Imperial History
The Ottoman Empire was the major dynasty of the past millennium. From its beginnings in the 13th century to its fall in the 20th, the Empire ruled vast streches of territory across Asia Minor, stretching into Europe and Africa. Founded in the 13th century by Osman I, his family ruled the Ottoman Empire in an unbroken and unchallenged line until the demise of the Empire in 1922, shortly after World War I.
The beginning of the Ottoman Empire is held to be the year 1299, the year of the rise of Osman I. Osman was a Muslim war leader, and his followers were called the Ottomans. Under the leadership of Osman and his successors, the new state gained more and more land until they conquered Constantinople in 1453, by Muhammad the Conqueror (the 7th sultan of the Empire.) At this point the leaders of the Empire became known as the Sultans, and the capital of the empire was moved to Constantinople. In 1517 the Empire conquered Egypt and Syria, later moving on to engulf Persia and the rest of the Islamic world. It is for this reason that many referred to the Empire as the caliphate - the supreme authority of Allah on Earth.
The greatest Sultan of all is considered to be Süleyman I, more commonly known as Süleyman the Magnificent. Under his reign the Empire became the Caliphate and ruled the whole Islamic world from Asia to Africa. He was responsible for huge changes and new constructions throughout the Empire that made it the envy of the civilized world. By his death in 1566 he was the most powerful leader of Islam the world had ever known.
The power of the sultanate began to decline after Süleyman's reign. Although briefly interrupted by the institution of the grand vizier in the 1600's, the Empire slid into corruption and incompetence despite their large holdings of land and wealth. By the time of World War I, the Empire was close to collapse. Indeed, after their loss to the Allies in the war, the Empire was reduced to what is now simply the state of Turkey.
Ottoman Traditions
A major facet of the Ottoman Empire was the succession of leadership in the sultanate. Contrary to previous Islamic tradition, leaders followed a strictly familial line of succession -- Osman's descendants ruled from the beginning of the Empire to its end. In addition, the Islamic laws further defined the rest of the Empire. Although religious freedom existed, to some extent, it was a nation of Islam, with a caliphate at its head. While those of other religions lived within the Empire with relative freedom, they were more like permanent tourists than citizens.
The other major facet of Ottoman culture comes from the background of the early Ottomans as raiders and plunderers. Although as the Empire became more established the method of income turned from plunder to conquest, the Ottomans were always a warlike people. Their belief system centered in the duty of the Muslim to seek out and conquer the nations of the infidel in the name of Allah. This was the primary motivation behind their conquest of Constantinople and subsequent relocation of their capital there (to the previous capital of the Christian Byzantine Empire.)
Sources
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The Macmillan Encyclopedia 2001.
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"Ottoman Empire."
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http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2002 Microsoft Corporation.
The Ottoman Period.
http://jeru.huji.ac.il/eh1.htm. Copyright © 1995-2002, Snunit. Accessed: 11/19/2002.