Characteristics of the Ottoman Rise Period (1453

In textbooks the Ottoman rise period usually begins with the conquest of Istanbul in 1453 and ends with the death of Sokollu Mehmed Pasha in 1579. In this period the state spread across three continents, central administration grew stronger and the kanunnames, or law codes, were put into writing. The works of Mimar Sinan also became symbols of this age. Below we summarize the main characteristics of the period with their sources.

Quick Summary

The Ottoman rise period is generally taken to be the years 1453–1579.
Mehmed the Conqueror, Bayezid II, Selim I, Suleiman the Magnificent and Selim II are the main sultans of the period.
Chaldiran, Marj Dabiq, Ridaniya, Mohács and Preveza are among the great victories.
The Imperial Council, the kanunnames and the timar system formed the foundation of the state order.
Mimar Sinan’s mosques are regarded as the peak of classical Ottoman architecture.

Scope of the period
Sultans and great campaigns
Central administration and the kanunnames
The timar system and the army
Economy and trade
Art and architecture
The end of the period
Frequently asked questions

Which Years Does the Ottoman Rise Period Cover?

According to the periodization common in Turkey, the Ottoman rise period begins in 1453 and ends in 1579. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, the siege of Istanbul lasted fifty-four days, from 6 April to 29 May 1453. The end date is 12 October 1579, when Sokollu Mehmed Pasha died as the result of an assassination.

These dates are convenient, but they are not sharp breaking points. The Ottoman state preserved its vast territories and great military power for a long time after 1579 as well. Historians such as Halil İnalcık, on the other hand, study the years 1300–1600 as a whole, calling them the “classical age”.

Characteristics of the Ottoman rise period

Sultans and Great Campaigns

Mehmed the Conqueror (1451–1481) took Istanbul and put an end to the Byzantine Empire. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, the method of forced resettlement, known as sürgün, was widely applied to populate and revive the city. In 1461 the sultan set out on the Trebizond campaign and established dominance in the Black Sea. According to the encyclopedia, Gedik Ahmed Pasha captured Otranto in Italy on 11 August 1480. This campaign was regarded as a first step towards the conquest of Rome.

In the reign of Bayezid II (1481–1512) the fortresses of Kilia and Akkerman were taken. According to the encyclopedia, during the war with Venice the fleet under the command of Kemal Reis struck the Dalmatian coast. Under pressure from the Janissaries, the sultan abdicated on 24 April 1512. We discussed this period in our article on the Ottoman Empire under Bayezid II.

Selim I (1512–1520) turned east and south during his short reign. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, the Battle of Chaldiran was fought on 23 August 1514. The Mamluk army, for its part, broke up at Marj Dabiq on 24 August 1516, partly because of the effect of firearms. The Battle of Ridaniya, on 22 January 1517, opened the gates of Cairo. We described this process in our article on the Ottoman state under Selim I.

Suleiman the Magnificent (1520–1566) had the longest reign of the period. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, Belgrade was conquered in 1521, and part of its population was settled in Istanbul. The Knights of Rhodes surrendered on 20 December 1522. According to the encyclopedia, the Battle of Mohács on 29 August 1526 in a sense brought the Kingdom of Hungary to an end. Barbarossa Hayreddin Pasha, for his part, defeated Andrea Doria at Preveza on 28 September 1538.

According to the encyclopedia, two campaigns were mounted against Hungary, in 1526 and 1529; the second reached the gates of Vienna. The death of the Hungarian king at Mohács without an heir created a new succession question in which the Habsburgs became involved. At Rhodes, the sultan allowed the knights who had surrendered to leave the island.

An interesting detail is that the title “Kanuni”, the Lawgiver, does not date from the sultan’s own time. According to the encyclopedia, the epithet first appeared in the 18th century in the history of Dimitrie Cantemir. Western writers of his own time called him “the Magnificent” or “the Grand Turk”. The sultan died on the night of 6–7 September 1566, during the siege of Szigetvár. We described this last campaign in our article on Suleiman the Magnificent’s last campaign.

The most important operation of the reign of Selim II (1566–1574) was the Cyprus campaign. According to the encyclopedia, immediately after the conquest of Cyprus the fleet was defeated at Lepanto. The sultan at once ordered a new fleet to be built. This fleet captured Tunis in 1574.

How Did Central Administration Grow Stronger?

One of the most distinctive characteristics of the Ottoman rise period was the institutionalization of central administration. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, the Imperial Council, or Divan-ı Hümayun, began to take on its fully developed form in the time of Mehmed the Conqueror. The council’s principal members were the grand vizier, the viziers of the Dome, the kadiaskers, the nişancı and the defterdars. The beylerbeyi of Rumelia also attended the council when he was in Istanbul. We described in detail how it worked in our article on the Imperial Council.

According to the encyclopedia, Mehmed the Conqueror appears to have been the first Muslim ruler to issue a law code that was officially put into force and bound later generations. The sultan issued two kanunnames, one concerning the reaya and the other concerning the organization of the state. The reaya code aimed to prevent abuses by timar holders who collected taxes directly from the people.

According to the encyclopedia, the kanunnames covered fields such as state organization, administration, taxation and criminal law. In the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, the nişancı Celalzade Mustafa Çelebi made important changes to the general kanunnames. In this way Ottoman administration acquired an order based on written rules.

The Timar System and the Army

At the heart of the Ottoman army and provincial administration lay the timar system. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, official records dated 1527–1528 show the timar army as 37,521 men. Of these, 9,563 were hisar eri, or fortress guards, and the rest were cavalrymen who took part in campaigns. Leaving aside the revenues of Egypt, almost half of public revenues were allocated to timars. Every holder of a timar, zeamet or has had to bring to the campaign a number of horsemen proportional to his income.

At the centre were the kapıkulu troops attached to the sultan. The best known of these were the Janissaries, who were raised through the devshirme. Over time the political weight of the Janissaries also increased. Indeed, their pressure played a part in the abdication of Bayezid II.

Economy and Trade

The conquests brought important trade routes under Ottoman control. With the capture of Syria and Egypt, the links to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Red Sea gained importance. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, in 1517 Selim I renewed the capitulations that the Mamluk sultans had granted to Venice.

The conquests also had a cost. According to the encyclopedia, the restoration of Istanbul as a capital and the constant campaigns increased expenses. Mehmed the Conqueror issued a new akçe and exchanged the old akçe at one-fifth below its value, in effect imposing a kind of tax on cash wealth. This practice caused such discontent that Mehmed’s successor was made to agree not to issue a new akçe more than once.

There is a common error concerning the capitulations granted to France. Many sources write that they were granted in 1535. According to the encyclopedia, in 1536 the French ambassador Jean de la Forest prepared a draft capitulation. This draft, however, was not ratified by the sultan because of the execution of İbrahim Pasha. The first general and ratified capitulation with France dates from 1569.

The Classical Age in Art and Architecture

The Ottoman rise period was also a high point in art and architecture. According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, Mimar Sinan described the stages of his career through three buildings. He called the Şehzade Mosque (1548) “my apprentice work” and the Süleymaniye, completed in 1557, “my journeyman work”. The Selimiye in Edirne is regarded as Sinan’s greatest work. When this building was completed the master was eighty-three years old and was already known by the epithet “Koca”, the Great.

In literature, divan poetry flourished; Baki and Fuzuli are among the great poets of this period. Matrakçı Nasuh is known for his miniatures depicting campaign routes and cities. İznik tiles were also widely used to decorate mosques and palaces. These works show that classical Ottoman art acquired a common style.

Why Does the Rise Period End in 1579?

According to the encyclopedia, Sokollu Mehmed Pasha died as the result of an assassination on 12 October 1579. The death of this statesman, who served three sultans as grand vizier, is regarded as a symbol of the breakdown of the balance in government. In the following years the long wars with Iran and Austria also strained the treasury. We discussed later developments in our article on the Ottoman state under Murad III.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many years did the Ottoman rise period last?

According to the common view, it covers the years 1453–1579 and lasted about 126 years. Some historians use different start and end dates.

Who was the most powerful sultan of the rise period?

Suleiman the Magnificent is usually named. His reign lasted 46 years, from 1520 to 1566.

Which arts developed in the Ottoman rise period?

Architecture, divan poetry, miniature painting and tile-making came to the fore. Mimar Sinan’s mosques are the best-known works of the period.

When did the title Kanuni come into use?

According to the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, the epithet first appeared in the 18th century in Cantemir’s work. In the 19th century it was adopted by Ottoman historians and became widespread.

When was the first capitulation granted to France?

According to the encyclopedia, the first general and ratified capitulation with France dates from 1569. The earlier draft of 1536 had not been ratified by the sultan.

Conclusion

The Ottoman rise period is one of the ages in which the state was at its largest and most powerful. In this period conquests, central institutions and kanunnames developed together. The timar system sustained the army, and the Imperial Council sustained the administration. Mimar Sinan’s works became lasting traces of this power. This brilliant phase of Ottoman history kept its influence for a long time after 1579 as well.