- Foreign relations of the Ottoman Empire
The foreign relations of the
Ottoman Empire were characterized by competition with thePersian Empire to the east andEurope to the west. The foreign relations of the Ottomans collapsed after theYoung Turks took over the empire in 1908 and this led to the loss of many important territories.Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia andHerzegovina ,Bulgaria proclaimed its independence, and eventually all theArab lands became independent.Structure
The Ottoman Empire's diplomatic structure was unconventional and departed in many ways from its European counterparts.
Ambassadors
Ambassadors from the Ottoman Empire were usually appointed on a temporary and limited basis, as opposed to the resident ambassadors sent by other European nations.Watson, 218.] The Ottomans sent 145 temporary envoys to Venice between 1384 and 1600.Yurdusev et al., 27.] The first resident Ottoman ambassador was not seen until
Yusuf Agah Efendi was sent toLondon in1798 .Yurdusev et al., 2.] Yurdusev et al., 30.]Ambassadors to the Ottoman Empire began arriving shortly after the fall of Constantinople. The first was
Bartelemi Marcello from Venice in 1454. The French ambassadorJean de la Forèt later arrived in1535 .Yurdusev et al., 39.] In 1583, the ambassadors from Venice and France would attempt unsuccessfully to blockWilliam Harborne of England from taking up residence in Istanbul. This move was repeated by Venice, France and England in trying to block Dutch ambassadorCornelius Haga in1612 .Yurdusev et al., 39-40.]Capitulations
Capitulations were a unique practice of Muslim diplomacy that was adopted by Ottoman rulers. In legal and technical terms, they were unilateral agreements made by the Sultan to a nation's merchants. These agreements were temporary, and subject to renewal by subsequent Sultans.Yurdusev et al., 41.] Watson, 217.] The origins of the capitulations comes from
Harun al Rashid and his dealings with the Frankish kingdoms, but they were also used by both his successors and by theByzantine Empire .Europe
The Ottoman Empire was a crucial part of the European states system and actively played a role in their affairs, due in part to their coterminous periods of development.Yurdusev et al., 21.]
Towards the end of the 15th century, the Ottomans began to play a larger role in the Italian Peninsula. In
1494 , both the Papacy and theKingdom of Naples petitioned the Sultan directly for his assistance againstCharles VIII of France in theFirst Italian War .Yurdusev et al., 22.]Ottoman policy towards Europe during the 16th century was one of disruption against the Habsburg dynasties. The Ottomans collaborated with
Francis I of France and his Protestant allies in the 1530s while fighting the Habsburgs.Watson, 177.] Although the French had sought an alliance with the Ottomans as early as 1531, one was not concluded until 1536. The sultan then gave the French freedom of trade throughout the empire, and plans were drawn up for an invasion of Italy from both the north and the south in 1537.Inalcik, 36.]Francis I later admitted to a Venetian ambassador that the Ottoman Empire was the only thing that prevented
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor from creating a Europe-wide empire under Habsburg dominion.Yurdusev et al., 23.] Inalcik, 35.]Later, the Dutch would ally with the Ottomans. Prince William of Orange coordinated his strategic moves with those of the Ottomans during the Turkish negotiations with
Philip II of Spain in the 1570s. After the Habsburgs inherited the Portuguese crown in1580 , Dutch forces attacked their Portuguese trading rivals while the Turks, supportive of the Dutch bid for independence, attacked the Habsburgs in Eastern Europe.Watson, 222.]Notes
References
* Inalcik, Halil. (1971). "The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1600". New York: Praegar. ISBN 1842124420.
* Watson, Adam. (1992). "The evolution of international society: a comparative historical analysis". New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-06998-X.
* Yurdusev, A. Nuri et al. (2004). "Ottoman Diplomacy: Conventional or Unconventional?". Houndmills: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 0-333-71364-8.See also
*
Persian-Ottoman relations
*Foreign relations of Turkey
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