Empire and Power in the Reign of Süleyman: Narrating the Sixteenth-Century Ottoman World

ISBN-13: 9781107034426 / Angielski / Twarda / 2013 / 314 str.

Kaya Sahin

Opis

Kaya ahin's book offers a revisionist reading of Ottoman history during the reign of Suleyman the Magnificent (1520 1566). By examining the life and works of a bureaucrat, Celalzade Mustafa, ahin moves beyond traditional, teleological approaches and argues that the empire was built as part of the Eurasian momentum of empire building, and demonstrates the imperial vision of sixteenth-century Ottomans. This unique study shows that, in contrast with many Eurocentric views, the Ottomans were active players in European politics, with an imperial culture in direct competition with that of the Habsburgs and the Safavids. Indeed, this book explains Ottoman empire building with reference to the larger Eurasian context, from Tudor England to Mughal India, contextualizing such issues as state formation, imperial policy, and empire building in the period more generally. ahin's work also devotes significant attention to the often-ignored religious dimension of the Ottoman-Safavid struggle, showing how the rivalry redefined Sunni and Shiite Islam, laying the foundations for today's religious tensions."

Recenzje

'In narrating Mustafa's views and accounts, Şahin gives abridged translations in prose rather than quoting long and lofty passages from his works. This not only renders Mustafa's expressions readily understandable and makes it rather readable for the non-specialist, it also transmits the poetic/literary aspect of Mustafa's style and his imagery.' N. Zeynep Yelçe, Canadian Journal of History

Spis treści

1. The formative years (1490–1523); 2. The secretary's progress (1523–34); 3. The empire and its chancellor (1534–53); 4. Toward the end (1553–67); 5. Narrating the empire: history-writing between imperial advocacy and personal testimony; 6. Imagining the empire: the sultan, the realm, the enemies; 7. Managing the empire: institutionalization and bureaucratic consciousness.