]''' ''(constructed 1854-1869)'' - A canal in Egypt between the Mediterranean and Red Seas, allowing access between Europe and Asia.
+
+==T==
+*'''[[w:Tabula rasa|Tabula rasa]]''' (Blank slate) - John Locke's idea that humans are born with no innate ideas, and that identity is defined by events after birth.
+*'''[[w:Taille|Taille]]''' - A direct land tax on the French peasantry in ancien régime France.
+*'''[[w:T.E. Lawrence|T.E. Lawrence]]''' ''(1888-1935)'' - also known as Lawrence of Arabia; a British liaison officer during the Arab Revolt of 1916–1918.
+*'''[[w:Tennis Court Oath|Tennis Court Oath]]''' ''(1789)'' - A pledge by France's Third Estate to continue to meet until a constitution had been written; may be considered the birth of the French Revolution.
+*'''[[w:Thirty Years' War|Thirty Years' War]]''' ''(1618-1648)'' - Conflict principally taking place in the Holy Roman Empire involving a religious conflict between Protestants and Catholics, fought for the self-preservation of the Hapsburg dynasty.
+*'''[[w:Thomas Hobbes|Thomas Hobbes]]''' ''(1588-1679)'' - English political philosopher advocating an authoritarian version of the social contract (''absolutism'').
+*'''[[w:Thomas Malthus|Thomas Malthus]]''' ''(1766–1834)'' - English economist who, in ''An Essay on the Principle of Population'', predicted that increasing population growth would cause a massive food shortage.
+*'''[[w:Thomas Newcomen|Thomas Newcomen]]''' ''(1664-1729)'' - English inventor of the Newcomen engine, a steam engine for pumping water out of mines.
+*'''[[w:Tory|Tory]]''' - A member of the British Conservative party.
+*'''[[w:Totalitarianism|Totalitarianism]]''' - A form of government in which the political authority exercises absolute and centralized control over all aspects of life.
+*'''[[w:Treaties of Tilsit|Treaties of Tilsit]]''' ''(1807)'' - Treaties ending war between Russia and France; began a powerful secret alliance between the two countries.
+*'''[[w:Treaty of Brest-Litovsk|Treaty of Brest-Litovsk]]''' ''(1918)'' - Peace treaty which marked Russia's exit from World War I.
+*'''[[w:Treaty of Versailles|Treaty of Versailles]]''' ''(1919)'' - Peace treaty created by the Paris Peace Conference; which officially ended World War I.
+*'''[[w:Trotsky, Leon|Trotsky, Leon]]''' ''(1879-1940)'' - Bolshevik revolutionary, early Soviet Union politician, and founding member of the Politburo; expelled from the Communist Party after a power struggle with Stalin.
+*'''[[w:Truman Doctrine|Truman Doctrine]]''' ''(1947)'' - Harry S. Truman's statement initiating the U.S. policy of containment toward Russia.
+
+==U==
+*'''[[w:Ulrich Zwingli|Ulrich Zwingli]]''' ''(1484-1531)'' - Founder of Zwinglianism in the Zürich, Switzerland; leader of the Swiss Reformation ''(Protestant Reformation)''.
+*'''[[w:Usury|Usury]]''' - Charging a fee generally in the form of interest on loans; forbidden by most religious doctrines ''(Protestant Reformation)''. Usury was forbidden in the Catholic Church, so Jews became wealthy, successful merchants
+*'''[[w:Utopian Socialism|Utopian Socialism]]''' - The socialist ideals of creating a perfect communist society. Writers such as Charles Fourier, Henri de Saint-Simon and Robert Owen were prominent Utopian Socialists.
+
+==V==
+*'''[[w:Vassal|Vassal]]''' - The tenant of land who receives a fief in exchange for knightly service ''(feudalism)''.
+*'''[[w:Vernacular|Vernacular]]''' - The standard, native language of a region (generally as opposed to Latin).
+*'''[[w:Virtu|Virtu]]''' - Humanist value of the Renaissance emphasizing a nobility of spirit and action, stressing an individual's dignity and worth; replaced the chivalrous Medieval value of humility.
+*'''[[w:Voltaire|Voltaire]]''' ''(1694-1778)'' - French deist philosopher, author of ''Candide'', which sarcastically attacks religious and philosophical optimism ''(Enlightenment)''.
+
+==W==
+*'''[[w:War of the Three Henrys|War of the Three Henrys]]''' ''(1584-1598)'' - A series of three civil wars in France, also known as the Huguenot Wars; fought between the Catholic League and the Huguenots.
+*'''[[w:Wars of the Roses|Wars of the Roses]]''' ''(1455-1487)'' - Intermittent civil war fought over the throne of England between the House of Lancaster and the House of York.
+*'''[[w:Warsaw Pact|Warsaw Pact]]''' ''(1455-1487)'' - An organization of Central and Eastern European Communist states. It was established in 1955 to counter the threat from the NATO alliance.
+*'''[[w:Weimar Republic|Weimar Republic]]''' ''(1919-1933)'' - The first attempt at liberal democracy in Germany; named after the city of Weimar, where the new constitution was written.
+*'''[[w:Western Schism|Western Schism]]''' ''(1378)'' - Split within the Catholic Church at the end of the Avignon Papacy.
+*'''[[w:Whig|Whig]]''' - A member of the British Liberal Democrat party.
+*'''[[w:White-collar|White-collar]]''' - Class of labor performing less "laborious" tasks and are more highly paid than blue-collar manual workers.
+*'''[[w:White Man’s Burden|White Man’s Burden]]''' - The concept of the white race's obligation to govern and impart it beliefs upon nonwhite people; often used to justify European colonialism.
+*'''[[w:William and Mary|William and Mary]]''' - King William III and Queen Mary II; jointly ruled England and Scotland after the Glorious Revolution of 1688; they replaced the absolutist King James II and ruled as constitutional monarchs.
+*'''[[w:William Gladstone|William Gladstone]]''' ''(1809-1898)'' - A British Liberal politician and Prime Minister (1868–1874, 1880–1885, 1886 and 1892–1894), a notable political reformer, known for his populist speeches, and was for many years the main political rival of Benjamin Disraeli.
+
+==X==
+* X-ray - first systematically studied by Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen in 1895.
+
+==Y==
+*'''[[w:Yekaterinburg|Yekaterinburg]]''' - The location at which the family of Czar Nicholas II was murdered by Bolsheviks
+
+==Z==
+*'''[[w:Zimmermann Telegram|Zimmermann Telegram]]''' ''(1917)'' - Message sent by German Arthur Zimmermann, proposing that Mexico ally with Germany against the United States; hastened U.S. entry into World War I.
+
+<noinclude>{{EuropeanHistoryTOC|mini}}</noinclude>
+
+[[File:Zakupy1853.jpg|thumb|right|Schloß Reichstadt, Lithograph 1853]]
+'''The [[Zákupy|Reichstadt]] agreement''' was an agreement made between [[Austria-Hungary]] and [[Russia]] in July 1876, who were at that time in an alliance with each other and [[German Empire|Germany]] in the [[League of the Three Emperors]], or ''Dreikaiserbund''. Present were the Russian and Austro-Hungarian emperors together with their foreign ministers, [[Alexander Gorchakov|Prince Gorchakov]] of Russia and [[Count Andrassy]] of Austria-Hungary. The closed meeting took place on July 8 in the Bohemian city of Reichstadt (now [[Zákupy]]). They agreed on a common approach to the solution of the [[Eastern question]], due to the unrest in the [[Ottoman Empire]] and the interests of the two major powers in the Balkans. They discussed the likely [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)|Russo-Turkish War]] of 1877–1878, its possible outcomes and what should happen under each scenario.
+
+The later [[Budapest Convention 1877|Budapest Convention]] of 1877 confirmed the main points, but when the war concluded with the [[Treaty of San Stefano]] in 1878, the terms of the treaty were quite different leading to Austrian insistence on convening a revision at the [[Congress of Berlin]] later that year. These events laid the background for the subsequent [[Bulgarian Crisis (1885–1888)|Bulgarian Crisis]] of 1885-1888, and ultimately [[World War I]].<ref name=ragsdale>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bwvllKkPQtYC |editor-first=Hugh |editor-last=Ragsdale |title=Imperial Russian Foreign Policy |publisher=Woodrow Wilson Center Press. Cambridge University Press |year=1993 |isbn=9780521442299}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dr7Yz98twWQC |first=Frederick |last=Kellogg |title=The Road to Romanian Independence |publisher=Purdue University Press |year=1995 |isbn=9781557530653}}</ref><ref>[http://isanet.ccit.arizona.edu/noarchive/berlincongress.html Mikulas Fabry. The Idea of National Self-Determination and The Recognition of New States at The Congress Of Berlin (1878)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080621140434/http://isanet.ccit.arizona.edu/noarchive/berlincongress.html |date=2008-06-21 }}. ISA Annual Convention, New Orleans, March 24-27, 2002</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/stream/secrettreatiesof02pribuoft/secrettreatiesof02pribuoft_djvu.txt |editor-last=Pribram |editor-first=Alfred |year=1921 |title=The Secret Treaties of Austria-Hungary |volume=2 |publisher=Harvard University Press}}</ref>
+
+== Format ==
+The negotiations took place in a private and almost informal setting. It is significant that the results of the meeting were not written down, so that the Austrian and Russian view of what was agreed on differed significantly. There was neither a signed formal convention nor even a signed protocol. The minutes were dictated separately by both Andrassy and by Gorchakov suggesting that neither side really trusted the other side. The extent of agreed Austrian annexation in Bosnia and Herzegovina has remained controversial. It was these inconsistencies that necessitated further discussions at the Constantinople Conference and the subsequent [[Budapest Convention 1877|Budapest Convention]], though these largely confirmed or amended the Reichstadt discussions.
+
+== Terms of the agreement ==
+The Balkan Christians would gain a measure of independence.
+
+Austria would allow Russia to make gains in [[Bessarabia]] and the [[Caucasus]].
+
+Russia would allow Austria to gain [[Bosnia (region)|Bosnia]].
+
+Russia and Austria agree not to create a big Slavic state in the Balkans.
+
+== Implications ==
+This effectively meant that Austria was assuring Russia that to stay out of a war between Russia and the [[Ottoman Empire]]. It also meant that the Austrians and the Russians were agreeing on how the [[Balkans]] would be split up in the case of a Russian victory.
+
+<gallery>
+image:Andrássy Gyula 1871.jpg|Andrassy
+image:Franz Joseph 1865.jpg|Franz Joseph
+image:Alexander II 1870 by Sergei Lvovich Levitsky.jpg|Alexander II.
+image:A.M.Gorchakov.jpg|Gorchakov
+</gallery>
+
+== See also ==
+* [[History of Austria]]
+* [[Bulgarian Crisis (1885–1888)]]
+
+== References ==
+{{Reflist}}
+
+== Bibliography ==
+* [https://books.google.com/books?id=Ylz4fe7757cC Crampton, R. J. ''A Concise History of Bulgaria''. Cambridge University Press 1997]
+* [http://www.cambridge.org/gb/knowledge/isbn/item1146483/?site_locale=en_GB Beller, Steven. ''A Concise History of Austria''. Cambridge University Press 2007] {{ISBN|9780521473057}}
+
+{{Treaties of Hungary}}
+{{Great Eastern Crisis}}
+
+[[Category:History of the Balkans]]
+[[Category:1876 treaties]]
+[[Category:1876 in the Russian Empire]]
+[[Category:1876 in Austria-Hungary]]
+[[Category:Treaties of Austria-Hungary]]
+[[Category:Treaties of the Russian Empire]]
+[[Category:Austria-Hungary–Russia relations]]
+[[Category:Bilateral treaties of Russia]]
+
+The '''Three Caesars' Alliance''' or '''Union of the Three Emperors''' ({{lang-de|Dreikaiserbund}}, {{lang-ru|Союз трёх императоров}}) was an alliance between the [[German Empire|German]], [[Russian Empire|Russian]] and [[Austro-Hungarian Empire]]s, from 1873 to 1887. Chancellor [[Otto von Bismarck]] took full charge of German foreign policy from 1870 to his dismissal in 1890. His goal was a peaceful Europe, based on the balance of power. Bismarck feared that a hostile combination of Austria, France and Russia would crush Germany. If two of them were allied, then the third would ally with Germany only if Germany conceded excessive demands. The solution was to ally with two of the three. In 1873 he formed the League of the Three Emperors, an alliance of the Kaiser of Germany, the Tsar of Russia, and the Kaiser of Austria-Hungary. Together they would control [[Eastern Europe]], making sure that restive ethnic groups such as the Poles were kept in control. It aimed at neutralizing the rivalry between Germany’s two neighbors by an agreement over their respective spheres of influence in the Balkans and at isolating Germany’s enemy, France. The Balkans posed a more serious issue, and Bismarck's solution was to give Austria predominance in the western areas, and Russia in the eastern areas.<ref>Raymond James Sontag, ''European Diplomatic History: 1871–1932'' (1933) pp. 3–58</ref>
+
+The first League of the Three Emperors was in effect from 1873 to 1878. A second one was established June 18, 1881, and lasted for three years. It was renewed in 1884 but lapsed in 1887. Both alliances ended because of continued strong conflicts of interest between Austria-Hungary and Russia in the Balkans. The second treaty provided that no territorial changes should take place in the Balkans without prior agreement and that Austria could annex Bosnia and Herzegovina when it wished; in the event of war between one party and a great power not party to the treaty, the other two parties were to maintain friendly neutrality.
+
+Bismarck was able temporarily to preserve the tie with Russia in the [[Reinsurance Treaty]] of 1887; but, after his dismissal, this treaty was not renewed, and a Franco-Russian alliance developed.<ref>"Dreikaiserbund". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
+
+Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2016. Web. 10 Feb. 2016
+
+<https://www.britannica.com/event/Dreikaiserbund>.
+</ref>
+
+== First agreement (1873) ==
+[[File:Otto von Bismarck.JPG|thumb|100px|right|187px|Bismarck]]
+On 22 October 1873, Bismarck negotiated an agreement between the monarchs of [[Austria–Hungary]], [[Russian Empire|Russia]] and [[German Empire|Germany]]. The alliance sought to resurrect the [[Holy Alliance]] of 1815 and act as a bulwark against radical sentiments that the conservative rulers found unsettling.<ref>[[#refGildea2003|Gildea 2003]], p. 237.</ref> It was preceded by the [[Schönbrunn Palace|Schönbrunn]] Convention, signed by Russia and Austria–Hungary on 6 June 1873.
+
+== Policy ==
+
+Bismarck often led the League as it assessed challenges, centred on maintaining the [[balance of power in international relations|balance of power]] among the states involved and Europe at large. The cornerstone of his political philosophy included preserving the status quo and avoiding war. Despite German victory in the [[Franco-Prussian War]] of 1870-1871, violence remained fresh in the new state's memory and made Germany reluctant to antagonize France but keen as ever to limit its power.
+
+According to the coalition, radical socialist bodies like the [[First International]] represented one of the other key threats to regional stability and dominance. The League actively opposed the expansion of its influence.<ref>{{cite book|last=Henig|first=Ruth Beatrice|title=The Origins of the First World War|year=2002|publisher=Routledge|isbn=0-415-26185-6|page=3}}</ref>
+
+The League also met crisis in the [[Eastern Europe]], where [[Principality of Bulgaria|Bulgarian]] unrest elicited violent reaction from the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] forces there, which, in turn, met with horror from observing states. The account of the insurrection from an Englishman, Sir [[Edwin Pears]],<ref>Sir Edwin Pears, Forty Years in Constantinople, 1873–1915, (New York: D. Appleton and Co., 1916), pp. 16–19, reprinted in Alfred J. Bannan and Achilles Edelenyi, eds., Documentary History of Eastern Europe, (New York: Twayne Publishers, 1970), pp. 191–94. found at [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1876massacre-bulgaria.html], last visited June 24, 2011</ref> describes the gruesome atrocities and reveals British surprise at their extent.
+
+== First dissolution (1878) ==
+
+The collective initially disbanded in 1878 over territorial disputes in the [[Balkans]] as Austria-Hungary feared that Russian support for [[Principality of Serbia|Serbia]] might ultimately ignite irredentist passions in the [[Slav]] populations.<ref name="Gildea03pg240">[[#refGildea2003|Gildea 2003]], p. 240.</ref> Russian authorities, likewise, feared insurrection if a [[Pan-Slavist]] movement gained too much clout.<ref name="Gildea03pg240"/>
+
+The body’s first conclusion in 1879 gave way to the defensive [[Dual Alliance (1879)|Dual Alliance]] between Austria-Hungary and Germany to counter potential Russian aggression. In 1882, [[Italy]] joined the agreement to form the [[Triple Alliance (1882)|Triple Alliance]].<ref>[http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=1860]</ref>
+
+==Revival (1881–1887)==
+
+The 1878 [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]] made Russia feel cheated of its gains of the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)|Russo-Turkish War]]. Its key role in European diplomacy was not, however, forgotten by Bismarck. A more formal Three Emperors' Alliance was concluded on 18 June 1881.<ref>[https://wwi.lib.byu.edu/index.php/The_Three_Emperors%27_League Text of the actual agreement], last visited Oct. 29, 2018</ref>
+
+It lasted for three years and was renewed at [[Skierniewice]] in 1884 but lapsed in 1887. Both alliances ended because of conflicts between Austria-Hungary and Russia in the Balkans. To preserve a common understanding with Russia, Germany signed the mutual [[Reinsurance Treaty]] in 1887.
+
+==See also==
+* [[International relations (1814–1919)]]
+
+==References==
+{{reflist}}
+
+==Sources==
+* {{cite book|last=Gildea|first=Robert|title=Barricades and Borders: Europe 1800–1914|year=2003|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=0-19-925300-5|page=237|ref=refGildea2003}}
+* Goriainov, Serge. "The End of the Alliance of the Emperors," ''American Historical Review'', (1918) 23#2 pp. 324–29. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/1836570 in JSTOR].
+* Langer, William. ''European Alliances and Alignments 1870–1890'' (2nd ed. 1950), pp. 197–212
+* Medlicott, W. N. "Bismarck and the Three Emperors' Alliance, 1881-87," ''Transactions of the Royal Historical Society'' Vol. 27 (1945), pp. 61-83 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3678575 online]
+* Meyendorff, A. "Conversations of Gorkachov with Andrassy and Bismarck in 1872," ''The Slavonic and East European Review'' (1929) 8#23 pp. 400–08. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/4202407 in JSTOR]
+* Schroeder, Paul W. "Quantitative Studies in the Balance of Power: An Historian's Reaction," ''The Journal of Conflict Resolution'' (1977) 21#1 pp. 3–22. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/173680 in JSTOR]
+* Taylor, A.J.P. ''The Struggle for Mastery in Europe 1848–1918'' (1954)
+{{Great power diplomacy}}
+
+[[Category:1873 in Austria-Hungary]]
+[[Category:1873 treaties]]
+[[Category:1873 in Germany]]
+[[Category:1873 in the Russian Empire]]
+[[Category:19th-century military alliances]]
+[[Category:Treaties of Austria-Hungary]]
+[[Category:Treaties of the German Empire]]
+[[Category:Treaties of the Russian Empire]]
+[[Category:Military alliances involving Austria-Hungary]]
+[[Category:Military alliances involving the German Empire]]
+[[Category:Military alliances involving Russia]]
+[[Category:Austria-Hungary–Germany relations]]
+[[Category:Austria-Hungary–Russia relations]]
+[[Category:Germany–Russia relations]]
+
+In [[diplomatic history]], the "'''Eastern Question'''" refers to the strategic competition and political considerations of the European [[Great Powers]] in light of the political and economic instability in the [[Ottoman Empire]] from the late 18th to early 20th centuries. Characterized as the "[[sick man of Europe]]", the relative weakening of the empire's military strength in the second half of the eighteenth century threatened to undermine the fragile [[Balance of power (international relations)|balance of power]] system largely shaped by the [[Concert of Europe]]. The Eastern Question encompassed myriad interrelated elements: Ottoman military defeats, Ottoman institutional insolvency, the ongoing Ottoman political and economic modernization programme, the rise of ethno-religious nationalism in its provinces, and Great Power rivalries.<ref>Theophilus C. Prousis. Review of Macfie, A. L., ''The Eastern Question, 1774-1923''. HABSBURG, H-Net Reviews. December, 1996. [http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=712]</ref>
+
+The origin of the Eastern Question is normally dated to 1774, when the [[Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774)]] ended in defeat for the Ottomans. As the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire was believed to be imminent, the European powers engaged in a power struggle to safeguard their military, strategic and commercial interests in the Ottoman domains. [[Imperial Russia]] stood to benefit from the [[decline of the Ottoman Empire]]; on the other hand, [[Austria-Hungary]] and [[History of the United Kingdom|Great Britain]] deemed the preservation of the Empire to be in their best interests. The Eastern Question was put to rest after [[World War I]], one of the outcomes of which was the [[collapse of the Ottoman Empire|collapse and division of the Ottoman holdings]].
+
+==Background==
+{{main article|International relations of the Great Powers (1814–1919)}}
+[[File:Ottoman empire.svg|thumb|300px|At the height of its power (1683), the [[Ottoman Empire]] controlled territory in the Near East and North Africa, as well as Central and Southeastern Europe.]]
+
+The Eastern Question emerged as the power of the Ottoman Empire began to decline during the 18th century. The Ottomans were at the height of their power in 1683, when they lost the [[Battle of Vienna]] to the combined forces of the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]] and Austria, under the command of [[John III Sobieski]]. Peace was made much later, in 1699, with the [[Treaty of Karlowitz]], which forced the Ottoman Empire to cede many of its Central European possessions, including those portions of Hungary which it had occupied. Its westward expansion arrested, the Ottoman Empire never again posed a serious threat to Austria, which became the dominant power in its region of Europe. The Eastern Question did not truly develop until the [[History of the Russo-Turkish wars|Russo-Turkish Wars]] of the 18th century.
+
+==Napoleonic Era==
+{{main article|Russo-Turkish War (1806–1812)|Anglo-Turkish War (1807–09)}}
+[[File:Athosbattle.jpg|thumb|300px|''Russian Fleet after the [[Battle of Athos]]'', by [[Aleksey Bogolyubov]] (1824–96)]]
+
+The Napoleonic era (1799–1815) brought some relief to the faltering Ottoman Empire. It distracted Russia from further advances. [[Napoleon I]] himself invaded Egypt, but his army was trapped there when the British sank the French fleet. A peace interlude in 1803 allowed the army to return to France.<ref>Juan Cole, ''Napoleon's Egypt: Invading the Middle East'' (2008)</ref>
+
+To secure his own domination and to render the rest of Europe virtually powerless, Napoleon established an alliance with Russia by concluding the [[Treaties of Tilsit|Treaty of Tilsit]] in 1807. Russia undertook to aid Napoleon in his war against Britain; in turn, the Emperor of Russia would receive the Ottoman territories of [[Moldavia]] and [[Wallachia]]. If the Sultan refused to surrender these territories, France and Russia were to attack the Empire, and the Ottoman domains in Europe were to be partitioned between the two allies.<ref>Michael S. Anderson, ''The Eastern Question, 1774–1923: A Study in International Relations'' (1966) ch 1</ref>
+
+The Napoleonic scheme threatened not only the Sultan, but also Britain, Austria and Prussia, which was almost powerless in the face of such a potent alliance. The alliance naturally proved accommodating to the Austrians, who hoped that a joint Franco-Russian attack, which would probably have utterly devastated the Ottoman Empire, could be prevented by diplomacy; but if diplomatic measures failed, the Austrian minister [[Klemens von Metternich]] decided that he would support the partition of the Ottoman Empire—a solution disadvantageous to Austria, but not as dangerous as a complete Russian takeover of Southeastern Europe.
+
+An attack on the Empire, however, did not come to pass, and the alliance concluded at Tilsit was dissolved by the [[French invasion of Russia]] in 1812. Following Napoleon's defeat by the Great Powers in 1815, representatives of the victors met at the [[Congress of Vienna]], but failed to take any action relating to the territorial integrity of the decaying Ottoman Empire. This omission, together with the exclusion of the Sultan from the [[Holy Alliance]], was interpreted by many as supportive of the position that the Eastern Question was a Russian domestic issue that did not concern any other European nations.<ref>{{cite book|author=Walter Alison Phillips|title=The confederation of Europe: a study of the European alliance, 1813–1823, as an experiment in the international organization of peace|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=K2BJAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA234|year=1914|publisher=Longmans, Green|pages=234–50}}</ref>
+
+==Serbian revolution==
+{{See also|Serbian revolution|}}
+<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Uprising.jpg|thumb|left|200px|The takeover of [[Belgrade]], 1806]] -->
+'''Serbian revolution''' or ''Revolutionary Serbia'' refers to the [[Révolution nationale|national]] and [[social revolution]] of the [[Serbs|Serbian people]] between 1804 and 1815, during which Serbia managed to fully emancipate from the [[Ottoman Empire]] and exist as a sovereign European [[nation-state]], and a latter period (1815–1833), marked by intense negotiations between [[Belgrade]] and [[Ottoman Empire]]. The term was invented by a famous German historian [[Leopold von Ranke]] in his book ''Die Serbische Revolution'', published in 1829.<ref>Leopold von Ranke, ''A History of Serbia and the Serbian Revolution'' (1847)</ref> These events marked the foundation of [[Principality of Serbia|modern Serbia]].<ref>L. S. Stavrianos, ''The Balkans since 1453'' (London: Hurst and Co., 2000), p. 248-250.</ref> While the first phase of the revolution (1804–1815) was in fact a war of independence, the second phase (1815–1833) resulted in official recognition of a [[Principality of Serbia|suzerain Serbian state]] by the [[Sublime Porte|Porte]] (the Ottoman government), thus bringing the revolution to its end.<ref>For an overview see Wayne S. Vucinich, "Marxian Interpretations of the First Serbian Revolution." ''Journal of Central European Affairs'' (1961) 21#1: 3–14.</ref>
+
+The revolution took place by stages: the [[First Serbian Uprising]] (1804–13), led by [[Karađorđe Petrović]]; [[Hadži Prodanova buna|Hadži Prodan's revolt]] (1814); the [[Second Serbian Uprising]] (1815) under [[Miloš Obrenović]]; and official recognition of the Serbian state (1815–1833) by the Porte.
+
+''[[The Proclamation]]'' (1809) by [[Karađorđe]] in the capital [[Belgrade]] represented the peak of the revolution. It called for unity of the [[Serbs|Serbian nation]], emphasizing the importance of freedom of religion, [[Serbian history]] and formal, written rules of law, all of which it claimed the [[Ottoman Empire]] had failed to provide. It also called on Serbs to stop paying the [[Jizya|jizya tax]] to the Porte.
+
+The ultimate result of the uprisings was Serbia's [[suzerainty]] from the [[Ottoman Empire]]. The [[Principality of Serbia]] was established, governed by its own Parliament, Government, Constitution and its own royal dynasty. Social element of the revolution was achieved through introduction of the bourgeois society values in Serbia, which is why it was considered the world's easternmost bourgeois revolt, which culminated with the abolition of [[feudalism]] in 1806.<ref>http://www.nb.rs/view_file.php?file_id=57</ref> The establishment of the [[Miloš Obrenović#Later rule|first constitution in the Balkans]] in 1835 ([[Miloš Obrenović#Later rule|later abolished]]) and the founding in 1808 of its first university, [[University of Belgrade|Belgrade's Great Academy]], added to the achievements of the young Serb state.<ref>[http://www.bg.ac.rs/en_istorijat.php University of Belgrade<!-- Bot generated title -->]{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> By 1833, Serbia was officially recognized as a tributary to the Ottoman Empire and as such, acknowledged as a hereditary monarchy. Full independence of the Principality was internationally recognized during the second half of the 19th century.<ref>John K. Cox, ''The History of Serbia'' (2002) pp 39–62</ref>
+
+==Greek Revolt==
+{{main article|Greek War of Independence|Russo-Turkish War (1828–1829)}}
+[[File:Vasilika.jpg|thumb|The [[Battle of Vassilika]] in 1821 marked an early turning point in the war.]]
+The Eastern Question once again became a major European issue when the [[Greece|Greeks]] declared independence from the Sultan in 1821. It was at about this time that the phrase "Eastern Question" was coined. Ever since the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, there had been rumours that the Emperor of Russia sought to invade the Ottoman Empire, and the Greek Revolt seemed to make an invasion even more likely. The British foreign minister, [[Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh]], as well as the Austrian foreign minister, Metternich, counselled the Emperor of Russia, [[Alexander I of Russia|Alexander I]], not to enter the war. Instead, they pleaded that he maintain the [[Concert of Europe]] (the spirit of broad collaboration in Europe which had persisted since Napoleon's defeat). A desire for peaceful co-operation was also held by Alexander I, who had founded the Holy Alliance. Rather than immediately putting the Eastern Question to rest by aiding the Greeks and attacking the Ottomans, Alexander wavered, ultimately failing to take any decisive action.
+
+Alexander's death in 1825 brought [[Nicholas I of Russia|Nicholas I]] to the Imperial Throne of Russia. Deciding that he would no longer tolerate negotiations and conferences, he chose to intervene in Greece. Britain also soon became involved, interested in imposing its will on a newly formed Greek state in part to prevent it becoming a wholly Russian vassal. The spirit of [[Romanticism]] that then dominated Western European cultural life also made support for Greek independence politically viable. France too aligned itself with the Greeks, but Austria (still worried about Russian expansion) did not. Outraged by the interference of the Great Powers, the Ottoman Sultan, [[Mahmud II]], denounced Russia as an enemy of [[Islam]], prompting Russia to declare war in 1828. An alarmed Austria sought to form an anti-Russian coalition, but its attempts were in vain.
+
+As the war continued into 1829, Russia gained a firm advantage over the Ottoman Empire. By prolonging hostilities further, however, Russia would have invited Austria to enter the war against her and would have resulted in considerable suspicion in Britain. Therefore, for the Russians to continue with the war in hopes of destroying the Ottoman Empire would have been inexpedient. At this stage, the King of France, [[Charles X of France|Charles X]], proposed the partition of the Ottoman Empire among Austria, Russia and others, but his scheme was presented too belatedly to produce a result.
+
+Thus, Russia was able to secure neither a decisive defeat nor a partition of the Ottoman Empire. She chose, however, to adopt the policy of degrading the Ottoman Empire to a mere dependency. In 1829, the Emperor of Russia concluded the [[Treaty of Adrianople (1829)|Treaty of Adrianople]] with the Sultan; his empire was granted additional territory along the Black Sea, Russian commercial vessels were granted access to the [[Dardanelles]], and the commercial rights of Russians in the Ottoman Empire were enhanced. The Greek War of Independence was terminated shortly thereafter, as Greece was granted independence by the [[Treaty of Constantinople (1832)|Treaty of Constantinople]] in 1832.
+
+==Muhammad Ali of Egypt==
+{{main article|Muhammad Ali of Egypt}}
+[[Image:ModernEgypt, Muhammad Ali by Auguste Couder, BAP 17996.jpg|right|thumb|[[Muhammad Ali of Egypt|Muhammad Ali Pasha]]]]
+Just as the Greek Revolt was coming to an end, a conflict broke out in the Ottoman Empire between the Sultan and his nominal [[viceroy]] in [[Egypt]], [[Muhammad Ali of Egypt|Mehmet Ali]]. The modern and well trained Egyptians looked as though they could conquer the entire empire. The Tsar of Russia, in keeping with his policy of reducing the Ottoman Sultan to a petty vassal, offered to form an alliance with the Sultan. In 1833, the two rulers negotiated the [[Treaty of Unkiar Skelessi]], in which Russia achieved the aim of securing complete dominance over the Ottomans. The Russians pledged to protect the Empire from external attacks; in turn, the Sultan pledged to close the Dardanelles to warships whenever Russia was at war. This provision of the Treaty raised a problem known as the "Straits Question". The agreement provided for the closure for all warships, but many European statesmen mistakenly believed that the clause allowed Russian vessels. Britain and France were angered by the misinterpreted clause; they also sought to contain Russian expansion. The two kingdoms, however, differed on how to achieve their objective; the British wished to uphold the Sultan, but the French preferred to make Muhammad Ali (whom they saw as more competent) the ruler of the entire Ottoman Empire. Russian intervention led the Sultan to negotiate a peace with Muhammad Ali in 1833, but war broke out once again in 1839.<ref>Henry Dodwell, ''The Founder of Modern Egypt: A Study of Muhammad ‘Ali'' (Cambridge University Press, 1967)</ref>
+
+Sultan Mahmud II died the same year, leaving the Ottoman Empire to his son [[Abdulmejid I]] in a critical state: the Ottoman army had been significantly defeated by the forces of Muhammad Ali. Another disaster followed when the entire Turkish fleet was seized by the Egyptian forces. Great Britain and Russia now intervened to prevent the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, but France still continued to support Muhammad Ali. In 1840, however, the Great Powers agreed to compromise; Muhammad Ali agreed to make a nominal act of submission to the Sultan, but was granted hereditary control of Egypt.
+
+The only unresolved issue of the period was the Straits Question. In 1841, Russia consented to the abrogation of the Treaty of Unkiar Skelessi by accepting the [[London Straits Convention]]. The Great Powers — Russia, Britain, France, Austria and Prussia — agreed to the re-establishment of the "ancient rule" of the Ottoman Empire, which provided that the Turkish straits would be closed to all warships whatsoever, with the exception of the Sultan's allies during wartime. With the Straits Convention, the Russian Emperor Nicholas I abandoned the idea of reducing the Sultan to a state of dependence, and returned to the plan of partitioning Ottoman territories in Europe.
+
+Thus, after the resolution of the Egyptian struggle which had begun in 1831, the weak Ottoman Empire was no longer wholly dependent on Russia but was dependent on the Great Powers for protection. Attempts at internal reform failed to end the decline of the Empire. By the 1840s, the Ottoman Empire had become the "[[sick man of Europe]]", and its eventual dissolution appeared inevitable.
+
+==Revolutions of 1848==
+{{main article|Revolutions of 1848}}
+After the Great Powers reached a compromise to end the revolt of Mehmet Ali, the Eastern Question lay dormant for about a decade until revived by the [[Revolutions of 1848]]. Although Russia could have seized the opportunity to attack the Ottoman Empire—France and Austria were at the time occupied by their own insurrections—it chose not to. Instead, Emperor Nicholas committed his troops to the defence of Austria, hoping to establish goodwill to allow him to seize Ottoman possessions in Europe later.
+
+After the Austrian Revolution was suppressed, an Austro-Russian war against the Ottoman Empire seemed imminent. The Emperors of both Austria and Russia demanded that the Sultan return Austrian rebels who had sought asylum in the Empire, but he refused. The indignant monarchs withdrew their ambassadors to the [[Ottoman Porte|Sublime Porte]], threatening armed conflict. Almost immediately, however, Britain and France sent their fleets to protect the Ottoman Empire. The two Emperors, deeming military hostilities futile, withdrew their demands for the surrender of the fugitives. The short crisis created a closer relationship between Britain and France, which led to a joint war against Russia in the Crimean War of 1853–56.<ref>A.J.P. Taylor, ''The Struggle for Mastery in Europe: 1848–1918'' (1954) pp 33–35</ref>
+
+==Crimean War==
+{{main article|Crimean War}}
+A new conflict began during the 1850s with a religious dispute. Under treaties negotiated during the 18th century, France was the guardian of Roman Catholics in the Ottoman Empire, while Russia was the protector of Orthodox Christians. For several years, however, Catholic and Orthodox monks had disputed possession of the [[Church of the Nativity]] and the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]] in [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]]. During the early 1850s, the two sides made demands which the Sultan could not possibly satisfy simultaneously. In 1853, the Sultan adjudicated in favour of the French, despite the vehement protestations of the local Orthodox monks.<ref>Orlando Figes, ''Crimea: The Last Crusade'' (2010); also published as ''The Crimean War: A History'' (2010)
+</ref>
+
+Emperor Nicholas of Russia dispatched [[Aleksandr Sergeyevich Menshikov|Prince Menshikov]], on a special mission to the Porte. By previous treaties, the Sultan was committed "to protect the Christian religion and its Churches", but Menshikov tried to negotiate a new treaty, under which Russia would be allowed to interfere whenever it deemed the Sultan's protection inadequate. At the same time, however, the British government sent [[Stratford Canning, 1st Viscount Stratford de Redcliffe]], who learnt of Menshikov's demands upon arriving. Through skillful diplomacy, Lord Stratford convinced the Sultan to reject the treaty, which compromised the independence of the Ottomans. Shortly after he learned of the failure of Menshikov's diplomacy, Nicholas marched into Moldavia and Wallachia (Ottoman principalities in which Russia was acknowledged as a special guardian of the Orthodox Church), with the pretext that the Sultan failed to resolve the issue of the Holy Places. Nicholas believed that the European powers would not object strongly to the annexation of a few neighbouring Ottoman provinces, especially given Russian involvement in suppressing the Revolutions of 1848.
+
+Britain, seeking to maintain the security of the Ottoman Empire, sent a fleet to the Dardanelles, where it was joined by another fleet sent by France. Yet the European powers hoped for a diplomatic compromise. The representatives of the four neutral Great Powers—Britain, France, Austria and Prussia—met in [[Vienna]], where they drafted a note which they hoped would be acceptable to Russia and the Empire. The note was approved by Nicolas but rejected by Sultan Abd-ul-Mejid I, who felt that the document's poor phrasing left it open to many interpretations. Britain, France and Austria were united in proposing amendments to mollify the Sultan, but their suggestions were ignored in the Court of [[Saint Petersburg]]. Britain and France set aside the idea of continuing negotiations, but Austria and Prussia held hope for diplomacy despite the rejection of the proposed amendments. The Sultan proceeded to war, his armies attacking the Russian army near the Danube. Nicholas responded by despatching warships, which destroyed the entire Ottoman fleet at [[Battle of Sinop|Sinop]] on 30 November 1853, allowing Russia to land and supply its forces on the Ottoman shores fairly easily. The destruction of the Ottoman fleet and the threat of Russian expansion alarmed both Britain and France, who stepped forth in defence of the Ottoman Empire. In 1854, after Russia ignored an Anglo-French ultimatum to withdraw from the Danubian Principalities, Britain and France declared war.
+
+Emperor Nicholas I presumed that Austria, in return for the support rendered during the Revolutions of 1848, would side with him, or at the very least remain neutral. However, Austria felt threatened by the Russian troops in the nearby Danubian Principalities. When Britain and France demanded the withdrawal of Russian forces from the Principalities, Austria supported them; and, though it did not immediately declare war on Russia, it refused to guarantee its neutrality. When, in the summer of 1854, Austria made another demand for the withdrawal of troops, Russia (fearing that Austria would enter the war) complied.
+
+Though the original grounds for war were lost when Russia withdrew her troops from the Danubian Principalities, Britain and France continued hostilities. Determined to address the Eastern Question by ending the Russian threat to the Ottoman Empire, the allies posed several conditions for a ceasefire, including that Russia should give up its protectorate over the Danubian Principalities; that Russia should abandon any right to interfere in Ottoman affairs on the behalf of Orthodox Christians; that the Straits Convention of 1841 was to be revised; and finally, all nations were to be granted access to the river Danube. As the Emperor refused to comply with these "Four Points", the [[Crimean War]] proceeded.
+
+Peace negotiations began in 1856 under the Emperor Nicholas I's successor, [[Alexander II of Russia|Alexander II]]. Under the ensuing [[Treaty of Paris (1856)|Treaty of Paris]], the "Four Points" plan proposed earlier was largely adhered to; most notably, Russia's special privileges relating to the Danubian Principalities were transferred to the Great Powers as a group. In addition, warships of all nations were perpetually excluded from the Black Sea, once the home to a Russian fleet (which had been destroyed during the war). The Emperor of Russia and the Sultan agreed not to establish any naval or military arsenal on that sea coast. The Black Sea clauses came at a tremendous disadvantage to Russia, for it greatly diminished the naval threat it posed to the Ottomans. Moreover, all the Great Powers pledged to respect the independence and territorial integrity of the Ottoman Empire.
+
+The Treaty of Paris stood until 1871, when France was crushed in the [[Franco-Prussian War]]. While Prussia and several other German states united into a powerful [[German Empire]], [[Napoleon III of France|Napoleon III]] was deposed in the formation of the [[French Third Republic]]. Napoleon had opposed Russia over the Eastern Question in order to gain the support of Britain. But the new French Republic did not oppose Russian interference in the Ottoman Empire because that did not significantly threaten French interests. Encouraged by the decision of France, and supported by the German minister [[Otto von Bismarck|Otto, Fürst von Bismarck]], Russia denounced the Black Sea clauses of the treaty agreed to in 1856. As Britain alone could not enforce the clauses, Russia once again established a fleet in the Black Sea.
+
+==Great Eastern Crisis (1875–78)==
+{{main article|Great Eastern Crisis}}
+{{see also|Herzegovina uprising (1875–1877)|April Uprising|Constantinople Conference|Russo-Turkish War, 1877–1878}}
+
+Britain, France, and Austria opposed the [[Treaty of San Stefano]] because the Ottoman Empire gave Russia too much influence in the [[Balkans]], where insurrections were frequent. After many attempts, a diplomatic settlement was reached at the [[Congress of Berlin]], and the new [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)]] revised the earlier treaty. Germany's [[Otto von Bismarck]] presided over the Congress, acting as an "honest broker".<ref>A.J.P. Taylor, The Struggle for Mastery in Europe: 1848–1918 (1954) pp 228–54</ref>
+
+In 1875, the territory of [[Herzegovina]] rebelled against the Sultan, in the [[Herzegovina Uprising (1875-1878)|Herzegovinian rebellion]] in the Province of Bosnia, and Bulgaria rebelled in the [[April Uprising]]. The Great Powers believed they should intervene to prevent a bloody war in the Balkans. The first to act were the members of the [[League of the Three Emperors]] (Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia), whose common attitude toward the Eastern Question was embodied in the Andrassy Note (named for the Hungarian diplomat [[Julius Andrassy|Julius, Count Andrassy]]). The Note, seeking to avoid a widespread conflagration in Southeastern Europe, urged the Sultan to institute various reforms, including granting religious liberty to Christians. A joint commission of Christians and Muslims was to be established to ensure the enactment of appropriate reforms. With the approval of Britain and France, the Note was submitted to the Sultan, and he agreed on 31 January 1876. But the Herzegovinian leaders rejected the proposal, pointing out that the Sultan had already failed his promises of reforms.
+
+Representatives of the Three Emperors met again in Berlin, where they approved the [[Berlin Memorandum]]. To convince the Herzegovinians, the Memorandum suggested that international representatives be allowed to oversee the institution of reforms in the rebelling provinces. But before the Memorandum could be approved by the Porte, the Ottoman Empire was convulsed by internal strife, which led to the deposition of Sultan Abdul-Aziz. The new Sultan, [[Murad V]], was himself deposed three months later due to his mental instability, bringing [[Abdul Hamid II]] to power. In the meantime, the hardships of the Ottomans had increased; their treasury was empty, and they faced insurrections not only in Herzegovina and Bulgaria, but also in [[Serbia]] and [[Montenegro]]. Still, the Ottoman Empire managed to crush the insurgents in August 1876. The result incommoded Russia, which had planned to take possession of various Ottoman territories in Southeastern Europe in the course of the conflict.
+
+After the uprisings were largely suppressed, however, rumours of Ottoman atrocities against the rebellious population shocked European sensibilities. Russia now intended to enter the war on the side of the rebels. Another attempt for peace was made by delegates of the Great Powers (who now numbered six due to the rise of Italy) assembled at the [[Constantinople Conference]] in 1876. However, the Sultan refused to allow international representatives to oversee the reforms in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 1877, the Great Powers again made proposals to the Ottoman Empire which were rejected.
+
+[[File:SouthEast Europe 1878.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|South-East Europe after the [[Congress of Berlin]], 1878]]
+
+Russia declared war on 24 April 1877. Its chancellor [[Alexander Gorchakov|Prince Gorchakov]] had effectively secured Austrian neutrality with the [[Reichstadt Agreement]], under which Ottoman territories captured in the course of the war would be partitioned between the Russian and Austria-Hungarian Empires, with the latter obtaining Bosnia and Herzegovina. Britain, though still fearing the Russian threat to British dominance in Southern Asia, did not involve itself in the conflict. However, when Russia threatened to conquer Constantinople, [[British Prime Minister]] [[Benjamin Disraeli]] urged Austria and Germany to ally with him against this war aim. As a result, Russia sued for peace through the [[Treaty of San Stefano]], which stipulated independence to Romania, Serbia, and Montenegro, autonomy to Bulgaria, reforms in Bosnia and Herzegovina; the ceding [[Dobruja]] and parts of [[Armenia]] and a large indemnity to Russia. This would give Russia great influence in Southeastern Europe, as it could dominate the newly independent states. To reduce these advantages to Russia, the Great Powers (especially Britain), insisted that the treaty be heavily revised.
+
+At the [[Congress of Berlin]], the [[Treaty of Berlin, 1878|Treaty of Berlin]] adjusted the boundaries of the new states in the Ottoman Empire's favour. Bulgaria was divided into two states (Bulgaria and [[Eastern Rumelia]]), as it was feared that a single state would be susceptible to Russian domination. Ottoman cessions to Russia were largely sustained. Bosnia and Herzegovina, though still nominally within the Ottoman Empire, were transferred to [[Austro-Hungarian occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina|Austrian control]]. The Ottoman island of [[Cyprus]] was given to Britain via a secret agreement between Britain and the Ottoman Empire. These final two procedures were predominantly forced by Disraeli, who was famously described by [[Otto von Bismarck]] as "The old Jew, that is the man", after his level-headed Palmerstonian approach to the Eastern Question.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Concise Dictionary of Foreign Quotations |last=Lejeune |first=Anthony |year=2002 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=1-57958-341-5 |page=139 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3KLz2QEdQaoC&pg=PA139 |accessdate=2010-01-03}}</ref>
+
+==Germany and the Ottoman Empire==
+{{Further|Baghdad Railway}}
+Germany drew away from Russia and became closer to Austria-Hungary, with whom she concluded the [[Dual Alliance, 1879|Dual Alliance]] in 1879. Germany also closely allied with the Ottoman Empire. Germany took over the re-organisation of the Ottoman military and financial system; in return, it received several commercial concessions, including permission to build the [[Baghdad Railway]], which secured for them access to several important economic markets and had the potential for German entry into the Persian Gulf area controlled by Britain. Germany was driven not only by commercial interests, but also by an imperialistic and militaristic rivalry with Britain. Meanwhile Britain agreed to the [[Entente Cordiale]] with France in 1904, thereby resolving differences between the two countries over international affairs. Britain also reconciled with Russia in 1907 with the [[Anglo-Russian Entente]].<ref>Sean McMeekin, ''The Berlin-Baghdad Express: The Ottoman Empire and Germany's Bid for World Power'' (2012) [https://www.amazon.com/Berlin-Baghdad-Express-Ottoman-Empire-Germanys/dp/0674064321/ excerpt and text search]</ref>
+
+==Young Turk Revolution==
+{{main article|Young Turk Revolution}}
+
+In April 1908, the [[Committee of Union and Progress]] (more commonly called the [[Young Turks]]), a political party opposed to the despotic rule of Sultan [[Abdul Hamid II]], led [[Young Turk Revolution|a rebellion against the Sultan]]. The pro-reform Young Turks deposed the Sultan by July 1909, replacing him with the ineffective [[Mehmed V]]. This began the [[Second Constitutional Era]] of the Ottoman Empire.
+
+In the following years, various constitutional and political reforms were instituted, but the decay of the Ottoman Empire continued.
+
+==Bosnian Crisis==
+{{main article|Bosnian crisis}}
+
+In October 1908, Austria-Hungary's plans for the [[Austro-Hungarian occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina|annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina]] were opposed by Serbia, which sought Russian assistance. Russia, however, could not comply; a defeat in the [[Russo-Japanese War]] had devastated her, and Germany threatened to support Austria-Hungary during a war. Britain and France, who were not directly concerned by the annexation, did not become involved. Thus unaided, Serbia was forced to renounce her opposition to the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
+
+==See also==
+*[[Thracian question]]
+*[[History of modern Egypt#British administration|British Occupation of Egypt]]
+*[[Decline of the Ottoman Empire]]
+*[[Sick man of Europe]]
+*[[Armenian Question]]
+*[[Polish Question]]
+
+==Timeline==
+{{See also|Ottoman ancien régime|Decline and modernization of the Ottoman Empire}}
+*1699 – [[Treaty of Karlowitz]] ends Ottoman control in much of Central Europe and brings an end to Ottoman expansionism
+*1710–11 [[Pruth River Campaign|War with Russia]]
+*1711 – [[Treaty of the Pruth]]
+*1714–18 – [[Ottoman–Venetian War (1714–1718)]]
+*1718 – [[Treaty of Passarowitz]] with Austria and Venice; major Turkish losses
+*1730–35 [[Afsharid–Ottoman War (1730–35)]]. Turks lose much of Caucasus
+* 1735–39 [[Austro-Russian–Turkish War (1735–39)]]; stalemate
+*1739 – Belgrade Convention (English version) (peace treaty of Russo War of 1735), possession of Azov by Russian firm
+*1768–74 – [[Russo-Turkish War (1768–74)]]. Russia gains control of southern [[Ukraine]], [[Crimea]], and the upper northwestern part of the [[North Caucasus]]
+*1774 – Kuchuk, Kainarji treaty Russia wins (Peace Treaty of Russo War of 1768), the Orthodox protection rights of Turkish territory
+*1787–91 [[Austro-Turkish War (1787–91)]]; Turkish loss
+*1789 – [[French Revolution]]. Ottoman Empire is generally neutral
+*1791 – Shisutazu Convention (English version) (1787 Oud War (~ *1791) (English version) of the peace treaty, in 1526 since the Ottoman-Habsburg wars ended summary)
+*1792 – palm Treaty (Treaty of Russo War of 1787)
+*1796 – Catherine II directed the war to Transcaucasia in General Zubov. Baku falls
+*1798–1802 [[French campaign in Egypt and Syria|Napoleon to Egypt and Syria]]
+*1804–13 [[Russo-Persian War (1804–13)]]
+*1813 – Goresutan Treaty (Treaty of Russian-Persian war of 1804), morning car Jarre Iran Georgia and Azerbaijan give up sovereignty.
+*1817 – Caucasus War (~ 1864)
+*1821–29 – [[Greek War of Independence]]; Greek victory
+*1826–28 – Ottoman-Egyptian Invasion of Mani
+*1826–28 – [[Russo-Persian War (1826–28)]]
+*1829 – [[Treaty of Adrianople (1829)]] Greece gains autonomy
+*1831 – Muhammad Ali of Syria, Anatolia intrusion (first next Egyptian-Turkish War (~ 1833) (English version)). Bosnian uprising (English version).
+*1833 – Kutaya Convention (English version) (peace treaty of the First Egyptian-Turkish War). Unkyaru-Sukeresshi treaty
+*1838 – British soil commercial treaty (English version) entered into
+*1839–41 – Gyoruhane edict, Tanjimato start, second Egyptian-Turkish War (~ 1841) (English version)
+*1840 – London Convention (the Treaty of the Second Egyptian-Turkish War)
+*1841 – London Straits Convention (English version), Unkyaru-Sukeresshi treaty is discarded, the Russian fleet Bosporus, Dardanelles passage of is prohibited.
+*1846 in Baku – oil well drilling machine was made. There were hand-dug oil well before that.
+*1853 – Crimean War (~ 1856 )
+*1856 – Treaty of Paris (peace treaty of the Crimean War)
+*1867 – Alfred Nobel invents dynamite
+*1872 – Russia sold to investors overseas oil well drilling rights in Baku.
+*1875:
+**[[Herzegovina Uprising (1875–77)]]
+**Serbia Uprising
+**Montenegro Uprising
+*1876:
+**Midohato constitution enacted
+**[[April Uprising]], of Bulgarian subject.
+**Nobel brothers in Baku{{citation needed|date=February 2014}}
+*1877–78 [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)]]; Armenian issue
+*1878 – [[Treaty of San Stefano]] (peace treaty of Russo War of 1877), under the influence of Russia Bulgaria and Independence. June, Berlin conference Bulgaria border is reduced by, of Russia Aegean advance was blocked. Russia Ottoman territory six prefecture ( Turkish version ) to support the people of Armenia Armenian folk movement (English version) is increased, the conflict of Muslim and Armenian surfaced. In Baku Nobel Brothers Oil Company (English version) is established
+*1896 – Ottoman Bank hostage (English version)
+*1897 – Greek, Turkish War (primary). Constantinople Convention (1897) (English version) (Peace Treaty (primary) Greco-Turkish War)
+*1899 – German Baghdad Railway won the right-of-way. United Kingdom that has been competing second Boer War withdrew in war expenses increased due to the outbreak of.
+*1904 – Russo-Japanese War (~ 1905 southward policy of Russia is frustrated by defeat in). Japanese Navy had been used in imported oil from Baku war partner country Russia
+*1905 – Yildiz attempted assassination (English version), Armenian Revolutionary Federation according to Abdulhamid II attempted assassination
+*1908 – Young Turk revolution, Bosnia and Herzegovina annexation
+*1912 – Albania Declaration of Independence (English version) for Turkey, four Balkan countries is the Balkan League formed, first Balkan War started
+*1913 – London Convention, Turkey lost Crete Europe and territory except for Istanbul
+*1914–18 – World War I; alliance with Germany; Turkish loss
+*1919 – Sèvres Treaty (Treaty of the First World War). (Second, 1922 -) Greek, Turkish War
+*1920 – Republic of Turkey established. Was started in 1916 in Central Asia Basmachi uprising is, Bukhara Han country overthrew the Bukhara People's Soviet Republic established. Bolshevik is conquered Baku. Oil well of all private, including the Nobel brothers oil company was taken over in the Bolshevik
+*1921 – Operation Nemesis (English version), Talat Pasha old Ottoman government officials have been many assassination. Aimed at Kiriku Zushi Basmachi of the Soviet Union by Turkestan sent into the Enver Pasha is rolling over, I started the anti-Soviet activity.
+*1922 – Treaty of Lausanne (peace treaty of Greco-Turkish War of 1919). Enver Pasha was killed by mopping-up operation of the Red Army.
+
+==References==
+{{Reflist}}
+
+==Bibliography==
+* Anderson, M.S. ''The Eastern Question, 1774–1923: A Study in International Relations'' (1966) [https://www.questia.com/library/7391310/the-eastern-question-1774-1923-a-study-in-international online].
+* Bitis, Alexander. ''Russia and the Eastern Question: Army, Government and Society, 1815–1833'' (2007)
+* Bridge, F.R. ''From Sadowa to Sarajevo: The Foreign Policy of Austria-Hungary 1866–1914'' (1972)
+* Faroqhi, Suraiya N. ''The Cambridge History of Turkey'' (Volume 3, 2006) [https://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-History-Turkey-3/dp/0521620953/ excerpt and text search]
+* Frary, Lucien J. and Mara Kozelsky, eds. ''Russian-Ottoman Borderlands: The Eastern Question Reconsidered'' (University of Wisconsin, 2014) [http://uwpress.wisc.edu/books/5292.htm]
+* Gallagher, Tom. ''Outcast Europe: The Balkans, 1789-1989: From the Ottomans to Milosevic'' (2013).
+* Gavrilis, George. "The Greek—Ottoman Boundary as Institution, Locality, and Process, 1832–1882." ''American Behavioral Scientist'' (2008) 51#10 pp: 1516–1537.
+* Hale, William. ''Turkish Foreign Policy, 1774–2000.'' (2000). 375 pp.
+* Hall, Richard C. ''The Balkan Wars, 1912–1913: Prelude to the First World War'' (2000) [https://www.questia.com/read/109249433/the-balkan-wars-1912-1913-prelude-to-the-first-world online]
+* Hayes, Paul. ''Modern British Foreign Policy: The Nineteenth Century 1814-80'' (1975) pp. 233-69.
+* Hupchick, Dennis P. ''The Balkans: from Constantinople to communism'' (2004)
+* Kent, Marian, ed. ''The great powers and the end of the Ottoman Empire'' (Routledge, 2005)
+* Langer, William. ''An Encyclopedia of World History'' (5th ed. 1973); highly detailed outline of events
+* Langer, William. ''European Alliances and Alignments 1870–1890'' (2nd ed. 1950); advanced history
+* Langer, William. ''The Diplomacy of Imperialism 1890–1902'' (2nd ed. 1950); advanced history
+* Macfie, Alexander Lyon. ''The Eastern Question, 1774–1923'' (New York: Longman, 1996)
+* Marriott, J.A. ''The Eastern Question'' (1918),
+* Matthew, H. C. G. ''Gladstone, 1809–1874'' (1988); ''Gladstone, 1875–1898'' (1995) [https://www.amazon.com/dp/0198206968/ excerpt & text search vol 1]
+*{{cite book|author=Millman, Richard|title=Britain and the Eastern Question, 1875–78|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1979}}
+* Rathbone, Mark. "Gladstone, Disraeli and the Bulgarian Horrors." ''History Review'' 50 (2004): 3-7. [https://www.questia.com/article/1G1-128205771/gladstone-disraeli-and-the-bulgarian-horrors-mark online]
+* Rich, Norman. ''Great Power Diplomacy: 1814–1914'' (1991), comprehensive survey
+* Šedivý, Miroslav. ''Metternich, the Great Powers and the Eastern Question'' (Pilsen: University of West Bohemia Press, 2013) major scholarly study 1032pp
+* Seton-Watson, Hugh. ''The Russian Empire 1801–1917'' (1967) [https://www.amazon.com/Russian-Empire-1801-1917-Oxford-History/dp/0198221525/ excerpt and text search]
+* Seton-Watson, R. W. ''Disraeli, Gladstone, and the Eastern Question'' (1935) [https://www.questia.com/library/99267864/disraeli-gladstone-and-the-eastern-question online]
+* Smith, M.S. ''The Eastern Question, 1774-1923'' (1966)
+* Stavrianos, L.S. '' The Balkans Since 1453'' (1958), major scholarly history; [https://archive.org/details/balkanssince145300lsst online free to borrow]
+*{{cite book|author=[[A.J.P. Taylor|Taylor, A.J.P.]] |title=The Struggle for Mastery in Europe, 1848–1918|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1956}}
+
+===Historiography===
+* Abazi, Enika, and Albert Doja. "The past in the present: time and narrative of Balkan wars in media industry and international politics." ''Third World Quarterly'' 38.4 (2017): 1012-1042. Deals with travel writing, media reporting, diplomatic records, policy-making, truth claims and expert accounts.
+* Schumacher, Leslie Rogne. "The Eastern Question as a Europe question: Viewing the ascent of ‘Europe’ through the lens of Ottoman decline." ''Journal of European Studies'' 44.1 (2014): 64-80. Long bibliography pp 77-80 [http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0047244113508363]
+* Tusan, Michelle. "Britain and the Middle East: New Historical Perspectives on the Eastern Question," ''History Compass'' (2010), 8#3 pp 212–222.
+
+==External links==
+*{{Cite NIE|wstitle=Eastern Question |short=x}}
+
+{{History of Ottoman}}
+
+{{Authority control}}
+
+[[Category:19th century in the Ottoman Empire]]
+[[Category:Politics of the Ottoman Empire]]
+[[Category:Diplomacy]]
+[[Category:History of the Balkans]]
+[[Category:History of international relations]]
+[[Category:Ottoman Empire–Russian Empire relations]]
+[[Category:Austria–Turkey relations]]
+[[Category:National questions]]
+
+{{pp-pc1}}
+{{semiprotected|small=yes}}
+{{short description|Former empire in Asia, Europe and Africa}}
+{{redirect|Turkish Empire|empires with Turkic origins|List of Turkic dynasties and countries}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2013}}
+{{Infobox former country
+|common_name = Ottoman Empire
+|status =
+|continent = Afroeurasia
+|life_span = {{line-height|1.3em|{{nowrap|c. 1299–1922/1923<ref group=note>[[Abolition of the Ottoman sultanate|The sultanate was abolished]] on 1 November 1922 and the [[Republic of Turkey]] was established on 29 October 1923. For further information, see [[Defeat and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire]].</ref>}}}}
+|native_name = {{lang|ota-Arab|دولت عليه عثمانیه}}<br/>''Devlet-i ʿAlīye-i ʿO<u>s</u>mānīye''
+|conventional_long_name = Ottoman Empire
+|image_coat = Osmanli-nisani.svg
+|image_flag = Flag of the Ottoman Empire.svg
+|flag_type_article = Flags of the Ottoman Empire
+|flag_type = Flag (1844–1922)
+|symbol_type_article = Coat of arms of the Ottoman Empire
+|symbol_type = Coat of arms (1882 design)
+|image_map = OttomanEmpireMain.png
+|image_map_caption = The Ottoman Empire at its greatest extent in Europe, under Sultan [[Mehmed IV]] in late 17th century
+|image_map2 =
+|image_map2_caption =
+|national_motto = {{lang|ota-Arab|دولت ابد مدت}}<br/>''Devlet-i Ebed-müddet''<br/><small>"The Eternal State"</small>
+|national_anthem = ''[[Imperial anthems of the Ottoman Empire|(various)]]''<br/>(during 1808–1922)
+|capital = {{plainlist|
+*[[Söğüt]]<ref name=Shaw-13>Stanford Shaw, ''History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey'' (Cambridge: University Press, 1976), vol. 1 p. 13</ref>
+* <small>(c. 1299–1335)</small>
+* [[Bursa]]<ref name="auto">"In 1363 the Ottoman capital moved from Bursa to Edirne, although Bursa retained its spiritual and economic importance." [http://www.kultur.gov.tr/–EN,33810/ottoman-capital-bursa.html ''Ottoman Capital Bursa'']. Official website of Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Turkey. Retrieved 26 June 2013.</ref>
+* <small>(1335–1363)</small>
+* [[Edirne]]<ref name="auto"/>
+* <small>(1363–1453)</small>
+* [[Constantinople]] <small>(present-day [[Istanbul]])</small><ref group=note>In Ottoman Turkish, the city was known by various names, among which were ''[[Kostantiniyye]]'' ({{lang|ota-Arab|قسطنطينيه}}) (replacing the suffix ''-polis'' with the Arabic [[Nisba (suffix)|nisba]]), ''[[Dersaadet]]'' ({{lang|ota-Arab|در سعادت}}) and ''Istanbul'' ({{lang|ota-Arab|استانبول}}). Names other than Istanbul gradually became obsolete in Turkish, and after Turkey's transition to Latin script in 1928, Istanbul become widely accepted internationally.</ref><small>
+* (1453–1922)</small>}}
+|common_languages = {{plainlist|
+* [[Ottoman Turkish language|Ottoman Turkish]] (official)
+* [[Languages of the Ottoman Empire|many others]]}}
+|religion = {{plainlist|
+* [[Sunni Islam]]
+* [[Madhab]]: [[Hanafi]]
+* [[Islamic theology|Creed]]: [[Maturidi]]}}
+|government_type = {{plainlist|
+* [[Absolute monarchy]]
+* <small>(c. 1299–1876)</small>
+* <small>(1878–1908)</small>
+* <small>(1920–1922)</small>
+* [[Constitutional monarchy]]
+* <small>(1876–1878)</small>
+* <small>(1908–1920)</small>}}
+|title_leader = [[List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire|Sultan]]
+|leader1 = [[Osman I]] <small>(first)</small>
+|year_leader1 = c. 1299–1323/4
+|leader2 = [[Mehmed VI]] <small>(last)</small>
+|year_leader2 = 1918–1922
+|title_representative= [[Caliph of Islam|Caliph]]
+|year_representative1= 1517–1520
+|representative1 = [[Selim I]] <small>(first)</small><ref name="Lambton"/><ref group=note>The sultan from 1512 to 1520.</ref>
+|year_representative2= 1922–1924
+|representative2 = [[Abdülmecid II]] <small>(last)</small>
+|title_deputy = [[List of Ottoman Grand Viziers|Grand Vizier]]
+|deputy1 = [[Alaeddin Pasha (vizier)|Alaeddin Pasha]] <small>(first)</small>
+|year_deputy1 = 1320–1331
+|deputy2 = [[Ahmet Tevfik Pasha]] <small>(last)</small>
+|year_deputy2 = 1920–1922
+|legislature = [[General Assembly of the Ottoman Empire|General Assembly]]
+|house1 = [[Senate of the Ottoman Empire|Senate]]
+|type_house1 =
+|house2 = [[Chamber of Deputies of the Ottoman Empire|Chamber of Deputies]]
+|type_house2 =
+|event_start = [[Rise of the Ottoman Empire|Founded]]
+|year_start = c. 1299
+|date_start =
+|event_end = [[Turkey|Republic of Turkey]] established<ref group=note>The [[Treaty of Sèvres]] (10 August 1920) afforded a small existence to the Ottoman Empire. On 1 November 1922, the [[Grand National Assembly of Turkey|Grand National Assembly]] (GNAT) abolished the sultanate and declared that all the deeds of the Ottoman regime in Istanbul were null and void as of 16 March 1920, the date of the [[occupation of Constantinople]] under the terms of the Treaty of Sèvres. The international recognition of the GNAT and the [[Government of the Grand National Assembly|Government of Ankara]] was achieved through the signing of the [[Treaty of Lausanne (1923)|Treaty of Lausanne]] on 24 July 1923. The Grand National Assembly of Turkey promulgated the Republic on 29 October 1923, which ended the Ottoman Empire in history.</ref>
+|year_end = 1923
+|date_end = 29 October
+|event1 = [[Ottoman Interregnum|Interregnum]]
+|date_event1 = 1402–1414
+|event2 = [[Rise of the Ottoman Empire|Transformation to empire]]
+|date_event2 = 1453
+|event3 = [[First Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)|1st Constitutional]]
+|date_event3 = 1876–1878
+|event4 = [[Second Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)|2nd Constitutional]]
+|date_event4 = 1908–1920
+|event5 = [[Raid on the Sublime Porte]]
+|date_event5 = 23 January 1913
+|event6 = [[Abolition of the Ottoman Sultanate|Sultanate abolished]]<ref group=note>[[Mehmed VI]], the last Sultan, was expelled from Constantinople on 17 November 1922.</ref>
+|date_event6 = 1 November 1922
+|event_post = [[Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate|Caliphate abolished]]
+|date_post = 3 March 1924
+|stat_year1 = 1683
+|ref_area1 = <ref>{{cite journal |last1=Turchin|first1=Peter|last2=Adams|first2=Jonathan M.|last3=Hall|first3=Thomas D |title = East-West Orientation of Historical Empires |journal = Journal of world-systems research|date=December 2006 |volume=12|issue=2 |page=223 |url =http://jwsr.pitt.edu/ojs/index.php/jwsr/article/view/369/381|accessdate=12 September 2016 |issn= 1076-156X}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|date=September 1997|title=Expansion and Contraction Patterns of Large Polities: Context for Russia|journal=[[International Studies Quarterly]]|volume=41|issue=3|page=498|doi=10.1111/0020-8833.00053|author=Rein Taagepera|authorlink=Rein Taagepera|jstor=2600793}}</ref>
+|stat_area1 = 5200000
+|stat_year2 = 1914
+|stat_area2 = 1800000
+|ref_area2 = <ref>Dündar, Orhan; Dündar, Erhan, 1.Dünya Savaşı, Millî Eğitim Bakanlığı Yayınları, 1999, {{ISBN|975-11-1643-0}}</ref>
+|stat_year3 = 1683
+|stat_pop3 = 30000000
+|stat_year4 = 1856
+|stat_pop4 = 35350000
+|stat_year5 = 1912
+|stat_pop5 = 24000000
+|ref_pop5 = <ref name="Erickson2003">{{cite book |last=Erickson |first=Edward J. |title=Defeat in Detail: The Ottoman Army in the Balkans, 1912–1913 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3fYuy5iUi_sC |year=2003 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-275-97888-4 |page=59}}</ref>
+|stat_year6 = 1914
+|stat_pop6 = 18520000
+|stat_year7 = 1919
+|stat_pop7 = 14629000
+|currency = [[Akçe]], [[Para (currency)|Para]], [[Sultani]], [[Kuruş]], [[Ottoman lira|Lira]]
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+|flag_s21 = Flag of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs.svg
+<!-- This infobox intentionally does not contain a "today part of" section. Please do not add one without establishing consensus on the talk page. -->
+}}
+{{History of the Ottoman Empire}}
+
+The '''Ottoman Empire''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɒ|t|ə|m|ə|n}}; {{lang-ota|دولت عليه عثمانیه}}, ''{{transl|ota|Devlet-i ʿAlīye-i ʿOsmānīye}}'', literally "The Exalted Ottoman State"; [[Modern Turkish]]: ''{{lang|tr|Osmanlı İmparatorluğu}}'' or ''{{lang|tr|Osmanlı Devleti}}''), also historically known in [[Western Europe]] as the '''Turkish Empire'''<ref name="Hamish">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/?id=Jb4DCgAAQBAJ&dq=The+Oxford+Handbook+of+Early+Modern+European+History,+1350-1750:+Volume+II|title=The Oxford Handbook of Early Modern European History, 1350–1750: Volume II|author=Hamish Scott|year=2015|page=612|isbn=9780191020001}}"The Ottoman Empire-also known in Europe as the Turkish Empire"</ref> or simply '''Turkey''',<ref name=":0" /> was a state that controlled much of [[Southeast Europe]], [[Western Asia]] and [[North Africa]] between the 14th and early 20th centuries. It was founded at the end of the 13th century in northwestern [[Anatolia]] in the town of [[Söğüt]] (modern-day [[Bilecik Province]]) by the [[Oghuz Turks|Oghuz Turkish]] tribal leader [[Osman I]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Finkel |first=Caroline |title=Osman's Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1923 |pages=2, 7 |publisher=Basic Books |isbn=978-0-465-02396-7}}</ref> After 1354, the Ottomans crossed into [[Europe]], and with the conquest of [[the Balkans]], the Ottoman [[Anatolian beyliks|beylik]] was transformed into a transcontinental empire. The Ottomans ended the [[Byzantine Empire]] with the 1453 [[Fall of Constantinople|conquest of Constantinople]] by [[Mehmed the Conqueror]].<ref name="Quataert2005">{{cite book|last=Quataert|first=Donald |title=The Ottoman Empire, 1700–1922|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OX3lsOrXJGcC|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-83910-5|page=4 |edition=2 |date=2005}}</ref>
+
+During the 16th and 17th centuries, at the height of its power under the reign of [[Suleiman the Magnificent]],<ref>{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Turkey |volume=27 |page=448}}</ref> the Ottoman Empire was a multinational, multilingual empire controlling most of Southeast Europe, parts of [[Central Europe]], Western Asia, parts of [[Eastern Europe]] and the [[Caucasus]], North Africa and the [[Horn of Africa]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e1801?_hi=41&_pos=3 |title=Ottoman Empire |publisher=Oxford Islamic Studies Online |date=6 May 2008 |accessdate=26 August 2010}}</ref> At the beginning of the 17th century, the empire contained [[Provinces of the Ottoman Empire|32 provinces]] and numerous [[Vassal and tributary states of the Ottoman Empire|vassal states]]. Some of these were later absorbed into the Ottoman Empire, while others were granted various types of autonomy during the course of centuries.<ref group="note">The empire also temporarily gained authority over distant overseas lands through declarations of allegiance to the [[Ottoman Dynasty|Ottoman Sultan and Caliph]], such as the [[Ottoman expedition to Aceh|declaration by the Sultan of Aceh]] in 1565, or through temporary acquisitions of islands such as [[Lanzarote]] in the Atlantic Ocean in 1585, [http://www.dzkk.tsk.tr/turkce/tarihimiras/AtlantikteTurkDenizciligi.php Turkish Navy Official Website: "Atlantik'te Türk Denizciliği"]</ref>
+
+With [[Constantinople during the Ottoman era|Constantinople]] as its capital and control of lands around the [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean basin]], the Ottoman Empire was at the centre of interactions between the [[Eastern world|Eastern]] and [[Western world|Western]] worlds for six centuries. While the empire was once thought to have entered a period of [[Ottoman Decline Thesis|decline]] following the death of [[Suleiman the Magnificent]], this view is no longer supported by the majority of academic historians.<ref name=decline>{{cite book |last=Hathaway |first=Jane |title=The Arab Lands under Ottoman Rule, 1516–1800 |publisher=Pearson Education Ltd. |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-582-41899-8 |page=8 |quote=historians of the Ottoman Empire have rejected the narrative of decline in favor of one of crisis and adaptation}}
+* {{cite book |last=Tezcan|first=Baki |title=The Second Ottoman Empire: Political and Social Transformation in the Early Modern Period |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=2010 |page=9 |isbn=978-1-107-41144-9 |quote=Ottomanist historians have produced several works in the last decades, revising the traditional understanding of this period from various angles, some of which were not even considered as topics of historical inquiry in the mid-twentieth century. Thanks to these works, the conventional narrative of Ottoman history – that in the late sixteenth century the Ottoman Empire entered a prolonged period of decline marked by steadily increasing military decay and institutional corruption – has been discarded.}}
+* {{Cite book |editor=Christine Woodhead |title=The Ottoman World |chapter=Introduction |last=Woodhead |first=Christine |isbn=978-0-415-44492-7 |date=2011 |page=5 |quote=Ottomanist historians have largely jettisoned the notion of a post-1600 ‘decline’}}</ref> The empire continued to maintain a flexible and strong economy, society and military throughout the 17th and much of the 18th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ágoston |first=Gábor |editor-last=Ágoston |editor-first=Gábor |editor2=Bruce Masters |title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire |chapter=Introduction |date=2009 |page=xxxii}}
+* {{cite book |last=Faroqhi|first=Suraiya |editor-last=İnalcık |editor-first=Halil |editor2=Donald Quataert |title=An Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1914 |volume=2 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1994 |page=553 |chapter=Crisis and Change, 1590–1699 |isbn=0-521-57456-0 |quote=In the past fifty years, scholars have frequently tended to view this decreasing participation of the sultan in political life as evidence for “Ottoman decadence,” which supposedly began at some time during the second half of the sixteenth century. But recently, more note has been taken of the fact that the Ottoman Empire was still a formidable military and political power throughout the seventeenth century, and that noticeable though limited economic recovery followed the crisis of the years around 1600; after the crisis of the 1683–99 war, there followed a longer and more decisive economic upswing. Major evidence of decline was not visible before the second half of the eighteenth century.}}</ref> However, during a long period of peace from 1740 to 1768, the Ottoman military system fell behind that of their European rivals, the [[Habsburg Empire|Habsburg]] and [[Russian Empire|Russian]] empires.<ref name="AksanOW">{{cite book |last=Aksan |first=Virginia |title=Ottoman Wars, 1700–1860: An Empire Besieged |publisher=Pearson Education Ltd. |date=2007 |pages=130–5 |isbn=978-0-582-30807-7}}</ref> The Ottomans consequently suffered severe military defeats in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, which prompted them to initiate a comprehensive process of reform and modernisation known as the [[Tanzimat]]. Thus, over the course of the 19th century, the Ottoman state became vastly more powerful and organised, despite suffering further territorial losses, especially in the Balkans, where a number of new states emerged.<ref>{{cite book |last=Quataert|first=Donald |editor-last=İnalcık |editor-first=Halil |editor2=Donald Quataert |title=An Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1914 |volume=2 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1994 |page=762 |chapter=The Age of Reforms, 1812–1914 |isbn=0-521-57456-0}}</ref> The empire allied with [[German Empire|Germany]] in the early 20th century, hoping to escape from the diplomatic isolation which had contributed to its recent territorial losses, and thus joined [[World War I]] on the side of the [[Central Powers]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Findley |first=Carter Vaughn |title=Turkey, Islam, Nationalism and Modernity: A History, 1789–2007 |place=New Haven |publisher=Yale University Press |date=2010 |isbn=978-0-300-15260-9 |pages=200}}</ref> While the Empire was able to largely hold its own during the conflict, it was struggling with internal dissent, especially with the [[Arab Revolt]] in its Arabian holdings. During this time, atrocities were committed by the Ottoman government against the [[Armenian Genocide|Armenians]], [[Assyrian genocide|Assyrians]] and [[Greek genocide|Pontic Greeks]].<ref>
+<br />{{•}} {{Cite book|first=Donald|last=Quataert | year=2005 | title=The Ottoman Empire, 1700-1922|publisher=Cambridge University Press (Kindle edition)|page=186}}
+<br />{{•}} {{cite journal |last1 = Schaller |first1 = Dominik J |last2 = Zimmerer |first2 = Jürgen |year = 2008 |title = Late Ottoman genocides: the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire and Young Turkish population and extermination policies – introduction |url = |journal = Journal of Genocide Research |volume = 10 |issue = 1|pages = 7–14 |doi = 10.1080/14623520801950820}}
+</ref>
+
+The Empire's defeat and the occupation of part of its territory by the [[Allies of World War I|Allied Powers]] in the [[aftermath of World War I]] resulted in [[partitioning of the Ottoman Empire|its partitioning]] and the loss of its Middle Eastern territories, which were [[Sykes–Picot Agreement|divided between the United Kingdom and France]]. The successful [[Turkish War of Independence]] against the occupying Allies led to the emergence of the [[Republic of Turkey]] in the Anatolian heartland and the [[Abolition of the Ottoman sultanate|abolition of the Ottoman monarchy]].<ref>{{Cite book| last = Howard | first = Douglas A. | title = A History of the Ottoman Empire| publisher = Cambridge University Press | year = 2016|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e57eDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA318|page=318| isbn = 9781108107471 }}</ref>
+
+== Name ==
+{{Main|Names of the Ottoman Empire}}
+The word ''Ottoman'' is a historical [[anglicisation]] of the name of [[Osman I]], the founder of the Empire and of the ruling [[Ottoman dynasty|House of Osman]] (also known as the Ottoman dynasty). Osman's name in turn was the Turkish form of the Arabic name ''[[Uthman (name)|ʿUthmān]]'' ({{lang|ota-Arab|عثمان}}). In [[Ottoman Turkish language|Ottoman Turkish]], the empire was referred to as ''Devlet-i ʿAlīye-yi ʿO<u>s</u>mānīye'' ({{lang|ota-Arab|دولت عليه عثمانیه}}),<ref name="twareekh.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.twareekh.com/images/upload/aboutus/ottmani10liras1334F-.jpg |title=Ottoman banknote with Arabic script |accessdate=26 August 2010}}</ref> (literally "The Supreme Ottoman State") or alternatively ''ʿO<u>s</u>mānlı Devleti'' ({{lang|ota-Arab|عثمانلى دولتى}}). In [[Turkish language|Modern Turkish]], it is known as ''Osmanlı İmparatorluğu'' ("The Ottoman Empire") or ''Osmanlı Devleti'' ("The Ottoman State").
+
+The Turkish word for "Ottoman" (''Osmanlı'') originally referred to the tribal followers of Osman in the fourteenth century, and subsequently came to be used to refer to the empire's military-administrative elite. In contrast, the term "Turk" (''Türk'') was used to refer to the Anatolian peasant and tribal population, and was seen as a disparaging term when applied to urban, educated individuals.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ágoston |first=Gábor |editor-last=Ágoston |editor-first=Gábor |editor2=Bruce Masters |title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire |chapter=Introduction |date=2009 |page=xxvi}}
+* {{Cite book|last=Imber |first=Colin |title=The Ottoman Empire, 1300–1650: The Structure of Power |edition=2 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |place=New York |date=2009 |page=3 |quote=By the seventeenth century, literate circles in Istanbul would not call themselves Turks, and often, in phrases such as 'senseless Turks', used the word as a term of abuse.}}</ref> In the [[early modern period]], an educated urban-dwelling Turkish-speaker who was not a member of the military-administrative class would refer to himself neither as an ''Osmanlı'' nor as a ''Türk'', but rather as a ''Rūmī'' ({{lang|ota-Arab|رومى}}), or "Roman", meaning an inhabitant of the territory of the former [[Byzantine Empire]] in the [[Balkans]] and [[Anatolia]]. The term ''Rūmī'' was also used to refer to Turkish-speakers by the other Muslim peoples of the empire and beyond.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Kafadar |first=Cemal |title=A Rome of One's Own: Cultural Geography and Identity in the Lands of Rum |journal=Muqarnas |volume=24 |date=2007 |page=11}}</ref>
+
+In Western Europe, the two names "Ottoman Empire" and "Turkey" were often used interchangeably, with "Turkey" being increasingly favoured both in formal and informal situations. This dichotomy was officially ended in 1920–23, when the newly established Ankara-based Turkish government chose [[Turkey]] as the sole official name. Most scholarly historians avoid the terms "Turkey", "Turks", and "Turkish" when referring to the Ottomans, due to the empire's multinational character.<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last=Soucek |first=Svat |title=Ottoman Maritime Wars, 1416–1700 |publisher=The Isis Press |place=Istanbul |date=2015 |isbn=978-975-428-554-3 |pages=8 |quote=The scholarly community specializing in Ottoman studies has of late virtually banned the use of "Turkey", "Turks", and "Turkish" from acceptable vocabulary, declaring "Ottoman" and its expanded use mandatory and permitting its "Turkish" rival only in linguistic and philological contexts.}}</ref>
+
+== History ==
+{{Main|History of the Ottoman Empire}}
+{{See also|Territorial evolution of the Ottoman Empire}}
+
+=== Rise (c. 1299–1453) ===
+{{main|Rise of the Ottoman Empire}}
+{{further|Osman I|Ottoman dynasty|Gaza Thesis}}
+
+As the Seljuk [[Sultanate of Rum]] declined in the 13th century, Anatolia was divided into a patchwork of independent Turkish principalities known as the [[Anatolian Beyliks]]. One of these beyliks, in the region of [[Bithynia]] on the frontier of the [[Byzantine Empire]], was led by the Turkish tribal leader [[Osman I|Osman]] (d. 1323/4), a figure of obscure origins from whom the name Ottoman is derived.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kermeli |first=Eugenia |editor-last=Ágoston |editor-first=Gábor |editor2=Bruce Masters |title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire |chapter=Osman I |date=2009 |page=444}}</ref> Osman's early followers consisted both of Turkish tribal groups and Byzantine renegades, many but not all converts to Islam.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Lowry |first=Heath |title=The Nature of the Early Ottoman State |publisher=SUNY Press |date=2003 |page=59}}
+* {{Cite book |last=Kafadar |first=Cemal |title=Between Two Worlds: The Construction of the Ottoman State |date=1995 |page=127}}</ref> Osman extended the control of his principality by conquering [[Byzantine]] towns along the [[Sakarya River]]. It is not well understood how the early Ottomans came to dominate their neighbours, due to the lack of sources surviving from this period. The [[Gaza Thesis]] theory popular during the twentieth century credited their success to their rallying of religious warriors to fight for them in the name of [[Islam]], but it is now highly criticised and no longer generally accepted by historians, and no consensus on the nature of the early Ottoman state's expansion has replaced it.<ref>{{cite book|last=Finkel|first=Caroline|title=Osman's Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9cTHyUQoTyUC&pg=PA5 |year=2005 |publisher=Basic Books|isbn=978-0-465-00850-6|pages=5, 10}}
+* {{Cite book |editor= Kate Fleet |title=The Cambridge History of Turkey |volume= 1, Byzantium to Turkey, 1071–1453 |date=2009 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |place=Cambridge |last=Lindner |first=Rudi Paul |page=104 |chapter=Anatolia, 1300–1451}}</ref>
+
+[[File:Battle of Nicopolis.jpg|thumb|left|[[Battle of Nicopolis]] in 1396. Painting from 1523.]]
+
+In the century after the death of Osman I, Ottoman rule began to extend over Anatolia and the [[History of the Balkans|Balkans]]. Osman's son, [[Orhan]], captured the northwestern Anatolian city of [[Bursa]] in 1326, making it the new capital of the Ottoman state and supplanting Byzantine control in the region. The important port city of [[Thessaloniki]] was captured from the [[Republic of Venice|Venetians]] in 1387 and sacked. The Ottoman victory at [[Battle of Kosovo|Kosovo in 1389]] effectively marked [[Fall of the Serbian Empire|the end of Serbian power]] in the region, paving the way for Ottoman expansion into Europe.<ref>{{cite book|author=Robert Elsie|title=Historical Dictionary of Kosova|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fnbw1wsacSAC&pg=PA95|year=2004|publisher=Scarecrow Press|pages=95–96|isbn=978-0-8108-5309-6}}</ref> The [[Battle of Nicopolis]] in 1396, widely regarded as the last large-scale [[Crusades|crusade]] of the [[Middle Ages]], failed to stop the advance of the victorious Ottoman Turks.<ref>{{cite book|author=David Nicolle|title=Nicopolis 1396: The Last Crusade|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_hUst0z-oEQC|year=1999|publisher=Osprey Publishing|isbn=978-1-85532-918-8}}</ref>
+
+As the Turks expanded into the Balkans, the [[Sieges of Constantinople#Ottoman Sieges|conquest of Constantinople]] became a crucial objective. The Ottomans had already wrested control of nearly all former [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine lands]] surrounding the city, but the heavy defence of Constantinople's strategic position on the [[Bosphorus]] Strait made it difficult to conquer. In 1402, the Byzantines were temporarily relieved when the [[Turco-Mongol]] leader [[Timur]], founder of the [[Timurid Empire]], invaded Ottoman Anatolia from the east. In the [[Battle of Ankara]] in 1402, Timur defeated the Ottoman forces and took Sultan [[Bayezid I]] as a prisoner, throwing the empire into disorder. The [[Ottoman Interregnum|ensuing civil war]], also known as the ''Fetret Devri'', lasted from 1402 to 1413 as Bayezid's sons fought over succession. It ended when [[Mehmed I]] emerged as the sultan and restored Ottoman power.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Gábor Ágoston|author2=Bruce Alan Masters|title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QjzYdCxumFcC&pg=PA363|year=2009|publisher=Infobase Publishing|page=363|isbn=978-1-4381-1025-7}}</ref>
+
+The Balkan territories lost by the Ottomans after 1402, including Thessaloniki, Macedonia and Kosovo, were later recovered by [[Murad II]] between the 1430s and 1450s. On 10 November 1444, Murad repelled the [[Crusade of Varna]] by defeating the Hungarian, Polish, and [[Wallachia]]n armies under [[Władysław III of Poland]] (also King of Hungary) and [[John Hunyadi]] at the [[Battle of Varna]], although Albanians under [[Skanderbeg]] continued to resist. Four years later, John Hunyadi prepared another army of Hungarian and Wallachian forces to attack the Turks, but was again defeated at the [[Battle of Kosovo (1448)|Second Battle of Kosovo]] in 1448.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Mesut Uyar|author2=Edward J. Erickson|title=A Military History of the Ottomans: From Osman to Atatürk|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JgfNBKHG7S8C&pg=PA29|year=2009|publisher=ABC-CLIO|page=29|isbn=978-0-275-98876-0}}</ref>
+
+=== Expansion and peak (1453–1566) ===
+{{Main|Growth of the Ottoman Empire}}
+[[File:Zonaro_GatesofConst.jpg|thumb|left|Sultan [[Mehmed II]]'s entry into [[Constantinople]]; painting by [[Fausto Zonaro]] (1854–1929)]]
+The son of Murad II, [[Mehmed the Conqueror]], reorganized the state and the military, and conquered [[fall of Constantinople|Constantinople]] on 29 May 1453. Mehmed allowed the [[Orthodox Church]] to maintain its autonomy and land in exchange for accepting Ottoman authority.<ref name="books.google">{{cite book|last=Stone|first=Norman|editor=Mark Erickson, Ljubica Erickson|title=Russia War, Peace And Diplomacy: Essays in Honour of John Erickson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xM9wQgAACAAJ|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2005|publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson|isbn=978-0-297-84913-1|page=94|chapter=Turkey in the Russian Mirror}}</ref> Because of bad relations between the states of western Europe and the later Byzantine Empire, the majority of the Orthodox population accepted Ottoman rule as preferable to Venetian rule.<ref name="books.google"/> Albanian resistance was a major obstacle to Ottoman expansion on the Italian peninsula.<ref>Hodgkinson 2005, p. 240</ref>
+
+In the 15th and 16th centuries, the Ottoman Empire entered a [[Growth of the Ottoman Empire|period of expansion]]. The Empire prospered under the rule of a line of committed and effective [[Ottoman Dynasty|Sultans]]. It also flourished economically due to its control of the major overland trade routes between Europe and Asia.<ref>{{cite book |author=Karpat, Kemal H. |title=The Ottoman state and its place in world history |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden |year=1974 |page=111 |isbn=90-04-03945-7}}</ref><ref group="note">A lock-hold on trade between western Europe and Asia is often cited as a primary motivation for [[Isabella I of Castile]] to fund [[Christopher Columbus]]'s westward journey to find a sailing route to Asia and, more generally, for European seafaring nations to explore alternative trade routes (e.g. K. D. Madan, ''Life and travels of Vasco Da Gama'' (1998), 9; I. Stavans, ''Imagining Columbus: the literary voyage'' (2001), 5; W.B. Wheeler and S. Becker, ''Discovering the American Past. A Look at the Evidence: to 1877'' (2006), 105). This traditional viewpoint has been attacked as unfounded in an influential article by A.H. Lybyer ("The Ottoman Turks and the Routes of Oriental Trade", ''English Historical Review'', 120 (1915), 577–588), who sees the rise of Ottoman power and the beginnings of Portuguese and Spanish explorations as unrelated events. His view has not been universally accepted (cf. K.M. Setton, ''The Papacy and the Levant (1204–1571), Vol. 2: The Fifteenth Century (Memoirs of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 127)'' (1978), 335).</ref>
+
+Sultan [[Selim I]] (1512–1520) dramatically expanded the Empire's eastern and southern frontiers by defeating [[Ismail I|Shah Ismail]] of [[Safavid dynasty|Safavid]] [[Persia]], in the [[Battle of Chaldiran]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Savory |first=R. M.|title = The Principal Offices of the Ṣafawid State during the Reign of Ismā'īl I (907-30/1501-24)|journal = Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London|volume = 23 |issue=1 |pages=91–105 |year=1960|doi = 10.1017/S0041977X00149006 |jstor=609888 |ref=harv}}</ref> Selim I established [[History of Ottoman Egypt|Ottoman rule in Egypt]], and created a naval presence on the [[Red Sea]]. After this Ottoman expansion, a competition started between the [[Portuguese Empire]] and the Ottoman Empire to become the dominant power in the region.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Hess |first=Andrew C.|title = The Ottoman Conquest of Egypt (1517) and the Beginning of the Sixteenth-Century World War|journal = International Journal of Middle East Studies|volume = 4 |issue=1 |pages=55–76 |date=January 1973|jstor = 162225 |doi=10.1017/S0020743800027276 |ref=harv}}</ref>
+[[File:Suleiman I after the victory at Mohács.jpg|thumb|[[Battle of Mohács]] in 1526<ref>{{cite web|last=Lokman |url=http://warfare.atwebpages.com/Ottoman/Ottoman.htm |title=Battle of Mohács (1526) |year=1588 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130529094441/http://warfare.atwebpages.com/Ottoman/Ottoman.htm |archivedate=29 May 2013 |df= }}</ref>]]
+
+[[Suleiman the Magnificent]] (1520–1566) captured [[Belgrade]] in 1521, conquered the southern and central parts of the [[Kingdom of Hungary]] as part of the [[Ottoman–Hungarian Wars]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/276730/Hungary/214181/History#ref=ref411152 |title=Origins of the Magyars |work=Hungary |publisher=Britannica Online Encyclopedia |accessdate=26 August 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://cache-media.britannica.com/eb-media/47/20547-004-D655EA04.gif |title=Encyclopædia Britannica |publisher=Britannica Online Encyclopedia |accessdate=26 August 2010}}</ref>{{failed verification|date=February 2013}} and, after his historic victory in the [[Battle of Mohács]] in 1526, he established Turkish rule in the territory of present-day Hungary (except the western part) and other Central European territories. He then laid [[Siege of Vienna|siege to Vienna]] in 1529, but failed to take the city.<ref>{{cite book|last=Imber|first=Colin|title=The Ottoman Empire, 1300–1650: The Structure of Power|year=2002|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=0-333-61386-4|page=50}}</ref> In 1532, he made another [[Little War in Hungary|attack]] on Vienna, but was repulsed in the [[Siege of Güns]].<ref name="Thompson442">{{cite book |last=Thompson |first=Bard |title=Humanists and Reformers: A History of the Renaissance and Reformation |publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing |location= |page=442 |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-8028-6348-5}}</ref><ref name="Ágoston and Alan Masters583">{{cite book |last=Ágoston and Alan Masters |first=Gábor and Bruce |title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire |publisher=Infobase Publishing |page=583 |location= |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4381-1025-7}}</ref> [[Transylvania]], [[Wallachia]] and, intermittently, [[Moldavia]], became tributary principalities of the Ottoman Empire. In the east, the Ottoman Turks [[Ottoman–Safavid War (1532–55)|took]] [[Baghdad]] from the Persians in 1535, gaining control of [[Mesopotamia]] and naval access to the [[Persian Gulf]]. In 1555, the [[Caucasus]] became officially partitioned for the first time between the Safavids and the Ottomans, a ''[[status quo]]'' that would remain until the end of the [[Russo-Turkish War (1768–74)]]. By this partitioning of the Caucasus as signed in the [[Peace of Amasya]], [[Western Armenia]], western [[Kurdistan]], and [[Kingdom of Imereti|Western Georgia]] (incl. western [[Samtskhe-Atabagate|Samtskhe]]) fell into Ottoman hands,<ref>''The Reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, 1520–1566'', V.J. Parry, '''A History of the Ottoman Empire to 1730''', ed. M.A. Cook (Cambridge University Press, 1976), 94.</ref> while southern [[Dagestan]], [[Eastern Armenia]], [[Eastern Georgia]], and [[Azerbaijan]] remained Persian.<ref>''A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East'', Vol. II, ed. Spencer C. Tucker, (ABC-CLIO, 2010). 516.</ref>
+
+[[File:Battle of Preveza (1538).jpg|thumb|right|[[Barbarossa Hayreddin Pasha]] defeats the [[Holy League (1538)|Holy League]] of [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]] under the command of [[Andrea Doria]] at the [[Battle of Preveza]] in 1538]]
+
+[[Early Modern France|France]] and the Ottoman Empire, united by mutual opposition to [[Habsburg]] rule, became strong allies. The French conquests of [[Siege of Nice|Nice]] (1543) and [[Invasion of Corsica (1553)|Corsica]] (1553) occurred as a joint venture between the forces of the French king [[Francis I of France|Francis I]] and Suleiman, and were commanded by the Ottoman admirals [[Barbarossa Hayreddin Pasha]] and [[Turgut Reis]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Imber|first=Colin|title=The Ottoman Empire, 1300–1650: The Structure of Power|year=2002|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=0-333-61386-4|page=53}}</ref> A month before the siege of Nice, France supported the Ottomans with an artillery unit during the 1543 Ottoman [[siege of Esztergom (1543)|conquest of Esztergom]] in northern Hungary. After further advances by the Turks, the Habsburg ruler [[Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor|Ferdinand]] officially recognized Ottoman ascendancy in Hungary in 1547.
+
+By the end of Suleiman's reign, the Empire spanned approximately {{convert|877,888|mi2|abbr=on}}, extending over three continents.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ágoston |first=Gábor |editor-last=Ágoston |editor-first=Gábor |editor2=Bruce Masters |title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire |chapter=Süleyman I |date=2009 |page=545}}</ref> In addition, the Empire became a dominant naval force, controlling much of the [[Mediterranean Sea]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Mansel|first=Philip|title=Constantinople : city of the world's desire 1453–1924|year=1997|publisher=Penguin|location=London|isbn=0-14-026246-6|page=61}}</ref> By this time, the Ottoman Empire was a major part of the European political sphere. The success of its political and military establishment was compared to the Roman Empire, by the likes of Italian scholar [[Francesco Sansovino]] and the French political philosopher [[Jean Bodin]].<ref name="deringil709">{{cite journal|last=Deringil|first=Selim|title=The Turks and 'Europe': The Argument from History|journal=Middle Eastern Studies|date=September 2007|volume=43|issue=5|pages=709–723|doi=10.1080/00263200701422600|ref=harv}}</ref>
+
+=== Stagnation and reform (1566–1827) ===
+==== Revolts, reversals, and revivals (1566–1683) ====
+{{main|Transformation of the Ottoman Empire}}
+{{further|Ottoman Decline Thesis}}
+{{Update|inaccurate=yes|talk=The_Decline_Paradigm|date=September 2016}}
+[[File:OttomanEmpire1566.png|thumb|The extent of the Ottoman Empire in 1566, upon the death of [[Suleiman the Magnificent]]]]
+[[File:Szigetvar 1566.jpg|thumb|Ottoman miniature about the [[Siege of Szigetvár|Szigetvár campaign]] showing Ottoman troops and [[Crimean Khanate|Tatars]] as avant-garde]]
+
+In the second half of the sixteenth century the Ottoman Empire came under increasing strain from inflation and the rapidly rising costs of warfare that were impacting both Europe and the Middle East. These pressures led to a series of crises around the year 1600, placing great strain upon the Ottoman system of government.<ref>{{cite book |last=Faroqhi|first=Suraiya |editor-last=İnalcık |editor-first=Halil |editor2=Donald Quataert |title=An Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1914 |volume=2 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1994 |pages=413–4 |chapter=Crisis and Change, 1590–1699 |isbn=0-521-57456-0}}</ref> The empire underwent a series of transformations of its political and military institutions in response to these challenges, enabling it to successfully adapt to the new conditions of the seventeenth century and remain powerful, militarily and economically.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hathaway |first=Jane |title=The Arab Lands under Ottoman Rule, 1516–1800 |publisher=Pearson Education Ltd. |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-582-41899-8 |page=8}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Şahin |first=Kaya |title=Empire and Power in the reign of Süleyman: Narrating the Sixteenth-Century Ottoman World |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2013|isbn=978-1-107-03442-6 |page=10}}</ref> Historians of the mid-twentieth century once characterized this period as one of stagnation and decline, but this view is now rejected by the majority of academics.<ref name=decline/>
+
+The discovery of new maritime trade routes by Western European states allowed them to avoid the Ottoman trade monopoly. The [[Kingdom of Portugal|Portuguese]] discovery of the [[Cape of Good Hope]] in 1488 initiated [[Ottoman naval expeditions in the Indian Ocean|a series of Ottoman-Portuguese naval wars]] in the [[Indian Ocean]] throughout the 16th century. Despite the growing European presence in the Indian Ocean, Ottoman trade with the east continued to flourish. Cairo in particular benefitted from the rise of Yemeni coffee as a popular consumer commodity. As coffeehouses appeared in cities and towns across the empire, Cairo developed into a major center for its trade, contributing to its continued prosperity throughout the seventeenth and much of the eighteenth century.<ref>{{cite book |last=Faroqhi|first=Suraiya |editor-last=İnalcık |editor-first=Halil |editor2=Donald Quataert |title=An Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1914 |volume=2 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1994 |pages=507–8 |chapter=Crisis and Change, 1590–1699 |isbn=0-521-57456-0}}</ref>
+
+Under [[Ivan IV]] (1533–1584), the [[Tsardom of Russia]] expanded into the Volga and Caspian region at the expense of the Tatar khanates. In 1571, the Crimean khan [[Devlet I Giray]], supported by the Ottomans, [[Russo-Crimean War (1571)|burned Moscow]].<ref name="Davies2007">{{cite book|last=Davies|first=Brian L.|title=Warfare, State and Society on the Black Sea Steppe: 1500–1700|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XH4hghHo1qoC&pg=PA16|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2007|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-23986-8|page=16}}</ref> The next year, the invasion was repeated but repelled at the [[Battle of Molodi]]. The [[Crimean Khanate]] continued to invade Eastern Europe in a series of [[Tatar invasions|slave raids]],<ref name="Subtelny2000">{{cite book|author=Orest Subtelny|title=Ukraine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HNIs9O3EmtQC&pg=PA106|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2000|publisher=University of Toronto Press|isbn=978-0-8020-8390-6|page=106}}</ref> and remained a significant power in Eastern Europe until the end of the 17th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.econ.hit-u.ac.jp/~areastd/mediterranean/mw/pdf/18/10.pdf |title=The Crimean Tatars and their Russian-Captive Slaves |first=Eizo |last=Matsuki |publisher=Mediterranean Studies Group at Hitotsubashi University |format=PDF |accessdate=11 February 2013 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115170654/http://www.econ.hit-u.ac.jp/~areastd/mediterranean/mw/pdf/18/10.pdf |archivedate=15 January 2013}}</ref>
+
+In southern Europe, a [[Holy League (1571)|Catholic coalition]] led by [[Philip II of Spain]] won a victory over the Ottoman fleet at the [[Battle of Lepanto]] (1571). It was a startling, if mostly symbolic,{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p=272}} blow to the image of Ottoman invincibility, an image which the victory of the Knights of Malta against the Ottoman invaders in the 1565 [[Great Siege of Malta|Siege of Malta]] had recently set about eroding.<ref>Fernand Braudel, ''The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II'', vol. II ( University of California Press: Berkeley, 1995).{{page}}</ref> The battle was far more damaging to the Ottoman navy in sapping experienced manpower than the loss of ships, which were rapidly replaced.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kunt|first1=Metin|last2=Woodhead|first2=Christine|title=Süleyman the Magnificent and His Age: the Ottoman Empire in the Early Modern World|year=1995|publisher=Longman|isbn=978-0-582-03827-1|page=53}}</ref> The Ottoman navy recovered quickly, persuading Venice to sign a peace treaty in 1573, allowing the Ottomans to expand and consolidate their position in North Africa.{{sfn|Itzkowitz|1980|p=67}}
+
+[[File:Battle of Lepanto 1571.jpg|thumb|left|[[Battle of Lepanto]] in 1571]]
+
+By contrast, the [[Habsburg]] frontier had settled somewhat, a stalemate caused by a stiffening of the Habsburg defences.{{sfn|Itzkowitz|1980|p=71}} The [[Long Turkish War|Long War]] against [[Habsburg]] Austria (1593–1606) created the need for greater numbers of Ottoman infantry equipped with firearms, resulting in a relaxation of recruitment policy. This contributed to problems of indiscipline and outright rebelliousness within the corps, which were never fully solved.{{sfn|Itzkowitz|1980|pp=90–92}}{{Obsolete source|date=September 2016}} Irregular sharpshooters ([[Sekban]]) were also recruited, and on demobilization turned to [[brigandage]] in the [[Jelali revolts]] (1590–1610), which engendered widespread anarchy in [[Anatolia]] in the late 16th and early 17th centuries.<ref>{{cite book|author=Halil İnalcık|title=An Economic And Social History of the Ottoman Empire, Vol. 1 1300–1600|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1j-AtkBmn78C&pg=PA24|accessdate=12 February 2013|year=1997|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-57456-3|page=24}}</ref> With the Empire's population reaching 30 million people by 1600, the shortage of land placed further pressure on the government.{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p=281}}{{Obsolete source|date=September 2016}} In spite of these problems, the Ottoman state remained strong, and its army did not collapse or suffer crushing defeats. The only exceptions were campaigns against the [[Safavid]] dynasty of [[Persia]], where many of the Ottoman eastern provinces were lost, some permanently. This [[Ottoman-Safavid War (1603-1618)|1603–1618]] war eventually resulted in the [[Treaty of Nasuh Pasha]], which ceded the entire Caucasus, except westernmost Georgia, back into Iranian Safavid possession.<ref>Ga ́bor A ́goston, Bruce Alan Masters [https://books.google.com/books?id=QjzYdCxumFcC&pg=PA23 ''Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire''] pp. 23 Infobase Publishing, 1 jan. 2009 {{ISBN|1438110251}}</ref>
+
+[[File:Boksida, karta ur Wr.110:5 (Turc. Imper. Asia Geographie (I.34.17) - Skoklosters slott - 82210.tif|thumb|Map from 1654]]
+[[File:Vienna Battle 1683.jpg|thumb|[[Battle of Vienna|Second Siege of Vienna]] in 1683]]
+
+During his brief majority reign, [[Murad IV]] (1623–1640) reasserted central authority and recaptured [[Iraq]] (1639) from the [[Safavids]].{{sfn|Itzkowitz|1980|p=73}} The resulting [[Treaty of Zuhab]] of that same year decisively parted the [[Caucasus]] and adjacent regions between the two neighbouring empires as it had already been defined in the 1555 [[Peace of Amasya]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B8WRAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA47 |title=Armenians: Past and Present in the Making of National Identity|accessdate=30 December 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yED-aVDCbycC&pg=PA228 |title=Genocide and the Modern Age: Etiology and Case Studies of Mass Death|accessdate=30 December 2014}}</ref> The [[Sultanate of women]] (1623–1656) was a period in which the mothers of young sultans exercised power on behalf of their sons. The most prominent women of this period were [[Kösem Sultan]] and her daughter-in-law [[Turhan Hatice]], whose political rivalry culminated in Kösem's murder in 1651.{{sfn|Itzkowitz|1980|pp=74–75}} During the [[Köprülü Era]] (1656–1703), effective control of the Empire was exercised by a sequence of [[Grand Vizier]]s from the Köprülü family. The Köprülü Vizierate saw renewed military success with authority restored in [[Transylvania]], the conquest of [[Crete]] completed in 1669, and expansion into Polish southern [[Ukraine]], with the strongholds of [[Khotyn]] and [[Kamianets-Podilskyi]] and the territory of [[Podolia]] ceding to Ottoman control in 1676.{{sfn|Itzkowitz|1980|pp=80–81}}
+
+This period of renewed assertiveness came to a calamitous end in 1683 when Grand Vizier [[Kara Mustafa Pasha]] led a huge army to attempt a second Ottoman siege of [[Vienna]] in the [[Great Turkish War]] of 1683–1699. The final assault being fatally delayed, the Ottoman forces were swept away by allied Habsburg, German and Polish forces spearheaded by the Polish king [[John III Sobieski]] at the [[Battle of Vienna]]. The alliance of the [[Holy League (1684)|Holy League]] pressed home the advantage of the defeat at Vienna, culminating in the [[Treaty of Karlowitz]] (26 January 1699), which ended the Great Turkish War.{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p=357}} The Ottomans surrendered control of significant territories, many permanently.{{sfn|Itzkowitz|1980|p=84}} [[Mustafa II]] (1695–1703) led the counterattack of 1695–96 against the Habsburgs in Hungary, but was undone at the disastrous defeat at [[Battle of Zenta|Zenta]] (in modern Serbia), 11 September 1697.{{sfn|Itzkowitz|1980|pp=83–84}}
+
+==== Russian threat grows ====
+Aside from the loss of the [[Banat]] and the temporary loss of [[Belgrade]] (1717–39), the Ottoman border on the [[Danube]] and [[Sava]] remained stable during the eighteenth century. [[Expansion of Russia 1500–1800|Russian expansion]], however, presented a large and growing threat.{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p = 371}} Accordingly, King [[Charles XII of Sweden]] was welcomed as an ally in the Ottoman Empire following his defeat by the Russians at the [[Battle of Poltava]] of 1709 in central Ukraine (part of the [[Great Northern War]] of 1700–1721).{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p = 371}} Charles XII persuaded the Ottoman Sultan [[Ahmed III]] to declare war on Russia, which resulted in an Ottoman victory in the [[Pruth River Campaign]] of 1710–1711, in Moldavia.{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p = 372}}
+
+[[File:1720 Huchtenburg Eroberungs Belgrads 1717 anagoria.JPG|thumb|left|Austrian troops led by [[Prince Eugene of Savoy]] capture [[Belgrade]] in 1717]]
+
+After the [[Austro-Turkish War of 1716–1718]] the [[Treaty of Passarowitz]] confirmed the loss of the [[Banat]], Serbia and [[Oltenia|"Little Walachia" (Oltenia)]] to Austria. The Treaty also revealed that the Ottoman Empire was on the defensive and unlikely to present any further aggression in Europe.{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p = 376}} The [[Austro-Russian–Turkish War (1735–1739)|Austro-Russian–Turkish War]] (1735–1739), which was ended by the [[Treaty of Belgrade]] in 1739, resulted in the recovery of Serbia and Oltenia, but the Empire lost the port of [[Azov]], north of the Crimean Peninsula, to the Russians. After this treaty the Ottoman Empire was able to enjoy a generation of peace, as Austria and Russia were forced to deal with the rise of [[Prussia]].{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p = 392}}
+
+[[Science and Technology in the Ottoman Empire#Education|Educational and technological reforms]] came about, including the establishment of higher education institutions such as the [[Istanbul Technical University]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.itu.edu.tr/en/?about/history |title=History |publisher=Istanbul Technical University |accessdate=6 November 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120618160944/http://www.itu.edu.tr/en/?about%2Fhistory |archive-date=18 June 2012 |dead-url=yes |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In 1734 an artillery school was established to impart Western-style artillery methods, but the Islamic clergy successfully objected under the grounds of [[theodicy]].<ref name="books.google_a">{{cite book|last=Stone|first=Norman|editor=Mark Erickson, Ljubica Erickson|title=Russia War, Peace And Diplomacy: Essays in Honour of John Erickson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xM9wQgAACAAJ|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2005|publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson|isbn=978-0-297-84913-1|page=97|chapter=Turkey in the Russian Mirror}}</ref> In 1754 the artillery school was reopened on a semi-secret basis.<ref name="books.google_a"/> In 1726, [[Ibrahim Muteferrika]] convinced the [[Grand Vizier]] [[Nevşehirli Damat İbrahim Pasha]], the [[Grand Mufti]], and the clergy on the efficiency of the printing press, and Muteferrika was later granted by Sultan Ahmed III permission to publish non-religious books (despite opposition from some [[Islamic calligraphy|calligraphers]] and religious leaders).<ref name="katip celebi">{{cite web |url=http://vitrine.library.uu.nl/en/texts/Rarqu54.htm |title=Presentation of Katip Çelebi, Kitâb-i Cihân-nümâ li-Kâtib Çelebi |publisher=Utrecht University Library |date=5 May 2009 |accessdate=11 February 2013 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130212030334/http://vitrine.library.uu.nl/en/texts/Rarqu54.htm |archivedate=12 February 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Muteferrika's press published its first book in 1729 and, by 1743, issued 17 works in 23 volumes, each having between 500 and 1,000 copies.<ref name="katip celebi"/><ref name="watson">{{cite journal|last=Watson|first=William J.|title=Ibrahim Muteferrika and Turkish Incunabula|journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society|year=1968|volume=88|issue=3|page=435|doi=10.2307/596868|jstor=596868}}</ref>
+
+[[File:January Suchodolski - Ochakiv siege.jpg|thumb|Ottoman troops attempt to halt advancing Russians during the [[Siege of Ochakov (1788)|Siege of Ochakov]] in 1788.]]
+
+In 1768 Russian-backed Ukrainian [[Haidamaka]]s, pursuing Polish confederates, entered [[Balta, Ukraine|Balta]], an Ottoman-controlled town on the border of Bessarabia in Ukraine, and massacred its citizens and burned the town to the ground. This action provoked the Ottoman Empire into the [[Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774)|Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774]]. The [[Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca]] of 1774 ended the war and provided freedom to worship for the Christian citizens of the Ottoman-controlled provinces of Wallachia and Moldavia.{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p = 405}} By the late 18th century, after a number of defeats in the wars with Russia, some people in the Ottoman Empire began to conclude that the reforms of [[Peter the Great]] had given the Russians an edge, and the Ottomans would have to keep up with Western technology in order to avoid further defeats.<ref name="books.google_a"/>
+
+[[Selim III]] (1789–1807) made the first major attempts to [[Ottoman military reform efforts|modernize the army]], but his reforms were hampered by the religious leadership and the [[Janissary]] corps. Jealous of their privileges and firmly opposed to change, the Janissary [[Janissary revolts|revolted]]. Selim's efforts cost him his throne and his life, but were resolved in spectacular and bloody fashion by his successor, the dynamic [[Mahmud II]], who [[The Auspicious Incident|eliminated the Janissary corps]] in 1826.
+
+[[File:Ottoman Sultan Selim III (1789).jpg|thumb|left|[[Selim III]] receiving dignitaries during an audience at the Gate of Felicity, [[Topkapı Palace]]]]
+
+The [[Serbian revolution]] (1804–1815) marked the beginning of an era of [[Rise of nationalism under the Ottoman Empire|national awakening]] in the [[Balkans]] during the [[Eastern Question]]. In 1811, the fundamentalist Wahhabis of Arabia, led by the al-Saud family revolted against the Ottomans. Unable to defeat the Wahhabi rebels, the Sublime Porte had Mohammad Ali the Great, the ''vali'' (governor) of Egypt tasked with retaking Arabia which ended with the destruction of the [[Emirate of Diriyah]] in 1818. The [[Suzerainty]] of Serbia as a hereditary monarchy under its own [[Obrenović dynasty|dynasty]] was acknowledged ''de jure'' in 1830.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.njegos.org/past/liunion.htm |title=Liberation, Independence And Union of Serbia And Montenegro |publisher=Serb Land of Montenegro |accessdate=26 August 2010}}</ref><ref name="Berend2003">{{cite book|last=Berend|first=Tibor Iván|authorlink=Iván T. Berend|title=History Derailed: Central and Eastern Europe in the Long 19th Century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a9csmhIT_BQC&pg=PA127|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2003|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-93209-8|page=127}}</ref> In 1821, the [[Ottoman Greece|Greeks]] [[Greek War of Independence|declared war]] on the Sultan. A rebellion that originated in Moldavia as a diversion was followed by the main revolution in the [[Peloponnese]], which, along with the northern part of the [[Gulf of Corinth]], became the first parts of the Ottoman Empire to achieve independence (in 1829). In 1830, the French invaded Algeria, which was lost to the empire. In 1831, Mohammad Ali revolted with the aim of making himself sultan and founding a new dynasty, and his French-trained army under his son Ibrahim Pasha defeated the Ottoman Army as it marched on Constantinople, coming within 200 miles of the capital.<ref>Karsh, Effraim ''Islamic Imperialism A History'', New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006 page 95.</ref> In desperation, the Sultan [[Mahmud II]] appealed to the empire's traditional archenemy Russia for help, asking the Emperor Nicholas I to send an expeditionary force to save him.<ref name="Karsh, Effraim page 96">Karsh, Effraim ''Islamic Imperialism A History'', New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006 page 96.</ref> In return for signing the [[Treaty of Hünkâr İskelesi]], the Russians sent the expeditionary force, which deterred Ibrahim from taking Constantinople.<ref name="Karsh, Effraim page 96"/> Under the terms of Peace of Kutahia, signed on 5 May 1833 Mohammad Ali agreed to abandon his claim to the throne, in exchange for which he was made the ''vali'' of the ''vilayets'' (provinces) of Crete, Aleppo, Tripoli, Damascus and Sidon (the latter four comprising modern Syria and Lebanon), and given the right to collect taxes in Adana.<ref name="Karsh, Effraim page 96"/> Had it not been for the Russian intervention, it is almost certain Mahumd II would have been overthrown and Mohammad Ali would have become the new sultan, marking the beginning of a recurring pattern where the Sublime Porte needed the help of outsiders to save itself.<ref>Karsh, Effraim ''Islamic Imperialism A History'', New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006 pages 95–96.</ref>
+[[File:Η μάχη της Αλαμάνας.jpg|thumb|The [[Greek War of Independence]] (1821–1829) against the Ottomans]]
+In 1839, the Sublime Porte attempted to take back what it lost to the de facto independent ''vilayet'' of Egypt, and suffered a crushing defeat, leading to the [[Oriental Crisis of 1840|Oriental Crisis]] as Mohammad Ali was very close to France, and the prospect of him as Sultan was widely viewed as putting the entire empire into the French sphere of influence.<ref name="Karsh, Effraim page 96"/> As the Sublime Porte had proved itself incapable of defeating the Egyptians, Britain and Austria intervened to defeat Egypt.<ref name="Karsh, Effraim page 96"/> By the mid-19th century, the Ottoman Empire was called the [[Sick man of Europe|"sick man"]] by Europeans. The [[suzerainty|suzerain states]] – the [[Principality of Serbia]], Wallachia and [[Moldavia]] – moved towards ''de jure'' independence during the 1860s and 1870s.
+
+=== Decline and modernization (1828–1908) ===
+{{Main|Decline of the Ottoman Empire}}
+During the [[Tanzimat]] period (1839–1876), the government's series of constitutional reforms led to a fairly modern [[Conscription in the Ottoman Empire|conscripted army]], banking system reforms, the decriminalization of homosexuality, the replacement of religious law with secular law<ref>{{cite web|last=Ishtiaq|first=Hussain|title=The Tanzimat: Secular reforms in the Ottoman Empire|url=http://faith-matters.org/images/stories/fm-publications/the-tanzimat-final-web.pdf|publisher=Faith Matters}}</ref> and [[guild]]s with modern factories. The Ottoman Ministry of Post was established in Istanbul on 23 October 1840.<ref name="PTT">{{cite web|url=http://www.ptt.gov.tr/tr/kurumsal/tarihce.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080913233443/http://www.ptt.gov.tr/tr/kurumsal/tarihce.html |archivedate=13 September 2008 |title=PTT Chronology |publisher=PTT Genel Müdürlüğü |language=Turkish |date=13 September 2008 |accessdate=11 February 2013 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref><ref name="PTT2">{{cite web|url=http://www.ptt.gov.tr/index.snet?wapp=histor_en&open=1 |title=History of the Turkish Postal Service |publisher=Ptt.gov.tr |accessdate=6 November 2011}}</ref>
+
+[[Samuel Morse]] received a Turkish [[patent]] for the [[telegraphy|telegraph]] in 1847, which was issued by Sultan [[Abdülmecid I|Abdülmecid]] who personally tested the new invention.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.istanbulcityguide.com/history/body_mansions_palaces.htm |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010112702/http://www.istanbulcityguide.com/history/body_mansions_palaces.htm |archivedate=10 October 2007 |title=Beylerbeyi Palace |publisher=Istanbul City Guide |accessdate=11 February 2013 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref> Following this successful test, work on the first Turkish telegraph line (Istanbul-[[Edirne]]-[[Şumnu]])<ref name="NTVtarih2">{{cite journal|url=http://www.ntvtarih.com.tr/ |issue=July 2011 |title=Sultan Abdülmecid: İlklerin Padişahı |page=49 |language=Turkish |publisher=NTV Tarih |accessdate=11 February 2013 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130212143841/http://www.ntvtarih.com.tr/ |archivedate=12 February 2013 |df= }}</ref> began on 9 August 1847.<ref name="telekomhistory">{{cite web|url=http://www.turktelekom.com.tr/webtech/eng_default.asp?sayfa_id=30 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928164731/http://www.turktelekom.com.tr/webtech/eng_default.asp?sayfa_id=30 |archivedate=28 September 2007 |title=History |publisher=Türk Telekom |accessdate=11 February 2013 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref> The reformist period peaked with the Constitution, called the ''[[Kanûn-u Esâsî]]''. The empire's [[First Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)|First Constitutional era]] was short-lived. The parliament survived for only two years before the sultan suspended it.
+
+[[File:Battle at river Skit 1877.jpg|thumb|left|[[United Principalities|Romania]], fighting on the Russian side, [[Romanian War of Independence|gained independence]] from the Ottoman Empire in 1878 after the end of [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)|Russo-Turkish War]].]]
+
+The Christian population of the empire, owing to their higher educational levels, started to pull ahead of the Muslim majority, leading to much resentment on the part of the latter.<ref name="books.google_b">{{cite book|last=Stone|first=Norman|editor=Mark Erickson, Ljubica Erickson|title=Russia War, Peace And Diplomacy: Essays in Honour of John Erickson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xM9wQgAACAAJ|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2005|publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson|isbn=978-0-297-84913-1|page=95|chapter=Turkey in the Russian Mirror}}</ref> In 1861, there were 571 primary and 94 secondary schools for Ottoman Christians with 140,000 pupils in total, a figure that vastly exceeded the number of Muslim children in school at the same time, who were further hindered by the amount of time spent learning Arabic and Islamic theology.<ref name="books.google_b"/> Stone further suggested that the Arabic alphabet, which Turkish was written in until 1928, was very ill-suited to reflect the sounds of the Turkish language (which is a Turkic as opposed to Semitic language), which imposed a further difficulty on Turkish children.<ref name="books.google_b"/> In turn, the higher educational levels of the Christians allowed them to play a larger role in the economy, with the rise in prominence of groups such as the [[Sursock family]] indicative of this shift in influence. <ref>{{cite web|title=Sursock House|url=https://sursockhouse.com/|accessdate=29 May 2018}}</ref> <ref name="books.google_b"/> In 1911, of the 654 wholesale companies in Istanbul, 528 were owned by ethnic Greeks.<ref name="books.google_b"/> In many cases, Christians and also Jews were able to gain protection from European consuls and citizenship, meaning they were protected from Ottoman law and not subject to the same economic regulations as their Muslim comrades.<ref>{{Cite book|title = The Arabs: A History|last = Rogan|first = Eugene|publisher = Penguin|year = 2011|isbn = |location = |page = 93}}</ref>
+
+[[File:Konstantin Makovsky - The Bulgarian martyresses.jpg|thumb|upright|''The Bulgarian martyresses'' (1877) by [[Konstantin Makovsky]], a Russian propaganda painting which depicts the rape of Bulgarian women by the [[bashi-bazouk]]s during the [[April Uprising]], with the purpose of mobilizing public support for the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)]].<ref>Repin, Volume 1; Igor Emanuilovich Grabar'; 1948; [https://books.google.com/books?id=WnsFAAAAMAAJ p.391] (in Russian)</ref><ref>Bulgaria today: Volume 15, Issue 4; 1966; [https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&tbo=1&q=%22Konstantin+Makovsky%22+%22april+uprising%22&btnG=Search+Books p.35]</ref>
+Unrestrained by the laws that governed regular soldiers in the [[Ottoman Army]], the bashi-bazouks became notorious for preying on civilians.<ref>{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Bashi-Bazouk |volume=3 |page=465}}</ref>]]
+
+The [[Crimean War]] (1853–1856) was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the [[Decline of the Ottoman Empire|declining Ottoman Empire]]. The financial burden of the war led the Ottoman state to issue [[Ottoman public debt|foreign loans]] amounting to 5 million pounds sterling on 4 August 1854.<ref>{{cite book|author=V. Necla Geyikdagi|title=Foreign Investment in the Ottoman Empire: International Trade and Relations 1854–1914|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fGRMOzJZ4aEC&pg=PA32|accessdate=12 February 2013|date=15 March 2011|publisher=I.B.Tauris|isbn=978-1-84885-461-1|page=32}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Douglas Arthur Howard|title=The History of Turkey|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ay-IkMqrTp4C&pg=PA71|accessdate=11 February 2013|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-313-30708-9|page=71|year=2001}}</ref> The war caused an exodus of the [[Crimean Tatars]], about 200,000 of whom moved to the Ottoman Empire in continuing waves of emigration.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Williams|first=Bryan Glynn|title=Hijra and forced migration from nineteenth-century Russia to the Ottoman Empire|journal=Cahiers du Monde russe|year=2000|volume=41|issue=1|pages=79–108|url=http://monderusse.revues.org/39|doi=10.4000/monderusse.39}}</ref> Toward the end of the [[Caucasian Wars]], 90% of the [[Circassians]] were [[Ethnic cleansing of Circassians|ethnically cleansed]]<ref>Memoirs of Miliutin, "the plan of action decided upon for 1860 was to cleanse [ochistit'] the mountain zone of its indigenous population", per Richmond, W. <u>The Northwest Caucasus: Past, Present, and Future</u>. Routledge. 2008.</ref> and exiled from their homelands in the [[Caucasus]] and fled to the Ottoman Empire,<ref>{{cite book|first=Walter|last=Richmond|title=The Northwest Caucasus: Past, Present, Future|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LQJyLvMWB8MC&pg=PA79|accessdate=11 February 2013|date=29 July 2008|publisher=Taylor & Francis US|isbn=978-0-415-77615-8|page=79|quote=the plan of action decided upon for 1860 was to cleanse [ochistit'] the mountain zone of its indigenous population}}</ref> resulting in the settlement of 500,000 to 700,000 Circassians in Turkey.<ref name="Jaimoukha2001">{{cite book|author=Amjad M. Jaimoukha|title=The Circassians: A Handbook|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5jVmQgAACAAJ|accessdate=4 May 2013|year=2001|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=978-0-312-23994-7}}</ref>{{page needed|date=June 2013}}<ref name="Hille2010">{{cite book|author=Charlotte Mathilde Louise Hille|title=State building and conflict resolution in the Caucasus|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yxFP6K8iZzQC&pg=PA50|accessdate=4 May 2013|year=2010|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-17901-1|page=50}}</ref><ref name="ChirotMcCauley2010">{{cite book|author1=Daniel Chirot|author2=Clark McCauley|title=Why Not Kill Them All?: The Logic and Prevention of Mass Political Murder (New in Paper)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9sPJnd0cwV0C&pg=PA23|accessdate=4 May 2013|date=1 July 2010|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-1-4008-3485-3|page=23}}</ref> Some Circassian organisations give much higher numbers, totaling 1–1.5 million deported or killed. Crimean Tartar refugees in the late 19th century played an especially notable role in seeking to modernize Ottoman education and in first promoting both Pan-Turkicism and a sense of Turkish nationalism.<ref name="ReferenceA">Stone, Norman "Turkey in the Russian Mirror" pages 86–100 from ''Russia War, Peace and Diplomacy'' edited by Mark & Ljubica Erickson, Weidenfeld & Nicolson: London, 2004 page 95.</ref>
+
+In this period, the Ottoman Empire spent only small amounts of public funds on education; for example in 1860–61 only 0.2 per cent of the total budget was invested in education.<ref>{{cite book|author=Baten, Jörg |title=A History of the Global Economy. From 1500 to the Present.|date=2016|publisher=Cambridge University Press|page=50|isbn=9781107507180}}</ref>
+As the Ottoman state attempted to modernize its infrastructure and army in response to threats from the outside, it also opened itself up to a different kind of threat: that of creditors. Indeed, as the historian Eugene Rogan has written, "the single greatest threat to the independence of the Middle East" in the nineteenth century "was not the armies of Europe but its banks."<ref>{{Cite book|title = The Arabs: A History|last = Rogan|first = Eugene|publisher = Penguin|year = 2011|isbn = |location = |page = 105}}</ref> The Ottoman state, which had begun taking on debt with the Crimean War, was forced to declare bankruptcy in 1875.<ref name="auto1">{{Cite book|title = The Arabs: A History|last = Rogan|first = Eugene|publisher = Penguin|year = 2011|isbn = |location = |page = 106}}</ref> By 1881, the Ottoman Empire agreed to have its debt controlled by an institution known as the [[Ottoman Public Debt Administration]], a council of European men with presidency alternating between France and Britain. The body controlled swaths of the Ottoman economy, and used its position to ensure that European capital continued to penetrate the empire, often to the detriment of local Ottoman interests.<ref name="auto1"/>
+
+The Ottoman [[bashi-bazouk]]s brutally suppressed the [[April Uprising|Bulgarian uprising]] of 1876, massacring up to 100,000 people in the process.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Establishment of the Balkan National States, 1804–1920 |first1=Charles |last1=Jelavich |first2=Barbara |last2=Jelavich |year=1986 |url=https://books.google.com/?id=LBYriPYyfUoC&pg=PA139&dq=massacre+bulgarians++1876#v=onepage&q&f=false |page=139|isbn=978-0-295-80360-9}}</ref> The [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)]] ended with a decisive victory for Russia. As a result, Ottoman holdings in Europe declined sharply: [[Principality of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]] was established as an independent principality inside the Ottoman Empire; [[United Principalities|Romania]] achieved full independence; and [[History of Serbia|Serbia]] and [[Montenegro]] finally gained complete independence, but with smaller territories. In 1878, [[Austria-Hungary]] unilaterally occupied the Ottoman provinces of [[Bosnia Vilayet|Bosnia-Herzegovina]] and [[Sanjak of Novi Pazar|Novi Pazar]].
+
+[[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|British Prime Minister]] [[Benjamin Disraeli]] advocated for restoring the Ottoman territories on the Balkan Peninsula during the [[Congress of Berlin]], and in return Britain assumed the administration of [[Cyprus]] in 1878.<ref>{{cite book|last=Taylor|first=A.J.P.|authorlink=A. J. P. Taylor|title=The Struggle for Mastery in Europe, 1848–1918|year=1955|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-822101-2|pages=228–54}}</ref> Britain later sent troops to [[Egypt]] in 1882 to put down the [[Urabi Revolt]] – Sultan [[Abdul Hamid II]] was too paranoid to mobilize his own army, fearing this would result in a coup d'état – effectively gaining control in both territories. Abdul Hamid II, popularly known as "Abdul Hamid the Damned" on the account of his cruelty and paranoia, was so fearful of the threat of a coup that he did not allow his army to conduct war games, lest this serve as the cover for a coup, but he did see the need for military mobilization. In 1883, a German military mission under General Baron [[Colmar Freiherr von der Goltz|Colmar von der Goltz]] arrived to train the Ottoman Army, leading to the so-called "Goltz generation" of German-trained officers who were to play a notable role in the politics of the last years of the empire.<ref>Akmeșe, Handan Nezir ''The Birth of Modern Turkey The Ottoman Military and the March to World I'', London: I.B Tauris page 24</ref>
+
+From 1894 to 1896, between 100,000 and 300,000 Armenians living throughout the empire were killed in what became known as the [[Hamidian massacres]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Akçam|first=Taner|title=A Shameful Act: The Armenian Genocide and the Question of Turkish Responsibility|year=2006|publisher=Metropolitan Books|location=New York|isbn=0-8050-7932-7|page=42|authorlink=Taner Akçam}}</ref>
+
+As the Ottoman Empire gradually shrank in size, some 7–9 million Muslims from its former territories in the [[Caucasus]], [[Crimea]], [[Balkans]], and the [[Mediterranean]] islands migrated to [[Anatolia]] and [[Eastern Thrace]].<ref name="Karpat2004">{{cite book|author=Kemal H Karpat|title=Studies on Turkish politics and society: selected articles and essays|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cL4Ua6gGyWUC|accessdate=24 May 2013|year=2004|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-13322-8}}</ref> After the Empire lost the [[First Balkan War]] (1912–13), it lost all its [[Balkan peninsula|Balkan]] territories except [[East Thrace]] (European Turkey). This resulted in around 400,000 Muslims fleeing with the retreating Ottoman armies (with many dying from cholera brought by the soldiers), and with some 400,000 non-Muslims fleeing territory still under Ottoman rule.<ref>{{cite journal|place=NL |format=PDF |url=http://tulp.leidenuniv.nl/content_docs/wap/ejz18.pdf |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070716155929/http://tulp.leidenuniv.nl/content_docs/wap/ejz18.pdf |archivedate=16 July 2007 |title=Greek and Turkish refugees and deportees 1912–1924 |page=1 |publisher=[[Universiteit Leiden]] |ref=harv |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref> [[Justin McCarthy (American historian)|Justin McCarthy]] estimates that during the period 1821 to 1922 several million Muslims died in the Balkans, with the expulsion of a similar number.<ref name="McCarthy1995">{{cite book|author=Justin McCarthy|title=Death and exile: the ethnic cleansing of Ottoman Muslims, 1821–1922|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1ZntAAAAMAAJ|accessdate=1 May 2013|year=1995|publisher=Darwin Press|isbn=978-0-87850-094-9}}</ref><ref name="Carmichael2012">{{cite book|last = Carmichael|first = Cathie|title = Ethnic Cleansing in the Balkans: Nationalism and the Destruction of Tradition|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ybORI4KWwdIC|accessdate = 1 May 2013|date = 12 November 2012|publisher = Routledge|isbn = 978-1-134-47953-5|quote = During the period from 1821 to 1922 alone, Justin McCarthy estimates that the ethnic cleansing of Ottoman Muslims led to the death of several million individuals and the expulsion of a similar number.|page = 21}}</ref><ref name="Buturovic2010">{{cite book|last=Buturovic|first=Amila|title=Islam in the Balkans: Oxford Bibliographies Online Research Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Kck_-B7MubIC|accessdate=1 May 2013|date=1 May 2010|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-980381-1|page=9}}</ref>
+
+<gallery mode="packed" heights="130px">
+File:Friday Procession.jpg|Sultan [[Abdul Hamid II]] going to the Friday Prayer (Friday Procession)
+File:Opening ceremony of the First Ottoman Parliament at the Dolmabahce Palace in 1876.jpg|Opening ceremony of the First [[Ottoman Parliament]] at the [[Dolmabahçe Palace]] in 1876. The [[First Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)|First Constitutional Era]] lasted for only two years until 1878. The Ottoman Constitution and Parliament were [[Second Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)|restored 30 years later]] with the [[Young Turk Revolution]] in 1908.
+File:Turkish troops storming Fort Shefketil (cropped).jpg|Turkish troops storming [[Shekvetili|Fort Shefketil]] during the [[Crimean War]] of 1853–1856
+File:The ruined gateway of Prince Eugene, Belgrade.jpg|[[Belgrade]], c. 1865. In 1867, [[British Empire|Britain]] and [[Second French Empire|France]] forced the Ottoman military to retreat from northern [[Serbia]], securing its ''de facto'' independence (formalized after the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)|Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78]] and the [[Congress of Berlin]] in 1878.)
+</gallery>
+
+=== Defeat and dissolution (1908–1922) ===
+{{Main|Defeat and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire|History of the Ottoman Empire during World War I}}
+[[File:Le Petir Journal, Proclamation of Mehmed V.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Mehmed V]] was proclaimed Sultan of the Ottoman Empire after the [[Young Turk Revolution]]]]
+
+The [[defeat and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire]] (1908–1922) began with the [[Second Constitutional Era]], a moment of hope and promise established with the [[Young Turk Revolution]]. It restored the [[Ottoman constitution of 1876]] and brought in [[List of political parties in the Ottoman Empire|multi-party politics]] with a [[Elections in the Ottoman Empire|two-stage electoral system]] ([[Ottoman electoral law|electoral law]]) under the [[General Assembly of the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman parliament]]. The constitution offered hope by freeing the empire’s citizens to modernize the state’s institutions, rejuvenate its strength, and enable it to hold its own against outside powers. Its guarantee of liberties promised to dissolve inter-communal tensions and transform the empire into a more harmonious place.<ref>{{harvnb|Reynolds|2011|p= 1}}</ref> Instead, this period became the story of the twilight struggle of the Empire.
+
+[[File:Declaration of the 1908 Revolution in Ottoman Empire.png|thumb|upright=0.9|left|Declaration of the [[Young Turk Revolution]] by the leaders of the Ottoman [[Millet (Ottoman Empire)|millets]] in 1908]]
+[[File:Sultanvahideddin.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|left|[[Mehmed VI]], the last Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, leaving the country after the [[Abolition of the Ottoman Sultanate|abolition of the Ottoman sultanate]], 17 November 1922]]
+
+Members of [[Young Turks]] movement who had once gone underground now established their parties.<ref>{{Harvard citation|Erickson|2013|p=32}}</ref> Among them “[[Committee of Union and Progress]],” and “[[Freedom and Accord Party]]” were major parties. On the other end of the spectrum were ethnic parties which included [[Jewish Social Democratic Labour Party in Palestine (Poale Zion)|Poale Zion]], [[Al-Fatat]], and [[Armenian national movement]] organized under [[Armenian Revolutionary Federation]]. Profiting from the civil strife, [[Austria-Hungary]] officially annexed [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] in 1908. The last of the [[Census in the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman censuses]] was performed in [[1914 population statistics for the Ottoman Empire|1914]]. Despite [[Ottoman military reforms|military reforms]] which reconstituted the [[Ottoman Modern Army]], the Empire lost its North African territories and the Dodecanese in the [[Italo-Turkish War]] (1911) and almost all of its European territories in the [[Balkan Wars]] (1912–1913). The Empire faced continuous unrest in the years leading up to [[World War I]], including the [[Ottoman countercoup of 1909]], the [[31 March Incident]] and two further coups in [[1912 Ottoman coup d'état|1912]] and [[1913 Ottoman coup d'état|1913]].
+
+The [[history of the Ottoman Empire during World War I]] began with the [[Ottoman entry into World War I|Ottoman surprise attack]] on the Russian Black Sea coast on 29 October 1914. Following the attack, Russia and its allies, France and Britain, declared war on the Ottomans. There were several important Ottoman victories in the early years of the war, such as the [[Battle of Gallipoli]] and the [[Siege of Kut]].
+
+[[File:Morgenthau336.jpg|thumb|The [[Armenian Genocide]] was the Ottoman government's systematic extermination of its Armenian subjects. An estimated 1.5 million people were killed.]]
+
+In 1915 the Ottoman government started the extermination of its ethnic Armenian population, resulting in the death of approximately 1.5 million Armenians in the [[Armenian Genocide]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Peter Balakian|title=The Burning Tigris|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DrYoyAM3PBYC&pg=PR17|accessdate=8 June 2013|date=13 October 2009|publisher=HarperCollins|isbn=978-0-06-186017-1|page=xvii}}</ref> The genocide was carried out during and after [[World War I]] and implemented in two phases: the wholesale killing of the able-bodied male population through massacre and subjection of army conscripts to forced labor, followed by the deportation of women, children, the elderly and infirm on [[death march]]es leading to the [[Syrian desert]]. Driven forward by military escorts, the deportees were deprived of food and water and subjected to periodic robbery, rape, and systematic massacre.<ref>{{Citation|first1=Hans-Lukas|last1=Kieser|first2=Dominik J.|last2=Schaller|language=German|title=Der Völkermord an den Armeniern und die Shoah|trans-title=The Armenian genocide and the Shoah|publisher=Chronos|year=2002|isbn=3-0340-0561-X|page=114}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title = Armenia: The Survival of A Nation |first = Christopher J. |last = Walker |publisher = Croom Helm |place = London |year = 1980 |pages = 200–3}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title = The Treatment of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, 1915–1916: Documents Presented to Viscount Grey of Falloden |first1 = Viscount James |last1 = Bryce |authorlink= James Bryce, 1st Viscount Bryce |first2 = Arnold |last2 = Toynbee |edition = uncensored |editor-first = Ara |editor-last = Sarafian |place = Princeton, [[New Jersey|NJ]] |publisher = [[Gomidas Institute]] |year = 2000 |isbn = 0-9535191-5-5 |pages = 635–49}}</ref> Large-scale massacres were also committed against the Empire's [[Greek genocide|Greek]] and [[Assyrian genocide|Assyrian]] minorities as part of the same campaign of ethnic cleansing.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1080/14623520801950820|last1=Schaller|first1=Dominik J|last2=Zimmerer|first2=Jürgen|year=2008|title=Late Ottoman genocides: the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire and Young Turkish population and extermination policies – introduction|journal=Journal of Genocide Research|volume=10|issue=1|pages=7–14|url=http://bridging-the-divide.org/sites/default/files/files/Late%20Ottoman%20genocides-%20the%20dissolution%20of%20the%20Ottoman%20Empire%20and%20Young%20Turkish%20population%20and%20extermination%20policies%281%29.pdf|quote=The genocidal quality of the murderous campaigns against Greeks and Assyrians is obvious|postscript=<!-- Bot inserted parameter. Either remove it; or change its value to "." for the cite to end in a ".", as necessary. -->{{inconsistent citations}}}}{{dead link|date=December 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
+
+The [[Arab Revolt]] began in 1916 and turned the tide against the Ottomans on the Middle Eastern front, where they seemed to have the upper hand during the first two years of the war. The [[Armistice of Mudros]] was signed on 30 October 1918, setting the [[partition of the Ottoman Empire]] under the terms of the [[Treaty of Sèvres]]. This treaty, as designed in the [[Conference of London (1920)|conference of London]], allowed the Sultan to retain his position and title. The [[occupation of Constantinople]] and [[occupation of İzmir|İzmir]] led to the establishment of a [[Turkish national movement]], which won the [[Turkish War of Independence]] (1919–23) under the leadership of [[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk|Mustafa Kemal]] (later given the surname "Atatürk"). The [[Abolition of the Ottoman Sultanate|sultanate was abolished]] on 1 November 1922, and the last sultan, [[Mehmed VI]] (reigned 1918–22), left the country on 17 November 1922. The [[Ottoman Caliphate|caliphate]] was abolished on 3 March 1924.<ref name="Ozoglu">{{cite book|author=Hakan Ozoglu|title=From Caliphate to Secular State: Power Struggle in the Early Turkish Republic|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Cw5V1c1ej_cC&pg=PA8|accessdate=8 June 2013|date=24 June 2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-37957-4|page=8}}</ref>
+
+== Historical debate on the origins and nature of the Ottoman state ==
+{{main|Gaza Thesis}}
+{{one source|section|date=May 2017}}
+Several historians such as British historian [[Edward Gibbon]] and the Greek historian Dimitri Kitzikis have argued that after the fall of Constantinople, the Ottoman state took over the machinery of the Roman state, and that in essence the Ottoman Empire was a continuation of the Eastern Roman Empire under a thin Turkish Islamic guise.<ref>Stone, Norman "Turkey in the Russian Mirror" pages 86–100 from ''Russia War, Peace and Diplomacy'' edited by Mark & Ljubica Erickson, Weidenfeld & Nicolson: London, 2004 pages 92–93</ref> Kitzikis called the Ottoman state "a Greek-Turkish condominium".<ref name="Stone pages 86-100">Stone, Norman "Turkey in the Russian Mirror" pages 86–100 from ''Russia War, Peace and Diplomacy'' edited by Mark & Ljubica Erickson, Weidenfeld & Nicolson: London, 2004 page 93</ref> The American historian [[Speros Vryonis]] wrote that the Ottoman state was centered on "a Byzantine-Balkan base with a veneer of the Turkish language and the Islamic religion".<ref name="Stone pages 86-100"/> Other historians have followed the lead of the Austrian historian [[Paul Wittek]] who emphasized the Islamic character of the Ottoman state, seeing the Ottoman state as a "Jihad state" dedicated to expanding the world of Islam.<ref name="Stone pages 86-100"/> Another group of historians led by the Turkish historian M. Fuat Koprulu championed the "''[[Ghazi (warrior)|gazi]]'' thesis" that saw the Ottoman state as a continuation of the way of life of the [[nomad]]ic [[Turkic peoples|Turkic tribes]] who had come from East Asia to Anatolia via Central Asia and the Middle East on a much larger scale, and argued that the most important cultural influences on the Ottoman state came from Persia.<ref name="Stone pages 86-100"/> More recently, the American historian [[Heath Lowry]] called the Ottoman state a "predatory confederacy" led in equal parts by Turks and Greeks converted to Islam.<ref name="Stone pages 86-100"/>
+
+The British historian [[Norman Stone]] suggested many continuities between the Eastern Roman and Ottoman empires such as the ''zeugarion'' tax of Byzantium becoming the Ottoman ''Resm-i çift'' tax, the ''[[pronoia]]'' land-holding system that linked the amount of land one owned with one's ability to raise cavalry becoming the Ottoman ''[[timar]]'' system, and the Ottoman measurement for land the ''donum'' was the same as the Byzantine ''stremma''. Stone also pointed out that despite the fact that Sunni Islam was the state religion, the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] was supported and controlled by the Ottoman state, and in return to accepting that control became the largest land-holder in the Ottoman Empire. Despite the similarities, Stone argued that a crucial difference was that the land grants under the ''timar'' system were not hereditary at first. Even after land grants under the ''timar'' system became inheritable, land ownings in the Ottoman Empire remained highly insecure, and the sultan could and did revoke land grants whenever he wished.{{citation needed|date=April 2017}} Stone argued this insecurity in land tenure strongly discouraged ''[[Timariot]]s'' from seeking long-term development of their land, and instead led the ''timariots'' to adopt a strategy of short term exploitation, which ultimately had deleterious effects on the Ottoman economy.<ref>Stone, Norman "Turkey in the Russian Mirror" pages 86–100 from ''Russia War, Peace and Diplomacy'' edited by Mark & Ljubica Erickson, Weidenfeld & Nicolson: London, 2004 pages 94–95</ref>
+
+== Government ==
+{{Main|State organisation of the Ottoman Empire}}
+[[File:Jean Baptiste Vanmour - Dinner at the Palace in Honour of an Ambassador - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|Ambassadors at the [[Topkapı Palace]]]]
+
+Before the reforms of the 19th and 20th centuries, the [[state organisation of the Ottoman Empire]] was a system with two main dimensions, the military administration and the civil administration. The Sultan was the highest position in the system. The civil system was based on local administrative units based on the region's characteristics. The state had control over the clergy. Certain pre-Islamic Turkish traditions that had survived the adoption of administrative and legal practices from Islamic [[Iran]] remained important in Ottoman administrative circles.{{sfn|Itzkowitz|1980|p = 38}} According to Ottoman understanding, the state's primary responsibility was to defend and extend the land of the Muslims and to ensure security and harmony within its borders in the overarching context of [[Sunni|orthodox]] Islamic practice and dynastic sovereignty.<ref name="Kapucu">{{cite book|author1=Naim Kapucu|author2=Hamit Palabiyik|title=Turkish Public Administration: From Tradition to the Modern Age|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DWceNjwTggUC&pg=PA77|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2008|publisher=USAK Books|isbn=978-605-4030-01-9|page=77}}</ref>
+
+The Ottoman Empire, or as a dynastic institution, the [[Ottoman dynasty|House of Osman]], was unprecedented and unequaled in the Islamic world for its size and duration.<ref>{{cite book|last=Black|first=Antony|title=The History of Islamic Political Thought: From the Prophet to the Present|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nspmqLKPU-wC&pg=PA199|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2001|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=978-0-415-93243-1|page=199}}</ref> In Europe, only the [[House of Habsburg]] had a similarly unbroken line of sovereigns (kings/emperors) from the same family who ruled for so long, and during the same period, between the late 13th and early 20th centuries. The Ottoman dynasty was Turkish in origin. On eleven occasions, the sultan was deposed (replaced by another sultan of the Ottoman dynasty, who were either the former sultan's brother, son or nephew) because he was perceived by his enemies as a threat to the state. There were only two attempts in Ottoman history to unseat the ruling Ottoman dynasty, both failures, which suggests a political system that for an extended period was able to manage its revolutions without unnecessary instability.<ref name="Kapucu"/> As such, the last Ottoman sultan [[Mehmed VI]] (r. 1918–1922) was a [[List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire|direct patrilineal (male-line) descendant]] of the first Ottoman sultan [[Osman I]] (d. 1323/4), which was unparallelled in both Europe (e.g. the male line of the [[House of Habsburg]] became extinct in 1740) and in the Islamic world. The primary purpose of the [[Imperial Harem]] was to ensure the birth of male heirs to the Ottoman throne and secure the continuation of the direct patrilineal (male-line) descendance of the Ottoman sultans.
+
+[[File:Thomas allom, c1840, The Enterance to Divan.png|thumb|left|''Bâb-ı Âlî'', the [[Ottoman Porte|Sublime Porte]]]]
+
+The highest position in Islam, ''[[caliphate]]'', was claimed by the sultans starting with [[Murad I]],<ref name="Lambton">{{cite book |last1=Lambton |first1=Ann |author-link1=Ann Lambton |last2=Lewis |first2=Bernard |author-link2=Bernard Lewis |title=The Cambridge History of Islam: The Indian sub-continent, South-East Asia, Africa and the Muslim west |volume=2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4AuJvd2Tyt8C |page=320 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-521-22310-2|access-date=}}</ref> which was established as [[Ottoman Caliphate]]. The Ottoman sultan, ''[[Padishah|pâdişâh]]'' or "lord of kings", served as the Empire's sole regent and was considered to be the embodiment of its government, though he did not always exercise complete control. The [[Imperial Harem]] was one of the most important powers of the Ottoman court. It was ruled by the [[Valide Sultan]]. On occasion, the Valide Sultan would become involved in state politics. For a time, the women of the Harem effectively controlled the state in what was termed the "[[Sultanate of the women|Sultanate of Women]]". New sultans were always chosen from the sons of the previous sultan.{{dubious|reason= this is demonstrably not true, just look at any list of sultans |date=September 2016}} The strong educational system of the [[palace school]] was geared towards eliminating the unfit potential heirs, and establishing support among the ruling elite for a successor. The palace schools, which would also educate the future administrators of the state, were not a single track. First, the [[Madrasa]] (''{{lang-ota|Medrese}}'') was designated for the Muslims, and educated scholars and state officials according to Islamic tradition. The financial burden of the Medrese was supported by vakifs, allowing children of poor families to move to higher social levels and income.<ref>{{cite book|last=Lewis|first=Bernard|title=Istanbul and the Civilization of the Ottoman Empire|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7FQRrbUMojcC&pg=PA151|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=1963|publisher=University of Oklahoma Press|isbn=978-0-8061-1060-8|page=151}}</ref> The second track was a free [[boarding school]] for the Christians, the ''[[Enderûn]]'',<ref>{{cite journal|title=The Ottoman Palace School Enderun and the Man with Multiple Talents, Matrakçı Nasuh|journal=Journal of the Korea Society of Mathematical Education, Series D|date=March 2010|volume=14|issue=1|pages=19–31|url=https://tamu.academia.edu/SencerCorlu/Papers/471488/The_Ottoman_Palace_School_Enderun_and_the_Man_with_Multiple_Talents_Matrakci_Nasuh|series=Research in Mathematical Education}}</ref> which recruited 3,000 students annually from Christian boys between eight and twenty years old from one in forty families among the communities settled in [[Rumelia]] or the Balkans, a process known as [[Devshirme in the Ottoman Palace School|Devshirme]] (''{{lang|ota|Devşirme}}'').<ref>{{cite book|last=Karpat|first=Kemal H.|title=Social Change and Politics in Turkey: A Structural-Historical Analysis|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rlhD9SjavRcC&pg=PA204|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=1973|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-03817-2|page=204}}</ref>
+
+Though the sultan was the supreme monarch, the sultan's political and executive authority was delegated. The politics of the state had a number of advisors and ministers gathered around a council known as [[Divan]]. The Divan, in the years when the Ottoman state was still a ''[[Bey]]lik'', was composed of the elders of the tribe. Its composition was later modified to include military officers and local elites (such as religious and political advisors). Later still, beginning in 1320, a [[Grand Vizier]] was appointed to assume certain of the sultan's responsibilities. The Grand Vizier had considerable independence from the sultan with almost unlimited powers of appointment, dismissal and supervision. Beginning with the late 16th century, sultans withdrew from politics and the Grand Vizier became the ''de facto'' head of state.<ref name="Black p199"/>
+
+[[File:Yusuf Ziya Paşa.jpg|thumb|[[Yusuf Ziya Pasha]], Ottoman ambassador to the [[United States]], in [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]], 1913]]
+
+Throughout Ottoman history, there were many instances in which local governors acted independently, and even in opposition to the ruler. After the Young Turk Revolution of 1908, the Ottoman state became a constitutional monarchy. The sultan no longer had executive powers. A parliament was formed, with representatives chosen from the provinces. The representatives formed the [[Imperial Government of the Ottoman Empire]].
+
+This eclectic administration was apparent even in the diplomatic correspondence of the Empire, which was initially undertaken in the [[Greek language]] to the west.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Naim Kapucu|author2=Hamit Palabiyik|title=Turkish Public Administration: From Tradition to the Modern Age|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DWceNjwTggUC&pg=PA78|accessdate=12 February 2013|year=2008|publisher=USAK Books|isbn=978-605-4030-01-9|page=78}}</ref>
+
+The [[Tughra]] were calligraphic monograms, or signatures, of the Ottoman Sultans, of which there were 35. Carved on the Sultan's seal, they bore the names of the Sultan and his father. The statement and prayer, "ever victorious," was also present in most. The earliest belonged to [[Orhan|Orhan Gazi]]. The ornately stylized ''Tughra'' spawned a branch of Ottoman-Turkish [[calligraphy]].
+
+=== Law ===
+{{Main|Ottoman law}}
+The Ottoman legal system accepted the [[religious law]] over its subjects. At the same time the ''[[Qanun (law)|Qanun]]'' (or ''Kanun''), a secular legal system, co-existed with religious law or [[Sharia]].<ref name=otmkanun>{{cite web|title=Balancing Sharia: The Ottoman Kanun|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/0/24365067|publisher=BBC|accessdate=5 October 2013}}</ref> The Ottoman Empire was always organized around a system of local [[jurisprudence]]. Legal administration in the Ottoman Empire was part of a larger scheme of balancing central and local authority.<ref name="Benton 109-110">{{cite book|last=Benton|first=Lauren|title=Law and Colonial Cultures: Legal Regimes in World History, 1400–1900|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rZtjR9JnwYwC&pg=109|accessdate=11 February 2013|date=3 December 2001|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-00926-3|pages=109–110}}</ref> Ottoman power revolved crucially around the administration of the rights to land, which gave a space for the local authority to develop the needs of the local [[Millet (Ottoman Empire)|millet]].<ref name="Benton 109-110"/> The jurisdictional complexity of the Ottoman Empire was aimed to permit the integration of culturally and religiously different groups.<ref name="Benton 109-110"/> The Ottoman system had three court systems: one for Muslims, one for non-Muslims, involving appointed Jews and Christians ruling over their respective religious communities, and the "trade court". The entire system was regulated from above by means of the administrative ''Qanun'', i.e. laws, a system based upon the Turkic ''[[Yassa]]'' and ''[[Töre (law)|Töre]]'', which were developed in the pre-Islamic era.{{citation needed|date=February 2013}}
+
+[[File:1879-Ottoman Court-from-NYL.png|thumb|left|An Ottoman trial, 1877]]
+
+These court categories were not, however, wholly exclusive: for instance, the Islamic courts, which were the Empire's primary courts, could also be used to settle a trade conflict or disputes between litigants of differing religions, and Jews and Christians often went to them to obtain a more forceful ruling on an issue. The Ottoman state tended not to interfere with non-Muslim religious law systems, despite legally having a voice to do so through local governors. The Islamic ''Sharia'' law system had been developed from a combination of the [[Qur'an]]; the [[Hadith|Hadīth]], or words of the prophet [[Muhammad in Islam|Muhammad]]; ''[[ijma|ijmā']]'', or consensus of the members of the [[Ummah|Muslim community]]; [[qiyas]], a system of analogical reasoning from earlier precedents; and local customs. Both systems were taught at the Empire's law schools, which were in [[Istanbul]] and [[Bursa]].
+
+[[File:Zibik.jpg|thumb|An unhappy wife complains to the [[Qadi]] about her husband's impotence, [[Ottoman miniature]].]]
+
+The Ottoman Islamic legal system was set up differently from traditional European courts. Presiding over Islamic courts would be a ''Qadi'', or judge. Since the closing of the ''[[ijtihad]]'', or ''Gate of Interpretation, Qadis ''throughout the Ottoman Empire focused less on legal precedent, and more with local customs and traditions in the areas that they administered.<ref name="Benton 109-110"/> However, the Ottoman court system lacked an appellate structure, leading to jurisdictional case strategies where plaintiffs could take their disputes from one court system to another until they achieved a ruling that was in their favor.
+
+In the late 19th century, the Ottoman legal system saw substantial reform. This process of legal modernization began with the [[Edict of Gülhane]] of 1839.<ref name="review-niza">{{cite web|title=Review of "Ottoman Nizamiye Courts. Law and Modernity"|url=http://research.sabanciuniv.edu/19475/1/Avi_Rubin_Ottoman_Nizamiye_Courts_Somel.pdf|publisher=Sabancı Üniversitesi|author=Selçuk Akşin Somel|page=2}}</ref> These reforms included the "fair and public trial[s] of all accused regardless of religion," the creation of a system of "separate competences, religious and civil," and the validation of testimony on non-Muslims.<ref name="int-handbook"/> Specific land codes (1858), civil codes (1869–1876), and a code of civil procedure also were enacted.<ref name="int-handbook">{{cite web |title=Middle East |url=http://epstein.usc.edu/research/MiddleEast.pdf |work=Legal Traditions and Systems: an International Handbook |publisher=Greenwood Press |last1=Epstein |first1=Lee |last2=O'Connor |first2=Karen |last3=Grub |first3=Diana |pages=223–224 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130525015655/http://epstein.usc.edu/research/MiddleEast.pdf |archivedate=25 May 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
+
+These reforms were based heavily on French models, as indicated by the adoption of a three-tiered court system. Referred to as [[Nizamiye]], this system was extended to the local magistrate level with the final promulgation of the [[Mecelle]], a civil code that regulated marriage, divorce, alimony, will, and other matters of personal status.<ref name="int-handbook"/> In an attempt to clarify the division of judicial competences, an administrative council laid down that religious matters were to be handled by religious courts, and statute matters were to be handled by the Nizamiye courts.<ref name="int-handbook"/>
+
+=== Military ===
+{{Main|Military of the Ottoman Empire}}
+[[File:Walka o sztandar turecki.jpg|thumb|left|Ottoman [[sipahi]]s in battle, holding the crescent banner (by [[Józef Brandt]])]]
+[[File:Zapotocny.jpg|thumb|Ottoman officers in Istanbul, 1897]]
+[[File:Nizami-cedid-ordusu.jpg|thumb|left|[[Selim III]] watching the parade of his new army, the ''[[Nizam-i Djedid|Nizam-ı Cedid]]'' (New Order) troops, in 1793]]
+[[File:Turkish pilots in 1912.jpg|thumb|[[Ottoman Air Force|Ottoman pilots]] in early 1912]]
+[[File:Ahmet_Ali_Celikten_in_flight_suit.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Ahmet Ali Çelikten]] is amongst the first black military pilots in history, clearly showing military diversification in the Ottoman Empire.]]
+[[File:Soldiers 1900.png|thumb|upright|The [[Military of the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman Imperial Army]] in 1900]]
+
+The first military unit of the Ottoman State was an army that was organized by [[Osman I]] from the tribesmen inhabiting the hills of western Anatolia in the late 13th century. The military system became an intricate organization with the advance of the Empire. The Ottoman military was a complex system of recruiting and fief-holding. The main corps of the [[Ottoman Army]] included [[Janissary]], [[Sipahi]], [[Akinci|Akıncı]] and [[Ottoman military band|Mehterân]]. The Ottoman army was once among the most advanced fighting forces in the world, being one of the first to use muskets and cannons. The Ottoman Turks began using ''[[Falconet (cannon)|falconets]]'', which were short but wide cannons, during the [[Siege of Constantinople (1422)|Siege of Constantinople]]. The Ottoman cavalry depended on high speed and mobility rather than heavy armour, using bows and short swords on fast [[Turkoman horse|Turkoman]] and [[Arabian horse|Arabian]] horses (progenitors of the [[Thoroughbred#Foundation stallions|Thoroughbred]] racing horse),<ref>{{cite book|last=Milner|first=Mordaunt|title=The Godolphin Arabian: The Story of the Matchem Line|year=1990|publisher=Robert Hale Limited|isbn=978-0-85131-476-1|pages=3–6}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Wall|first=John F|title=Famous Running Horses: Their Forebears and Descendants|isbn=978-1-163-19167-5|page=8}}</ref> and often applied tactics similar to those of the [[Mongol Empire]], such as pretending to retreat while surrounding the enemy forces inside a crescent-shaped formation and then making the real attack. The Ottoman army continued to be an effective fighting force throughout the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries,<ref>{{cite book |last=Murphey |first=Rhoads |title=Ottoman Warfare, 1500–1700 |date=1999 |publisher=UCL Press |page=10}}
+* {{cite book |last=Ágoston |first=Gábor |title=Guns for the Sultan: Military Power and the Weapons Industry in the Ottoman Empire |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=2005 |pages= 200–2}}</ref> falling behind the empire's European rivals only during a long period of peace from 1740–1768.<ref name=AksanOW/>
+
+The modernization of the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century started with the military. In 1826 Sultan [[Mahmud II]] abolished the Janissary corps and established the modern Ottoman army. He named them as the [[Nizam-ı Cedid]] (New Order). The Ottoman army was also the first institution to hire foreign experts and send its officers for training in western European countries. Consequently, the [[Young Turks]] movement began when these relatively young and newly trained men returned with their education.
+
+The [[Ottoman Navy]] vastly contributed to the expansion of the Empire's territories on the European continent. It initiated the conquest of North Africa, with the addition of [[Algeria]] and [[Egypt]] to the Ottoman Empire in 1517. Starting with the loss of [[Greece]] in 1821 and Algeria in 1830, Ottoman naval power and control over the Empire's distant overseas territories began to decline. Sultan [[Abdülaziz]] (reigned 1861–1876) attempted to reestablish a strong Ottoman navy, building the largest fleet after those of Britain and France. The shipyard at Barrow, England, built its first [[submarine]] in 1886 for the Ottoman Empire.<ref name="first submarine at shipyard">{{cite web|url=http://www.ellesmereportstandard.co.uk/latest-north-west-news/Petition-created-for-submarine-name.4001190.jp |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080423225019/http://www.ellesmereportstandard.co.uk/latest-north-west-news/Petition-created-for-submarine-name.4001190.jp |archivedate=23 April 2008 |title=Petition created for submarine name |publisher=Ellesmere Port Standard |accessdate=11 February 2013 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref>
+
+[[File:Ottoman Navy at the Golden Horn.jpg|thumb|left|A German postcard depicting the [[Ottoman Navy]] at the [[Golden Horn]] in the early stages of [[World War I]]. At top left is a portrait of Sultan [[Mehmed V]].]]
+
+However, the collapsing Ottoman economy could not sustain the fleet's strength for too long. Sultan [[Abdülhamid II]] distrusted the admirals who sided with the reformist [[Midhat Pasha]], and claimed that the large and expensive fleet was of no use against the Russians during the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)|Russo-Turkish War]]. He locked most of the fleet inside the [[Golden Horn]], where the ships decayed for the next 30 years. Following the [[Young Turk Revolution]] in 1908, the [[Committee of Union and Progress]] sought to develop a strong Ottoman naval force. The ''Ottoman Navy Foundation'' was established in 1910 to buy new ships through public donations.
+
+The establishment of [[Ottoman Air Force|Ottoman military aviation]] dates back to between June 1909 and July 1911.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.turkeyswar.com/aviation/aviation.htm |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120512225046/http://www.turkeyswar.com/aviation/aviation.htm |archivedate=12 May 2012 |title=Story of Turkish Aviation |publisher=Turkey in the First World War |accessdate=6 November 2011 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hvkk.tsk.tr/EN/IcerikDetay.aspx?ID=19 |title=Founding |publisher=Turkish Air Force |accessdate=6 November 2011 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007104345/http://www.hvkk.tsk.tr/EN/IcerikDetay.aspx?ID=19 |archivedate=7 October 2011 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> The Ottoman Empire started preparing its first pilots and planes, and with the founding of the Aviation School (''Tayyare Mektebi'') in [[Yeşilköy]] on 3 July 1912, the Empire began to tutor its own flight officers. The founding of the Aviation School quickened advancement in the military aviation program, increased the number of enlisted persons within it, and gave the new pilots an active role in the [[Ottoman Army]] and [[Ottoman Navy|Navy]]. In May 1913 the world's first specialized Reconnaissance Training Program was started by the Aviation School and the first separate reconnaissance division was established.{{citation needed|date=June 2011}} In June 1914 a new military academy, the Naval Aviation School (''Bahriye Tayyare Mektebi'') was founded. With the outbreak of World War I, the modernization process stopped abruptly. The [[Aviation Squadrons (Ottoman Empire)|Ottoman aviation squadrons]] fought on many fronts during World War I, from [[Galicia (Central Europe)|Galicia]] in the west to the [[Caucasus]] in the east and [[Yemen]] in the south.
+
+== Administrative divisions ==
+{{Main|Administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire}}
+[[File:Ottoman Empire (1795).png|thumb|[[Eyalet]]s in 1795]]
+
+The Ottoman Empire was first subdivided into provinces, in the sense of fixed territorial units with governors appointed by the sultan, in the late 14th century.<ref name="Imber">{{cite web|last=Imber |first=Colin |title=The Ottoman Empire, 1300–1650: The Structure of Power |url=http://www.fatih.edu.tr/~ayasar/HIST236/Colin%20_Imber.pdf |year=2002 |pages=177–200 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140726115700/http://www.fatih.edu.tr/~ayasar/HIST236/Colin%20_Imber.pdf |archivedate=26 July 2014 |df= }}</ref>
+
+The [[Eyalet]] (also ''Pashalik'' or ''Beylerbeylik'') was the territory of office of a [[Beylerbey]] (“lord of lords” or governor), and was further subdivided in [[Sanjaks]].<ref>{{cite book|author1=Raymond Detrez|author2=Barbara Segaert|title=Europe and the historical legacies in the Balkans|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=htMUx8qlWCMC&pg=PA167|accessdate=1 June 2013|date=1 January 2008|publisher=Peter Lang|isbn=978-90-5201-374-9|page=167}}</ref>
+
+The [[Vilayets]] were introduced with the promulgation of the "Vilayet Law" ({{lang-tr|Teskil-i Vilayet Nizamnamesi}})<ref>{{cite book|author1=Naim Kapucu|author2=Hamit Palabiyik|title=Turkish Public Administration: From Tradition to the Modern Age|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DWceNjwTggUC&pg=PA164|accessdate=1 June 2013|year=2008|publisher=USAK Books|isbn=978-605-4030-01-9|page=164}}</ref> in 1864, as part of the Tanzimat reforms.<ref name="trt">{{cite book|author=Maḥmūd Yazbak|title=Haifa in the Late Ottoman Period 1864–1914: A Muslim Town in Transition|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DPseCvbPsKsC&pg=PA28|accessdate=1 June 2013|year=1998|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-11051-9|page=28}}</ref> Unlike the previous eyalet system, the 1864 law established a hierarchy of administrative units: the vilayet, [[liva (sanjak)|liva]]/[[sanjak]], [[qadaa|kaza]] and [[Town council|village council]], to which the 1871 Vilayet Law added the [[nabiye]].<ref name="jpn">{{cite book |last1=Mundy |first1=Martha |last2=Smith |first2=Richard Saumarez |title=Governing Property, Making the Modern State: Law, Administration and Production in Ottoman Syria |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=thUKJ53-yyQC&pg=PA50 |accessdate=1 June 2013 |date=15 March 2007 |publisher=I.B.Tauris |isbn=978-1-84511-291-2 |page=50}}</ref>
+
+== Economy ==
+{{Main|Economic history of the Ottoman Empire}}
+
+Ottoman government deliberately pursued a policy for the development of Bursa, Edirne, and Istanbul, successive Ottoman capitals, into major commercial and industrial centres, considering that merchants and artisans were indispensable in creating a new metropolis.<ref name="Inalcik1970209">{{cite book |last=İnalcık |first=Halil |authorlink=Halil İnalcık |editor-last=Cook |editor-first=M. A. |title=Studies in the Economic History of the Middle East: from the Rise of Islam to the Present Day |chapter=The Ottoman Economic Mind and Aspects of the Ottoman Economy |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1970 |isbn=978-0-19-713561-7 |page=209}}</ref> To this end, Mehmed and his successor Bayezid, also encouraged and welcomed migration of the Jews from different parts of Europe, who were settled in Istanbul and other port cities like Salonica. In many places in Europe, Jews were suffering persecution at the hands of their Christian counterparts, such as in Spain after the conclusion of Reconquista. The tolerance displayed by the Turks was welcomed by the immigrants.
+
+[[File:Mehmed the Conqueror (1432 –1481).jpg|thumb|left|A European bronze medal from the period of [[Mehmed the Conqueror|Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror]], 1481]]
+
+The Ottoman economic mind was closely related to the basic concepts of state and society in the Middle East in which the ultimate goal of a state was consolidation and extension of the ruler's power, and the way to reach it was to get rich resources of revenues by making the productive classes prosperous.<ref name="Inalcik1970217">{{cite book |last=İnalcık |first=Halil |authorlink=Halil İnalcık |editor-last=Cook |editor-first=M. A. |title=Studies in the Economic History of the Middle East: from the Rise of Islam to the Present Day |chapter=The Ottoman Economic Mind and Aspects of the Ottoman Economy |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1970 |isbn=978-0-19-713561-7 |page=217}}</ref> The ultimate aim was to increase the state revenues without damaging the prosperity of subjects to prevent the emergence of social disorder and to keep the traditional organization of the society intact. The Ottoman economy greatly expanded during the [[Early Modern Period]], with particularly high growth rates during first half of the eighteenth century. The empire's annual income quadrupled between 1523 and 1748, adjusted for inflation.<ref>{{cite book |last=Darling |first=Linda |title=Revenue-Raising and Legitimacy: Tax Collection and Finance Administration in the Ottoman Empire, 1560–1660. |publisher=E.J. Brill |year=1996 |isbn=90-04-10289-2 |pages=238–9}}</ref>
+
+The organization of the treasury and chancery were developed under the Ottoman Empire more than any other Islamic government and, until the 17th century, they were the leading organization among all their contemporaries.<ref name="Black p199">{{cite book|last=Black|first=Antony|title=The History of Islamic Political Thought: From the Prophet to the Present|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nspmqLKPU-wC&pg=PA197|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2001|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=978-0-415-93243-1|page=197}}</ref> This organization developed a scribal bureaucracy (known as "men of the pen") as a distinct group, partly highly trained [[ulama]], which developed into a professional body.<ref name="Black p199"/> The effectiveness of this professional financial body stands behind the success of many great Ottoman statesmen.<ref>{{cite book|last1=İnalcık|first1=Halil|last2=Quataert|first2=Donald|title=An Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1914|year=1971|page=120}}</ref>
+
+[[File:Ottoman Bank.jpg|thumb|The [[Ottoman Bank]] was founded in 1856 in [[Istanbul]]; in August 1896, the bank was [[1896 Ottoman Bank takeover|captured]] by members of the [[Armenian Revolutionary Federation]].]]
+
+Modern Ottoman studies indicate that the change in relations between the Ottoman Turks and central Europe was caused by the opening of the new sea routes. It is possible to see the decline in the significance of the land routes to the East as Western Europe opened the ocean routes that bypassed the Middle East and Mediterranean as parallel to the decline of the Ottoman Empire itself.<ref>Donald Quataert, ''The Ottoman Empire 1700–1922" (2005) p 24</ref>{{failed verification|date=September 2016}} The [[Anglo-Ottoman Treaty]], also known as the [[Treaty of Balta Liman]] that opened the Ottoman markets directly to English and French competitors, would be seen as one of the staging posts along this development.
+
+By developing commercial centres and routes, encouraging people to extend the area of cultivated land in the country and international trade through its dominions, the state performed basic economic functions in the Empire. But in all this the financial and political interests of the state were dominant. Within the social and political system they were living in, Ottoman administrators could not have seen the desirability of the dynamics and principles of the capitalist and mercantile economies developing in Western Europe.<ref name="Inalcik1970218">{{cite book |last=İnalcık |first=Halil |authorlink=Halil İnalcık |editor-last=Cook |editor-first=M. A. |title=Studies in the Economic History of the Middle East: from the Rise of Islam to the Present Day |chapter=The Ottoman Economic Mind and Aspects of the Ottoman Economy |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1970 |isbn=978-0-19-713561-7 |page=218}}</ref>
+
+In the early 19th century, [[Ottoman Egypt]] had an advanced economy, with a [[per-capita income]] comparable to that of leading [[Western Europe]]an countries such as [[France]], and higher than the overall average income of [[Europe]] and [[Japan]].<ref name="batou">{{cite book|title=Between Development and Underdevelopment: The Precocious Attempts at Industrialization of the Periphery, 1800-1870|author=Jean Batou|publisher=[[:fr:Librairie Droz|Librairie Droz]]|year=1991|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HjD4SCOE6IgC|pages=181–196|isbn=9782600042932}}</ref> Economic historian Jean Barou estimated that, in terms of 1960 dollars, [[Egypt]] in 1800 had a per-capita income of $232 (${{Inflation|US|232|1960|1990|fmt=c}} in 1990 dollars). In comparison, per-capita income in terms of 1960 dollars for France in 1800 was $240 (${{Inflation|US|240|1960|1990|fmt=c}} in 1990 dollars), for [[Eastern Europe]] in 1800 was $177 (${{Inflation|US|177|1960|1990|fmt=c}} in 1990 dollars), and for Japan in 1800 was $180 (${{Inflation|US|180|1960|1990|fmt=c}} in 1990 dollars).<ref name="batou189">{{cite book|title=Between Development and Underdevelopment: The Precocious Attempts at Industrialization of the Periphery, 1800-1870|author=Jean Batou|publisher=[[:fr:Librairie Droz|Librairie Droz]]|year=1991|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HjD4SCOE6IgC&pg=PA189|page=189|isbn=9782600042932}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Poverty From The Wealth of Nations: Integration and Polarization in the Global Economy since 1760|author=[[M. Shahid Alam]]|publisher=[[Springer Science+Business Media]]|year=2016|page=33|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=suKKCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA33|isbn=9780333985649}}</ref>
+
+Economic historian [[Paul Bairoch]] argues that [[free trade]] contributed to [[deindustrialization]] in the Ottoman Empire. In contrast to the [[protectionism]] of [[China]], Japan, and [[Spain]], the Ottoman Empire had a [[Economic liberalism|liberal trade]] policy, open to foreign imports. This has origins in [[capitulations of the Ottoman Empire]], dating back to the first commercial treaties signed with France in 1536 and taken further with [[Capitulation (treaty)|capitulations]] in 1673 and 1740, which lowered [[Duty (economics)|duties]] to 3% for imports and exports. The liberal Ottoman policies were praised by British economists such as [[J. R. McCulloch]] in his ''Dictionary of Commerce'' (1834), but later criticized by British politicians such as [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] [[Benjamin Disraeli]], who cited the Ottoman Empire as "an instance of the injury done by unrestrained competition" in the 1846 [[Corn Laws]] debate.<ref>{{cite book|title=Economics and World History: Myths and Paradoxes|author=[[Paul Bairoch]]|publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]]|year=1995|url=https://www.scribd.com/document/193124153/Economics-and-World-History-Myths-and-Paradoxes-Paul-Bairoch|pages=31–32}}</ref>
+
+{{quote|There has been free trade in Turkey, and what has it produced? It has destroyed some of the finest manufactures of the world. As late as 1812 these manufactures existed; but they have been destroyed. That was the consequences of competition in Turkey, and its effects have been as pernicious as the effects of the contrary principle in Spain.}}
+
+== Demographics ==
+{{Main|Demographics of the Ottoman Empire}}
+A population estimate for the empire of 11,692,480 for the 1520–1535 period was obtained by counting the households in Ottoman tithe registers, and multiplying this number by 5.<ref name="Kabadayı"/> For unclear reasons, the population in the 18th century was lower than that in the 16th century.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Population Rise and Fall in Anatolia 1550–1620|journal=Middle Eastern Studies|date=October 1979|volume=15|issue=3|pages=322–345|author=Leila Erder and Suraiya Faroqhi|doi=10.1080/00263207908700415}}</ref> An estimate of 7,230,660 for the first census held in 1831 is considered a serious undercount, as this census was meant only to register possible conscripts.<ref name="Kabadayı"/>
+
+[[File:Ottoman Smyrna.jpg|thumb|left|[[Smyrna]] under Ottoman rule in 1900]]
+
+Censuses of Ottoman territories only began in the early 19th century. Figures from 1831 onwards are available as official census results, but the censuses did not cover the whole population. For example, the 1831 census only counted men and did not cover the whole empire.{{sfn|Kinross|1979|p = 281}}<ref name="Kabadayı">{{cite web|last=Kabadayı |first=M. Erdem |title=Inventory for the Ottoman Empire / Turkish Republic |url=http://www.iisg.nl/research/labourcollab/turkey.pdf |publisher=Istanbul Bilgi University |archivedate=28 October 2011 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111028114335/http://www.iisg.nl/research/labourcollab/turkey.pdf |date=28 October 2011 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref> For earlier periods estimates of size and distribution of the population are based on observed demographic patterns.<ref>{{cite book|last=Shaw|first=S. J.|title=The Ottoman Census System and Population, 1831–1914|year=1978|publisher=Cambridge University Press|page=325|work=International Journal of Middle East Studies|quote=The Ottomans developed an efficient system for counting the empire's population in 1826, a quarter of a century after such methods were introduced in Britain, France and America.}}</ref>
+
+However, it began to rise to reach 25–32 million by 1800, with around 10 million in the European provinces (primarily the [[Balkans]]), 11 million in the Asiatic provinces and around 3 million in the African provinces. Population densities were higher in the European provinces, double those in Anatolia, which in turn were triple the population densities of Iraq and [[Syria]] and five times the population density of Arabia.{{sfn|Quataert|2000|pp = 110–111}}
+
+[[File:Bridge and Galata Area, Istanbul, Turkey by Abdullah Frères, ca. 1880-1893 (LOC).jpg|thumb|View of [[Galata]] ([[Karaköy]]) and the [[Galata Bridge]] on the [[Golden Horn]], {{circa|1880–1893}}]]
+
+Towards the end of the empire's existence [[life expectancy]] was 49 years, compared to the mid-twenties in Serbia at the beginning of the 19th century.{{sfn|Quataert|2000|p = 112}} Epidemic diseases and [[famine]] caused major disruption and demographic changes. In 1785 around one sixth of the Egyptian population died from plague and Aleppo saw its population reduced by twenty percent in the 18th century. Six famines hit Egypt alone between 1687 and 1731 and the last famine to hit Anatolia was four decades later.{{sfn|Quataert|2000|p = 113}}
+
+The rise of port cities saw the clustering of populations caused by the development of steamships and railroads. Urbanization increased from 1700 to 1922, with towns and cities growing. Improvements in health and sanitation made them more attractive to live and work in. Port cities like Salonica, in Greece, saw its population rise from 55,000 in 1800 to 160,000 in 1912 and İzmir which had a population of 150,000 in 1800 grew to 300,000 by 1914.{{sfn|Quataert|2000|p = 114}}<ref>{{cite journal|last=Pamuk|first=S|title=The Ottoman Empire and the World Economy: The Nineteenth Century|journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies|date=August 1991|volume=23|issue=3|publisher=Cambridge University Press}}</ref> Some regions conversely had population falls – Belgrade saw its population drop from 25,000 to 8,000 mainly due to political strife.{{sfn|Quataert|2000|p = 114}}
+
+Economic and political migrations made an impact across the empire. For example, the [[Russian Empire|Russian]] and Austria-Habsburg annexation of the Crimean and Balkan regions respectively saw large influxes of Muslim refugees – 200,000 Crimean Tartars fleeing to Dobruja.{{sfn|Quataert|2000|p = 115}} Between 1783 and 1913, approximately 5–7 million refugees flooded into the Ottoman Empire, at least 3.8 million of whom were from Russia. Some migrations left indelible marks such as political tension between parts of the empire (e.g. Turkey and Bulgaria) whereas centrifugal effects were noticed in other territories, simpler demographics emerging from diverse populations. Economies were also impacted with the loss of artisans, merchants, manufacturers and agriculturists.{{sfn|Quataert|2000|p = 116}} Since the 19th century, a large proportion of Muslim peoples from the Balkans emigrated to present-day Turkey. These people are called ''[[Muhacir]]''.<ref>{{cite book|last=McCarthy|first=Justin|title=Death and exile: the ethnic cleansing of Ottoman Muslims, 1821–1922|year=1995|publisher=Darwin Press|isbn=978-0-87850-094-9|page={{page needed|date=February 2013}}}}</ref> By the time the Ottoman Empire came to an end in 1922, half of the urban population of Turkey was descended from Muslim refugees from Russia.<ref name="books.google_b"/>
+
+=== Language ===
+{{Main|Languages of the Ottoman Empire}}
+
+[[File:1911 Ottoman Calendar.jpg|thumb|1911 Ottoman calendar in [[Ottoman Turkish language|Ottoman Turkish]], [[Arabic language|Arabic]], [[Greek language|Greek]], [[Armenian language|Armenian]], [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]], [[French language|French]] and [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]]]]
+Ottoman Turkish was the official language of the Empire. It was an [[Oghuz languages|Oghuz]] [[Turkic languages|Turkic language]] highly influenced by [[Persian language|Persian]] and [[Arabic]]. The Ottomans had several influential languages: Turkish, spoken by the majority of the people in [[Anatolia]] and by the majority of Muslims of the Balkans except in [[Albania]] and [[Bosnia]]; Persian, only spoken by the educated;<ref name="Bertold Spuler page 69">{{cite book|author=Bertold Spuler|title=Persian Historiography And Geography|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rD1vvympVtsC&pg=PA69|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2003|publisher=Pustaka Nasional Pte Ltd|isbn=978-9971-77-488-2|page=69}}</ref> Arabic, spoken mainly in [[Arabia]], [[Iraq]], [[Kuwait]], the [[Levant]] and parts of the [[Horn of Africa]] and [[Berber language|Berber]] in North Africa. In the last two centuries, usage of these became limited, though, and specific: Persian served mainly as a literary language for the educated,<ref name="Bertold Spuler page 69"/> while [[Arabic]] was used for Islamic prayers.
+
+[[Turkish language|Turkish]], in its Ottoman variation, was a language of military and administration since the nascent days of the Ottomans. The Ottoman constitution of 1876 did officially cement the official imperial status of Turkish.<ref>{{cite journal|title=The Ottoman Constitution, promulgated the 7th Zilbridge, 1293 (11/23 December, 1876)|journal=The American Journal of International Law|year=1908|volume=2|issue=4|page=376|jstor=2212668}}</ref>
+
+Because of a low literacy rate among the public (about 2–3% until the early 19th century and just about 15% at the end of the 19th century), ordinary people had to hire [[scribes]] as "special request-writers" (''arzuhâlci''s) to be able to communicate with the government.<ref>{{cite book|author=Kemal H. Karpat|title=Studies on Ottoman Social and Political History: Selected Articles and Essays|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=082osLxyBDgC&pg=PA266|accessdate=11 February 2013|year=2002|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-12101-0|page=266}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.saylor.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/HIST351-8.1-Ottoman-Empire.pdf|title=Ottoman Empire|last=|first=|date=|website=|access-date=}}</ref> The ethnic groups continued to speak within their families and neighborhoods ([[mahalle]]s) with their own languages (e.g., Jews, Greeks, Armenians, etc.). In villages where two or more populations lived together, the inhabitants would often speak each other's language. In cosmopolitan cities, people often spoke their family languages; many of those who were not ethnic [[Turkish people|Turks]] spoke Turkish as a second language.
+
+=== Religion ===
+{{Unbalanced section|reason = very little attention given to Islam even though it was the primary religion|date=November 2010}}
+[[File:Portrait Caliph Abdulmecid II.jpg|thumb|[[Abdülmecid II]] was the last [[caliph]] of Islam and a member of the [[Ottoman dynasty]].]]
+
+In the Ottoman imperial system, even though there existed a hegemonic power of Muslim control over the non-Muslim populations, non-Muslim communities had been granted state recognition and protection in the Islamic tradition.<ref name="emigrnonm"/> The officially accepted state [[Dīn]] ''([[Madh'hab]])'' of the Ottomans was [[Sunni]] ''([[Hanafi jurisprudence]]).''<ref name=Gunduz>Gunduz, Sinasi [https://books.google.com/books?id=4BXsV0_qhs4C&pg=PA104&lpg#v Change And Essence: Dialectical Relations Between Change And Continuity in the Turkish Inrtellectual Traditions] Cultural Heritage and Contemporary Change. Series IIA, Islam, V. 18, p.104-105</ref>
+
+Until the second half of the 15th century the empire had a Christian majority, under the rule of a Muslim minority.<ref name="Benton 109-110"/> In the late 19th century, the non-Muslim population of the empire began to fall considerably, not only due to secession, but also because of migratory movements.<ref name="emigrnonm"/> The proportion of Muslims amounted to 60% in the 1820s, gradually increasing to 69% in the 1870s and then to 76% in the 1890s.<ref name="emigrnonm"/> By 1914, only 19.1% of the empire's population was non-Muslim, mostly made up of Jews and Christian Greeks, Assyrians, and Armenians.<ref name="emigrnonm">{{cite journal |last1=Içduygu |first1=Ahmet |last2=Toktas |first2=Şule |last3=Ali Soner |first3=B. |title=The politics of population in a nation-building process: emigration of non-Muslims from Turkey |journal=Ethnic and Racial Studies |date=1 February 2008 |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=358–389 |doi=10.1080/01419870701491937}}</ref>
+
+==== Islam ====
+{{Main|Islam in the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman Caliphate|Ottoman persecution of Alevis}}
+[[File:Tile with Calligraphy.JPG|thumb|[[Calligraphic]] writing on a [[fritware]] tile, depicting the names of [[God in Islam|God]], [[Muhammad in Islam|Muhammad]] and the first [[Caliphate|caliphs]], {{circa|1727}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O106609/tile/ |title=Tile |publisher=Victoria & Albert Museum |date=25 August 2009 |accessdate=26 August 2010}}</ref>]]
+
+Turkic peoples practiced a variety of [[shamanism]] before adopting Islam. [[Abbasid]] influence in Central Asia was ensured through a process that was greatly facilitated by the [[Muslim conquest of Transoxiana]]. Many of the various Turkic tribes—including the [[Oghuz Turks]], who were the ancestors of both the Seljuks and the Ottomans—gradually converted to Islam, and brought the religion with them to Anatolia beginning in the 11th century.
+
+Muslim sects regarded as heretical, such as the [[Druze]], [[Ismailis]], [[Alevi]]s, and [[Alawites]], ranked below Jews and Christians.<ref>{{cite web|title=Why there is more to Syria conflict than sectarianism|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-22770219|publisher=BBC News|accessdate=5 June 2013}}</ref> In 1514, Sultan [[Selim I]] ordered the massacre of 40,000 Anatolian [[Alevi]]s (''[[Qizilbash]]''), whom he considered a [[fifth column]] for the rival [[Safavid]] empire. Selim was also responsible for an unprecedented and rapid expansion of the Ottoman Empire into the Middle East, especially through his [[Ottoman–Mamluk War (1516–17)|conquest of the entire Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt]]. With these conquests, Selim further solidified the Ottoman claim for being an Islamic [[caliphate]], although Ottoman sultans had been claiming the title of caliph since the 14th century starting with [[Murad I]] (reigned 1362 to 1389).<ref name="Lambton"/> The caliphate would remain held by Ottoman sultans for the rest of the office's duration, which ended with its abolition on 3 March 1924 by the [[Grand National Assembly of Turkey]] and the exile of the last caliph, [[Abdülmecid II]], to France.
+
+==== Christianity and Judaism ====
+{{Main|Christianity in the Ottoman Empire|History of the Jews in the Ottoman Empire}}
+[[File:Gennadios II and Mehmed II.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Mehmed the Conqueror]] and Patriarch [[Gennadius Scholarius|Gennadius II]]]]
+
+In the Ottoman Empire, in accordance with the Muslim ''[[dhimmi]]'' system, Christians were guaranteed limited freedoms (such as the right to worship). They were forbidden to carry weapons or ride on horseback, their houses could not overlook those of Muslims, in addition to various other legal limitations.<ref>{{cite book|last=Akçam|first=Taner|title=A shameful act: the Armenian genocide and the question of Turkish responsibility|year=2006|publisher=Metropolitan Books|location=New York|isbn=0-8050-7932-7|page=24|authorlink=Taner Akçam}}</ref> Many Christians and Jews converted in order to secure full status in the society. Most, however, continued to practice their old religions without restriction.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://global.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/434996/Ottoman-Empire/44379/Institutional-evolution#ref482041|title=Ottoman Empire|work=Encyclopædia Britannica}}</ref>
+
+Under the [[Millet (Ottoman Empire)|millet]] system, non-Muslim people were considered subjects of the Empire, but were not subject to the Muslim faith or Muslim law. The Orthodox millet, for instance, was still officially legally subject to [[Corpus Juris Civilis|Justinian's Code]], which had been in effect in the Byzantine Empire for 900 years. Also, as the largest group of non-Muslim subjects (or ''[[Dhimmi|zimmi]]'') of the Islamic Ottoman state, the Orthodox millet was granted a number of special privileges in the fields of politics and commerce, and had to pay higher taxes than Muslim subjects.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.loyno.edu/history/journal/1998-9/Krummerich.htm |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090610014150/http://www.loyno.edu/history/journal/1998-9/Krummerich.htm |archivedate=10 June 2009 |title=The Divinely-Protected, Well-Flourishing Domain: The Establishment of the Ottoman System in the Balkan Peninsula |first=Sean |last=Krummerich |journal=The Student Historical Journal |volume=30 |year=1998–99 |publisher=Loyola University New Orleans |accessdate=11 February 2013 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.globaled.org/nyworld/materials/ottoman/turkish.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010320091629/http://globaled.org/nyworld/materials/ottoman/turkish.html |dead-url=yes |archive-date=20 March 2001 |title=Turkish Toleration |publisher=The American Forum for Global Education |accessdate=11 February 2013 }}</ref>
+
+Similar millets were established for the Ottoman Jewish community, who were under the authority of the ''[[Hakham Bashi|Haham Başı]]'' or Ottoman [[Chief rabbi]]; the [[Armenian Apostolic Church|Armenian Orthodox]] community, who were under the authority of a head bishop; and a number of other religious communities as well.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title=A Concise History of Islam|last=Syed|first=Muzaffar Husain|publisher=Vij Books India|year=2011|isbn=978-9381411094|location=New Delhi, India|pages=97}}</ref> Some argue that the millet system is an example of pre-modern [[religious pluralism]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Sachedina |first=Abdulaziz Abdulhussein |date=2001 |title=The Islamic Roots of Democratic Pluralism |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |pages=96–97 |isbn=0-19-513991-7 |quote=The millet system in the Muslim world provided the pre-modern paradigm of a religiously pluralistic society by granting each religious community an official status and a substantial measure of self-government.}}</ref>
+
+=== Social-political-religious structure===
+Society, government and religion was inter-related in complex ways after about 1800, in a complex overlapping, inefficient system that Atatürk systematically dismantled after 1922.<ref>Philip D. Curtin, ''The World and the West: The European Challenge and the Overseas Response in the Age of Empire'' (2002), pp 173-92.</ref><ref>Fatma Muge Gocek, ''Rise of the Bourgeoisie, Demise of Empire: Ottoman Westernization and Social Change'' (1996) pp 138-42</ref> In Constantinople, the Sultan ruled two distinct domains the secular government and the religious hierarchy. Religious officials formed the [[Ulama]] Who had control of religious teachings and theology, and also the Empire's judicial system, Giving them a major voice in day-to-day affairs in communities across the Empire (but not including the non-Moslem millets). They were powerful enough to reject the military reforms proposed by Sultan [[Selim III]]. His successor Sultan [[Mahmud II]] (r. 1808–1839) first won ulama approval before proposing similar reforms.<ref>Kemal H. Karpat, "The transformation of the Ottoman State, 1789-1908." ''International Journal of Middle East Studies'' 3#3 (1972): 243-281. [http://psi424.cankaya.edu.tr/uploads/files/Karpat,%20Transformation%20of%20the%20Ott%20State,%201789-1908%20(1972).pdf online]</ref> The secularization program of Atatürk brought ended the ulema and their institutions. The caliphate was abolished, madrasas were closed down and the sharia courts abolished. He replaced the Arabic alphabet with Latin letters, ended the religious school system, and gave women some political rights. Many rural traditionalists never accepted this secularization, and by the 1990s they were reasserting a demand for a larger role for Islam.<ref>{{cite book|author=Amit Bein|title=Ottoman Ulema, Turkish Republic: Agents of Change and Guardians of Tradition|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D1xfDfgPJr8C&pg=PA141|year=2011|publisher=Stanford UP|page=141}}</ref>
+
+The political system was transformed by the destruction of the [[Janissaries]] in the [[Auspicious Incident]] of 1826. They were very powerful military/governmental/police force that revolted. Sultan [[Mahmud II]] crushed the revolt, executed the leaders, and disbanded the large organization. That set the stage for a slow process of modernization of government functions, as the government sought, with mixed success, to adopt the main elements of Western bureaucracy and military technology. The Janissaries had been recruited from Christians and other minorities; their abolition enabled the emergence of a Turkish elite to control the Ottoman Empire. The problem was that the Turkish element was very poorly educated, lacking higher schools of any sort, and locked into a Turkish language that used Arabic alphabet that inhibited wider learning. The large number of ethnic and religious minorities were tolerated in their own separate segregated domains called "[[milletts]]".<ref>Karen Barkey, and George Gavrilis, "The Ottoman millet system: Non-territorial autonomy and its contemporary legacy." ''Ethnopolitics'' 15.1 (2016): 24-42.</ref> They were primarily Greek, Armenian or Jewish. In each locality they governed themselves, spoke their own language, ran their own schools, cultural and religious institutions, and paid somewhat higher taxes. They had no power outside the millett. The Imperial government protected them, and prevented major violent clashes between ethnic groups. However the millets showed very little loyalty to the Empire. Ethnic nationalism, based on distinctive religion and language, provided a centripetal force that eventually destroyed the Ottoman Empire.<ref>Donald Quataert, ''Social Disintegration and Popular Resistance in the Ottoman Empire 1881–1908'' (1083) </ref> In addition, Muslim ethnic groups, which were not part of the millett system, especially the Arabs and the Kurds, were outside the Turkish culture and develop their own separate nationalism. The British sponsored Arab nationalism in the First World War, promising an independent Arab state in return for Arab support. Most Arabs supported the Sultan but those near Mecca bought the British promise.<ref>Youssef M. Choueiri, ''Arab Nationalism: A History: Nation and State in the Arab World'' (2001), pp 56-100.</ref>
+
+At the local level, power was held beyond the control of the Sultan by the [[Ottoman Ayan|"ayan"]] or local notables. The ayan collected taxes, formed local armies to compete with other notables, took a reactionary attitude toward political or economic change, and often defied policies handed down by the Sultan.<ref>{{cite book|author=Gábor Ágoston and Bruce Alan Masters|title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QjzYdCxumFcC&pg=PA64|year=2010|publisher=Infobase |page=64}}</ref>
+
+The economic system made little progress. Printing was forbidden until the 18th century, for fear of defiling the secret documents of Islam. The millets, however, Were allowed their own presses, using Greek, Hebrew, Armenian and other languages that greatly facilitated nationalism. The religious prohibition on charging interest foreclosed most of the entrepreneurial skills among Muslims, although it did flourish among the Jews and Christians.
+
+After the 18th century, the Ottoman Empire was clearly shrinking, as Russia put on heavy pressure and expanded to its south; Egypt became effectively independent in 1805 and the British later took it over, along with Cyprus. Greece became independent, and Serbia and other Balkan areas became highly restive is the force of nationalism pushed against imperialism. The French took over Algeria and Tunisia. Europeans all thought it was a sick man in rapid decline. Only the Germans seemed helpful, in their support led to the Empire joining the central powers in 1915, and coming out one of the heaviest losers of the First World War in 1918.<ref>Naci Yorulmaz, ''Arming the Sultan: German Arms Trade and Personal Diplomacy in the Ottoman Empire Before World War I'' (IB Tauris, 2014).</ref>
+
+== Culture ==
+{{Main|Culture of the Ottoman Empire}}
+{{also|Ottoman slave trade}}
+{{Culture of the Ottoman Empire sidebar}}
+[[File:WaldmeierLebanon.gif|thumb|left|Depiction of a [[hookah]] shop in [[Lebanon]], Ottoman Empire]]
+
+The Ottomans absorbed some of the traditions, art and institutions of cultures in the regions they conquered, and added new dimensions to them. Numerous traditions and cultural traits of previous empires (in fields such as architecture, cuisine, music, leisure and government) were adopted by the Ottoman Turks, who elaborated them into new forms, resulting in a new and distinctively Ottoman cultural identity. Despite newer added amalgamations, the Ottoman dynasty, like their predecessors in the [[Sultanate of Rum]] and the [[Seljuk Empire]], were thoroughly Persianised in their culture, language, habits and customs, and therefore the empire has been described as a [[Persianate society|Persianate]] empire.<ref name="iranica">{{cite encyclopedia|first=O. |last=Özgündenli |title=Persian Manuscripts in Ottoman and Modern Turkish Libraries |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Iranica |edition=online |url=http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/ot_grp7/ot_pers_mss_ott_20050106.html |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120122005207/http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/ot_grp7/ot_pers_mss_ott_20050106.html |archivedate=22 January 2012 |df= }}</ref><ref>{{citation|chapter = Persian in service of the state: the role of Persophone historical writing in the development of an Ottoman imperial aesthetic|title = Studies on Persianate Societies|volume = 2|date = 2004|pages = 145–63}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title = Historiography. xi. Persian Historiography in the Ottoman Empire|encyclopedia = [[Encyclopaedia Iranica]]|volume = 12, fasc. 4|date = 2004|pages = 403–11}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first1 = F.|last1 = Walter|title = Music of the Ottoman court|chapter = The Departure of Turkey from the 'Persianate' Musical Sphere|url = http://www.vwb-verlag.com/Katalog/m641.html}}</ref> Intercultural marriages also played a part in creating the characteristic Ottoman elite culture. When compared to the Turkish folk culture, the influence of these new cultures in creating the culture of the Ottoman elite was clear.
+
+[[File:Flickr - …trialsanderrors - Yeni Cami and Eminönü bazaar, Constantinople, Turkey, ca. 1895.jpg|thumb|[[Yeni Mosque (Istanbul)|Yeni Mosque]] and [[Eminönü]] bazaar, Constantinople, {{circa|1895}}]]
+
+[[Slavery (Ottoman Empire)|Slavery]] was a part of Ottoman society,<ref>{{cite web|author=Halil Inalcik |title=Servile Labor in the Ottoman Empire |publisher=Michigan State University |url=http://coursesa.matrix.msu.edu/~fisher/hst373/readings/inalcik6.html |accessdate=26 August 2010 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090911101051/http://coursesa.matrix.msu.edu/~fisher/hst373/readings/inalcik6.html |archivedate=11 September 2009 |df= }}</ref> with most slaves employed as domestic servants. Agricultural slavery, such as that which was widespread in the Americas, was relatively rare. Unlike systems of [[chattel slavery]], slaves under Islamic law were not regarded as movable property, but maintained basic, though limited, rights. This gave them a degree of protection against abuse.<ref>{{cite book |first=Pál |last=Fodor |chapter=Introduction |editor1-last=Dávid |editor1-first=Géza |editor2=Pál Fodor |title=Ransom Slavery along the Ottoman Borders |publisher=Brill |place=Leiden |date=2007 |pages=XII–XVII |isbn=978-90-04-15704-0}}</ref> Female slaves were still sold in the Empire as late as 1908.<ref>{{cite web |title=Islam and slavery: Sexual slavery |publisher=BBC |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/history/slavery_7.shtml |accessdate=26 August 2010}}</ref> During the 19th century the Empire came under pressure from Western European countries to outlaw the practice. Policies developed by various Sultans throughout the 19th century attempted to curtail the [[Ottoman slave trade]] but, since slavery did have centuries of religious backing and sanction, they never directly abolished the institution outright.<ref name=":1" />
+
+[[Plague (disease)|Plague]] remained a major scourge in Ottoman society until the second quarter of the 19th century. "Between 1701 and 1750, 37 larger and smaller plague epidemics were recorded in Istanbul, and 31 between 1751 and 1801."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Faroqhi |first=Suraiya |year=1998 |title=Migration into Eighteenth-century 'Greater Istanbul' as Reflected in the Kadi Registers of Eyüp |url=https://secure.peeters-leuven.be/POJ/purchaseform.php?id=2004296&sid= |journal=Turcica |volume=30 |publisher=Éditions Klincksieck |location=Louvain |page=165 |doi=10.2143/TURC.30.0.2004296}}</ref>
+
+=== Literature ===
+{{Main|Ottoman literature}}
+
+The two primary streams of Ottoman written literature are poetry and [[prose]]. Poetry was by far the dominant stream. Until the 19th century, Ottoman prose did not contain any examples of fiction: there were no counterparts to, for instance, the European [[Romance (heroic literature)|romance]], short story, or novel. Analogue genres did exist, though, in both [[Turkish folk literature]] and in [[Divan poetry]].
+
+Ottoman [[Divan poetry]] was a highly ritualized and symbolic art form. From the [[Persian poetry]] that largely inspired it, it inherited a wealth of symbols whose meanings and interrelationships—both of similitude (مراعات نظير mura'ât-i nazîr / تناسب tenâsüb) and opposition (تضاد tezâd) were more or less prescribed. Divan poetry was composed through the constant juxtaposition of many such images within a strict metrical framework, thus allowing numerous potential meanings to emerge. The vast majority of Divan poetry was [[Lyric poetry|lyric]] in nature: either [[gazel]]s (which make up the greatest part of the repertoire of the tradition), or kasîdes. There were, however, other common genres, most particularly the mesnevî, a kind of [[Courtly romance|verse romance]] and thus a variety of [[narrative poetry]]; the two most notable examples of this form are the [[Leyli and Majnun]] of [[Fuzûlî]] and the [[Hüsn ü Aşk]] of [[Şeyh Gâlib]].
+
+[[File:Nedim (divan edb.şairi).JPG|thumb|[[Ahmet Nedîm Efendi]], one of the most celebrated Ottoman poets]]
+
+Until the 19th century, [[Prose of the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman prose]] did not develop to the extent that contemporary Divan poetry did. A large part of the reason for this was that much prose was expected to adhere to the rules of sec (سجع, also transliterated as seci), or [[rhymed prose]],<ref>{{cite book |author=Murat Belge |title=Osmanlı'da kurumlar ve kültür |year=2005 |publisher=İstanbul Bilgi Üniversitesi Yayınları |isbn=978-975-8998-03-6 |page=389}}</ref> a type of writing descended from the Arabic [[saj']] and which prescribed that between each adjective and [[noun]] in a string of words, such as a sentence, there must be a [[rhyme]]. Nevertheless, there was a tradition of prose in the literature of the time, though exclusively non-fictional in nature. One apparent exception was [[Muhayyelât]] ("Fancies") by [[Giritli Ali Aziz Efendi]], a collection of stories of the fantastic written in 1796, though not published until 1867. The first novel published in the Ottoman Empire was by an Armenian named [[Vartan Pasha]]. Published in 1851, the novel was entitled The Story of Akabi (Turkish: Akabi Hikyayesi) and was written in Turkish but with [[Armenian language|Armenian]] script.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Mignon|first1=Laurent|title=Neither Shiraz nor Paris : papers on modern Turkish literature|date=2005|publisher=ISIS|location=Istanbul|isbn=9754283036|page=20|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AbQZAQAAIAAJ|quote=Those words could have been readily adopted by Hovsep Vartanyan (1813– 1879), the author, who preferred to remain anonymous, of The Story of Akabi (Akabi Hikyayesi), the first novel in Turkish, published with Armenian characters in the same year as [[Hovhannes Hisarian|Hisarian]]'s novel.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Masters|first1=Bruce|last2=Ágoston|first2=Gábor|title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire|date=2009|publisher=Facts On File|location=New York, NY|isbn=1438110251|page=440|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QjzYdCxumFcC|quote=Written in Turkish using the Armenian alphabet, the Akabi History (1851) by Vartan Pasha is considered by some to be the first Ottoman novel.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Pultar|first1=Gönül|title=Imagined identities : identity formation in the age of globalism|date=2013|publisher=Syracuse University Press|location=[S.l.]|isbn=0815633424|page=329|edition=First|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KhiQAwAAQBAJ|quote=In fact, one of the first Turkish works of fiction in Western-type novel form, Akabi Hikayesi (Akabi's Story), was written in Turkish by Vartan Pasha (born Osep/Hovsep Vartanian/Vartanyan, 1813– 1879) and published in Armenian characters in 1851.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Gürçaglar |first1=Şehnaz |last2=Paker |first2=Saliha |last3=Milton |first3=John |date=2015 |title=Tradition, Tension and Translation in Turkey |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing Company |page=5 |isbn=90-272-6847-9 |quote=It is interesting that the first Ottoman novel in Turkish, Akabi Hikayesi (1851, Akabi's Story), was written and published in Armenian letters (for Armenian communities who read in Turkish) by Hovsep Vartanyan (1813–1879), known as Vartan Paşa, a leading Ottoman man of letters and journalist.}}</ref>
+
+Due to historically close ties with France, [[French literature]] came to constitute the major Western influence on Ottoman literature throughout the latter half of the 19th century. As a result, many of the same movements prevalent in France during this period also had their Ottoman equivalents: in the developing Ottoman prose tradition, for instance, the influence of [[Romanticism]] can be seen during the Tanzimat period, and that of the [[Realism (arts)|Realist]] and [[Naturalism (literature)|Naturalist]] movements in subsequent periods; in the poetic tradition, on the other hand, it was the influence of the [[Symbolism (arts)|Symbolist]] and [[Parnassian poets|Parnassian]] movements that became paramount.
+
+Many of the writers in the Tanzimat period wrote in several different genres simultaneously: for instance, the poet [[Namık Kemal]] also wrote the important 1876 novel İntibâh ("Awakening"), while the journalist [[İbrahim Şinasi]] is noted for writing, in 1860, the first modern Turkish play, the [[One act play|one-act]] comedy "Şair Evlenmesi" ("The Poet's Marriage"). An earlier play, a [[farce]] entitled "Vakâyi'-i 'Acibe ve Havâdis-i Garibe-yi Kefşger Ahmed" ("The Strange Events and Bizarre Occurrences of the Cobbler Ahmed"), dates from the beginning of the 19th century, but there remains some doubt about its authenticity. In a similar vein, the novelist [[Ahmed Midhat Efendi]] wrote important novels in each of the major movements: Romanticism (Hasan Mellâh yâhud Sırr İçinde Esrâr, 1873; "Hasan the Sailor, or The Mystery Within the Mystery"), Realism (Henüz On Yedi Yaşında, 1881; "Just Seventeen Years Old"), and Naturalism (Müşâhedât, 1891; "Observations"). This diversity was, in part, due to the Tanzimat writers' wish to disseminate as much of the new literature as possible, in the hopes that it would contribute to a revitalization of Ottoman [[social structure]]s.<ref>{{cite book|last=Moran|first=Berna|title=Türk Romanına Eleştirel Bir Bakış Vol. 1|isbn=975-470-054-0|page=19}}</ref>
+
+=== Architecture ===
+{{Main|Ottoman architecture}}
+[[File:Dolmabahçe Palace in 1862.jpg|thumb|left|Photo of the main entrance of [[Dolmabahçe Palace]] in 1862, taken by [[Francis Bedford (photographer)|Francis Bedford]]]]
+
+[[Ottoman architecture]] was influenced by [[Persian Architecture|Persian]], [[Byzantine architecture|Byzantine Greek]] and [[Islamic architecture|Islamic]] architectures. During the [[Rise of the Ottoman Empire|Rise period]] the early or first Ottoman architecture period, Ottoman art was in search of new ideas. The [[Growth of the Ottoman Empire|growth period]] of the Empire become the classical period of architecture, when Ottoman art was at its most confident. During the years of the [[Stagnation of the Ottoman Empire|Stagnation period]], Ottoman architecture moved away from this style, however.
+
+[[File:Bridge on the Drina July 2009.jpg|thumb|[[Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge]], completed in 1577 by [[Mimar Sinan]], the greatest architect of the classical period of Ottoman architecture]]
+
+During the [[Tulip Era in the Ottoman Empire|Tulip Era]], it was under the influence of the highly ornamented styles of Western Europe; [[Baroque]], [[Rococo]], [[Empire (style)|Empire]] and other styles intermingled. Concepts of Ottoman architecture concentrate mainly on the [[Mosque#Architecture|mosque]]. The mosque was integral to society, [[Urban planning|city planning]] and communal life. Besides the mosque, it is also possible to find good examples of Ottoman architecture in [[soup kitchen]]s, theological schools, hospitals, [[Turkish bath]]s and tombs.
+
+Examples of Ottoman architecture of the classical period, besides Istanbul and [[Edirne]], can also be seen in Egypt, Eritrea, Tunisia, Algiers, the Balkans and Romania, where mosques, bridges, fountains and schools were built. The art of Ottoman decoration developed with a multitude of influences due to the wide ethnic range of the Ottoman Empire. The greatest of the court artists enriched the Ottoman Empire with many pluralistic artistic influences, such as mixing traditional [[Byzantine art]] with elements of [[Chinese art]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Eli Shah |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/MFAArchive/1990_1999/1999/2/The%20Ottoman%20Artistic%20Legacy |title=The Ottoman Artistic Legacy |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |accessdate=26 August 2010 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090213131926/http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/MFAArchive/1990_1999/1999/2/The%20Ottoman%20Artistic%20Legacy |archivedate=13 February 2009 |df= }}</ref>
+
+=== Decorative arts ===
+[[File:Ottoman_miniature_painters.jpg|thumb|left|Ottoman miniature painters]]
+
+The tradition of [[Ottoman miniature]]s, painted to illustrate manuscripts or used in dedicated albums, was heavily influenced by the [[Persian miniature|Persian]] art form, though it also included elements of the [[Byzantine art|Byzantine]] tradition of [[manuscript illumination|illumination]] and painting.{{Citation needed|date=January 2010}} A Greek academy of painters, the ''Nakkashane-i-Rum'', was established in the [[Topkapi Palace]] in the 15th century, while early in the following century a similar Persian academy, the ''Nakkashane-i-Irani'', was added.
+
+[[Ottoman illumination]] covers non-figurative painted or drawn decorative art in books or on sheets in ''[[muraqqa]]'' or albums, as opposed to the figurative images of the [[Ottoman miniature]]. It was a part of the Ottoman Book Arts together with the Ottoman miniature (''taswir''), calligraphy (''hat''), [[Islamic calligraphy]], bookbinding (''cilt'') and [[paper marbling]] (''ebru''). In the Ottoman Empire, [[Illuminated manuscript|illuminated and illustrated manuscripts]] were commissioned by the Sultan or the administrators of the court. In Topkapi Palace, these manuscripts were created by the artists working in ''Nakkashane'', the atelier of the miniature and illumination artists. Both religious and non-religious books could be illuminated. Also sheets for albums ''levha'' consisted of illuminated calligraphy (''hat'') of ''[[tughra]]'', religious texts, verses from poems or proverbs, and purely decorative drawings.
+
+The art of carpet [[weaving]] was particularly significant in the Ottoman Empire, carpets having an immense importance both as decorative furnishings, rich in religious and other symbolism, and as a practical consideration, as it was customary to remove one's shoes in living quarters.<ref name="foroqhi">{{cite book|last=Faroqhi|first=Suraiya|title=Subjects of the Sultan: culture and daily life in the Ottoman Empire|year=2005|publisher=I.B. Tauris|location=London|isbn=1-85043-760-2|page=152|edition=New}}</ref> The weaving of such carpets originated in the [[nomad]]ic cultures of central Asia (carpets being an easily transportable form of furnishing), and eventually spread to the settled societies of Anatolia. Turks used carpets, rugs and [[kilim]]s not just on the floors of a room, but also as a hanging on walls and doorways, where they provided additional insulation. They were also commonly donated to [[mosques]], which often amassed large collections of them.<ref name="foroqhip153">{{cite book |last=Faroqhi |first=Suraiya |title=Subjects of the Sultan: culture and daily life in the Ottoman Empire |edition=New |year=2005 |publisher=I.B. Tauris |location=London |isbn=1-85043-760-2 |page=153}}</ref>
+
+=== Music and performing arts ===
+[[Ottoman classical music]] was an important part of the education of the Ottoman elite. A number of the Ottoman sultans were accomplished musicians and composers themselves, such as [[Selim III]], whose compositions are often still performed today. Ottoman classical music arose largely from a confluence of [[Byzantine music]], [[Armenian music]], [[Arabic music]], and [[Persian traditional music|Persian music]]. Compositionally, it is organised around rhythmic units called [[Usul (music)|usul]], which are somewhat similar to [[Metre (music)|meter]] in Western music, and [[Melody|melodic]] units called [[makam]], which bear some resemblance to Western [[musical mode]]s.
+
+The [[Musical instrument|instruments]] used are a mixture of Anatolian and Central Asian instruments (the [[baglama|saz]], the [[Baglama|bağlama]], the [[Kemenche|kemence]]), other Middle Eastern instruments (the [[Oud|ud]], the [[tanbur]], the [[Qanun (instrument)|kanun]], the [[ney]]), and—later in the tradition—Western instruments (the violin and the piano). Because of a geographic and cultural divide between the capital and other areas, two broadly distinct styles of music arose in the Ottoman Empire: Ottoman classical music, and folk music. In the provinces, several different kinds of [[folk music]] were created. The most dominant regions with their distinguished musical styles are: Balkan-Thracian Türküs, North-Eastern ([[Laz people|Laz]]) Türküs, Aegean Türküs, Central Anatolian Türküs, Eastern Anatolian Türküs, and Caucasian Türküs. Some of the distinctive styles were: [[Ottoman military band|Janissary Music]], [[Roma music]], [[Belly dance]], [[Turkish folk music]].
+
+The traditional [[shadow play]] called [[Karagöz and Hacivat]] was widespread throughout the Ottoman Empire and featured characters representing all of the major ethnic and social groups in that culture.<ref>{{cite web |title=Karagöz and Hacivat, a Turkish shadow play |publisher=All About Turkey |date=20 November 2006 |url=http://www.allaboutturkey.com/karagoz.htm |accessdate=20 August 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Emin Şenyer |title=Karagoz, Traditional Turkish Shadow Theatre |publisher=Karagoz.net |url=http://www.karagoz.net/english/shadowplay.htm |accessdate=11 February 2013}}</ref> It was performed by a single puppet master, who voiced all of the characters, and accompanied by [[tambourine]] (''def''). Its origins are obscure, deriving perhaps from an older Egyptian tradition, or possibly from an Asian source.
+
+<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">
+File:Abdulaziz.jpg|[[Sultan Abdülaziz]] was also a music composer.
+File:Surname 171b.jpg|Miniature from ''[[Abdulcelil Levni|Surname-i Vehbi]]'' showing the [[Mehteran]], the music band of the [[Janissaries]]
+File:Karagoz figures.jpg|The shadow play [[Karagöz and Hacivat]] was widespread throughout the Ottoman Empire.
+</gallery>
+
+=== Cuisine ===
+{{Main|Ottoman cuisine}}
+[[File:Enjoying Coffee Pera Museum 2 b.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Enjoying [[Turkish coffee|coffee]] at the [[harem]]]]
+[[File:François-Marie Rosset - Femmes Turcs turques de Serquin, leur manière de faire leur pain - Syrie - 1790.jpg|thumb|upright|Turkish women baking bread, 1790]]
+
+[[Ottoman cuisine]] refers to the cuisine of the capital, [[Istanbul]], and the regional capital cities, where the melting pot of cultures created a common cuisine that most of the population regardless of ethnicity shared. This diverse cuisine was honed in the Imperial Palace's kitchens by chefs brought from certain parts of the Empire to create and experiment with different ingredients. The creations of the Ottoman Palace's kitchens filtered to the population, for instance through [[Ramadan]] events, and through the cooking at the [[Yalı]]s of the [[Pasha]]s, and from there on spread to the rest of the population.
+
+Much of the cuisine of former Ottoman territories today is descended from a shared Ottoman cuisine, especially [[Turkish cuisine|Turkish]], and including [[Greek cuisine|Greek]], [[Balkan cuisine|Balkan]], [[Armenian cuisine|Armenian]], and [[Middle Eastern cuisine|Middle Eastern]] cuisines.<ref name="Fragner">Bert Fragner, "From the Caucasus to the Roof of the World: a culinary adventure", in Sami Zubaida and Richard Tapper, ''A Taste of Thyme: Culinary Cultures of the Middle East'', London, [[Prague]] and New York, p. 52</ref> Many common dishes in the region, descendants of the once-common Ottoman cuisine, include [[yogurt]], [[döner kebab]]/[[Gyro (food)|gyro]]/[[shawarma]], [[cacık]]/tzatziki, [[ayran]], [[pita]] bread, [[feta]] cheese, [[baklava]], [[lahmacun]], [[moussaka]], [[yuvarlak]], [[köfte]]/keftés/kofta, [[börek]]/boureki, [[rakı]]/[[rakia]]/[[tsipouro]]/[[tsikoudia]], [[meze]], [[dolma]], [[Sarma (food)|sarma]], rice [[pilaf]], [[Turkish coffee]], [[sujuk]], [[kashk]], [[keşkek]], [[Manti (dumpling)|manti]], [[lavash]], [[kanafeh]], and more.
+
+== Science and technology ==
+{{Main|Science and technology in the Ottoman Empire}}
+[[File:Ottoman Imperial Museum (Today- Istanbul Archaeology Museums).jpg|thumb|left|Ottoman Imperial Museum, today the [[Istanbul Archaeology Museums]]]]
+
+Over the course of Ottoman history, the Ottomans managed to build a large collection of libraries complete with translations of books from other cultures, as well as original manuscripts.<ref name="Ágoston and Alan Masters583"/> A great part of this desire for local and foreign manuscripts arose in the 15th century. [[Mehmet II|Sultan Mehmet II]] ordered [[Georgios Amiroutzes]], a Greek scholar from [[Trabzon]], to translate and make available to Ottoman educational institutions the geography book of [[Ptolemy]]. Another example is [[Ali Qushji]] – an [[Islamic astronomy|astronomer]], [[Islamic mathematics|mathematician]] and [[Islamic physics|physicist]] originally from [[Samarkand]] – who became a professor in two madrasas and influenced Ottoman circles as a result of his writings and the activities of his students, even though he only spent two or three years in Istanbul before his death.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ragep |first1=F. J. |year=2005 |title=Ali Qushji and Regiomontanus: eccentric transformations and Copernican Revolutions |journal=Journal for the History of Astronomy |volume=36 |issue=125 |pages=359–371 |publisher=Science History Publications Ltd. |doi= |bibcode=2005JHA....36..359R}}</ref>
+
+[[File:Istambul observatory in 1577.jpg|thumb|[[Istanbul observatory of Taqi ad-Din]] in 1577]]
+
+[[Taqi al-Din Muhammad ibn Ma'ruf|Taqi al-Din]] built the [[Istanbul observatory of Taqi al-Din]] in 1577, where he carried out observations until 1580. He calculated the [[Orbital eccentricity|eccentricity]] of the Sun's orbit and the annual motion of the [[apogee]].<ref name="Tekeli">{{cite encyclopedia|author=Sevim Tekeli |title=Encyclopaedia of the history of science, technology and medicine in non-western cultures|entry=Taqi al-Din|year=1997 |publisher=Kluwer |isbn=0-7923-4066-3|bibcode=2008ehst.book.....S|journal=Encyclopaedia of the History of Science}}</ref> However, the observatory's primary purpose was almost certainly [[astrology|astrological]] rather than astronomical, leading to its destruction in 1580 due to the rise of a clerical faction that opposed its use for that purpose.<ref>{{cite book |last=El-Rouayheb |first=Khaled |title=Islamic Intellectual History in the Seventeenth Century: Scholarly Currents in the Ottoman Empire and the Maghreb |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-107-04296-4 |pages=18–9}}</ref> He also experimented with [[steam power]] in [[Ottoman Egypt]] in 1551, when he invented a [[steam jack]] driven by a rudimentary [[steam turbine]].<ref>[[Ahmad Y Hassan]] (1976), ''Taqi al-Din and Arabic Mechanical Engineering'', p. 34–35, Institute for the History of Arabic Science, [[University of Aleppo]]</ref>
+
+In 1660 the Ottoman scholar [[Ibrahim Efendi al-Zigetvari Tezkireci]] translated [[Noël Duret]]'s French astronomical work (written in 1637) into Arabic.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ben-Zaken |first=Avner |year=2004 |url=https://www.academia.edu/1607448/The_heavens_of_the_sky_and_the_heavens_of_the_heart_the_Ottoman_cultural_context_for_the_introduction_of_post-Copernican_astronomy_I_would_like_to_thank_Theodore_Porter_Hossein_Ziai_Carlo_Ginzburg_Robert_Westman_Mary_Terrall_Benjamin_Elman_Norton_Wise_Herbert_Davidson_and_Ahmad_Alwisha_for_the_notes_and_the_encouragement._Thanks_to_Howard_Goodman_for_the_notes_and_the_stylish_English._Special_thanks_to_the_anonymous_referees_for_the_illuminating_notes._The_paper_was_first_presented_at_the_History_of_Science_Colloquium_at_UCLA |title=The Heavens of the Sky and the Heavens of the Heart: the Ottoman Cultural Context for the Introduction of Post-Copernican Astronomy |journal=The British Journal for the History of Science |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |volume=37 |pages=1–28 |doi=10.1017/S0007087403005302 |ref=harv}}</ref>
+
+[[Şerafeddin Sabuncuoğlu]] was the author of the first surgical atlas and the last major [[Medicine in medieval Islam|medical encyclopedia from the Islamic world]]. Though his work was largely based on [[Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi]]'s ''[[Al-Tasrif]]'', Sabuncuoğlu introduced many innovations of his own. Female surgeons were also illustrated for the first time.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Bademci |first=G. |title=First illustrations of female Neurosurgeons in the fifteenth century by Serefeddin Sabuncuoglu |journal=Neurocirugía |year=2006 |volume=17 |issue=2 |pages=162–5 |doi=10.4321/S1130-14732006000200012}}</ref>
+
+An example of a watch that measured time in minutes was created by an Ottoman watchmaker, [[Meshur Sheyh Dede]], in 1702.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Horton |first=Paul |title=Topkapi's Turkish Timepieces |date=July–August 1977 |journal=[[Saudi Aramco World]] |pages=10–13 |url=http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/197704/topkapi.s.turkish.timepieces.htm |accessdate=12 July 2008 |ref=harv |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081122021637/http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/197704/topkapi.s.turkish.timepieces.htm |archive-date=22 November 2008 |dead-url=yes |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
+
+In the early 19th century, [[Egypt under Muhammad Ali]] began using [[steam engine]]s for industrial manufacturing, with industries such as [[ironworks]], [[textile manufacturing]], [[paper mill]]s and [[hulling]] mills moving towards steam power.<ref name="batou193">{{cite book|title=Between Development and Underdevelopment: The Precocious Attempts at Industrialization of the Periphery, 1800-1870|author=Jean Batou|publisher=[[:fr:Librairie Droz|Librairie Droz]]|year=1991|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HjD4SCOE6IgC&pg=PA193|pages=193–196|isbn=9782600042932}}</ref> Economic historian Jean Batou argues that the necessary economic conditions existed in Egypt for the adoption of [[oil]] as a potential energy source for its steam engines later in the 19th century.<ref name="batou193"/>
+
+In the 19th century, [[Ishak Efendi]] is credited with introducing the then current Western scientific ideas and developments to the Ottoman and wider Muslim world, as well as the invention of a suitable Turkish and Arabic scientific terminology, through his translations of Western works.
+
+== Sports ==
+[[File:Oil wrestling match in the gardens of the Sultan's Palace.jpg|thumb|right|Ottoman wrestlers in the gardens of [[Topkapı Palace]], in the 19th century]]
+
+The main sports Ottomans were engaged in were [[Turkish wrestling]], [[hunting]], [[Turkish archery]], [[horseback riding]], [[Cirit|equestrian javelin throw]], [[arm wrestling]], and [[Swimming (sport)|swimming]]. European model sports clubs were formed with the spreading popularity of [[football]] matches in 19th century [[Constantinople]]. The leading clubs, according to timeline, were [[Beşiktaş J.K.|Beşiktaş Gymnastics Club]] (1903), [[Galatasaray S.K.|Galatasaray Sports Club]] (1905), [[Fenerbahçe S.K.|Fenerbahçe Sports Club]] (1907), [[MKE Ankaragücü |MKE Ankaragücü (formerly Turan Sanatkaragücü)]] (1910) in [[Istanbul]]. Football clubs were formed in other provinces too, such as [[Karşıyaka S.K.|Karşıyaka Sports Club]] (1912), [[Altay S.K.|Altay Sports Club]] (1914) and [[Ülküspor|Turkish Fatherland Football Club]] (later [[Ülküspor]]) (1914) of [[İzmir]].
+
+== See also ==
+{{Portal|Ottoman Empire|Turkey|Mediterranean}}
+* [[16 Great Turkic Empires]]
+* [[Bibliography of the Ottoman Empire]]
+* [[Gaza Thesis]]
+* [[Gunpowder Empires]]
+* [[Historiography of the fall of the Ottoman Empire]]
+* [[History of the Turkic peoples|History of the Turks]]
+* [[Index of Ottoman Empire-related articles]]
+* [[List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire]]
+* [[List of Ottoman Grand Viziers]]
+* [[List of Ottoman conquests, sieges and landings]]
+* [[List of Turkic dynasties and countries]]
+* [[Outline of the Ottoman Empire]]
+* [[Ottoman Decline Thesis]]
+* [[Ottoman dynasty]]
+* [[Ottoman Caliphate]]
+* [[Ottoman Tunisia]]
+* [[Superpower#Superpowers of the past|Superpowers of the past]]
+
+== Notes ==
+{{reflist|30em|group=note}}
+
+== References ==
+{{Reflist|30em}}
+
+== Further reading ==
+{{Main|Bibliography of the Ottoman Empire}}
+{{Library resources box|onlinebooks=yes}}
+
+===General surveys===
+{{refbegin}}
+* ''The Cambridge History of Turkey''
+:* Volume 1: Kate Fleet ed., "Byzantium to Turkey 1071–1453." Cambridge University Press, 2009.
+:* Volume 2: Suraiya N. Faroqhi and Kate Fleet eds., "The Ottoman Empire as a World Power, 1453–1603." Cambridge University Press, 2012.
+:* Volume 3: Suraiya N. Faroqhi ed., "The Later Ottoman Empire, 1603–1839." Cambridge University Pres, 2006.
+:* Volume 4: Reşat Kasaba ed., "Turkey in the Modern World." Cambridge University Press, 2008.
+* {{Cite book|last=Finkel |first=Caroline |title=Osman's Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1923 |publisher=Basic Books |date=2005 |isbn=978-0-465-02396-7}}
+* {{cite book |last=Hathaway |first=Jane |title=The Arab Lands under Ottoman Rule, 1516–1800 |publisher=Pearson Education Ltd. |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-582-41899-8}}
+* {{cite book |last=Howard |first=Douglas A. |title=A History of the Ottoman Empire |publisher=Cambridge University Press |place=Cambridge |year=2017|isbn=978-0-521-72730-3}}
+* {{Cite book|last=Imber |first=Colin |title=The Ottoman Empire, 1300–1650: The Structure of Power |edition=2 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |place=New York |date=2009 |isbn=978-0-230-57451-9}}
+* {{cite book |editor-last=İnalcık |editor-first=Halil |editor2=Donald Quataert |title=An Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1914 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1994 |isbn=0-521-57456-0}} Two volumes.
+* McCarthy, Justin. ''The Ottoman Turks: An Introductory History to 1923.'' 1997 [https://www.questia.com/read/58745078 Questia.com], online edition.
+* Quataert, Donald. ''The Ottoman Empire, 1700–1922.'' 2005. {{ISBN|0-521-54782-2}}.
+
+===Early Ottomans===
+* {{Cite book|last=Kafadar |first=Cemal |title=Between Two Worlds: The Construction of the Ottoman State |publisher=University of California Press |date=1995 |isbn=978-0-520-20600-7}}
+* {{Cite book|last=Lindner |first=Rudi P. |title=Nomads and Ottomans in Medieval Anatolia |publisher=Indiana University Press |place=Bloomington |date=1983 |isbn=0-933070-12-8}}
+* {{Cite book|last=Lowry |first=Heath |title=The Nature of the Early Ottoman State |publisher=SUNY Press |place=Albany |date=2003 |isbn=0-7914-5636-6}}
+
+===Military===
+* {{cite journal |last=Ágoston |first=Gábor |title=Firearms and Military Adaptation: The Ottomans and the European Military Revolution, 1450–1800 |journal=Journal of World History |volume=25 |date=2014 |pages=85–124}}
+* {{cite book |first=Virginia |last=Aksan |title=Ottoman Wars, 1700–1860: An Empire Besieged |publisher=Pearson Education Limited |date=2007 |isbn=978-0-582-30807-7}}
+* {{cite book |last=Rhoads |first=Murphey |title=Ottoman Warfare, 1500–1700 |publisher=Rutgers University Press |date=1999 |isbn=1-85728-389-9}}
+* {{cite book |last=Soucek |first=Svat |title=Ottoman Maritime Wars, 1416–1700 |publisher=The Isis Press |place=Istanbul |date=2015 |isbn=978-975-428-554-3}}
+
+===Miscellaneous===
+* Baram, Uzi and Lynda Carroll, editors. ''A Historical Archaeology of the Ottoman Empire: Breaking New Ground'' (Plenum/Kluwer Academic Press, 2000)
+* Barkey, Karen. ''Empire of Difference: The Ottomans in Comparative Perspective.'' (2008) 357pp [https://www.amazon.com/Empire-Difference-Ottomans-Comparative-Perspective/dp/0521715334/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1240307430&sr=1-7 Amazon.com], excerpt and text search
+* Davison, Roderic H. ''Reform in the Ottoman Empire, 1856–1876'' (New York: Gordian Press, 1973)
+* Deringil, Selim. ''The well-protected domains: ideology and the legitimation of power in the Ottoman Empire, 1876–1909'' (London: IB Tauris, 1998)
+* Findley, Carter V. ''Bureaucratic Reform in the Ottoman Empire: The Sublime Porte, 1789–1922'' (Princeton University Press, 1980)
+* [[Suraiya Faroqhi|Faroqhi, Suraiya]]. ''The Ottoman Empire: A Short History'' (2009) 196pp
+* McMeekin, Sean. ''The Berlin-Baghdad Express: The Ottoman Empire and Germany's Bid for World Power'' (2010)
+* Nicolle, David. ''Armies of the Ottoman Turks 1300–1774'' (Osprey Publishing, 1983)
+* Palmer, Alan. ''The Decline and Fall of the Ottoman Empire''. (New York: Barnes and Noble, 1992) 306 p., maps. {{ISBN|0-87131-754-0}}
+* Pamuk, Sevket. ''A Monetary History of the Ottoman Empire'' (1999). pp. 276
+* Somel, Selcuk Aksin. ''Historical Dictionary of the Ottoman Empire'' (2003). pp. 399
+* Stone, Norman "Turkey in the Russian Mirror" pages 86–100 from ''Russia War, Peace and Diplomacy'' edited by Mark & Ljubica Erickson, Weidenfeld & Nicolson: London, 2004 {{ISBN|0-297-84913-1}}.
+* {{cite book |last1=Uyar |first1=Mesut |last2=Erickson |first2=Edward |title=A Military History of the Ottomans: From Osman to Atatürk |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-275-98876-0}}
+
+===Historiography===
+* Hartmann, Daniel Andreas. "Neo-Ottomanism: The Emergence and Utility of a New Narrative on Politics, Religion, Society, and History in Turkey" (PhD Dissertation, Central European University, 2013) [http://www.etd.ceu.hu/2013/hartmann_daniel.pdf online].
+* {{Cite journal|last=Kayalı|first=Hasan|date=December 2017|title=The Ottoman Experience of World War I: Historiographical Problems and Trends|url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/694391|journal=The Journal of Modern History|language=en|volume=89|issue=4|pages=875–907|doi=10.1086/694391|issn=0022-2801}}
+* Lieven, Dominic. ''Empire: The Russian empire and its rivals'' (Yale UP, 2002), comparisons with Russian, British, & Habsburg empires. [https://www.amazon.com/Empire-Russian-Its-Rivals/dp/0300097263/ excerpt]
+* Mikhail, Alan; Philliou, Christine M. "The Ottoman Empire and the Imperial Turn," ''Comparative Studies in Society & History'' (2012) 54#4 pp 721–745. Comparing the Ottomans to other empires opens new insights about the dynamics of imperial rule, periodization, and political transformation
+* Olson, Robert, "Ottoman Empire" in {{cite book|author=Kelly Boyd, ed|title=Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing vol 2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0121vD9STIMC&pg=PA892|year=1999|publisher=Taylor & Francis|pages=892–6|isbn=9781884964336}}
+* Quataert, Donald. "Ottoman History Writing and Changing Attitudes towards the Notion of 'Decline.'" ''History Compass'' 1 (2003): 1–9.
+{{refend}}
+
+== External links ==
+{{Spoken Wikipedia-2|2008-03-29|Wikipedia - Ottoman Empire - Main History.ogg|Wikipedia - Ottoman Empire - Part 2.ogg}}
+{{Sister project links |wikt= |commons=Ottoman Empire |commonscat=yes|b=yes|voy=yes|v=yes|s=yes|d=yes|d-search=Q12560}}
+*[http://courses.washington.edu/otap/ Ottoman Text Archive Project – University of Washington]
+*[http://www.shapell.org/journeys.aspx?american-travelers-to-the-holy-land-in-the-19th-century American Travelers to the Holy Land in the 19th Century] Shapell Manuscript Foundation
+*[http://www.umich.edu/~turkish/ottemp.html The Ottoman Empire: Resources – University of Michigan]
+*[http://www.theottomans.org/ Information about Ottomans]
+*[http://www.wdl.org/en/item/11770/ Turkey in Asia], 1920
+
+{{Ottoman Empire topics}}
+{{Navboxes
+|list=
+{{Former Monarchies}}
+{{Turkic topics}}
+{{Turkey topics}}
+{{History of Anatolia}}
+{{Empires}}
+{{Medieval states in Anatolia}}
+{{History of Europe}}
+}}
+
+{{Authority control}}
+
+[[Category:Ottoman Empire| ]]
+[[Category:Historical Turkic states]]
+[[Category:1299 establishments in Asia]]
+[[Category:1923 disestablishments in Asia]]
+[[Category:1923 disestablishments in Europe]]
+[[Category:States and territories established in 1299]]
+[[Category:States and territories disestablished in 1922]]
+[[Category:States and territories disestablished in 1923]]
+
+{{Infobox military conflict
+| conflict = Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)
+| partof = [[Great Eastern Crisis]]
+| image = File:The defeat of Shipka Peak, Bulgarian War of Independence.JPG
+| caption = The [[Battle of Shipka Pass]] in August 1877
+| date = 24 April 1877 – 3 March 1878 (10 months, 1 week, 2 days)
+| place = [[Balkans]], [[Caucasus]]
+| territory =
+* Reestablishment of the [[Principality of Bulgaria|Bulgarian state]]
+* ''[[De jure]]'' independence of [[United Principalities|Romania]], [[Principality of Serbia|Serbia]] and [[Principality of Montenegro|Montenegro]] from the [[Ottoman Empire]]
+* [[Kars Oblast|Kars]] and [[Batum Oblast]]s become part of the [[Russian Empire]]
+| result = Russian coalition victory
+* [[Treaty of San Stefano]]
+* [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]]
+| combatant1 = {{plainlist|
+*{{flagcountry|Russian Empire|1858}}
+*{{flagdeco|Serbia|civil}} [[Principality of Serbia|Serbia]]
+*{{flagdeco|Kingdom of Romania}} [[United Principalities|Romania]]
+*{{flagcountry|Principality of Montenegro}}
+*{{flagdeco|Kingdom of Bulgaria}} [[Opalchentsi|Bulgarian Legion]]}}
+| combatant2 = {{flag|Ottoman Empire}}
+*[[Chechen people|Chechen]] and [[Dagestan|Dagestani]] [[Insurgency|Insurgents]]
+*[[Abkhazians|Abkhazian]] [[Insurgency|Insurgents]]
+*[[Polish Legion in Turkey|Polish Legion]]
+| commander1 = {{plainlist|
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Alexander II of Russia|Alexander II]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1831–1891)|Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia|Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Dmitry Milyutin]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Iosif Gurko]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Mikhail Loris-Melikov]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Grigol Dadiani (Kolkhideli)|Grigol Dadiani]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Alexander III of Russia|Tsesarevich Alexander Alexandrovich]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Pyotr Vannovsky]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Mikhail Dragomirov]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Mikhail Skobelev]]
+*{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Ivan Davidovich Lazarev|Ivan Lazarev]]
+*{{flagicon|Kingdom of Romania}} [[Carol I of Romania]]
+*{{flagicon|Principality of Montenegro}} [[Nicholas I of Montenegro]]
+*{{flagicon|Serbia|civil}} [[Milan I of Serbia]]
+*{{flagicon|Serbia|civil}} [[Kosta Protić]]}}
+| commander2 = {{plainlist|
+*{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Abdul Hamid II]]
+*{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Ahmed Muhtar Pasha|Ahmed Pasha]]
+*{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Osman Nuri Pasha|Osman Pasha]]
+*{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Süleyman Hüsnü Paşa|Suleiman Pasha]]
+*{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Mehmed Ali Pasha (marshal)|Mehmed Pasha]]
+*{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Abdülkerim Nadir Pasha|Abdülkerim Pasha]]
+*{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Ahmed Eyüb Pasha]]
+*{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Mehmed Riza Pasha]]}}
+| strength1 = {{plainlist|
+*'''Russian Empire''': 185,000 in the Army of the Danube, 75,000 in the Caucasian Army<ref>Timothy C. Dowling. Russia at War: From the Mongol Conquest to Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Beyond. 2 Volumes. ABC-CLIO, 2014. P. 748</ref><br>260,000 total
+*'''Finland''': 1,000
+*'''Serbia''': 81,500
+*'''Romania''': 66,000
+*'''Montenegro''': 45,000
+*'''Bulgarians''': 60,000}}
+*200 cannons
+| strength2 = '''Ottoman Empire''': 70,000 in the Caucasus<ref name="Clodfelter, p. 196">Clodfelter, p. 196</ref><br>281,000 total<ref>{{Citation |last=Мерников |first=АГ |script-title=ru:Спектор А. А. Всемирная история войн |place=Minsk |year=2005 |page=376 |language=Russian }}</ref>
+| casualties1 = {{plainlist|
+*'''Russian Empire'''
+**15,567<ref name="Урланис">{{cite book| author = [[Урланис Б. Ц.]] | chapter = Войны в период домонополистического капитализма (Ч. 2)| chapter-url = http://scepsis.net/library/id_2140.html#a161| format = | url = | title = Войны и народонаселение Европы. Людские потери вооруженных сил европейских стран в войнах XVII—XX вв. (Историко-статистическое исследование) | orig-year = | agency = | edition = | location = М.| year = 1960 | publisher = [[Соцэкгиз]]| at = | volume = | issue = | pages = 104–105, 129 § 4| page = | series = | isbn = | ref = }}</ref>–34,742<ref>Clodfelter, p. 196</ref> killed
+**81,166 died of disease
+**56,652 wounded
+**1,713 died from wounds<ref name="Урланис"/><ref name="Clodfelter, p. 196">Clodfelter, p. 196</ref>
+*'''Romania'''
+** 4,302 killed and missing
+** 3,316 wounded
+**19,904 sick<ref>Scafes, Cornel, et. al., ''Armata Romania in Razvoiul de Independenta 1877–1878'' (The Romanian Army in the War of Independence 1877–1878). Bucuresti, Editura Sigma, 2002, p. 149 (Romence)</ref>
+*'''Bulgaria'''
+**2,456 dead and wounded<ref name="scepsis.net">Борис Урланис, Войны и народонаселение Европы, Часть II, Глава II http://scepsis.net/library/id_2140.html</ref>
+*'''Serbia''' and '''Montenegro'''
+** 2,400 dead and wounded<ref name="scepsis.net"/>}}
+| casualties2 = {{plainlist|
+*~30,000 killed,<ref name="Мерников Спектор">{{cite book| author1 = Мерников А. Г.|author2= Спектор А. А.| title = Всемирная история войн| location = Мн.| year = 2005| publisher = Харвест| isbn = 985-13-2607-0}}</ref>
+*60,000<ref name="Clodfelter, p. 196">Clodfelter, p. 196</ref>–90,000<ref name="Мерников Спектор"/> died from wounds and diseases
+*Tens of thousands captured<ref name="Clodfelter, p. 196">Clodfelter, p. 196</ref>}}
+| campaignbox =
+{{Campaignbox Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)}}
+{{Russo-Ottoman War Series}}
+}}
+
+The '''Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78''' ({{lang-tr|93 Harbi|lit=War of ’93}}, named for the year 1293 in the [[Islamic calendar]]; {{lang-bg|Руско-турска Освободителна война|Rusko-turska Osvoboditelna vojna}}, "Russian-Turkish Liberation war") was a conflict between the [[Ottoman Empire]] and the [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodox]] coalition led by the [[Russian Empire]] and composed of [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]], [[Kingdom of Romania|Romania]], [[Kingdom of Serbia|Serbia]], and [[Principality of Montenegro|Montenegro]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Crowe, John Henry Verrinder |author-link = |chapter=Russo-Turkish Wars (1828-29 and 1877-1878 - The War of 1877-78) |title=The Encyclopaedia Britannica; A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, Literature and General Information |pages= 931-936 |year=1911 |volume= XXIII (REFECTORY to SAINTE-BEUVE)|edition= 11th |publisher=At the University Press |place=Cambridge, England and New York|url=https://archive.org/stream/encyclopaediabri23chisrich#page/930 |accessdate= 19 July 2018 |via= Internet Archive}}</ref> Fought in the [[Balkans]] and in the [[Caucasus]], it originated in emerging [[19th-century]] Balkan [[nationalism]]. Additional factors combined Russian goals of recovering territorial losses endured during the [[Crimean War]], re-establishing itself in the [[Black Sea]] and supporting the political movement attempting to free Balkan nations from the Ottoman Empire.
+
+The Russian-led coalition won the war. As a result, Russia succeeded in claiming several provinces in the Caucasus, namely [[Kars Oblast|Kars]] and [[Batum Oblast|Batum]], and also annexed the [[Budjak]] region. The principalities of [[United Principalities|Romania]], [[Principality of Serbia|Serbia]], and [[Principality of Montenegro|Montenegro]], each of whom had ''de facto'' sovereignty for some time, formally proclaimed independence from the [[Ottoman Empire]]. After almost five centuries of Ottoman domination (1396–1878), the Bulgarian state was re-established as the [[Principality of Bulgaria]], covering the land between the [[Danube]] River and the [[Balkan Mountains]] (except Northern [[Dobrudja]] which was given to Romania), as well as the region of [[Sofia]], which became the new state's capital. The [[Congress of Berlin]] in 1878 also allowed [[Austria-Hungary]] to [[Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina|occupy Bosnia and Herzegovina]] and [[Great Britain]] to take over [[Cyprus]].
+
+The initial Treaty of San Stefano, signed on 3 March, is today celebrated as [[Liberation Day]] in Bulgaria,<ref>{{cite book|title=Labour Law in Bulgaria|first=Vasil|last=Mrŭchkov|p=120|publisher=Kluwer Law International|year=2011|isbn=978-9-041-13616-9}}</ref> although it somewhat fell out of favour during years of Socialist rule.<ref>{{cite book|title=Nationalism from the Left: The Bulgarian Communist Party During the Second World War and the Early Post-War Years|first=Yannis|last=Sygkelos|p=220|publisher=Brill|year=2011|isbn=978-9-004-19208-9}}</ref>
+
+==Conflict pre-history==
+=== Treatment of Christians in the Ottoman Empire ===
+Article 9 of the [[Treaty of Paris (1856)|1856 Paris Peace Treaty]], concluded at the end of the [[Crimean War]], obliged the Ottoman Empire to grant Christians equal rights with Muslims. Before the treaty was signed, the Ottoman government issued an edict, the [[Edict of Gülhane]], which proclaimed the principle of the equality of Muslims and non-Muslims,<ref>{{Citation | url = http://www.anayasa.gen.tr/reform.htm | type = full text | title = Hatt-ı Hümayun | publisher = Anayasa | place = Turkey}}.</ref> and produced some specific reforms to this end. For example, the [[jizya]] tax was abolished and non-Muslims were allowed to join the army.<ref>{{Citation | last = Vatikiotis | first = PJ | title = The Middle East | place = London | publisher = Routledge | year = 1997 | page = 217 | ISBN = 0-415-15849-4}}.</ref>
+
+However, some key aspects of [[dhimmi]] status were retained, including that the testimony of Christians against Muslims was not accepted in courts, which granted Muslims effective immunity for offenses conducted against Christians. Although local level relations between communities were often good, this practice encouraged exploitation. Abuses were at their worst in regions with a predominantly Christian population, where local authorities often openly supported abuse as a means to keep Christians subjugated.{{Sfn | Argyll | 1879}}{{Rp | needed = yes|date=March 2013}}
+
+====Crisis in Lebanon, 1860====
+{{Main|1860 Druze–Maronite conflict}}
+In 1858, the [[Maronite]] peasants, stirred by the clergy, revolted against their [[Druze]] feudal overlords and established a peasant republic. In southern [[Lebanon]], where Maronite peasants worked for Druze overlords, Druze peasants sided with their overlords against the Maronites, transforming the conflict into a [[1860 Druze-Christian conflict in Lebanon|civil war]]. Although both sides suffered, about 10,000 Maronites were [[massacre]]d at the hands of the Druze.<ref name="countrystudies.us">{{Citation | url = http://countrystudies.us/lebanon/74.htm | title = Country Studies | contribution = Lebanon | place = US | publisher = Library of Congress | year = 1994}}.</ref><ref>{{Citation | url = http://dlxs2.library.cornell.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=cdl;idno=cdl324 | page = 219 | title = The Druzes and the Maronites under the Turkish rule from 1840 to 1860 | first = C | last = Churchill | place = London | publisher = B Quaritch | year = 1862}}.</ref>
+
+Under the threat of European intervention, Ottoman authorities restored order. Nevertheless, [[Règlement Organique (Mount Lebanon)|French and British intervention]] followed.{{Sfn | Shaw | Shaw | 1977 | pp = 142–43}} Under further European pressure, the Sultan agreed to appoint a Christian governor in Lebanon, whose candidacy was to be submitted by the Sultan and approved by the European powers.<ref name = "countrystudies.us" />
+
+On May 27, 1860 a group of Maronites raided a Druze village.{{Citation needed|date =March 2008}} Massacres and reprisal massacres followed, not only in the Lebanon but also in [[Syria]]. In the end, between 7,000 and 12,000 people of all religions{{Citation needed|date=March 2008}} had been killed, and over 300 villages, 500 churches, 40 monasteries, and 30 schools were destroyed. Christian attacks on Muslims in Beirut stirred the Muslim population of [[Damascus]] to attack the Christian minority with between 5,000 and 25,000 of the latter being killed,{{Citation needed|date=August 2009}} including the [[United States of America|American]] and [[Kingdom of the Netherlands|Dutch]] consuls, giving the event an international dimension.
+
+Ottoman foreign minister [[Mehmed Fuad Pasha]] came to Syria and solved the problems by seeking out and executing the culprits, including the governor and other officials. Order was restored, and preparations made to give Lebanon new autonomy to avoid European intervention. Nevertheless, in September 1860 France sent a fleet, and Britain joined to prevent a unilateral intervention that could help increase French influence in the area at Britain's expense.{{Sfn | Shaw | Shaw | 1977 | pp = 142–43}}
+
+====The revolt in Crete, 1866–1869====
+[[File:MoniArkadiou2.JPG|thumb|right|The [[Moni Arkadiou]] monastery]]
+The [[Cretan Revolt (1866–69)|Cretan Revolt]], which began in 1866, resulted from the failure of the Ottoman Empire to apply reforms for improving the life of the population and the Cretans' desire for [[enosis]] — union with [[Kingdom of Greece (Glücksburg)|Greece]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Robson|first1=Maureen M.|title=Lord Clarendon and the Cretan Question, 1868-9|journal=The Historical Journal|date=1960|volume=3|issue=1|pages=38–55}}</ref> The insurgents gained control over the whole island, except for five cities where the Muslims were fortified. The Greek press claimed that Muslims had massacred Greeks and the word was spread throughout Europe. Thousands of Greek volunteers were mobilized and sent to the island.
+
+The siege of [[Moni Arkadiou]] monastery became particularly well known. In November 1866, about 250 Cretan Greek combatants and around 600 women and children were besieged by about 23,000 mainly Cretan Muslims aided by Ottoman troops, and this became widely known in Europe. After a bloody battle with a large number of casualties on both sides, the Cretan Greeks finally surrendered when their ammunition ran out but were killed upon surrender.<ref>{{Citation | last = Stillman | first = William James | url = http://www.gutenberg.org/files/11594/11594.txt | title = The Autobiography of a Journalist | volume = II | publisher = The Project Gutenberg | format = ebook | date = March 15, 2004 | id = [[eBook#11594]]}}.</ref>
+
+By early 1869, the insurrection was suppressed, but [[Ottoman Porte|the Porte]] offered some concessions, introducing island self-rule and increasing Christian rights on the island. Although the Cretan crisis ended better for the Ottomans than almost any other diplomatic confrontation of the century, the insurrection, and especially the brutality with which it was suppressed, led to greater public attention in Europe to the oppression of Christians in the Ottoman Empire.
+
+{{Quote |Small as the amount of attention is which can be given by the people of England to the affairs of Turkey ... enough was transpiring from time to time to produce a vague but a settled and general impression that the Sultans were not fulfilling the "solemn promises" they had made to Europe; that the vices of the Turkish government were ineradicable; and that whenever another crisis might arise affecting the "independence" of the Ottoman Empire, it would be wholly impossible to afford to it again the support we had afforded in the [[Crimean war]].{{Sfn | Argyll | 1879 | p = 122}}}}
+
+===Changing balance of power in Europe===
+{{Refimprove section|date=March 2011}}
+Although on the winning side in the [[Crimean War]], the Ottoman Empire [[Decline of the Ottoman Empire|continued to decline]] in power and prestige. The financial strain on the treasury forced the Ottoman government to take a series of foreign loans at such steep interest rates that, despite all the fiscal reforms that followed, pushed it into unpayable debts and economic difficulties. This was further aggravated by the need to accommodate more than 600,000 Muslim [[Circassians]], expelled by the Russians from the Caucasus, to the Black Sea ports of north Anatolia and the Balkan ports of [[Constanţa]] and [[Varna]], which cost a great deal in money and in civil disorder to the Ottoman authorities.<ref>{{Citation | last = Finkel | first = Caroline | title = The History of the Ottoman Empire | place = New York | publisher = Basic Books | year = 2005 | page = 467}}.</ref>
+
+====The New European Concert====
+The [[Concert of Europe]] established in 1814 was shaken in 1859 when France and Austria [[Second Italian War of Independence|fought over Italy]]. It came apart completely as a result of the wars of [[German Unification]], when the [[Kingdom of Prussia]], led by Chancellor [[Otto von Bismarck]], defeated Austria in 1866 and France in 1870, replacing Austria-Hungary as the dominant power in Central Europe. Britain, worn out by its participation in the Crimean War and diverted by the [[Irish question]] and the social problems created by the [[Industrial Revolution]], chose not to intervene again to restore the European balance. Bismarck did not wish the breakup of the Ottoman Empire to create rivalries that might lead to war, so he took up the Tsar's earlier suggestion that arrangements be made in case the Ottoman Empire fell apart, creating the [[Three Emperors' League]] with Austria and Russia to keep France isolated on the continent.
+
+France responded by supporting self-determination movements, particularly if they concerned the three emperors and the Sultan. Thus revolts in Poland against Russia and national aspirations in the Balkans were encouraged by France. Russia worked to regain its right to maintain a fleet on the Black Sea and vied with the French in gaining influence in the Balkans by using the new [[Pan-Slavic]] idea that all Slavs should be united under Russian leadership. This could be done only by destroying the two empires where most non-Russian Slavs lived, the Habsburg and the Ottoman Empires. The ambitions and the rivalries of the Russians and French in the Balkans surfaced in Serbia, which was experiencing its own national revival and had ambitions that partly conflicted with those of the great powers.{{Sfn | Shaw | Shaw | 1977 | p = 146}}
+
+====Russia after the Crimean War====
+[[File:Alexander Mikhailovich Gorchakov.jpg|thumb|[[Alexander Gorchakov]]]]
+
+Russia ended the Crimean War with minimal territorial losses, but was forced to destroy its [[Black Sea Fleet]] and [[Sevastopol]] fortifications. Russian international prestige was damaged, and for many years revenge for the Crimean War became the main goal of Russian foreign policy. This was not easy though — the [[Treaty of Paris (1856)|Paris Peace Treaty]] included guarantees of Ottoman territorial integrity by Great Britain, France and Austria; only Prussia remained friendly to Russia.
+
+The newly appointed Russian chancellor, [[Alexander Mikhailovich Gorchakov|Alexander Gorchakov]] depended upon alliance with Prussia and its chancellor [[Otto von Bismarck|Bismarck]]. Russia consistently supported Prussia in her wars with [[Second Schleswig War|Denmark (1864)]], [[Austro-Prussian War|Austria (1866)]] and [[Franco-Prussian War|France (1870)]]. In March 1871, using the crushing French defeat and the support of a grateful Germany, Russia achieved [[Commissions of the Danube River#London Conference of 1871|international recognition]] of its earlier denouncement of Article 11 of the [[Treaty of Paris (1856)|Paris Peace Treaty]], thus enabling it to revive the [[Black Sea Fleet]].
+
+Other clauses of the Paris Peace Treaty, however, remained in force, specifically Article 8 with guarantees of Ottoman territorial integrity by Great Britain, France and Austria. Therefore, Russia was extremely cautious in its relations with the Ottoman Empire, coordinating all its actions with other European powers. A Russian war with Turkey would require at least the tacit support of all other Great Powers, and Russian diplomacy was waiting for a convenient moment.
+
+==Balkan crisis of 1875–1876==
+The state of Ottoman administration in the Balkans continued to deteriorate throughout the 19th century, with the central government occasionally losing control over whole provinces. Reforms imposed by European powers did little to improve the conditions of the Christian population, while managing to dissatisfy a sizable portion of the Muslim population. [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] suffered at least two waves of rebellion by the local Muslim population, the most recent in 1850.
+
+Austria consolidated after the turmoil of the first half of the century and sought to reinvigorate its longstanding policy of expansion at the expense of the Ottoman Empire. Meanwhile, the nominally autonomous, de facto independent principalities of Serbia and Montenegro also sought to expand into regions inhabited by their compatriots. Nationalist and [[irredentism|irredentist]] sentiments were strong and were encouraged by Russia and her agents. At the same time, a severe drought in Anatolia in 1873 and flooding in 1874 caused famine and widespread discontent in the heart of the Empire. The agricultural shortages precluded the collection of necessary taxes, which forced the Ottoman government to declare bankruptcy in October, 1875 and increase taxes on outlying provinces including the Balkans.
+
+===Balkan uprisings===
+
+====Herzegovina Uprising====
+{{Main|Herzegovina Uprising (1875–78)}}
+An uprising against Ottoman rule began in Herzegovina in July 1875. By August almost all of Herzegovina had been seized and the revolt had spread into Bosnia. Supported by nationalist volunteers from Serbia and Montenegro, the uprising continued as the Ottomans committed more and more troops to suppress it.
+
+====Bulgarian Uprising====
+{{Main|April Uprising}}
+[[File:Basibozuk-1877.jpg|thumb|Bashi-bazouks' atrocities in [[Macedonia (region)|Macedonia]]]]
+The revolt of Bosnia and Herzegovina spurred Bucharest-based Bulgarian revolutionaries into action. In 1875, a Bulgarian uprising was hastily prepared to take advantage of Ottoman preoccupation, but it fizzled before it started. In the spring of 1876, another uprising erupted in the south-central Bulgarian lands despite the fact that there were numerous regular Turkish troops in those areas.
+
+A special Turkish military committee was established to quell the uprising. Regular troops (Nisam) and irregular ones (Redif or Bashi-bazouk) were directed to fight the Bulgarians (May 11 – June 9, 1876). The irregulars were mostly drawn from the Muslim inhabitants of the Bulgarian regions, many of whom were [[Circassians|Circassian]] Islamic population which migrated from the [[Caucasus]] or [[Crimean Tatars|Crimean Tatar]]s who were expelled during the [[Crimean War]] and even Islamized Bulgarians. The Turkish army suppressed the revolt, massacring up to 30,000{{Sfn | Hupchick | 2002 | p = 264}}{{Sfn | Jonassohn | 1999 | pp = 209–10}} people in the process.<ref>{{Citation | title = The Turkish empire from 1288 to 1914 | first = Baron George Shaw-Lefevre | last = Eversley | year = 1924 | page = 319}}.</ref>{{Sfn | Jonassohn | 1999 | p = 210}} Five thousand out of the seven thousand villagers of Batak were put to death.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = (Editorial staff) | title = Massacre | journal = New Statesman | volume = 6 | issue = 139 | pages = 201–202 | date = 4 December 1915 | url = https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015073107511;view=1up;seq=216}} ; see p. 202.</ref> Both Batak and Perushtitsa, where the majority of the population was also massacred, participated in the rebellion.{{Sfn | Jonassohn | 1999 | pp = 209–10}} Many of the perpetrators of those massacres were later decorated by the Ottoman high command.{{Sfn | Jonassohn | 1999 | pp = 209–10}} Modern historians have estimated the number of killed Bulgarian population is between 30,000 and 100,000. The Turkish military carried on horribly unjust acts upon the vast Bulgarian populations.<ref>{{Citation | title = The Establishment of the Balkan National States, 1804–1920 | first1 = Charles | last1 = Jelavich | first2 = Barbara | last2 = Jelavich | year = 1977 | publisher = University of Washington Press | location = Seattle, Washington, USA | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=LBYriPYyfUoC&pg=PA139&hl=en#v=onepage&q&f=false | page = 139}}.</ref>
+
+<gallery>
+File:Konstantin Makovsky - The Bulgarian martyresses.jpg|[[Konstantin Makovsky]], ''The Bulgarian Martyresses'', a painting depicting the atrocities of [[bashibazouk]]s in [[Macedonia (region)|Macedonia]].
+File:Два ястреба (Башибузуки).jpg|[[Bashibazouk]]s held captive by the Bulgarian and Russian army.
+File:Vsemirnaya Illyustratsia Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) 05.jpg|Bashi-Bazouks, returning with the spoils from the Romanian shore of the [[Danube]].
+</gallery>
+
+===International reaction to atrocities in Bulgaria===
+Word of the bashi-bazouks' atrocities filtered to the outside world by way of American-run Robert College located in [[Constantinople]]. The majority of the students were Bulgarian, and many received news of the events from their families back home. Soon the Western diplomatic community in Constantinople was abuzz with rumours, which eventually found their way into newspapers in the West. While in Constantinople in 1879, Protestant missionary [[George Warren Wood]] reported Turkish authorities in [[Amasya|Amasia]] brutally persecuting Christian Armenian refugees from [[Soukoum Kaleh]]. He was able to coordinate with British diplomat [[Edward Malet]] to bring the matter to the attention of the [[Sublime Porte]], and then to the British foreign secretary [[Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury|Robert Gascoyne-Cecil]] (the [[Marquess of Salisbury]]).<ref>{{cite book|title=Parliamentary Papers, House of Commons and Command, Volume 80|date=1880|publisher=Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons|location=Constantinople|pages=70–72|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X1UTAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA3-PA70#v=onepage&q=%22Reverend%20George%20W.%20Wood%22%20%20|accessdate=3 January 2017}}</ref> In Britain, where [[Benjamin Disraeli|Disraeli]]'s government was committed to supporting the Ottomans in the ongoing Balkan crisis, the Liberal opposition newspaper ''Daily News'' hired American journalist [[Januarius MacGahan|Januarius A. MacGahan]] to report on the massacre stories firsthand.
+
+MacGahan toured the stricken regions of the Bulgarian uprising, and his report, splashed across the ''Daily News'''s front pages, galvanized British public opinion against Disraeli's pro-Ottoman policy.<ref>{{cite book |last=MacGahan |first=Januarius A. |date=1876 |title=Turkish Atrocities in Bulgaria, Letters of the Special Commissioner of the 'Daily News,' J.A. MacGahan, Esq., with An Introduction & Mr. Schuyler's Preliminary Report |publisher=Bradbury Agnew and Co. |location=London |url=https://archive.org/details/MacGahanTurkishAtrocitiesInBulgaria |accessdate=26 January 2016}}</ref> In September, opposition leader [[William Ewart Gladstone|William Gladstone]] published his ''Bulgarian Horrors and the Question of the East''{{Sfn | Gladstone | 1876}} calling upon Britain to withdraw its support for Turkey and proposing that Europe demand independence for Bulgaria and Bosnia and Herzegovina.{{Sfn | Gladstone | 1876 | p = 64}} As the details became known across Europe, many dignitaries, including [[Charles Darwin]], [[Oscar Wilde]], [[Victor Hugo]] and [[Giuseppe Garibaldi]], publicly condemned the Ottoman abuses in Bulgaria.<ref>{{Citation | url = http://www.bulgaria-embassy.org/History_of_Bulgaria.htm#THE%20BULGARIAN%20REVIVAL | title = History of Bulgaria | contribution = The liberation of Bulgaria | publisher = Bulgarian embassy | place = US | deadurl = yes | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20101011003946/http://www.bulgaria-embassy.org/History_of_Bulgaria.htm#THE%20BULGARIAN%20REVIVAL | archivedate = 2010-10-11 | df = }}.</ref>
+
+The strongest reaction came from Russia. Widespread sympathy for the Bulgarian cause led to a nationwide surge in patriotism on a scale comparable with the one during the [[French invasion of Russia|Patriotic War of 1812]]. From autumn 1875, the movement to support the Bulgarian uprising involved all classes of Russian society. This was accompanied by sharp public discussions about Russian goals in this conflict: [[Slavophile]]s, including [[Fyodor Dostoevsky|Dostoevsky]], saw in the impending war the chance to unite all Orthodox nations under Russia's helm, thus fulfilling what they believed was the historic mission of Russia, while their opponents, [[westernizer]]s, inspired by [[Ivan Turgenev|Turgenev]], denied the importance of religion and believed that Russian goals should not be defense of Orthodoxy but liberation of Bulgaria.<ref>{{Citation|url=http://www.libfl.ru/win/nbc/books/bolgaria.html |first=ВМ |last=Хевролина |script-title=ru:Россия и Болгария: "Вопрос Славянский — Русский Вопрос" |publisher=Lib FL |place=[[Russia|RU]] |language=Russian |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071028062618/http://www.libfl.ru/win/nbc/books/bolgaria.html |archivedate=October 28, 2007 }}.</ref>
+
+===Serbo-Turkish War and diplomatic manoeuvering===
+{{Main|Serbo-Turkish War (1876–78)|Constantinople Conference|Expulsion of the Albanians 1877–1878}}
+[[File:Serio-comic war map for 1877.jpg|thumb|upright= 1.25|Serio-comic war map for 1877. Anti-Russian cartoon depicting Russia as a vicious octopus.]]
+[[File:Punch - The Dogs of War.png|Russia preparing to release the Balkan dogs of war, while Britain warns him to take care. ''[[Punch (magazine)|Punch]]'' cartoon from June 17, 1876|thumb|right]]
+On June 30, 1876, Serbia, followed by [[Montenegro]], declared war on the Ottoman Empire. In July and August, the ill-prepared and poorly equipped Serbian army helped by Russian volunteers failed to achieve offensive objectives but did manage to repulse the Ottoman offensive into Serbia. Meanwhile, Russia's [[Alexander II of Russia|Alexander II]] and [[Alexander Gorchakov|Prince Gorchakov]] met [[Austria-Hungary]]'s [[Franz Joseph I of Austria|Franz Joseph I]] and [[Julius Andrassy|Count Andrássy]] in the [[Zákupy|Reichstadt]] castle in [[Bohemia]]. No written agreement was made, but during the discussions, Russia agreed to support Austrian occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and [[Austria-Hungary]], in exchange, agreed to support the return of Southern [[Bessarabia]]—lost by Russia during the [[Crimean War]]—and Russian annexation of the port of [[Batumi|Batum]] on the east coast of the [[Black Sea]]. Bulgaria was to become autonomous (independent, according to the Russian records).<ref>{{Citation | url = http://www.diphis.ru/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=100#3 | title = History of world diplomacy 15th century BC – 1940 AD | last = Potemkin | first = VP | place = [[Russia|RU]] | publisher = Diphis}}.</ref>
+
+As the fighting in Bosnia and Herzegovina continued, Serbia suffered a string of setbacks and asked the European powers to mediate an end to the war. A joint ultimatum by the European powers forced the Porte to give Serbia a one-month truce and start peace negotiations. Turkish peace conditions however were refused by European powers as too harsh. In early October, after the truce expired, the Turkish army resumed its offensive and the Serbian position quickly became desperate. On October 31, Russia issued an ultimatum requiring the Ottoman Empire to stop the hostilities and sign a new truce with Serbia within 48 hours. This was supported by the partial mobilization of the Russian army (up to 20 divisions). The Sultan accepted the conditions of the ultimatum.
+
+To resolve the crisis, on December 11, 1876, the [[Constantinople Conference]] of the Great Powers was opened in Constantinople (to which the Turks were not invited). A compromise solution was negotiated, granting autonomy to [[Bulgaria]], Bosnia and Herzegovina under the joint control of European powers. The Ottomans, however, refused to sacrifice their independence by allowing international representatives to oversee the institution of reforms and sought to discredit the conference by announcing on December 23, the day the conference was closed, that a [[First Constitutional Era (Ottoman Empire)|constitution]] was adopted that declared equal rights for religious minorities within the Empire. The Ottomans attempted to use this manoeuver to get their objections and amendments to the agreement heard. When they were rejected by the Great Powers, the Ottoman Empire announced its decision to disregard the results of the conference.
+
+On January 15, 1877, Russia and Austria-Hungary signed a written agreement confirming the results of an earlier [[Reichstadt Agreement]] in July 1876. This assured Russia of the benevolent neutrality of Austria-Hungary in the impending war. These terms meant that in case of war Russia would do the fighting and Austria would derive most of the advantage. Russia therefore made a final effort for a peaceful settlement. After reaching an agreement with its main Balkan rival and with anti-Ottoman sympathies running high throughout Europe due to the Bulgarian atrocities and the rejection of the Constantinople agreements, Russia finally felt free to declare war.
+
+==Course of the war==
+{{See also|Romanian War of Independence}}
+
+===Opening manoeuvres===
+[[File:Нижегородские драгуны, преследующие турок по дороге к Карсу во время Аладжинского сражения 3 октября 1877 года.jpg|thumb|Dragoons of Nizhny Novgorod pursuing the Turks near [[Kars]], 1877, painting by [[Aleksey Kivshenko]]]]
+
+Russia declared war on the Ottomans on 24 April 1877 and its troops entered Romania through the newly built [[Eiffel Bridge, Ungheni|Eiffel Bridge]] near Ungheni, on the Prut river. On April 12, 1877, Romania gave permission to the Russian troops to pass through its territory to attack the Turks, resulting in Turkish bombardments of Romanian towns on the Danube. On May 10, 1877, the [[Principality of Romania]], which was under formal Turkish rule, declared its independence.<ref>{{Citation | url = http://www.cs.kent.edu/~amarcus/Mihai/english/cronologieen.html | title = Chronology of events from 1856 to 1997 period relating to the Romanian monarchy | publisher = Kent State University | place = Ohio | deadurl = yes | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20071230042922/http://www.cs.kent.edu/~amarcus/Mihai/english/cronologieen.html | archivedate = 2007-12-30 | df = }}</ref>
+
+At the beginning of the war, the outcome was far from obvious. The Russians could send a larger army into the Balkans: about 300,000 troops were within reach. The Ottomans had about 200,000 troops on the Balkan peninsula, of which about 100,000 were assigned to fortified garrisons, leaving about 100,000 for the army of operation. The Ottomans had the advantage of being fortified, complete command of the Black Sea, and patrol boats along the [[Danube]] river.<ref>{{Citation | url = https://archive.org/details/warineastillustr00scheiala | title = The War in the East: An illustrated history of the Conflict between Russia and Turkey with a Review of the Eastern Question | year = 1878 | author-link = Alexander Jacob Schem | last = Schem | first = Alexander Jacob}}.</ref> They also possessed superior arms, including new British and American-made rifles and German-made artillery.
+
+[[File:Pereprava cherez Dunaj.jpg|thumb|left|Russian crossing of the Danube, June 1877, painting by [[Nikolai Dmitriev-Orenburgsky]], 1883]]
+
+In the event, however, the Ottomans usually resorted to passive defense, leaving the strategic initiative to the Russians, who, after making some mistakes, found a winning strategy for the war. The Ottoman military command in Constantinople made poor assumptions of Russian intentions. They decided that Russians would be too lazy to march along the Danube and cross it away from the delta, and would prefer the short way along the [[Black Sea]] coast. This would be ignoring the fact that the coast had the strongest, best supplied and garrisoned Turkish fortresses. There was only one well manned fortress along the inner part of the river Danube, [[Vidin]]. It was garrisoned only because the troops, led by Osman Pasha, had just taken part in defeating the Serbs in their recent war against the Ottoman Empire.
+
+The Russian campaign was better planned, but it relied heavily on Turkish passivity. A crucial Russian mistake was sending too few troops initially; an expeditionary force of about 185,000 crossed the Danube in June, slightly less than the combined Turkish forces in the Balkans (about 200,000). After setbacks in July (at [[Pleven]] and [[Stara Zagora]]), the Russian military command realized it did not have the reserves to keep the offensive going and switched to a defensive posture. The Russians did not even have enough forces to blockade Pleven properly until late August, which effectively delayed the whole campaign for about two months.
+
+===Balkan theatre===
+[[File:Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878).png|thumb|Map of the Balkan Theater]]
+At the start of the war, Russia and Romania destroyed all vessels along the Danube and [[Naval mine|mined]] the river, thus ensuring that Russian forces could cross the Danube at any point without resistance from the [[Ottoman Navy|Ottoman navy]]. The Ottoman command did not appreciate the significance of the Russians' actions. In June, a small Russian unit crossed the Danube close to the delta, at [[Galați]], and marched towards Ruschuk (today [[Rousse|Ruse]]). This made the Ottomans even more confident that the big Russian force would come right through the middle of the Ottoman stronghold.
+
+[[File:Kärtchen zur Schlacht bei Plewna (11. & 12.09.1877).jpg|thumb|left|Russian, Romanian and Ottoman troop movements at [[Pleven|Plevna]]]]
+
+On 25–26 May, a Romanian torpedo boat with a mixed Romanian-Russian crew [[Action off Măcin|attacked and sank]] an Ottoman monitor on the Danube.<ref>[http://www.navypedia.org/ships/turkey/tu_of_hizber.htm Navypedia.org: Ottoman navy: Hizber river monitors]</ref> Under the direct command of Major-General [[Mikhail Ivanovich Dragomirov]], on the night of 27/28 June 1877 ([[New Style|NS]]) the Russians constructed a pontoon bridge across the Danube at [[Svishtov]]. After a short battle in which the Russians suffered 812 killed and wounded,<ref>{{Citation | title = Bayonets before Bullets: The Imperial Russian Army, 1861–1914 | first = Bruce | last = Menning | publisher = Indiana University Press | year = 2000 | page = 57}}.</ref> the Russian secured the opposing bank and drove off the Ottoman infantry brigade defending Svishtov. At this point the Russian force was divided into three parts: the Eastern Detachment under the command of [[Tsarevich]] Alexander Alexandrovich, the future Tsar [[Alexander III of Russia]], assigned to capture the fortress of Ruschuk and cover the army's eastern flank; the Western Detachment, to capture the fortress of [[Nikopol, Bulgaria]] and cover the army's western flank; and the Advance Detachment under Count [[Joseph Vladimirovich Gourko]], which was assigned to quickly move via [[Veliko Tarnovo]] and penetrate the [[Balkan Mountains]], the most significant barrier between the Danube and Constantinople.
+
+[[File:Boj u Ivanovo-Chiflik.jpg|thumb|Fighting near Ivanovo-Chiflik]]
+
+Responding to the Russian crossing of the Danube, the Ottoman high command in Constantinople ordered [[Osman Nuri Paşa]] to advance east from [[Vidin]] occupy the fortress of [[Nikopol, Bulgaria|Nikopol]], just west of the Russian crossing. On his way to Nikopol, Osman Pasha learned that the Russians had already captured the fortress and so moved to the crossroads town of Plevna (now known as [[Pleven]]), which he occupied with a force of approximately 15,000 on 19 July (NS).{{Sfn | von Herbert | 1895 | p = 131}} The Russians, approximately 9,000 under the command of General Schilder-Schuldner, reached Plevna early in the morning. Thus began the [[Siege of Plevna]].
+
+Osman Pasha organized a defense and repelled two Russian attacks with colossal casualties on the Russian side. At that point, the sides were almost equal in numbers and the Russian army was very discouraged.<ref>{{Citation | title = Reminiscences of the King of Roumania | publisher = Harper & Brothers | year = 1899 | pages = 274–75 | url = https://archive.org/stream/reminiscencesofk00kremiala#page/274/mode/2up}}.</ref> Most analysts agree that a counter-attack would have allowed the Ottomans to gain control of, and destroy, the Russians' bridge.{{who|date=August 2009}} However, Osman Pasha had orders to stay fortified in Plevna, and so he did not leave that fortress.
+
+[[File:GhaziOsmanPasha.jpg|thumb|left|[[Osman Nuri Pasha|Gazi Osman Pasha]]]]
+[[File:Nikopol dmitriev.jpg|thumb|left|The Ottoman capitulation at [[Nikopol, Bulgaria|Niğbolu (Nicopolis, modern Nikopol)]] in 1877 was significant, as it was the site of an [[Battle of Nicopolis|important Ottoman victory in 1396]] which marked the expansion of the Ottoman Empire into the Balkans.]]
+
+Russia had no more troops to throw against Plevna, so the Russians besieged it, and subsequently asked<ref>{{Citation | title = Reminiscences of the King of Roumania | publisher = Harper & Brothers | year = 1899 | page = 275 | url = https://archive.org/stream/reminiscencesofk00kremiala#page/274/mode/2up}}.</ref> the Romanians to provide extra troops. On August 9, Suleiman Pasha made an attempt to help Osman Pasha with 30,000 troops, but he was stopped by Bulgarians at the [[Battle of Shipka Pass]]. After three days of fighting, the volunteers were relieved by a Russian force led by General Radezky, and the Turkish forces withdrew. Soon afterwards, Romanian forces crossed the Danube and joined the siege. On August 16, at Gorni-Studen, the armies (West Army group) around Plevna were placed under the command of the Romanian Prince [[Carol I]], aided by the Russian general Pavel Dmitrievich Zotov and the Romanian general [[Alexandru Cernat]].
+
+The Turks maintained several fortresses around Pleven which the Russian and Romanian forces gradually reduced.<ref>{{Citation | last = Furneaux | first = Rupert | title = The Siege of Pleven | year = 1958}}.</ref>{{Sfn|von Herbert|1895}}{{Rp | needed = yes|date=March 2013}} The Romanian 4th Division led by General [[Gheorghe Manu]] took the Grivitsa redoubt after four bloody assaults and managed to keep it until the very end of the siege. The [[siege of Plevna]] (July–December 1877) turned to victory only after Russian and Romanian forces cut off all supply routes to the fortified Ottomans. With supplies running low, Osman Pasha made an attempt to break the Russian siege in the direction of Opanets. On December 9, in the middle of the night the Ottomans threw bridges over the Vit River and crossed it, attacked on a {{convert |2|mi|km|adj =on}} front and broke through the first line of Russian trenches. Here they fought hand to hand and bayonet to bayonet, with little advantage to either side. Outnumbering the Ottomans almost 5 to 1, the Russians drove the Ottomans back across the Vit. Osman Pasha was wounded in the leg by a stray bullet, which killed his horse beneath him. Making a brief stand, the Ottomans eventually found themselves driven back into the city, losing 5,000 men to the Russians' 2,000. The next day, Osman surrendered the city, the garrison, and his sword to the Romanian colonel, [[Mihail Cerchez]]. He was treated honorably, but his troops perished in the snows by the thousand as they straggled off into captivity. The more seriously wounded were left behind in their camp hospitals, only to be murdered by the Bulgarians.<ref>{{Citation | author = Lord Kinross | title = The Ottoman Centuries | year = 1977 | page = 522 | publisher = Morrow Quill}}.</ref>{{dubious |date=January 2011}}
+
+[[File:Zahvat grivickogo reduta.jpg|thumb|Taking of the Grivitsa redoubt by the Russians – a few hours later the redoubt was recaptured by the Ottomans and fell to the Romanians on 30 August 1877 in what became known as the "Third Battle of Grivitsa".]]
+
+At this point Serbia, having finally secured monetary aid from Russia, declared war on the Ottoman Empire again. This time there were far fewer Russian officers in the Serbian army but this was more than offset by the experience gained from the 1876–77 war. Under nominal command of [[Milan I of Serbia|prince Milan Obrenović]] (effective command was in hands of general [[Kosta Protić]], the army chief of staff), the [[Serbian Army]] went on offensive in what is now eastern south Serbia. A planned offensive into the Ottoman [[Sanjak of Novi Pazar]] was called off due to strong diplomatic pressure from [[Austria-Hungary]], which wanted to prevent Serbia and Montenegro from coming into contact, and which had designs to spread Austria-Hungary's influence through the area. The Ottomans, outnumbered unlike two years before, mostly confined themselves to passive defence of fortified positions. By the end of hostilities the Serbs had captured Ak-Palanka (today [[Bela Palanka]]), [[Pirot]], [[Niš]] and [[Vranje]].
+
+[[File:Battle at river Skit 1877.jpg|thumb|left|Battle at bridge Skit, November 1877]]
+
+Russians under [[Field Marshal]] [[Joseph Vladimirovich Gourko]] succeeded in capturing the passes at the [[Stara Planina]] mountain, which were crucial for maneuvering. Next, both sides fought a series of [[Battle of Shipka Pass|battles for Shipka Pass]]. Gourko made several attacks on the [[Shipka Pass|Pass]] and eventually secured it. Ottoman troops spent much effort to recapture this important route, to use it to reinforce Osman Pasha in Pleven, but failed. Eventually Gourko led a final offensive that crushed the Ottomans around Shipka Pass. The Ottoman offensive against Shipka Pass is considered one of the major mistakes of the war, as other passes were virtually unguarded. At this time a huge number of Ottoman troops stayed fortified along the Black Sea coast and engaged in very few operations.
+
+A Russian army crossed the Stara Planina by a high snowy pass in winter, guided and helped by local Bulgarians, not expected by the Ottoman army, and defeated the Turks at the [[Battle of Tashkessen]] and [[Battle of Sofia|took Sofia]]. The way was now open for a quick advance through [[Plovdiv]] and [[Edirne]] to [[Constantinople]].
+
+Besides the [[Romanian Army]] (which mobilized 130,000 men, losing 10,000 of them to this war), a strong [[Grand Duchy of Finland|Finnish]] contingent and more than 12,000 volunteer Bulgarian troops (''Opalchenie'') from the local [[Bulgaria]]n population as well as many ''[[hajduk]]'' detachments fought in the war on the side of the Russians. To express his gratitude to the Finnish battalion, the Tsar elevated the battalion on their return home to the name ''[[Old Guards (Russia)|Old Guard]] Battalion''.
+
+===Caucasian theatre===
+[[File:DefenceOfBayazet.jpg|thumb|Russian troops repulsing a Turkish assault against the fortress of [[Doğubeyazıt|Beyazid]] on June 8, 1877, oil painting by Lev Feliksovich Lagorio, 1891]]
+
+The Russian Caucasus Corps was stationed in [[History of Georgia (country)|Georgia]] and [[Russian Armenia|Armenia]], composed of approximately 50,000 men and 202 guns under the overall command of [[Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia|Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich]], [[Caucasus Viceroyalty (1844–1881)|Governor General of the Caucasus]].<ref>Menning. ''Bayonets before Bullets'', p. 78.</ref> The Russian force stood opposed by an [[Ottoman Army]] of 100,000 men led by General [[Ahmed Muhtar Pasha]]. While the Russian army was better prepared for the fighting in the region, it lagged behind technologically in certain areas such as [[heavy artillery]] and was outgunned, for example, by the superior long-range [[Krupp]] artillery that Germany had supplied to the Ottomans.{{Sfn|Allen|Muratoff|1953|pp=113–114}}
+
+The Caucasus Corps was led by a quartet of [[Armenian people|Armenian]] commanders: Generals [[Mikhail Loris-Melikov]], [[Arshak Ter-Gukasov]] (Ter-Ghukasov/Ter-Ghukasyan), [[Ivan Davidovich Lazarev|Ivan Lazarev]] and [[Beybut Shelkovnikov]].{{Sfn|Allen|Muratoff|1953|p=546}} Forces under [[Lieutenant-General]] Ter-Gukasov, stationed near [[Yerevan]], commenced the first assault into Ottoman territory by capturing the town of [[Doğubeyazıt|Bayazid]] on April 27, 1877.<ref name="SovArm">{{Citation | language = Armenian | contribution = Ռուս-Թուրքական Պատերազմ, 1877–1878 |trans-title=The Russo-Turkish War, 1877–1878 | title = [[Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia]] | volume = 10 | place = Yerevan | publisher = Armenian Academy of Sciences | year = 1984 | pages = 93–94}}.</ref> Capitalizing on Ter-Gukasov's victory there, Russian forces advanced, taking the region of [[Ardahan]] on May 17; Russian units also besieged the city of [[Kars]] in the final week of May, although Ottoman reinforcements lifted the siege and drove them back. Bolstered by reinforcements, in November 1877 General Lazarev launched a new attack on Kars, suppressing the southern forts leading to the city and capturing Kars itself on November 18.<ref>{{cite book| last1 = Walker | first1= Christopher J. | chapter = Kars in the Russo-Turkish Wars of the Nineteenth Century | title = Armenian Kars and Ani | editor1-first = Richard G | editor1-last = Hovannisian | location = Costa Mesa, California, USA | publisher = Mazda Publishers | date = 2011 | pages = 217–220}}</ref> On February 19, 1878 the strategic fortress town of [[Erzurum]] was taken by the Russians after a lengthy siege. Although they relinquished control of Erzerum to the Ottomans at the end the war, the Russians acquired the regions of [[Batumi|Batum]], [[Ardahan]], [[Kars]], [[Oltu|Olti]], and [[Sarıkamış|Sarikamish]] and reconstituted them into the [[Kars Oblast]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Melkonyan|first1=Ashot|editor1-last=Hovannisian|editor1-first=Richard G.|title=Armenian Kars and Ani|date=2011|publisher=Mazda Publishers|location=Costa Mesa, California, USA|pages=223–244|chapter=The Kars ''Oblast'', 1878–1918}}</ref>
+
+== Civilian government in Bulgaria during the war ==
+{{Main|Provisional Russian Administration in Bulgaria}}
+[[File:Plevna monument.jpg|300px|thumb|[[Plevna Chapel]] near the walls of [[Kitay-gorod]]]]
+After Bulgarian territories were liberated by the [[Imperial Russian Army]] during the war, they were governed initially by a [[Provisional Russian Administration in Bulgaria|provisional Russian administration]], which was established in April 1877. The [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)]] provided for the termination of this provisional Russian administration in May 1879, when the [[Principality of Bulgaria]] and [[Eastern Rumelia]] were established.<ref name="БДИ">{{cite book | year = 1987 | title = Българските държавни институции 1879–1986 | trans-title= Bulgarian State Institutions 1879–1986 | publisher = ДИ "Д-р Петър Берон" | location = София (Sofia, Bulgaria)| pages = 54–55}}</ref> The main objectives of the temporary Russian administration were to secure peace and order and to prepare for a revival of the Bulgarian state.
+
+==Aftermath==
+===Intervention by the Great Powers===
+Under pressure from the British, Russia accepted the truce offered by the Ottoman Empire on January 31, 1878, but continued to move towards [[Istanbul|Constantinople]].
+
+The British sent a fleet of battleships to intimidate Russia from entering the city, and Russian forces stopped at [[San Stefano]]. Eventually Russia entered into a settlement under the [[Treaty of San Stefano]] on March 3, by which the Ottoman Empire would recognize the independence of [[Principality of Romania|Romania]], Serbia, and Montenegro, and the autonomy of [[Principality of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]].
+
+Alarmed by the extension of Russian power into the Balkans, the [[Great Powers]] later forced modifications of the treaty in the [[Congress of Berlin]]. The main change here was that Bulgaria would be split, according to earlier agreements among the Great Powers that precluded the creation of a large new Slavic state: the northern and eastern parts to become principalities as before (Bulgaria and [[Eastern Rumelia]]), though with different governors; and the Macedonian region, originally part of Bulgaria under San Stefano, would return to direct Ottoman administration.<ref>L.S. Stavrianos, ''The Balkans Since 1453 '' (1958) pp 408-12.</ref>
+
+===Effects on Bulgaria's Muslim and Christian population===
+[[File:Turkish refugees sumla1877 wiki.jpg|thumb|250px|Turkish refugees fleeing from [[Tarnovo]] towards [[Shumen]]]]
+[[File:Klane na Stara Zagora.JPG|thumb|250px|Bones of massacred Bulgarians at [[Stara Zagora]]]]
+[[File:Carol Popp de Szathmáry - Cerchez călare.jpg|thumb|250px|Circassian horseman, during the Russo-Turkish War]]
+Muslim civilian casualties during the war are often estimated in the tens of thousands.<ref>{{Citation | title = Genocide in the Age of the Nation State: The rise of the West and the coming of genocide | first = Mark | last = Levene | year = 2005 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=3PsLXeDflfMC&pg=PA225&dq=muslims++1878+bulgaria+%22tens+of+thousands%22&hl=en&ei=tn89TdzJCY72sgaRttHzBg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CD8Q6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=muslims%20%201878%20bulgaria%20%22tens%20of%20thousands%22&f=false | page = 225}}.</ref> The perpetrators of those massacres are also disputed, with American historian [[Justin McCarthy (American historian)|Justin McCarthy]], claiming that they were carried out by Russian soldiers, Cossacks as well as Bulgarian volunteers and villagers, though there were few civilian casualties in battle.<ref name="McCarthy, J. 2001, p. 48">{{Citation | last = McCarthy | first = J | title = The Ottoman Peoples and the end of Empire | year = 2001 | page = 48 | publisher = Oxford University Press}}.</ref> while [[James J. Reid]] claims that [[Circassians]] were significantly responsible for the refugee flow, that there were civilian casualties from battle and even that the Ottoman army was responsible for casualties among the Muslim population.{{Sfn | Reid | 2000 | pp = 42–43}} According to [[John Joseph (academic)|John Joseph]] the Russian troops made frequent massacres of Muslim peasants to prevent them from disrupting their supply and troop movements. During the [[Harmanli Massacre|Battle of Harmanli]] accompanying this retaliation on Muslim non-combatants, it was reported that a huge group of Muslim townspeople were attacked by the Russian army, which as a result thousands died and their goods confiscated.<ref>{{Citation | title = The Congress of Berlin and after | first = William Norton | last = Medlicott | page = 157}}</ref><ref>{{Citation | title = Muslim-Christian Relations and Inter-Christian Rivalries in the Middle East | first = John | last = Joseph | page = 84 | year = 1983}}.</ref> The correspondent of the ''Daily News'' describes as an eyewitness the burning of four or five Turkish villages by the Russian troops in response to the Turks firing at the Russians from the villages, instead of behind rocks or trees{{Sfn | Reid | 2000 | p = 324}}, which must have appeared to the Russian soldiers as guerrilla attempts by the local Muslim populace upon the Russian contingencies operating against the Ottoman forces embedded in the area.
+
+The number of Muslim refugees is estimated by [[RJ Crampton]] to be 130,000.<ref>{{Citation | last = Crampton | first = RJ | title = A Concise History of Bulgaria | year = 1997 | publisher = Cambridge University Press | ISBN = 0-521-56719-X | page = 426}}.</ref> [[Richard C. Frucht]] estimates that only half (700,000) of the prewar Muslim population remained after the war, 216,000 had died and the rest emigrated.<ref>{{Citation | title = Eastern Europe | first = Richard C | last = Frucht | page = 641 | year = 2005}}.</ref> [[Douglas Arthur Howard]] estimates that half the 1.5 million Muslims, for the most part Turks, in prewar Bulgaria had disappeared by 1879. 200,000 had died, the rest became permanently refugees in Ottoman territories.<ref>{{Citation | title = The history of Turkey | first = Douglas Arthur | last = Howard | page = 67 | year = 2001}}</ref> However, it should be noted that according to one estimate, the total population of Bulgaria in its postwar borders was about 2.8 million in 1871,<ref>{{Citation | url = http://www.populstat.info/Europe/bulgaric.htm | publisher = Popul stat | title = Europe | contribution = Bulgaric}}.</ref> while according to official censuses, the total population was 2.823 million in 1880/81.<ref>{{Citation | title = Bulgaria | first = RJ | last = Crampton | year = 2007 | page = 424}}.</ref> And as such would make the aforementioned claim of 216,000 - 2.8 millions of persons dead due to Russian engagement and the subsequent fleeing of the majority of the Muslim population totally dubious.
+
+During the conflict a number of Muslim buildings and cultural centres were destroyed. A large library of old Turkish books was destroyed when a mosque in Turnovo was burned in 1877.{{Sfn | Crampton | 2006 | p = 111}} Most mosques in Sofia perished, seven of them destroyed in one night in December 1878 when a thunderstorm masked the noise of the explosions arranged by Russian military engineers."{{Sfn | Crampton | 2006 | p = 114}}
+
+The Christian population, especially in the initial stages of the war, that found itself in the path of the Ottoman armies also suffered greatly.
+
+The most notable massacre of Bulgarian civilians took part after the July [[Battle of Stara Zagora|battle]] of [[Stara Zagora]] when Gurko's forces had to retreat back to the Shipka pass. In the aftermath of the battle [[Suleiman Pasha (Ottoman general)|Suleiman Pasha]]'s forces burned down and plundered the town of Stara Zagora which by that time was one of the largest towns in the Bulgarian lands. The number of massacred Christian civilians during the battle is estimated at 15,000. Suleiman Pasha's forces also established in the whole valley of the [[Maritsa]] river a system of terror taking form in the hanging at the street corners of every Bulgarian who had in any way assisted the Russians, but even villages that had not assisted the Russians were destroyed and their inhabitants massacred.{{Sfn | Argyll | 1879 | p = 49}} As a result, as many as 100,000 civilian Bulgarians fled north to the Russian occupied territories.<ref name="Report on the Russian Army">{{cite book | first =Francis Vinton | last = Greene | title = Report on the Russian Army and its Campaigns in Turkey in 1877–1878 | publisher = D Appleton & Co | year = 1879 | page = 204}}</ref> Later on in the campaign the Ottoman forces [[Scorched earth|planned to burn]] the town of [[Sofia]] after Gurko had managed to overcome their resistance in the passes of Western part of the [[Balkan Mountains]]. Only the refusal of the Italian Consul [[Vito Positano]], the French Vice Consul Léandre François René le Gay and the Austro–Hungarian Vice Consul to leave Sofia prevented that from happening. After the Ottoman retreat, Positano even organized armed detachments to protect the population from [[Outlaw|marauders]] (regular Ottoman Army [[deserter]]s, [[bashi-bazouk]]s and [[Circassians]]).<ref name="sega">{{cite news|url=http://www.segabg.com/online/article.asp?issueid=315§ionid=4&id=00004|title=Позитано. "Души в окови"|last=Ivanov|first=Dmitri|date=2005-11-08|publisher=Sega|language=Bulgarian|accessdate=2009-04-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719054301/http://www.segabg.com/online/article.asp?issueid=315§ionid=4&id=00004|archive-date=2011-07-19|dead-url=yes|df=}}</ref>
+
+Bulgarian historians claim that 30,000 civilian Bulgarians were killed during the war, two thirds of which occurred in the Stara Zagora area.<ref>{{Citation | title = Russian-Turkish war 1877–1878 | first = Bozhidar | last = Dimitrov | year = 2002 | page = 75 | language = Bulgarian}}.</ref>
+
+===Effects on Bulgaria's Jewish population===
+Many Jewish communities in their entirety fled with the retreating Turks as their protectors. The ''Bulletins de l'[[Alliance Israélite Universelle]]'' reported that thousands of [[Bulgarian Jews]] found refuge at the Ottoman capital of [[Constantinople]].<ref>Tamir, V., ''Bulgaria and Her Jews: A dubious symbiosis'', 1979, p. 94–95, Yeshiva University Press</ref>
+
+===Internationalization of the Armenian Question===
+[[File:Emigration of Armenians into Georgia during the Russo-Turkish war of 1878-9 (A).jpg|thumb|Emigration of Armenians into Georgia during the Russo-Turkish war]]
+The conclusion of the Russo-Turkish war also led to the internationalization of the [[Armenian Question]]. Many [[Armenians]] in the eastern provinces ([[Turkish Armenia]]) of the Ottoman Empire greeted the advancing Russians as liberators. Violence and instability directed at Armenians during the war by Kurd and Circassian bands had left many Armenians looking toward the invading Russians as the ultimate guarantors of their security. In January 1878, [[Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople]] [[Nerses II Varzhapetian]] approached the Russian leadership with the view of receiving assurances that the Russians would introduce provisions in the prospective peace treaty for self-administration in the Armenian provinces. Though not as explicit, Article 16 of the Treaty of San Stefano read:
+{{quotation |As the evacuation of the Russian troops of the territory they occupy in Armenia, and which is to be restored to Turkey, might give rise to conflicts and complications detrimental to the maintenance of good relations between the two countries, the Sublime Porte engaged to carry into effect, without further delay, the improvements and reforms demanded by local requirements in the provinces inhabited by Armenians and to guarantee their security from Kurds and Circassians.<ref>{{Citation | last = Hertslet | first = Edward | authorlink = Edward Hertslet | title = The Map of Europe by Treaty | volume = 4 | place = London | publisher = Butterworths | year = 1891 | page = 2686}}.</ref>}}
+
+Great Britain, however, took objection to Russia holding on to so much Ottoman territory and forced it to enter into new negotiations by convening the Congress of Berlin in June 1878. An Armenian delegation led by prelate [[Mkrtich Khrimian]] traveled to Berlin to present the case of the Armenians but, much to its chagrin, was left out of the negotiations. Article 16 was modified and watered down, and all mention of the Russian forces remaining in the provinces was removed. In the final text of the Treaty of Berlin, it was transformed into Article 61, which read:
+{{quotation |The Sublime Porte undertakes to carry out, without further delay, the improvements and reforms demanded by local requirements in the provinces inhabited by Armenians, and to guarantee their security against the Circassians and Kurds. It will periodically make known the steps taken to this effect to the powers, who will superintend their application.<ref>{{Citation | last = Hurewitz | first = Jacob C | title = Diplomacy in the Near and Middle East: A Documentary Record 1535–1956 | volume = I | place = Princeton, NJ | publisher = Van Nostrand | year = 1956 | page = 190}}.</ref>}}
+
+As it turned out, the reforms were not forthcoming. Khrimian returned to Constantinople and delivered a famous speech in which he likened the peace conference to a {{"'}}big cauldron of Liberty Stew' into which the big nations dipped their 'iron ladles' for real results, while the Armenian delegation had only a 'Paper Ladle'. 'Ah dear Armenian people,' Khrimian said, 'could I have dipped my Paper Ladle in the cauldron it would sog and remain there! Where guns talk and sabers shine, what significance do appeals and petitions have?{{'"}}<ref>[[Peter Balakian|Balkian, Peter]]. ''The Burning Tigris: The Armenian Genocide and America's Response''. New York: HarperCollins, 2003, p. 44.</ref> Given the absence of tangible improvements in the plight of the Armenian community, a number of Armenian intellectuals living in Europe and Russia in the 1880s and 1890s formed political parties and revolutionary societies to secure better conditions for their compatriots in Anatolia and other parts of the Ottoman Empire.<ref>{{Citation | first = Richard G | last = Hovannisian | contribution = The Armenian Question in the Ottoman Empire, 1876–1914 | title = The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times | volume = ''Volume II: Foreign Dominion to Statehood: The Fifteenth Century to the Twentieth Century'' | editor-first = Richard G | editor-last = Hovannisian | place = New York | publisher = St Martin's Press |year =1997| pages = 206–12 | ISBN = 0-312-10168-6}}.</ref>
+
+==Lasting effects==
+
+===International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement===
+[[File:Croixrouge logos.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Red Cross]] and the [[Red Crescent]] emblems]]
+This war caused a division in the [[Emblems of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement|emblems]] of the [[International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement]] which continues to this day. Both Russia and the Ottoman Empire had signed the [[First Geneva Convention]] (1864), which made the [[Emblems of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement#Red Cross|Red Cross]], a color reversal of the [[Flag of Switzerland|flag]] of neutral [[Switzerland]], the sole emblem of protection for military medical personnel and facilities. However, during this war the cross instead reminded the Ottomans of the [[Crusades]]; so they elected to replace the cross with the [[Emblems of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement#Red Crescent|Red Crescent]] instead. This ultimately became the symbol of the Movement's national societies in most [[Muslim]] countries, and was ratified as an emblem of protection by later [[Geneva Conventions]] in 1929 and again in 1949 (the current version).
+
+[[Iran]], which neighbored both the Russian Empire and Ottoman Empire, considered them to be rivals, and probably considered the Red Crescent in particular to be an Ottoman symbol; except for the Red Crescent being centered and without a star, it is a color reversal of the [[Ottoman flag]] (and the modern [[Flag of Turkey|Turkish flag]]). This appears to have led to their national society in the Movement being initially known as the [[Red Lion and Sun Society]], using a [[Emblems of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement#The Red Lion and Sun|red version]] of the [[Lion and Sun]], a traditional Iranian symbol. After the [[Iranian Revolution]] of 1979, Iran switched to the Red Crescent, but the Geneva Conventions continue to recognize the Red Lion and Sun as an emblem of protection.
+
+==In popular culture==
+The novel ''[[The Doll (novel)|The Doll]]'' (Polish title: ''Lalka''), written in 1887–1889 by [[Bolesław Prus]], describes consequences of the Russo-Turkish war for merchants living in Russia and partitioned Poland. The main protagonist helped his Russian friend, a multi-millionaire, and made a fortune supplying the Russian Army in 1877–1878. The novel describes trading during political instability, and its ambiguous results for Russian and Polish societies.
+
+The 1912 silent film ''[[Independența României]]'' depicted the war in [[Romania]].
+
+== See also ==
+* [[Battles of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)]]
+* [[Ottoman fleet organisation during the Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)]]
+* [[Batak massacre]]
+* [[Romanian War of Independence]]
+* [[Harmanli massacre]]
+* [[History of the Balkans]]
+* [[Provisional Russian Administration in Bulgaria]]
+* ''[[The Turkish Gambit]]''
+* ''[[Marche slave]]''
+
+==Notes==
+{{Reflist | group = "lower-alpha"}}
+
+==References==
+{{reflist |colwidth=30em}}
+
+==Bibliography==
+* {{Citation | last1 = Allen | first1 = William ED | first2 = Paul | last2 = Muratoff | title = Caucasian Battlefields | publisher = Cambridge University Press | location = Cambridge | year = 1953}}.
+* {{Citation | url = https://archive.org/details/easternquestionf01argyuoft | title = The Eastern question from the Treaty of Paris 1836 to the Treaty of Berlin 1878 and to the Second Afghan War | volume = 2 | last = Argyll | first = George Douglas Campbell | place = London | publisher = Strahan | year = 1879}}.
+* {{cite book |last=Clodfelter |first=M. |title=Warfare and Armed Conflicts: A Statistical Encyclopedia of Casualty and Other Figures, 1492-2015 |publisher=McFarland |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |year=2017 |edition=4th |isbn=978-0786474707 |ref=harv }}
+* {{Citation | last = Crampton | first = RJ | title = A Concise History of Bulgaria | place = Cambridge | publisher = [[Cambridge University Press]] | year = 2006 | origyear = 1997 | ISBN = 0-521-85085-1}}.
+* {{Citation | author-link = William Ewart Gladstone | last = Gladstone | first = William Ewart | title = Bulgarian Horrors and the Question of the East | url = http://openlibrary.org/b/OL7083313M/Bulgarian-horrors-and-the-question-of-the-east | place = London | publisher = William Clowes & Sons | year = 1876}}.
+* {{cite book |last=Greene |first= F.V.|author-link = Francis Vinton Greene|title= The Russian Army and its Campaigns in Turkey |publisher= D.Appleton and Company |place=New York |year=1879 |pages= |url= https://archive.org/stream/russianarmyitsca00greeuoft#page/n3/mode/2up|accessdate= July 19, 2018|via= Internet Archive}}
+* {{Citation |last=von Herbert |first=Frederick William |year=1895 |title=The Defence of Plevna 1877 |url= https://archive.org/stream/defenceofplevna100harluoft#page/n7 |publisher=Longmans, Green & Co |place=London |via=Internet Archive |accessdate= 26 July 2018}}.
+* {{cite book |title= The War Correspondence of the "Daily News" 1877 with a Connecting Narrative Forming a Continuous History of the War Between Russia and Turkey to the Fall of Kars Including the Letters of Mr. Archibald Forbes, Mr. J. A. MacGahan and Many Other Special Correspondents in Europe and Asia |place= London |publisher= Macmillan and Co. |year= 1878 |accessdate= 26 July 2018 |url= https://archive.org/stream/warcorrespondenc00forbrich#page/n3/mode/1up |via= Internet Archive}}
+*{{cite book |title= The War Correspondence of the "Daily News" 1877-1878 continued from the Fall of Kars to the Signature of the Preliminaries of Peace |place= London |publisher= Macmillan and Co. |year= 1878 |accessdate= 26 July 2018 |url= https://archive.org/stream/warcorrespondenc00londrich#page/n3 |via= Internet Archive}}
+* {{cite book |last=Maurice |first= Major F.|author-link= Frederick Barton Maurice |title = The Russo-Turkish War 1877; A Strategical Sketch |place= London |publisher= Swan Sonneschein |year= 1905 |url=https://archive.org/stream/russoturkishwar100mauruoft#page/n7 |accessdate= August 8, 2018 |via= Internet Archive }}
+* {{Citation | title = Genocide and gross human rights violations: in comparative perspective | first = Kurt | last = Jonassohn | year = 1999 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=jIxCUXI38zcC&pg=PA210&dq=batak+church+bulgaria&hl=en&ei=rkefTfaiDobKtAa_ofDiAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CFkQ6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=batak%20church%20bulgaria&f=false}}.* {{Citation | last = Reid | first = James J | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Zgg6c_Ndtu4C&pg=PA42&dq=%22muslim+casualties%22+1878&hl=en&ei=Oqc8TfeiKsKUswbmoLTzBg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22muslim%20casualties%22%201878&f=false | title = Crisis of the Ottoman Empire: Prelude to Collapse 1839–1878 | place = Stuttgart | publisher = Steiner | year = 2000}}.
+* {{Citation | author1-link = Stanford J. Shaw| last1 = Shaw | first1 = Stanford J | first2 = Ezel Kural | last2 = Shaw | title = History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey | volume = 2, Reform, Revolution, and Republic: The Rise of Modern Turkey 1808–1975 | place = Cambridge | publisher = Cambridge University Press | year = 1977 |URL=https://books.google.com/books/about/History_of_the_Ottoman_Empire_and_Modern.html?id=E9-YfgVZDBkC}}.
+* Stavrianos, L.S. ''The Balkans Since 1453 '' (1958) pp 393-412. [https://archive.org/details/balkanssince145300lsst online free to borrow]
+==Further reading==
+* {{cite journal | last = Acar | first = Keziban |date=March 2004 | title = An examination of Russian Imperialism: Russian Military and intellectual descriptions of the Caucasians during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 | journal = [[Nationalities Papers]] | volume = 32 | issue = 1 | pages = 7–21 | doi = 10.1080/0090599042000186151}}
+* Drury, Ian. ''The Russo-Turkish War 1877'' (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2012).
+* {{Citation | last = Glenny | first = Misha | title = The Balkans: Nationalism, War, and the Great Powers, 1804–2011 | place = New York | publisher = Penguin | year = 2012}}.
+* {{ru icon}} Kishmishev, Stepan I. (1884), ''Войнa вь Tурецкой Арменіи'', Saint Petersburg: Voen Publication.
+* Norman, Charles B. (1878), ''Armenia, and the Campaign of 1877'', London: Cassell Petter & Galpin.
+* {{Citation | editor1-last = Yavuz | editor1-first = M Hakan | editor2-first = Peter | editor2-last = Sluglett | title = War and Diplomacy: The Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 and the Treaty of Berlin | place = Salt Lake City | publisher = University of Utah Press | year = 2012}}.
+
+==External links==
+{{Commons category|Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)}}
+{{EB1911 Poster|Russo-Turkish Wars|Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)}}
+* {{Citation | url = http://sparky.harvard.edu/kokkalis/GSW4/SeegelPAPER.PDF | format = [[PDF]] | title = Virtual War, Virtual Journalism?: Russian Media Responses to 'Balkan' Entanglements in Historical Perspective, 1877–2001 | first = Steven J | last = Seegel | publisher = Brown University | place = USA}}.
+* {{Citation | url = http://www.digitalbookindex.com/_search/search010hstmilitaryrussoturkishwara.asp | title = Military History: Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) | publisher = Digital book index}}.
+* {{Citation|url=http://www.lib.msu.edu/sowards/balkan/ |title=Twenty Five Lectures on Modern Balkan History |first=Steven W |last=Sowards |publisher=MSU |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015050852/http://www.lib.msu.edu/sowards/balkan/ |archivedate=October 15, 2007 }}.
+* {{Citation | language = Russian | url = http://grandwar.kulichki.net/turkwar/ | title = Grand war | contribution = Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 and the Exploits of Liberators | publisher = Kulichki}}.
+* {{Citation | url = http://www.balkanhistory.com/romanian_army_1878.htm | title = The Romanian Army of the Russo-Turkish War 1877–1878 | publisher = AOL}}.
+* {{Citation|language=Bulgarian |url=http://erastimes.8m.net/gambit_b3.htm |type=image gallery |publisher=8M |title=Erastimes |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061013190221/http://erastimes.8m.net/gambit_b3.htm |archivedate=October 13, 2006 }}
+* [http://diaryrh.ru/historical-photos/russo-turkish-war-of-1877-1878 Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878). Historical photos.]
+
+=== Video links ===
+'''130 years Liberation of Pleven (Plevna)'''
+* {{Citation | url = http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2277670243812622513 | type = speech | date = 3 March 2007 | title = Mayor of Pleven | first = Najden | last = Zelenogorsky | format = video | publisher = Google | access-date = 30 April 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071025032014/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2277670243812622513 | archive-date = 25 October 2007 | dead-url = yes | df = dmy-all }}.
+* {{Citation | url = http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2590633937611339870 | type = speech | date = 3 March 2007 | title = Bulgarian Prime Minister | first = Sergej | last = Stanishev | format = video | publisher = Google | access-date = 30 April 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071025032004/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2590633937611339870 | archive-date = 25 October 2007 | dead-url = yes | df = dmy-all }}.
+* {{Citation | url = http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8057139363203914069 | type = speech | date = 3 March 2007 | last = Potapov | title = Ambassador of Russia in Bulgaria | format = video | publisher = Google | access-date = 30 April 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071024111430/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8057139363203914069 | archive-date = 24 October 2007 | dead-url = yes | df = dmy-all }}.
+
+{{Great power diplomacy}}
+{{Russian Conflicts}}
+{{Great Eastern Crisis}}
+{{Abdul Hamid II}}
+
+{{DEFAULTSORT:Russo-Turkish War (1877-78)}}
+[[Category:Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)|*]]
+[[Category:Conflicts in 1877]]
+[[Category:Conflicts in 1878]]
+[[Category:Modern history of Bulgaria]]
+[[Category:Wars involving Chechnya]]
+[[Category:Wars involving Romania]]
+[[Category:Wars involving Serbia]]
+[[Category:Wars involving Montenegro]]
+[[Category:Wars involving Bulgaria]]
+[[Category:Russo-Turkish wars]]
+[[Category:1877 in Bulgaria]]
+[[Category:1878 in Bulgaria]]
+[[Category:1870s in the Ottoman Empire]]
+[[Category:Modern history of Armenia]]
+[[Category:Modern history of Georgia (country)]]
+
+{{refimprove|date=March 2018}}
+[[File:Treaty of San Stefano.jpg|thumb|300px|The signing of the treaty of San Stefano]]
+The 1878 '''Preliminary Treaty of San Stefano''' ([[Russian language|Russian]]: Сан-Стефанский мир; Peace of San-Stefano, Сан-Стефанский мирный договор; Peace treaty of San-Stefano, [[Turkish language|Turkish]]: ''Ayastefanos Muahedesi'' or ''Ayastefanos Antlaşması'') was a treaty between [[Russian Empire|Russia]] and the [[Ottoman Empire]] signed at [[Yeşilköy|San Stefano]], then a village west of [[Istanbul|Constantinople]], on {{OldStyleDate|3 March |1878|19 February}} by Count [[Nicholas Pavlovich Ignatiev]] and [[Aleksandr Nelidov]] on behalf of the Russian Empire and Foreign Minister [[Mehmed Esad Saffet Paşa|Safvet Pasha]] and Ambassador to Germany [[Sadullah Pasha|Sadullah Bey]] on behalf of the Ottoman Empire.<ref>{{Citation |last= Hertslet |first= Edward |author-link=Edward Hertslet |year=1891 |editor-last= |editor-first= |contribution= Preliminary Treaty of Peace between Russia and Turkey. Signed at San Stefano 19 February/3 March 1878 (Translation)|title= The Map of Europe by Treaty; which have taken place since the general peace of 1814. With numerous maps and notes |volume= IV (1875-1891) |edition=First |publisher= Her Majesty's Stationery Office |publication-date=1891|publication-place= London |pages= 2672–2696 |url=https://archive.org/stream/mapofeuropebytre04hert#page/2672/mode/2up|accessdate=2013-01-04 }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last= Holland|first= Thomas Erskine |author-link= Thomas Erskine Holland |year=1885 |editor-last= |editor-first= |title= The European Concert in the Eastern Question and Other Public Acts |contribution= The Preliminary Treaty of Peace, signed at San Stefano, 17 March 1878 |volume= |edition= |publisher= Clarendon Press |publication-date= |publication-place= Oxford |pages= 335–348 |url= https://archive.org/stream/europeanconcerti00holluoft#page/334/mode/2up |accessdate=2013-03-04 }}</ref> The treaty ended the [[Russo-Turkish War, 1877–78]].<ref>{{cite book |author=J. D. B. |author-link = James Bourchier |chapter= Bulgaria (Treaties of San Stefano and Berlin)|title=The Encyclopaedia Britannica; A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, Literature and General Information |page= 782 |year=1910 |volume=IV (BISHARIN to CALGARY)|edition= 11th |publisher=At the University Press |place=Cambridge, England |url= https://archive.org/stream/encyclopaediabri04chisrich#page/782/mode/2up |accessdate= 16 July 2018 |via= Internet Archive}}</ref>
+
+According to the official Russian position, by signing the treaty, Russia had never intended anything more than a temporary rough draft, so as to enable a final settlement with the other Great Powers.<ref>{{Citation |last= Holland|first= Thomas Erskine |author-link= Thomas Erskine Holland |year=1898 |editor-last= |editor-first= |contribution= The Execution of the Treaty of Berlin |title= Studies in International Law |volume= |edition= |publisher= Clarendon Press |publication-date= |publication-place= Oxford |pages= 227 |url= https://archive.org/stream/cu31924007461654#page/n237/mode/2up |accessdate=2013-02-02 }}</ref><ref>Although it was inconsistent with the [[Treaty of Paris (1856)|Treaty of Paris of 1856]] and with the London Convention of 1871, and for that reason was justly protested by Great Britain, the Preliminary Treaty of Peace of San Stefano was, according to [[International law|general international law]], valid. See {{Citation |last=Kelsen |first=Hans |author-link= Hans Kelsen|year= 1952 |editor-last= |editor-first= |contribution= |title=Principles of International Law |volume= |edition= |publisher= Rinehart & Company Inc. |publication-date= 1952 |publication-place= New York |pages=365 |url= |accessdate= }}</ref>
+
+The treaty provided for the creation of an autonomous [[Principality of Bulgaria]] following almost 500 years of Ottoman domination. The day the treaty was signed, {{OldStyleDate|3 March |1878|19 February}}, is celebrated as Liberation Day in Bulgaria. However, the enlarged Bulgaria envisioned by the treaty alarmed neighboring states as well as France and Great Britain. As a result, it was never implemented, being superseded by the [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]] following the [[Congress of Berlin|Congress]] of the same name that took place three months later.<ref>{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Bulgaria/History}}</ref>
+
+==Effects==
+
+===On Bulgaria===
+[[File:Bulgaria-SanStefano -(1878)-byTodorBozhinov.png|right|thumb|300px|Borders of Bulgaria according to the Preliminary Treaty of San Stefano and the Treaty of Berlin.]] The treaty established the autonomous self-governing [[Principality of Bulgaria]], with a Christian government and the right to keep an army. Though still ''[[de jure]]'' tributary to Turkey, the Principality ''[[de facto]]'' functioned as independent nation. Its territory included the plain between the [[Danube]] and the Balkan mountain range ([[Stara Planina]]), the region of [[Sofia]], [[Pirot]] and [[Vranje]] in the [[Morava rivers, Serbia|Morava]] valley, Northern [[Thrace]], parts of [[Eastern Thrace]] and nearly all of [[Macedonia (region)|Macedonia]] (Article 6).
+
+Bulgaria would thus have had direct access to the [[Mediterranean]]. This carried the potential of [[Russia]]n ships eventually using Bulgarian Mediterranean ports as naval bases - which the other Great Powers greatly disliked.
+
+A prince elected by the people, approved by Turkey, and recognized by the [[Great Powers]] was to take the helm of the country (Article 7). A council of Bulgarian noblemen was to draft a constitution (also Article 7). (They produced the [[Tarnovo Constitution]].) Ottoman troops were to withdraw from Bulgaria, while Russian troops would remain for two more years (Article 8).
+
+===Montenegro, Serbia, and Romania===
+Under the treaty, [[Principality of Montenegro|Montenegro]] more than doubled its territory, acquiring formerly Ottoman-controlled areas including the cities of [[Nikšić]], [[Podgorica]], and [[Bar, Montenegro|Bar]] (Article 1), and the Ottoman Empire recognized its independence (Article 2).
+
+[[Principality of Serbia|Serbia]] gained the cities of [[Niš]] and [[Leskovac]] in [[Moravian Serbia]] and became independent (Article 3).
+
+Turkey recognized the independence of [[Romanian Principalities|Romania]] (Article 5). Romania gained [[Northern Dobruja]] from Russia (to which it was transferred from the Ottoman Empire) and ceded [[Southern Bessarabia]] in a forced exchange.
+
+===On Russia and the Ottoman Empire===
+[[Image:HouseOfSanStefanoTreaty.jpg|right|250px|thumb|The Treaty was signed in this house of the Simeonoglou family in [[Yeşilköy]].]]
+In exchange for the [[war reparations]], the Porte ceded [[Armenia]]n and [[Georgia (country)|Georgian]] territories in the [[Caucasus]] to Russia, including [[Ardahan]], [[Artvin]], [[Batumi|Batum]], [[Kars]], [[Oltu|Olti]], [[Doğubeyazıt|Beyazit]], and [[Eleşkirt|Alashkert]]. Additionally, it ceded [[Northern Dobruja]], which Russia handed to Romania in exchange for [[Southern Bessarabia]] (Article 19).
+
+===On other regions===
+The [[Vilayet of Bosnia]] ([[Bosnia and Herzegovina]]) was supposed to become an autonomous province (Article 14) like Serbia was; [[Crete]], [[Epirus]] and [[Thessaly]] were to receive a limited form of local self-government (Article 15), while the Ottomans vouched for their earlier-given promises to handle reforms in [[Armenia]] in order to protect the Armenians from abuse (Article 16).
+
+The Straits — the [[Bosporus]] and the [[Dardanelles]] — were declared open to all neutral ships in war and peacetime (Article 24).
+
+==Reaction==
+[[File:Karti od Sanstefan i Berlinski kongres 1878.jpg|thumb|400px|Maps of the region after the Treaty of San Stefano and the Congress of Berlin of 1878]]
+The Great Powers, especially British Prime Minister [[Benjamin Disraeli]], were unhappy with this extension of Russian power, and Serbia feared the establishment of [[Greater Bulgaria]] would harm its interests in former and remaining Ottoman territories. These reasons prompted the Great Powers to obtain a revision of the treaty at the [[Congress of Berlin]], and substitute the [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]].
+
+Romania, which had contributed significantly to the Russian victory in the war, was extremely disappointed by the treaty, and the Romanian public perceived some of its stipulations as Russia breaking the Russo-Romanian pre-war treaties that guaranteed the integrity of Romanian territory.
+
+[[Austria-Hungary]] was disappointed with the treaty as it failed to expand its influence in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
+
+The [[Albania]]ns, dwelling in provinces controlled by the Ottoman Empire, objected to what they considered a significant loss of their territory to Serbia, Bulgaria, and Montenegro and realized they would have to organize nationally to attract the assistance of foreign powers seeking to neutralize Russia's influence in the region. The implications of the treaty led to the formation of the [[League of Prizren]].<ref>Gawrych, George. ''The Crescent and the Eagle''. London: I.B. Tauris, 2006, pp. 44-49.</ref>
+
+It is important to note that in the "Salisbury Circular" of 1 April 1878, the British Foreign Secretary, [[Robert Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury|Salisbury]], made clear his and his government's objections to the Treaty of San Stefano and the favorable position in which it left Russia.
+
+According to British historian [[A. J. P. Taylor]], writing in 1954, "If the treaty of San Stefano had been maintained, both the Ottoman Empire and Austria-Hungary might have survived to the present day. The British, except for <nowiki>[</nowiki>Disraeli<nowiki>]</nowiki> in his wilder moments, had expected less and were therefore less disappointed. Salisbury wrote at the end of 1878 'We shall set up a rickety sort of Turkish rule again south of the Balkans. But it is a mere respite. There is no vitality left in them.'"<ref>[[A. J. P. Taylor|Taylor, A. J. P.]] (1954) ''The Struggle for Mastery in Europe 1914-1918''. Oxford University Press, p. 253.</ref>
+
+==Gallery==
+<gallery class="center">
+File:0630 При подписании мирного договора Сан-Стефано, 3 марта 1878.jpg|Signing of peace treaty, San Stefano
+Image:SanStefano2.jpg|Annex to the Treaty of San Stefano, showing the change of Serbia's borders.
+Image:SanStefano3.jpg|Annex to the Treaty of San Stefano, showing the change of Montenegro's borders.
+Image:SanStefano1.jpg|Annex to the Treaty of San Stefano, showing the borders of the new Principality of Bulgaria.
+Image:SanStefano4.jpg|Annex to the Treaty of San Stefano, showing the change of the border between the Russian and the Ottoman Empire in the Caucasus.
+</gallery>
+
+==See also==
+{{Commons category}}
+* [[History of Bulgaria]]
+
+==References==
+{{Reflist}}
+
+==External links==
+*[http://pages.uoregon.edu/kimball/1878mr17.SanStef.trt.htm The Preliminary Treaty of Peace, signed at San Stefano] - Full text, in English.
+*[http://www.hist.msu.ru/ER/Etext/FOREIGN/stefano.htm Full text of the San Stefano Preliminary Treaty] (in Russian)
+
+===Maps===
+*[https://www.archives.government.bg/images/karta.jpg Bulgaria in the borders after the Treaties of Constantinople, San-Stephano, Berlin, London, Bucharest and Neuilly.] Scale 1:1600000 map. (in German)
+
+{{Ottoman treaties}}
+{{Great Eastern Crisis}}
+
+{{DEFAULTSORT:Treaty Of San Stefano}}
+[[Category:1878 in Bulgaria]]
+[[Category:1878 in the Ottoman Empire]]
+[[Category:1878 treaties]]
+[[Category:Russo-Turkish wars]]
+[[Category:Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)]]
+[[Category:Peace treaties of the Ottoman Empire|San Stefano]]
+[[Category:Macedonia under the Ottoman Empire]]
+[[Category:19th century in Armenia]]
+[[Category:19th century in Georgia (country)]]
+[[Category:Peace treaties of Russia|San Stefano, Treaty of]]
+[[Category:Ottoman Empire–Russia treaties]]
+[[Category:History of Istanbul Province]]
+[[Category:History of Adjara]]
+[[Category:Ottoman period in Georgia (country)]]
+[[Category:March 1878 events]]
+[[Category:History of Montenegro]]
+
+{{for|similar international conferences in Berlin|Berlin Conference (disambiguation)}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2011}}
+[[File:Congress of Berlin, 13 July 1878, by Anton von Werner.jpg|400px|thumb|[[Anton von Werner]], ''Congress of Berlin'' (1881): Final meeting at the [[Reich Chancellery]] on 13 July 1878, [[Otto von Bismarck|Bismarck]] between [[Gyula Andrássy]] and [[Pyotr Andreyevich Shuvalov|Pyotr Shuvalov]], on the left [[Alajos Károlyi]], [[Alexander Gorchakov]] (seated) and [[Benjamin Disraeli]]]]
+
+The '''Congress of Berlin''' (13 June – 13 July 1878) was a meeting of the representatives of six [[great powers]] of the time (Russia, Great Britain, France, Austria-Hungary, Italy and Germany),<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.sk/books?id=EhqpAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA12&dq=congress+of+Berlin++1878++six++great+powers&hl=cs&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiInOfXtqvTAhXGEiwKHTNCAGEQ6AEIITAA#v=onepage&q=congress%20of%20Berlin%20%201878%20%20six%20%20great%20powers&f=false|title=Iran-Turkey Relations, 1979-2011: Conceptualising the Dynamics of Politics, Religion and Security in Middle-Power States– Google Knihy |publisher=Books.google.cz |date= March 1, 2013|accessdate=2017-04-17|isbn=978-0-415-68087-5}}</ref> the Ottoman Empire and four Balkan states (Greece, Serbia, Romania and Montenegro). It aimed at determining the territories of the states in the [[Balkan peninsula]] following the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)|Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78]] and came to an end with the signing of the [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]], which replaced the preliminary [[Treaty of San Stefano]], signed three months earlier between [[Russian Empire|Russia]] and the [[Ottoman Empire]].
+
+[[File:Balkans 1878.png|thumb|Borders in the Balkan peninsula after the [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)]]]]
+
+German Chancellor [[Otto von Bismarck]], who led the Congress, undertook to stabilise the Balkans, recognise the reduced power of the Ottoman Empire and balance the distinct interests of Britain, [[Russian Empire|Russia]] and [[Austria-Hungary]]. At the same time, he tried to diminish Russian gains in the region and to prevent the rise of a [[Greater Bulgaria]]. As a result, Ottoman lands in Europe declined sharply, Bulgaria was established as an independent principality inside the Ottoman Empire, [[Eastern Rumelia]] was restored to the Turks under a special administration and the [[Macedonia (region)|region of Macedonia]] was returned outright to the Turks, who promised reform.
+
+[[Romania]] achieved full independence; forced to turn over part of [[Bessarabia]] to Russia, it gained [[Northern Dobruja]]. [[Serbia]] and [[Montenegro]] finally gained complete independence but with smaller territories, with Austria-Hungary occupying the [[Sandzak|Sandžak (Raška) region]].<ref>[http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/boshtml/bos128.htm Vincent Ferraro. The Austrian Occupation of Novibazar, 1878–1909 (based on: Anderson, Frank Maloy and Amos Shartle Hershey, Handbook for the Diplomatic History of Europe, Asia, and Africa 1870–1914. National Board for Historical Service. Government Printing Office, Washington, 1918.]</ref> Austria-Hungary also took over [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], and Britain took over [[Cyprus]].
+
+The results were first hailed as a great achievement in peacemaking and stabilisation. However, most of the participants were not fully satisfied, and grievances on the results festered until they exploded in the [[First Balkan War|First]] and the [[Second Balkan War|Second]] Balkan wars in 1912–1913 and eventually [[World War I]] in 1914. Serbia, Bulgaria and Greece made gains, but all received far less than they thought that they deserved.
+
+The Ottoman Empire, then called the "sick man of Europe", was humiliated and significantly weakened, which made it more liable to domestic unrest and more vulnerable to attack.
+
+Although Russia had been victorious in the war that occasioned the conference, it was humiliated there and resented its treatment. Austria gained a great deal of territory, which angered the South Slavs, and led to decades of tensions in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
+
+Bismarck became the target of hatred by Russian nationalists and Pan-Slavists, and he would find that he had tied Germany too closely to Austria-Hungary in the Balkans.<ref>Jerome L. Blum, et al. ''The European World: A History'' (1970) p. 841</ref>
+
+In the long run, tensions between Russia and Austria-Hungary intensified, as did the nationality question in the Balkans. The congress was aimed at revising the [[Treaty of San Stefano]] and at keeping [[Constantinople]] within Ottoman hands. It effectively disavowed Russia's victory over the decaying Ottoman Empire in the Russo-Turkish War. The congress returned territories to the Ottoman Empire that the previous treaty had given to the [[Principality of Bulgaria]], most notably [[Macedonia (region)|Macedonia]], thus setting up a strong revanchist demand in Bulgaria, leading in 1912 to the First Balkan War.
+
+==Background==
+[[Image:Edward Stanford 1877.jpg|left|thumb|Pro-Greek ethnic map of the [[Balkans]] by Ioannis Gennadius,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kEyinJwjWIgC&pg=PA169 |first=I. William |last=Zartman|authorlink=I. William Zartman|title=Understanding Life in the Borderlands|page=169}}</ref> published by the English cartographer E. Stanford in 1877]]
+
+In the decades leading up to the congress, Russia and the Balkans had been gripped by [[Pan-Slavism]], a movement to unite all the Balkan Slavs under one rule. That desire, which evolved similarly to the [[Pan-Germanism|Pan-Germanism]] and [[Italian Unification|Pan-Italianism]], which had resulted in two unifications, took different forms in the various Slavic nations. In Imperial Russia, Pan-Slavism meant the creation of a unified Slavic state, under Russian direction, and essentially a byword for Russian conquest of the Balkan peninsula.<ref>Ragsdale, Hugh, and V. N. Ponomarev. ''Imperial Russian Foreign Policy''. Woodrow Wilson Center Press, 1993, p. 228.</ref> The realisation of the goal would have Russian control of the [[Dardanelles]] and the [[Bosphorus]], thus giving Russia economic control of the [[Black Sea]] and substantially increasing its geopolitical power. In the Balkans, Pan-Slavism meant unifying the Balkan Slavs under the rule of a particular Balkan state, but the state that was meant to serve as the locus for unification was not always clear, as initiative wafted between Serbia and Bulgaria. The creation of a Bulgarian exarch by the Ottomans in 1870 had been intended to separate the Bulgarians religiously from the Greek patriarch and politically from Serbia.<ref>{{cite book|last=Taylor|first=Alan J. P.|title=Struggle for the Mastery of Europe 1848–1918|year=1954|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=UK|isbn=0198812701|pages=241}}</ref> From the Balkan point of view, unification of the peninsula needed both a [[Kingdom of Sardinia#Italian unification|Piedmont]] as a base and a corresponding France as a sponsor.{{sfn|Glenny|2000|pp=120–127}}
+
+Though the views of how Balkan politics should proceed differed, both began with the deposition of the sultan as ruler of the Balkans and the ousting of the Ottomans from Europe. How and even whether that was to proceed would be the major question to be answered at the Congress of Berlin.
+
+==Great powers in the Balkans==
+The Balkans were a major stage for competition between the European [[great powers]] in the second half of the 19th century. Britain and Russia both had interests in the fate of the Balkans. Russia was interested in the region, both ideologically, as a pan-Slavist unifier, and practically, to secure greater control of the Mediterranean; Britain was interested in preventing Russia from accomplishing its goals. Furthermore, the Unifications of Italy and Germany had stymied the ability of a third European power, Austria-Hungary, to further expand its domain to the southwest. Germany, as the most powerful continental nation after the 1871 [[Franco-Prussian War]] had little direct interest in the settlement and so was the only power that could mediate the Balkan question.{{sfn|Glenny|2000|pp=135–137}}
+
+Russia and Austria-Hungary, the two powers that were most invested in the fate of the Balkans, were allied with Germany in the conservative [[League of Three Emperors]], founded to preserve the monarchies of [[Continental Europe]]. The Congress of Berlin was thus mainly a dispute among supposed Bismarck and his German Empire, the arbiter of the discussion, would thus have to choose before the end of the congress one of their allies to support. That decision was to have direct consequences on the future of European geopolitics.<ref>{{cite book|author=William Norton Medlicott|title=Congress of Berlin and After|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jU7YAQAAQBAJ|year=1963|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-24317-2|pages=14–}}</ref>{{sfn|Glenny|2000|pp=135–137}}
+
+Ottoman brutality in the [[Serbian–Ottoman War (1876–78)|Serbian–Ottoman War]] and the violent suppression of the [[Herzegovina Uprising (1875–77)|Herzegovina Uprising]] formented political pressure within Russia, which saw itself as the protector of the Serbs, to act against the Ottoman Empire. David MacKenzie wrote that 'sympathy for the Serbian Christians existed in Court circles, among nationalist diplomats, and in the lower classes, and was actively expressed through the Slav committees'.<ref name="MacKenzie1967">{{cite book|author=David MacKenzie|title=The Serbs and Russian Pan-Slavism, 1875-1878|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7bQMAAAAIAAJ|year=1967|publisher=Cornell University Press|page=7}}</ref>
+
+Eventually, Russia sought and obtained Austria-Hungary's pledge of benevolent neutrality in the coming war, in return for ceding Bosnia Herzegovina to Austria-Hungary in the [[Budapest Convention of 1877]].
+
+==Treaty of San Stefano==
+[[File:Ethnic map of Balkans Kiepert.1878.png|thumb|Ethnographic map by German geographer [[Heinrich Kiepert]], 1878. This map received a good reception in contemporary Europe and was used as a reference at the Congress of Berlin.<ref>{{cite book|title=Understanding Life in the Borderlands|page=174|url=https://books.google.gr/books?id=Mnc6pguW220C&dq=|quote=In the map shown in figure 7.2,... used as a reference at the Congress of Berlin - clear praise for its perceived objectivity.}}</ref>]]
+After the Bulgarian [[April Uprising]] in 1876 and the Russian victory in the [[Russo-Turkish War, 1877-1878|Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878]], Russia had liberated almost all of the Ottoman European possessions. The Ottomans recognized Montenegro, Romania and Serbia as independent, and the territories of all three were expanded. Russia created a large Principality of Bulgaria as an autonomous vassal of the sultan. This expanded Russia's sphere of influence to encompass the entire Balkans, which alarmed other powers in Europe. Britain, which had threatened war with Russia if it occupied [[Constantinople]],<ref>Ragsdale, Hugh, and V. N. Ponomarev. ''Imperial Russian Foreign Policy''. Woodrow Wilson Center Press, 1993, pp. 239–40.</ref> and France both did not want another power meddling in either the Mediterranean or the Middle East, where both powers were prepared to make large [[Scramble for Africa|colonial gains]]. Austria-Hungary desired Habsburg control over the Balkans, and Germany wanted to prevent its ally from going to war. German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck thus called the Congress of Berlin to discuss the partition of the Ottoman Balkans among the European powers and to preserve the League of Three Emperors in the face of the spread of European [[Liberalism#Spread of liberalism|liberalism]].{{sfn|Glenny|2000|pp=135–138}}
+
+The Congress was attended by Britain, Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, [[Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)|Italy]], Russia and the [[Ottoman Empire]]. Delegates from [[Kingdom of Greece (Glücksburg)|Greece]], [[Kingdom of Romania|Romania]], [[Serbia]] and [[Montenegro]] attended the sessions that concerned their states, but they were not members of the Congress. The Congress was solicited by Russia's rivals, particularly Austria-Hungary and Britain, and it was hosted in 1878 by [[Otto von Bismarck]]. It proposed and ratified the [[Treaty of Berlin, 1878|Treaty of Berlin]]. The meetings were held at Bismarck's [[Reich Chancellery]], the former [[Radziwill]] Palace, from 13 June 1878 to 13 July 1878. The congress revised or eliminated 18 of the 29 articles in the [[Treaty of San Stefano]]. Furthermore, by using as a foundation the Treaties of [[Treaty of Paris (1856)|Paris (1856)]] and [[Treaty of Washington (1871)|Washington]] (1871), the treaty rearranged the East.
+
+==Other powers' fear of Russian influence==
+[[File:Ernst-Ravenstein-Balkans-Ethnic-Map-1880.jpg|thumb|Ethnic composition map of the [[Balkans]] by the German-English cartographer [[Ernst Georg Ravenstein]] of 1870]]
+
+The principal mission of the participants at the congress was to deal a fatal blow to the burgeoning movement of [[pan-Slavism]]. The movement caused serious concern in Berlin and even more so in Vienna, which was afraid that the repressed Slavic nationalities would revolt against the [[Habsburgs]]. The [[British government|British]] and the [[France|French]] governments were nervous about both the diminishing influence of the Ottoman Empire and the cultural expansion of Russian to the south, where both Britain and France were poised to colonise [[Egypt]] and [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]]. By the Treaty of San Stefano, the Russians, led by Chancellor [[Alexander Gorchakov]], had managed to create in a [[Bulgaria]] an autonomous principality, under the nominal rule of the [[Ottoman Empire]]. That sparked the [[Great Game]], the massive British fear of the growing Russian influence in the [[Middle East]]. The new principality, including a very large portion of [[Macedonia (region)|Macedonia]] and with access to the [[Aegean Sea]], could easily threaten the [[Dardanelle Straits]], which separate the [[Black Sea]] from the [[Mediterranean Sea]]. The arrangement was not acceptable to the British, which considered the entire Mediterranean to be a British [[sphere of influence]] and saw any Russian attempt to gain access there as a grave threat to British power. On 4 June, before the Congress opened on 13 June, Prime Minister [[Benjamin Disraeli|Lord Beaconsfield]] had already concluded the [[Cyprus Convention]], a secret alliance with the Ottomans against Russia in which Britain was allowed to occupy the strategically-placed island of [[Cyprus]]. The agreement predetermined Beaconsfield's position during the Congress and led him to issue threats to unleash a war against Russia if it did not comply with Ottoman demands. Negotiations between Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister [[Gyula Andrássy]] and British Foreign Secretary [[Robert Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury|Marquess of Salisbury]] had already 'ended on 6 June by Britain agreeing to all the Austrian proposals relative to Bosnia-Herzegovina about to come before the congress while Austria would support British demands'.{{sfn|Albertini|1952|p=20}}
+
+==Bismarck as host==
+The Congress of Berlin is frequently viewed as the culmination of the battle between Chancellors [[Alexander Gorchakov]] of Russia and [[Otto von Bismarck]] of Germany. They were able to persuade other European leaders that a free and independent [[Bulgaria]] would greatly improve the security risks posed by a disintegrating Ottoman Empire. According to historian [[Erich Eyck]], Bismarck supported Russia's position that "Turkish rule over a Christian community (Bulgaria) was an anachronism which undoubtedly gave rise to insurrection and bloodshed and should therefore be ended".<ref name="Eyck">Erich Eyck, ''Bismarck and the German Empire'' (New York: W.W. Norton, 1964), pp. 245–46.</ref> He used the [[Great Eastern Crisis]] of 1875 as proof of growing animosity in the region.
+
+[[File:Bulgaria San Stefano Berlin 1878 TB.png|left|thumb|Borders of Bulgaria according to the preliminary [[Treaty of San Stefano]] (red stripes) and the superseding [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]] (solid red)]]
+
+Bismarck's ultimate goal during the Congress of Berlin was not to upset Germany's status on the international platform. He did not wish to disrupt the [[League of the Three Emperors]] by choosing between Russia and Austria as an ally.<ref name="Eyck"/> To maintain peace in Europe, Bismarck sought to convince other European diplomats on dividing up the [[Balkans]] to foster greater stability. During the division, Russia began to feel cheated even though it eventually gained independence for Bulgaria. Problems in the alliances in Europe before the [[First World War]] were thus noticeable.
+
+One reason that Bismarck was able to mediate the various tensions at the Congress of Berlin was his diplomatic persona. He sought peace and stability when international affairs did not pertain to Germany directly. Since he viewed the current situation in Europe as favourable for Germany, any conflicts between the major European powers that were threatening the status quo was against German interests. Also, at the Congress of Berlin, "Germany could not look for any advantage from the crisis" that had occurred in the Balkans in 1875.<ref name="Eyck"/> As a result, Bismarck claimed impartiality on behalf of Germany at the Congress. That claim enabled him to preside over the negotiations with a keen eye for foul play.
+
+Though most of Europe went into the Congress expecting a diplomatic show, much like the [[Congress of Vienna]], they were to be sadly disappointed. Bismarck, unhappy to be conducting the Congress in the heat of the summer, had a short temper and a low tolerance for malarky. Thus, any grandstanding was cut short by the testy German chancellor. The ambassadors from the small Balkan territories whose fate was being decided were barely even allowed to attend the diplomatic meetings, which were between mainly the representatives of the great powers.{{sfn|Glenny|2000|pp=138–140}}
+
+According to [[Henry Kissinger]],<ref>{{Cite book
+| publisher = Simon & Schuster
+| isbn = 0-671-51099-1
+| pages = 139–143
+| last = Kissinger
+| first = Henry
+| title = Diplomacy
+| date = 1995-04-04
+}}</ref> the congress saw a shift in Bismarck's [[Realpolitik]]. Until then, as Germany had become too powerful for isolation, his policy was to maintain the League of the Three Emperors. Now that he could no longer rely on Russia's alliance, he began to form relations with as many potential enemies as possible.
+
+== Legacy ==
+[[Image:A Synvet 1877.jpg|thumb|Ethnic composition map of the [[Balkans]] in 1877 by A. Synvet, a known French professor of the Ottoman Lyceum of Constantinople]]
+
+Bowing to Russia's pressure, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro were declared independent principalities. Russia kept [[Bessarabia|South Bessarabia]], which it had annexed in the Russo-Turkish War, but the Bulgarian state that it had created was first bisected and then split further into the Principality of Bulgaria and Eastern Rumelia, both of which were given nominal autonomy, under the control of the Ottoman Empire.<ref>Oakes, Augustus, and R. B. Mowat. ''The Great European Treaties of the Nineteenth Century''. Clarendon Press, 1918, pp. 332–60.</ref> Bulgaria was promised autonomy, and guarantees were made against Turkish interference, but they were largely ignored. Romania received [[Dobruja]]. Montenegro obtained [[Nikšić]], along with the primary Albanian regions of [[Podgorica]], [[Bar, Montenegro|Bar]] and [[Plav-Gusinje]]. The Turkish government, or [[Ottoman Porte|Porte]], agreed to obey the specifications contained in the Organic Law of 1868 and to guarantee the civil rights of non-Muslim subjects. The region of Bosnia-Herzegovina was given over to the administration of Austria-Hungary, which also obtained the right to garrison the [[Sanjak of Novi Pazar]], a small border region between Montenegro and Serbia. Bosnia and Herzegovina were put on the fast track to eventual annexation. Russia agreed that [[Macedonia region|Macedonia]], the most important strategic section of the Balkans, was too multinational to be part of Bulgaria and permitted it to remain under the [[Ottoman Empire]]. [[Eastern Rumelia]], which had its own large Turkish and Greek minorities, became an autonomous province under a Christian ruler, with its capital at [[Plovdiv|Philippopolis]]. The remaining portions of the original "Greater Bulgaria" became the new state of Bulgaria.
+[[Image:Litografia.jpg|thumb|Allegorical depiction of Bulgarian autonomy after the [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]].<br /> Lithograph by [[Nikolai Pavlovich]]]]
+
+In Russia, the Congress of Berlin was considered a dismal failure. After finally defeating the Turks despite many past inconclusive Russo-Turkish wars, many Russians had expected "something colossal", a redrawing of the Balkan borders in support of Russian territorial ambitions. Instead, the victory resulted in an Austro-Hungarian gain on the Balkan front that was brought about by the rest of the European powers' preference for a powerful Austria-Hungarian Empire, which threatened basically no one, to a powerful Russia, which had been locked in competition with Britain in the so-called [[Great Game]] for most of the century. Gorchakov said, "I consider the Berlin Treaty the darkest page in my life". The Russian people were by and large furious over the European repudiation of their political gains, and though there was some thought that it represented only a minor stumble on the road to Russian hegemony in the Balkans, it actually gave Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia over to Austria-Hungary's sphere of influence and essentially removed all Russian influence from the area.<ref>Ragsdale, Hugh, and V. N. Ponomarev. ''Imperial Russian Foreign Policy''. Woodrow Wilson Center Press, 1993, pp. 244–46.</ref>
+
+The Serbs were upset with "Russia... consenting to the cession of Bosnia to Austria."{{sfn|Albertini|1952|p=32}}
+
+<blockquote>
+[[Jovan Ristić|Ristić]] who was Serbia’s first plenipotentiary at Berlin tells how he asked Jomini, one of the Russian delegates, what consolation remained to the Serbs. Jomini replied that it would have to be the thought that 'the situation was only temporary because within fifteen years at the latest we shall be forced to fight Austria.' 'Vain consolation!' comments Ristić.{{sfn|Albertini|1952|p=32}}
+</blockquote>
+[[File:Greek-Delegation-Berlin-Congress.jpg|thumb|Greek Delegation in the Berlin Congress]]
+Italy was dissatisfied with the results of the Congress, and the tensions between Greece and the Ottoman Empire were left unresolved. Bosnia-Herzegovina would also prove to be problematic for the Austro-Hungarian Empire in later decades. The [[League of the Three Emperors]], established in 1873, was destroyed, as Russia saw lack of German support on the issue of Bulgaria's full independence as a breach of loyalty and of the alliance. The border between Greece and Turkey was not resolved. In 1881, after protracted negotiations, a compromise border [[Convention of Constantinople (1881)|was accepted]], occurring after a naval demonstration of the great powers, resulting in the cession of [[Thessaly]] and the [[Arta Prefecture]] to Greece.
+
+Thus, the Berlin Congress sowed the seeds of further conflicts, including the Balkan Wars and (ultimately) the [[First World War]]. In the 'Salisbury Circular' of 1 April 1878, the British Foreign Secretary, the [[Robert Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury|Marquess of Salisbury]], made clear the objections of him and the government to the Treaty of San Stefano because of the favorable position in which it left Russia.<ref>Walker, Christopher J. (1980), ''Armenia: The Survival of A Nation'', London: Croom Helm, p. 112</ref>
+
+In 1954, British historian [[AJP Taylor]] wrote: "If the treaty of San Stefano had been maintained, both the Ottoman Empire and Austria-Hungary might have survived to the present day. The British, except for [[Disraeli|Beaconsfield]] in his wilder moments, had expected less and were therefore less disappointed. Salisbury wrote at the end of 1878: ''We shall set up a rickety sort of Turkish rule again south of the Balkans. But it is a mere respite. There is no vitality left in them.''"<ref>AJP Taylor, ''The Struggle for Mastery in Europe 1914–1918,'' [[Oxford University Press]] (1954) p. 253</ref>
+
+Though the Congress of Berlin constituted a harsh blow to [[Pan-Slavism]], it by no means solved the question of the area. The Slavs in the Balkans were still mostlty under non-Slavic rule, split between the rule of Austria-Hungary and the ailing Ottoman Empire. The Slavic states of the Balkans had learned that banding together as Slavs benefited them less than playing to the desires of a neighboring great power. That damaged the unity of the Balkan Slavs and encouraged competition between the fledgling Slav states.{{sfn|Glenny|2000|pp=133–134}}
+
+The underlying tensions of the region would continue to simmer for 30 years until they again exploded in the [[Balkan Wars]] of 1912–1913. In 1914, the [[assassination of Franz Ferdinand]] the Austro-Hungarian heir, led to the [[First World War]]. In hindsight, the stated goal of maintaining peace and balance of powers in the Balkans obviously failed, as the region would remain a source of conflict between the great powers well into the 20th century.{{sfn|Glenny|2000|p=151}}
+
+==Internal opposition to Andrássy's objectives==
+
+Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister [[Gyula Andrássy]] and [[Austro-Hungarian occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina|the occupation and administration of Bosnia-Herzegovina]] also obtained the right to station garrisons in the [[Sanjak of Novi Pazar]], which remained under Ottoman administration. The Sanjak preserved the separation of Serbia and Montenegro, and the Austro-Hungarian garrisons there would open the way for a dash to [[Thessaloniki|Salonika]] that "would bring the western half of the Balkans under permanent Austrian influence".{{sfn|Albertini|1952|p=19}} "High [Austro-Hungarian] military authorities desired... [an] immediate major expedition with Salonika as its objective".{{sfn|Albertini|1952|p=33}}
+
+<blockquote>
+On 28 September 1878 the Finance Minister, Koloman von Zell, threatened to resign if the army, behind which stood the [[Archduke Albrecht, Duke of Teschen|Archduke Albert]], were allowed to advance to Salonika. In the session of the Hungarian Parliament of 5 November 1878 the Opposition proposed that the Foreign Minister should be impeached for violating the constitution by his policy during the Near East Crisis and by the occupation of Bosnia-Herzegovina. The motion was lost by 179 to 95. By the Opposition rank and file the gravest accusations were raised against Andrassy.{{sfn|Albertini|1952|p=33}}
+</blockquote>
+
+On 10 October 1878, French diplomat [[Melchior de Vogüé]] described the situation as follows:
+
+<blockquote>
+Particularly in Hungary the dissatisfaction caused by this 'adventure' has reached the gravest proportions, prompted by that strong conservative instinct which animates the Magyar race and is the secret of its destinies. This vigorous and exclusive instinct explains the historical phenomenon of an isolated group, small in numbers yet dominating a country inhabited by a majority of peoples of different races and conflicting aspirations, and playing a role in European affairs out of all proportions to its numerical importance or intellectual culture. This instinct is today awakened and gives warning that it feels the occupation of Bosnia-Herzegovina to be a menace which, by introducing fresh Slav elements into the Hungarian political organism and providing a wider field and further recruitment of the Croat opposition, would upset the unstable equilibrium in which the Magyar domination is poised.{{sfn|Albertini|1952|pp=33–34}}
+</blockquote>
+
+==Delegates==
+{{col-begin}}
+| width="50%" align="left" valign="top" style="border:0"|
+[[United Kingdom]] {{flagicon|United Kingdom}}
+* [[Benjamin Disraeli]] Earl of Beaconsfield (Prime Minister)
+* [[Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury|Marquess of Salisbury]] (Foreign Secretary)
+* [[Odo Russell, 1st Baron Ampthill|Baron Ampthill]] (Ambassador to Germany)
+
+[[Russian Empire]] {{flagicon|Russian Empire}}
+* [[Alexander Gorchakov|Prince Gorchakov]] (Foreign Minister)
+* [[Pyotr Andreyevich Shuvalov|Count Shuvalov]] (Ambassador to Great Britain)
+* [[Pavel Ubri|Baron d'Oubril]] (Ambassador to Germany)
+
+[[German Empire]] {{flagicon|German Empire}}
+* [[Otto von Bismarck]] (Chancellor)
+* [[Chlodwig, Prince of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst|Prince Hohenlohe]] (Ambassador to France)
+* [[Bernhard Ernst von Bülow]] (State Secretary for Foreign Affairs)
+
+[[Austria-Hungary]] {{flagicon|Austria-Hungary}}
+* [[Gyula Andrássy|Count Andrássy]] (Foreign Minister)
+* [[Alajos Károlyi|Count Károlyi]] (Ambassador to Germany)
+* [[Baron Heinrich Karl von Haymerle]] (Ambassador to Italy)
+
+[[French Third Republic|French Republic]] {{flagicon|France}}
+* [[William Henry Waddington|Monsieur Waddington]] (Foreign Minister)
+* Comte de Saint-Vallier
+* Monsieur Desprey
+| width="50%" align="left" valign="top" style="border:0"|
+[[Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)|Kingdom of Italy]] {{flagicon|Kingdom of Italy}}
+* [[Lodovico, Count Corti|Count Corti]] (Foreign Minister)
+* Count De Launay
+
+[[Ottoman Empire]] {{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}}
+* [[Alexander Karatheodori Pasha|Karatheodori Pasha]]
+* [[Sadullah Pasha]]
+* [[Mehmed Ali Pasha (marshal)|Mehmed Ali Pasha]]
+* [[Catholicos]] [[Mkrtich Khrimian]] (representing Armenian population)
+
+[[United Principalities|Romania]] {{flagicon|Romania}}
+* [[Ion Brătianu|Ion C. Brătianu]]
+* [[Mihail Kogălniceanu]]
+
+[[Kingdom of Greece|Greece]] {{flagicon|Kingdom of Greece}}
+* [[Theodoros Deligiannis]]
+
+[[Principality of Serbia|Serbia]] {{flagicon|Serbia|civil}}
+* [[Jovan Ristić]]
+
+[[Principality of Montenegro|Montenegro]] {{flagicon|Principality of Montenegro}}
+* Božo Petrović
+* Stanko Radonjić
+
+[[Albanian people|Albanians in the Ottoman Empire]] {{flagicon|Albania}}
+* [[Abdyl Frasheri]]
+* [[Jani Vreto]]
+
+{{col-end}}
+
+==References==
+{{reflist|3}}
+
+==Sources==
+*{{cite book|last=Glenny|first=Misha|authorlink=Misha Glenny|title=The Balkans, 1804-1999: Nationalism, War and the Great Powers|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=96G-Ofq2iNMC|year=2000|publisher=Granta Books|isbn=978-1-86207-073-8|ref=harv}}
+*{{cite book|last=Albertini|first=Luigi|authorlink=Luigi Albertini|title=The Origins of the War of 1914: European relations from the Congress of Berlin to the eve of the Sarajevo murder|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0kUOAQAAIAAJ|year=1952|publisher=Oxford University Press|ref=harv}}
+* Langer, William L. ''European Alliances and Alignments 1871–1890'' (1950) ch 5–6
+* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080621140434/http://isanet.ccit.arizona.edu/noarchive/berlincongress.html Mikulas Fabry. THE IDEA OF NATIONAL SELF-DETERMINATION AND THE RECOGNITION OF NEW STATES AT THE CONGRESS OF BERLIN (1878). ISA Annual Convention, New Orleans, March 24–27, 2002]
+* [[W. N. Medlicott|Medlicott, William Norton]]. ''Congress of Berlin and After'' (1963)
+* Millman, Richard. ''Britain and the Eastern Question, 1875–78'' (1979)
+* Taylor, A.J.P. ''The Struggle for Mastery in Europe: 1848–1918'' (1954) pp. 228–54
+
+==External links==
+* {{Commons category-inline|Congress of Berlin}}
+
+{{Great power diplomacy}}
+{{Great Eastern Crisis}}
+{{coord|52|30|42|N|13|22|55|E|display=title}}
+
+{{DEFAULTSORT:Congress Of Berlin}}
+[[Category:Diplomatic conferences in Germany]]
+[[Category:History of the Balkans]]
+[[Category:Modern Europe]]
+[[Category:19th-century diplomatic conferences]]
+[[Category:1878 in international relations]]
+[[Category:1878 in Germany]]
+[[Category:1878 conferences]]
+[[Category:19th century in Berlin]]
+[[Category:June 1878 events]]
+[[Category:July 1878 events]]
+
+{{Infobox military conflict
+| conflict = Great Eastern Crisis (1875–78)
+| partof =
+| image = Clash with Cherkessians.jpg
+| image_size = 300
+| caption = Serbian soldiers attacking the Ottoman army at [[Mramor (Niš)|Mramor]], 1877
+| date = 9 July 1875 – 13 July 1878<br />({{Age in years, months, weeks and days|month1=07|day1=09|year1=1875|month2=07|day2=13|year2=1878}})
+| place = [[Balkans]], [[Caucasus]]
+| territory =
+* Reestablishment of the [[Principality of Bulgaria|Bulgarian state]]
+* ''[[De jure]]'' independence of [[United Principalities|Romania]], [[Principality of Serbia|Serbia]] and [[Principality of Montenegro|Montenegro]] from the [[Ottoman Empire]]
+* [[Kars Oblast|Kars]] and [[Batum Oblast]]s become part of the [[Russian Empire]]
+| result = [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]]
+| combatant1 = {{flagcountry|Russian Empire|1858}}<br />
+:* [[Grand Duchy of Finland]]<br />
+{{flagdeco|Kingdom of Romania}} [[United Principalities|Romania]]<br />{{flagdeco|Kingdom of Bulgaria}} [[Principality of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]]<br />{{flagcountry|Principality of Montenegro}}<br/>{{flagdeco|Serbia|civil}} [[Principality of Serbia|Serbia]]<br>
+'''Supported by''':<br>
+{{flag|Austria-Hungary}}<br />{{flagcountry|German Empire}}<br />{{flagcountry|French Third Republic}}
+| combatant2 = {{flag|Ottoman Empire}}
+'''Supported by''':<br>{{flagcountry|UKGBI}}
+| commander1 = {{flagicon |Russian Empire|1858}} [[Alexander II of Russia|Alexander II]]<br />{{flagicon |Russian Empire|1858}} [[Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1831–1891)|Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich]]<br />{{flagicon |Russian Empire|1858}} [[Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia|Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich]]<br />{{flagicon |Russian Empire|1858}} [[Mikhail Loris-Melikov]]<br />{{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Mikhail Skobelev]]<br />{{flagicon |Russian Empire|1858}} [[Iosif Gurko]]<br /> {{flagicon|Russian Empire|1858}} [[Ivan Davidovich Lazarev|Ivan Lazarev]]<br />{{flagicon|Romania}} [[Carol I of Romania]]<br />{{flagicon|Kingdom of Bulgaria}} [[Alexander of Battenberg]]<br />{{flagicon|Principality of Montenegro}} [[Nicholas I of Montenegro|Prince Nikola]] <br />{{flagicon |Serbia|civil}} [[Kosta Protić]]
+| commander2 = {{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Abdul Hamid II]]<br />{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Ahmed Muhtar Pasha|Ahmed Pasha]]<br />{{flagicon |Ottoman Empire}} [[Osman Nuri Pasha|Osman Pasha]]<br />{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Süleyman Hüsnü Paşa|Suleiman Pasha]]<br />{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Mehmed Ali Pasha (marshal)|Mehmed Pasha]]<br /> {{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Abdülkerim Nadir Pasha]]<br /> {{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Ahmed Eyüb Pasha]]<br /> {{flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} [[Mehmed Riza Pasha]]
+| strength1 = '''Russian Empire''' – 185,000 in the Army of the Danube, 75,000 in the Caucasian Army<ref>Timothy C. Dowling. Russia at War: From the Mongol Conquest to Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Beyond. 2 Volumes. ABC-CLIO, 2014. P. 748</ref><br />
+'''Finland''' - 1,000<br />
+'''Romania''' – 66,000<br />
+'''Montenegro''' – 45,000<br />
+'''Bulgaria''' – 12,000<br />
+190 cannons<br />
+'''Serbia''' – 81,500<br />
+| strength2 = '''Ottoman Empire''' – 281,000<ref>{{Citation | last = Мерников | first = АГ | script-title=ru:Спектор А. А. Всемирная история войн | place = Минск | year = 2005. – c. 376| language = Russian }}.</ref>
+| casualties1 = '''Russian Empire''' – 15,567 killed, <br /> 56,652 wounded, <br /> 6,824 died from wounds<ref name="Урланис">{{cite book| author = [[Урланис Б. Ц.]] | chapter = Войны в период домонополистического капитализма (Ч. 2)| chapter-url = http://scepsis.net/library/id_2140.html#a161| format = | url = | title = Войны и народонаселение Европы. Людские потери вооруженных сил европейских стран в войнах XVII—XX вв. (Историко-статистическое исследование) | orig-year = | agency = | edition = | location = М.| year = 1960 | publisher = [[Соцэкгиз]]| at = | volume = | issue = | pages = 104–105, 129 § 4| page = | series = | isbn = | ref = }}</ref><br />
+'''Romania''' — 4,302 killed and missing, <br /> 3,316 wounded, <br /> 19,904 sick <ref>Scafes, Cornel, et. al., ''Armata Romania in Razvoiul de Independenta 1877–1878'' (The Romanian Army in the War of Independence 1877–1878). Bucuresti, Editura Sigma, 2002, p. 149 (Romence)</ref>
+
+'''Bulgaria''' – 2,456 dead and wounded<ref name="scepsis.net">Борис Урланис, Войны и народонаселение Европы, Часть II, Глава II http://scepsis.net/library/id_2140.html</ref><br />
+'''Serbia''' and '''Montenegro''' – 2,400 dead and wounded<ref name="scepsis.net"/>
+
+| casualties2 = 30,000 killed,<ref name="Мерников Спектор">{{cite book| author1 = Мерников А. Г.|author2= Спектор А. А.| title = Всемирная история войн| location = Мн.| year = 2005| publisher = Харвест| isbn = 985-13-2607-0}}</ref><br/>90,000 died from wounds and diseases<ref name="Мерников Спектор"/>
+
+| campaignbox =
+{{Campaignbox Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)}}
+{{Russo-Ottoman War Series}}
+}}
+
+The '''Great Eastern Crisis''' of 1875–78 began in the [[Ottoman Empire]]'s [[Rumelia|territories on the Balkan peninsula]] in 1875, with the outbreak of several uprisings and wars that resulted in the meddling of international powers, and was ended with the [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]] in July 1878.
+
+It is also called {{lang-sh|Velika istočna kriza}}; [[Turkish language|Turkish]]: ''Şark Buhranı'' ("Eastern Crisis", for the crisis in general), ''Ramazan Kararnamesi'' ("Decree of Ramadan", for the [[sovereign default]] declared on 30 October 1875) and ''93 Harbi'' ("War of 93", for the wars on the [[Balkans|Balkan peninsula]] between 1877–78, referring in particular to the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)|Russo-Turkish War]], the year 1293 on the Islamic [[Rumi calendar]] corresponding to the year 1877 on the [[Gregorian calendar]])
+
+==Background==
+{{further|Eastern Question}}
+[[File:Fred. W. Rose The Avenger An Allegorical War Map for 1877 1877 Cornell CUL PJM 1080 01.jpg|thumb|The Avenger: An Allegorical War Map for 1877 by Fred. W. Rose, 1872: This map reflects the "Great Eastern Crisis" and the subsequent Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78.]]
+The state of Ottoman administration in the Balkans continued to deteriorate throughout the 19th century, with the central government occasionally losing control over whole provinces. Reforms imposed by European powers did little to improve the conditions of the Christian population, while at the same time managing to dissatisfy a sizable portion of the Muslim population. [[Bosnia Vilayet|Bosnia]] suffered at least two waves of rebellion by the local Muslim population, the most recent in 1850.{{cn|date=November 2017}} Austria consolidated after the turmoil of the first half of the century and sought to reinvigorate its longstanding policy of expansion at the expense of the Ottoman Empire. Meanwhile, the nominally autonomous, de facto independent principalities of [[Principality of Serbia|Serbia]] and [[Principality of Montenegro|Montenegro]] also sought to expand into regions inhabited by their compatriots. Nationalist and [[irredentism|irredentist]] sentiments were strong and were encouraged by Russia and her agents.
+
+===Ottoman economic crisis and default===
+On 24 August 1854,<ref>[http://www.dunyabulteni.net/haberler/223872/osmanli-devleti-ilk-kez-dis-borc-aldi Dünya Bülteni: "Osmanlı Devleti ilk kez dış borç aldı"]</ref><ref name=derinstrateji>[http://derinstrateji.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/tarih-osmanli-borclari-ve-duyun-u-umumiye-idaresi/ Derin Strateji: "Osmanlı Borçları ve Düyun-u Umumiye İdaresi"]</ref><ref>[http://www.yazarport.com/Yazi/Oku/385 Yazarport: "Kırım Savaşı ve İlk Dış Borçlanma (1854-1855)"]</ref><ref name=Ottomandebthistory>[http://gberis.e-monsite.com/categorie,osmanli-borclanma-tarihi-ottoman-debt-history,3219214.html History of the Ottoman public debt]</ref> during the [[Crimean War]], the Ottoman Empire took its first [[Ottoman public debt|foreign loans]].<ref>Douglas Arthur Howard: "The History of Turkey", page 71.</ref><ref name=mevzuat>[http://www.mevzuatdergisi.com/2006/04a/03.htm Mevzuat Dergisi, Yıl: 9, Sayı: 100, Nisan 2006: "Osmanlı İmparatorluğu'nda ve Türkiye Cumhuriyeti'nde Borçlanma Politikaları ve Sonuçları"]</ref> The empire entered into subsequent loans, partly to finance the construction of railways and telegraph lines, and partly to finance deficits between revenues and the lavish expenditures of the imperial court, such as the construction of new palaces on the [[Bosphorus]] [[strait]] in [[Constantinople]].<ref name=Ferguson>{{cite web|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6667a18a-b888-11dc-893b-0000779fd2ac.html|title=An Ottoman warning for indebted America|author=[[Niall Ferguson]]|publisher=[[Financial Times]]|date=2 January 2008|accessdate=4 February 2016}}</ref> Some financial commentators have noted that the terms of these loans were exceptionally favourable to the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|British]] and [[Second French Empire|French]] banks (owned by the [[Rothschild family]]) which facilitated them, whereas others have noted that the terms reflected the imperial administration's willingness to constantly refinance its debts.<ref name=Ferguson/><ref>''Gold for the Sultan: Western Bankers and Ottoman Finance, 1856–1881'', by Christopher Clay, London, 2001, p. 30.</ref> A large amount of money was also spent for building new ships for the [[Ottoman Navy]] during the reign of Sultan [[Abdülaziz]] (r. 1861–1876). In 1875, the Ottoman Navy had 21 [[battleship]]s and 173 warships of other types, which formed the third largest naval fleet in the world after those of the British and French navies. All of these expenditures, however, put a huge strain on the Ottoman treasury. In the meantime, a severe drought in [[Anatolia]] in 1873 and flooding in 1874 caused famine and widespread discontent in the heart of the empire. The agricultural shortages precluded the collection of necessary taxes, which forced the Ottoman government to declare a [[sovereign default]] on its foreign loan repayments on 30 October 1875 and increase taxes in all of its provinces, including the Balkans.<ref name=mevzuat/><ref name=Ferguson/>
+
+===Uprisings and wars in the Balkans===
+The decision to increase taxes for paying the Ottoman Empire's [[Ottoman public debt|debts to foreign creditors]] sparked an [[#Chronology of the Great Eastern Crisis and its aftermath|outrage in the Balkan provinces]], which culminated in the Great Eastern Crisis and ultimately the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–78)]] that provided independence or autonomy for the Christian nations in the empire's Balkan territories, with the subsequent [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]] in 1878. The war, however, was disastrous for the already struggling Ottoman economy and the [[Ottoman Public Debt Administration]] was established in 1881, which gave the control of the Ottoman state revenues to foreign creditors.<ref name=Ferguson/><ref name="Sovereignty">{{cite web|last1=Krasner|first1=Stephen D.|title=Sovereignty: Organized Hypocrisy |url={{Google books |plainurl=yes |id=tHJ5m56sBX4C |page=135 }} |accessdate=26 August 2014 }}</ref> This made the European creditors bondholders, and assigned special rights to the [[Ottoman Public Debt Administration|OPDA]] for collecting various types of tax and customs revenues.<ref name=Ferguson/> During and after the Serbian–Ottoman War of 1876–78, between 30,000 and 70,000 Muslims, mostly Albanians, were expelled by the [[Armed forces of the Principality of Serbia|Serb army]] from the [[Sanjak of Niš|Sanjak of Niș]] and fled to the [[Kosovo Vilayet]].<ref>Pllana, Emin (1985). "Les raisons de la manière de l'exode des refugies albanais du territoire du sandjak de Nish a Kosove (1878–1878) [The reasons for the manner of the exodus of Albanian refugees from the territory of the Sanjak of Niš to Kosovo (1878–1878)] ". ''Studia Albanica''. '''1''': 189–190.</ref><ref>Rizaj, Skënder (1981). "Nënte Dokumente angleze mbi Lidhjen Shqiptare të Prizrenit (1878–1880) [Nine English documents about the League of Prizren (1878–1880)]". ''Gjurmine Albanologjike (Seria e Shkencave Historike)''. '''10''': 198.</ref><ref>Şimşir, Bilal N, (1968). ''Rumeli’den Türk göçleri. Emigrations turques des Balkans [Turkish emigrations from the Balkans]''. Vol I. Belgeler-Documents. p. 737.</ref><ref name=Batakovic1992>{{cite book|last=Bataković|first=Dušan|title=The Kosovo Chronicles|year=1992|publisher=Plato|url=http://www.rastko.rs/kosovo/istorija/kosovo_chronicles/kc_part2b.html}}</ref><ref name=Elsie2010>{{cite book|last=Elsie|first=Robert|title=Historical Dictionary of Kosovo|year=2010|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=9780333666128|page=XXXII}}</ref><ref>Stefanović, Djordje (2005). "Seeing the Albanians through Serbian eyes: The Inventors of the Tradition of Intolerance and their Critics, 1804–1939." ''European History Quarterly''. '''35'''. (3): 470.</ref>
+
+==Aftermath==
+After the [[Treaty of Berlin (1878)|Treaty of Berlin]] in 1878, [[Austria-Hungary]] stationed military garrisons in the [[Bosnia Vilayet|Ottoman Vilayet of Bosnia]] and [[Sanjak of Novi Pazar|Ottoman Sanjak of Novi Pazar]], which formally ([[de jure]]) continued to be Ottoman territories. Taking advantage of the chaos that occurred during the [[Young Turk Revolution]] in 1908, [[Bulgarian Declaration of Independence|Bulgaria declared its formal independence]] on 5 October 1908. The following day, [[Bosnian crisis|Austria-Hungary unilaterally annexed Bosnia]] on 6 October 1908, but pulled its military forces out of Novi Pazar in order to reach a compromise with the Ottoman government and avoid a war (the Ottoman Empire lost the Sanjak of Novi Pazar with the [[Balkan Wars]] of 1912–1913.)
+
+In 1881, [[France]] [[Beylik of Tunis|occupied the Ottoman Beylik of Tunisia]], with the excuse that Tunisian troops had crossed the border into [[French Algeria|their colony of Algeria]], which also [[Ottoman Algeria|formerly belonged to the Ottoman Empire]] until 1830. A year later, in 1882, the [[British Empire]] [[Khedivate of Egypt|occupied the Ottoman Khedivate of Egypt]], with the pretext of giving military assistance to the Ottomans for putting down the [[Urabi Revolt]] (Britain later declared Egypt [[Sultanate of Egypt|a British protectorate]] on 5 November 1914, in response to the Ottoman government's decision to join [[World War I]] on the side of the [[Central Powers]].<ref>[http://wwi.lib.byu.edu/index.php/Treaty_of_Lausanne Articles 17, 18 and 19 of the Treaty of Lausanne (1923)]</ref>) It is worth noting that the Ottoman government had frequently declared the tax revenues from Egypt as a [[surety]] for borrowing loans from British and French banks.<ref name=derinstrateji/><ref name=mevzuat/> The Ottoman government had earlier [[Cyprus Convention|leased Cyprus to Britain]] in 1878, in exchange for British support at the [[Congress of Berlin]] in the same year (Cyprus was later annexed by Britain on 5 November 1914, for the same aforementioned reason regarding the Ottoman participation in World War I.<ref>[http://wwi.lib.byu.edu/index.php/Treaty_of_Lausanne Articles 20 and 21 of the Treaty of Lausanne (1923)]</ref>) By obtaining Cyprus and Egypt, Britain gained an important foothold in the East Mediterranean and control over the [[Suez Canal]]; while France increased its lands in the West Mediterranean coast of [[North Africa]] by adding Tunisia to its empire [[French protectorate of Tunisia|as a French protectorate]].
+
+==Chronology of the Great Eastern Crisis and its aftermath==
+{{commons category}}
+*[[Herzegovina uprising (1875–77)]]
+*[[April Uprising]] (1876)
+*[[Razlovtsi insurrection]] (1876)
+*On June 28, 1876, Montenegro and Serbia declared war on the Ottoman Empire.
+*[[Serbian–Ottoman War (1876–1878)]]
+*[[Montenegrin–Ottoman War (1876–78)]]
+*[[First Constitutional Era]] (1876-1878)
+*[[Constantinople Conference]] (1876–77)
+*[[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)]]
+**[[Romanian War of Independence]]
+**[[Provisional Russian Administration in Bulgaria]]
+**[[Treaty of San Stefano]] (1878)
+*[[Expulsion of the Albanians 1877–1878]]
+*[[Congress of Berlin]] (1878)
+*[[Kumanovo Uprising]] (1878)
+*[[1878 Greek Macedonian rebellion]]
+*[[Epirus Revolt of 1878]]
+*[[Cretan Revolt (1878)]]
+*[[Austro-Hungarian campaign in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1878]]
+*[[Kresna–Razlog uprising]] (1878)
+
+===Treaties===
+*[[Reichstadt Agreement]]
+*[[Budapest Convention of 1877]]
+*[[Treaty of San Stefano]]
+*[[Cyprus Convention]]
+*[[Treaty of Berlin (1878)]]
+
+===Aftermath===
+*[[Armenian Question]]
+*[[League of Prizren]] (1878)
+**[[Battles for Plav and Gusinje]] (1879–1880)
+*[[Pact of Halepa]] (1878)
+*[[Dual Alliance (1879)]]
+*[['Urabi revolt]] (1879–1882)
+*[[Brsjak revolt]] (1880–1881)
+*[[French conquest of Tunisia]] (1881)
+*[[Austro–Serbian Alliance of 1881]]
+*[[Convention of Constantinople (1881)]]
+*[[Herzegovina Uprising (1882)]]
+*[[British Occupation of Egypt]] (1882)
+*[[Austro-Hungarian–German–Romanian alliance]] (1883)
+*[[Timok Rebellion]] (1883)
+*[[Bulgarian Crisis (1885–88)]]
+
+==References==
+{{reflist}}
+
+== Further reading ==
+* {{cite journal|title=Unprinted documents: Russo-British relations during the Eastern Crisis (VIII. The eve of the armistice)|url=https://archive.org/stream/in.ernet.dli.2015.185585/2015.185585.The-Slavonic-Reviewvol64#page/n215/mode/2up|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review|date=November 1946|volume=25|issue=64}}
+* {{cite journal|title=Unprinted documents: Russo-British relations during the Eastern Crisis (VIII. On the edge of war)|url=https://archive.org/stream/in.ernet.dli.2015.185585/2015.185585.The-Slavonic-Reviewvol64#page/n539/mode/2up|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review|date=April 1947|volume=25|issue=65}}
+* Anderson, M.S. ''The Eastern Question, 1774–1923: A Study in International Relations'' (1966) [https://www.questia.com/library/7391310/the-eastern-question-1774-1923-a-study-in-international online]
+*{{cite book|last=Branković|first=Slobodan|title=Great eastern crisis and Serbia, 1875-1878|url={{Google books |plainurl=yes |id=cmjVPgAACAAJ }} |year=1998|publisher=Svetska srpska zajednica, Institut srpskog naroda}}
+* {{cite encyclopedia |first=David M. |last=Goldfrank |title=Berlin, Congress of |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Russian History |year=2003 |isbn=978-0028656939 |editor-last=Millar |editor-first=James R. |publisher=Macmillan Reference USA }}
+*{{cite book|last1=Király|first1=Béla K.|last2=Rothenberg|first2=Gunther Erich|title=War and Society in East Central Europe: Insurrections wars and the eastern crisis in the 1870s|url={{Google books |plainurl=yes |id=M2HfAAAAMAAJ }} |year=1985|publisher=Brooklyn College Press|isbn=978-0-88033-090-9}}
+* Langer, William L. ''European Alliances and Alignments: 1871-1890'' (1950) pp 151-70. [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.237096 Online]
+* {{cite book |last=Millman |first=Richard|title=Britain and the Eastern question, 1875–1878 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=70aaAAAAIAAJ |year=1979 |publisher=Clarendon Press |isbn=978-0-19-822379-5 }}
+* {{cite book |last=Medlicott |first=W. N. |authorlink=W. N. Medlicott|year=1963 |title=The Congress of Berlin and After: A Diplomatic History of the Near East Settlement, 1878–1880 |edition=Second |location=London |publisher=Frank Cass }}, Focus on the aftermath.
+* Munro, Henry F. ''The Berlin congress'' (1918) [https://archive.org/details/cu31924027836869 online free], 41pp of text, 600 pp of documents
+* {{cite book |last=Taylor |first=A. J. P. |authorlink=A. J. P. Taylor |title=The struggle for mastery in Europe: 1848–1918|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lw0UKQEACAAJ |year=1954 |publisher=Oxford University Press }}
+* {{cite book |editor-last1=Yavuz |editor-first1=M. Hakan |editor-first2=Peter |editor-last2=Sluglett |title=War and Diplomacy: The Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 and the Treaty of Berlin |publisher=University of Utah Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-60781-150-3 }}
+
+{{Great Eastern Crisis}}
+
+[[Category:Great Eastern Crisis| ]]
+[[Category:1870s in the Ottoman Empire]]
+[[Category:Rebellions against the Ottoman Empire]]
+[[Category:Ottoman period in the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina]]
+[[Category:Politics of the Ottoman Empire]]
+[[Category:Diplomacy]]
+[[Category:History of the Balkans]]
+[[Category:History of international relations]]
+[[Category:Ottoman Empire–Russian Empire relations]]
+[[Category:Austria–Turkey relations]]
+[[Category:National questions]]
+[[Category:1870s conflicts]]
+
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