Post by King Adam Aberdeen I on May 12, 2009 10:50:44 GMT -6
Despite military success of the Ottoman territorial expansion, there remained problems of organization and government within the Ottoman Empire. One was the political influence by the Sultans to limit the influence of the nobility by elevating faithful former slaves to administrative positions. These administrators came to provide an alternative voice to that of the nobility and, as a result, the Sultans were able to play one faction against the other, a feature that came to typify the Ottoman Empire. The power of the janissaries often overrode a weak sultan and the elite military force occasionally acted as "king-makers".
Another weakness was that primogeniture (common law right of the firstborn son to inherit the entire estate, to the exclusion of younger siblings) was not used in Islam and the transference of power from a deceased sultan to his son was frequently disputed. If a sultan died without a male heir or if he left several sons, succession was violently contested. In the early period, to prevent ongoing rivalries, all male relatives of a newly crowned sultan were put to death. Later, however, the potential rivals were merely imprisoned for life.
Despite the difficulties of succession and administrative control, the Ottomans had a number of advantages that contributed to their success, the enormous wealth of the Empire being the most significant asset. As the Ottoman Empire expanded, it acquired control of the trade routes to the East and many European powers, such as Venice and Genoa, paid great sums for the privilege of access to these routes. It would be these trade routes, that Adam, as Mo’r Triath of the Gaelic Nations would seek.
Although the atrocities of the Ottomans struck fear into the hearts of all Christians, in actuality, they generally allowed religious groups to continue to practice their own faiths within the conquered territories. They also tended to preserve the established feudal institutions and, in many cases, permitted the co-existence of law codes to regulate the different ethnic and religious groups. Their administrative and governmental systems were well developed and highly effective and most lands under Ottoman control were well managed during this time.
Economically, socially, and militarily, the Ottoman Empire was unaffected by the developments in the rest of Europe. Turkish domination over the northern part of Africa (except Tripoli and Egypt) was never well defined or effective, and the eastern border was inconstant, shifting according to frequent wars with Persia. On the western border stood the Gaelic Nation and her allies.
During the reign of Grand Vizier’s reign, the traditional tradeship between Skye and the Ottoman’s, Sullaimaine reorganized the judicial system, and his reign saw the flowering of literature, art, and architecture. In practice, the prerogatives of the sultan were limited by the spirit of Muslim canonical law (sharia), and he usually shared his authority with the chief preserver of the sharia.
In the progressive decay that followed the Grand Vizier’s death, the clergy and the Janissaries gained power and exercised a profound, corrupting influence. The first serious blow by Skye to the empire was the naval defeat of Lepanto, inflicted on their fleet by the Gaelic Nations under the command of High Lord Admiral Jack Flynn.
Crete was conquered from Venice, and a huge portion of the Ottoman army under Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa surrounded Vienna. The relief of Vienna and the subsequent campaigns by various generals of the Gaelic Nations ended in negotiations which cost the Ottomans, Hungary and other territories.
The breakup of the Ottoman state gained through a series of treaties of capitulation gradually took away the Ottoman economic independence. Although it was theoretically among the victors in the Crimean War, it emerged from the war economically exhausted. These events marked the confirmation of the empire's dependency rather than of its rights as a European power.
Another weakness was that primogeniture (common law right of the firstborn son to inherit the entire estate, to the exclusion of younger siblings) was not used in Islam and the transference of power from a deceased sultan to his son was frequently disputed. If a sultan died without a male heir or if he left several sons, succession was violently contested. In the early period, to prevent ongoing rivalries, all male relatives of a newly crowned sultan were put to death. Later, however, the potential rivals were merely imprisoned for life.
Despite the difficulties of succession and administrative control, the Ottomans had a number of advantages that contributed to their success, the enormous wealth of the Empire being the most significant asset. As the Ottoman Empire expanded, it acquired control of the trade routes to the East and many European powers, such as Venice and Genoa, paid great sums for the privilege of access to these routes. It would be these trade routes, that Adam, as Mo’r Triath of the Gaelic Nations would seek.
Although the atrocities of the Ottomans struck fear into the hearts of all Christians, in actuality, they generally allowed religious groups to continue to practice their own faiths within the conquered territories. They also tended to preserve the established feudal institutions and, in many cases, permitted the co-existence of law codes to regulate the different ethnic and religious groups. Their administrative and governmental systems were well developed and highly effective and most lands under Ottoman control were well managed during this time.
Economically, socially, and militarily, the Ottoman Empire was unaffected by the developments in the rest of Europe. Turkish domination over the northern part of Africa (except Tripoli and Egypt) was never well defined or effective, and the eastern border was inconstant, shifting according to frequent wars with Persia. On the western border stood the Gaelic Nation and her allies.
During the reign of Grand Vizier’s reign, the traditional tradeship between Skye and the Ottoman’s, Sullaimaine reorganized the judicial system, and his reign saw the flowering of literature, art, and architecture. In practice, the prerogatives of the sultan were limited by the spirit of Muslim canonical law (sharia), and he usually shared his authority with the chief preserver of the sharia.
In the progressive decay that followed the Grand Vizier’s death, the clergy and the Janissaries gained power and exercised a profound, corrupting influence. The first serious blow by Skye to the empire was the naval defeat of Lepanto, inflicted on their fleet by the Gaelic Nations under the command of High Lord Admiral Jack Flynn.
Crete was conquered from Venice, and a huge portion of the Ottoman army under Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa surrounded Vienna. The relief of Vienna and the subsequent campaigns by various generals of the Gaelic Nations ended in negotiations which cost the Ottomans, Hungary and other territories.
The breakup of the Ottoman state gained through a series of treaties of capitulation gradually took away the Ottoman economic independence. Although it was theoretically among the victors in the Crimean War, it emerged from the war economically exhausted. These events marked the confirmation of the empire's dependency rather than of its rights as a European power.
