Ottoman Europeanism: Importance of Tulip Era

Introduction

          The Ottoman Empire was one of the prominent empires throughout the world. The administrative structure of state that was strengthened by the sophistications of Suleiman I’s assured Ottoman Empire to last for 400 years after Suleiman’s time for sovereignty. Rather than Suleiman I’s chivalrous horizon, Ottoman Empire abashed its endurable authority within the 17th century to the 20th. Generally, the countable periods of Ottoman Empire are evaluated as deeply. However, the Tulip Era had to be differentiated from its precedents in terms of conviction of West’s seniority. The Tulip Era was, in specific assessment, consisting of transition between Ottomans and European cultures. The name of “Tulip Era” was not mentioned as its contemporary time, it was named by “Yahya Kemal Beyatlı” who was a writer and a diplomat in Turkey. Thanks to the timeline, Ottoman Empire was definitely developed in terms of art, literature and architecture. In contrast to improvement in social sciences, the precarious authority that was caused by wasting of money to the palace triggered that suffering of decline in the middle 18th century. To sum up, the Tulip Era is quite significant for the Empire that dominated Europe, Asia and Africa at the same time. 

Ottoman Empire’s Situation Before and The Beginning of The Tulip Era

Ahmed III (Credit: Wikipedia)

          At first, concentrating on the political structure of Ottoman Empire in the early 18th century is beneficial. At the beginning of the 18th century, Ottoman Empire was catastrophically defeated by the Holy League which included the Habsburgs, Venice, Polish-Lithuania and Russia. Consequences of that war, the Karlowitz (1699) & Istanbul (1700) treaties, damaged the authority of the Empire in regards to politics and reputation which any similar case had never been experienced before. Upon this incident, Ottoman Empire empowered its fronts against its neighbors Austrian Habsburgs and Russian Tsardom to recapture the crucial basis of Azov where connected Ukranian mainland to Black Sea, after the victory of Prut River Campaign in 1711. However, the non-integrity of Ottoman Elite and personal aims of Ottoman Grand Vizier Silahdar Ali Pasha led Ottoman Empire to declare war against the Venice Republic that caused Austrian Habsburgs to join the war in Venetian side. In 3 year of campaign (1715-1718), strategic castles and cities such as Timeshvar, Belgrade were taken by Austrian Habsburgs with the Passarowitz Treaty in 1718. To illustrate, such a destructive defeat demonstrated melting of Ottoman dominance throughout Europe and Balkan mainland. The beginning of Ottoman Europeanism was hosted by the reign of Ahmed III and his son-in-law Grand Vizier Nevşehirli Damad İbrahim Pasha. Characteristics of these two, contrary to their predecessors, were quite feeble and Ottoman citizens and Janissaries were frowning at them. Especially, being seen as a holy figure for possessing caliphate, the Sultan made his decisions undebatable and untouchable because of his unreachable position. As a result, the journey which started with the Karlowitz and Passarowitz treaties identified the structure of Ottoman Empire definitely. 

The Social, Economic and Military Structure of The Tulip Era

Nevşehirli Damat İbrahim Pasha (Credit: Wikipedia) 

        To investigate the dynamics of the Tulip Era specifically is quite crucial for understanding this period well. Therefore, classifying the Tulip Era in terms of social, economic and military aspects explains the fundamentals of structure at that time. To begin with, the social circumstances of Ottoman society had altered in the Tulip Era massively. Predominance of “Tulips” in the whole Europe affected the Ottoman lifestyle a lot. In general, dwellers of “Konstantiniyye” started to plant piquant tulips in front of their houses and this caused an increase in price of tulips. According to Ismail Hakkı Uzunçarşılı, the government had to fix the price of tulips in order to ensure tranquility in the community. Moreover, some European architecture styles had been employed in Ottoman palaces such as Sadabat Kasrı, Hayrabad Kasrı where Ahmed III and his elite class gathered every winter to organize parties which were famous during the Tulip Era. The addiction to pleasure in that time was generally induced by Grand Vizier Nevşehirli Damat Ibrahim Pasha. Organizing glorious parties was displayed as the magnificence of Ottoman Empire, rather than living in a simple way. However, it is necessary to bear in mind that the Ottoman lower class did not experience this sort of lifeway distressingly, and this lifestyle triggered the rebellion eventually. On the other hand, assuming the European horizon towards the Ottoman social structure also encouraged Ottoman literature to enrich its knowledge. Being brought from Europe into the Ottoman land by Ibrahim Mutefferika, “printing press” enabled some of the famous European origin books to be translated into Ottoman Turkish which made its literature witness one of the eminent era, until the 20th century. Secondly, the economic structure of Ottoman Empire in the Tulip Era was unstable and precarious. Wasting the state treasury, maintaining influence of debasement and newly assumed devaluation were the consequences of winter and summer parties. That is to say, Ottoman aristocracy was enjoying the priority of their ranks while Ottoman dwellers and Janissaries were suffering from the absence of commodities within devaluation. What is more, the obligation of transferring the money to the Ottoman-Safavid War (1723-1727), is an another aspect that ought to be assessed to explain waste of money more. Lastly, the military structure of Ottoman Empire in the Tulip Era showed the erratic circumstances of the authority. Vanishment of the Janissary army’s endurance caused the Ottoman Army to be vanquished in the west which ended up with the treaty of Hamedan. In conclusion, evaluating the principles of the Tulip Era deeply is so significant to handle this period positively. Thus, dividing the Tulip Era into social, economic and military parts clarifies the basis of structure at that time. Vanishment of the Janissary army’s endurance and power had been launched by the Great Turkish War that lasted 17 years of hell. Attention of the army had shifted from warfare to survive tough life conditions which led Janissaries to engage in different occasions although it was prohibited to soldiers. Also, emergence of a war in the eastern borders of the empire against the Safavid Dynasty is an another topic that should be focused on. The Safavid Dynasty under the command of Nader Shah, specifically, vanquished the Ottoman Army in the west which ended up with the treaty of Hamedan. In conclusion, evaluating the principles of the Tulip Era deeply is so significant to handle this period positively. Thus, dividing the Tulip Era into social, economic and military parts clarifies the basis of structure at that time.

Breaking Down of Ottoman Authority and End of The Tulip Era

(Credit: Unsplash,Rupert Britton)

          The frequency of luxurious winter-summer parties, wasting of money on unnecessary things and precarious authority of Ottoman administration formed the basis for the rebellion that resulted in accession to the throne by Mahmud I. Especially, the hate towards Ahmed III and his Grand Vizier Nevşehirli Damat Ibrahim Pasha, also promoting the relatives of Ibrahim Pasha to Ottoman bureaucracy tried society’s patience. The Patrona Halil rebellion was started by Patrona Halil whose name was given to the rebellion with the support of Ottoman society, ulama and other bureaucrats. This was such a massive riot that caused Ahmed III to topple him from his throne and Grand Vizier Damat Ibrahim Pasha to be strangled. An another aspect is the position of religion in that period. According to some historians, Patrona Halil rebellion, in fact, did not target the parties and etc. The main goal was to reapply the old disciplines of religion because of some secular implementations in Ottoman Empire. Especially, the support of the ulama class may prove the accuracy of this allegation. Finally, the Tulip Era ended with Ahmed III’s nephew Mahmud I’s accession to the throne through the request of Janissaries. Aftermath of this period, because of gaining a painful experience in the Tulip Era, Ottoman elites and the administration system concentrated on warfare and other governmental issues. However, the Europeanism of Ottoman Empire was never interrupted again until the 20th century. 

Conclusion

        The Tulip Era is one of the crucial time periods of Ottoman Empire. In terms of art, literature and architecture, Ottoman Empire definitely made progress. Although the improvements in social sciences, the erratic condition that was caused by spending a great amount of money for the palace caused that suffering in the middle 18th century. 

Sources;

1. Uzunçarşılı, İsmail Hakkı. “Osmanlı Tarihi IV. Cilt I. Kısım”, Turkey/Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu publishing, 2009.
2. Finkel, Caroline. “Osman’s Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire”, United States/NY: Basic Books, 2006.
3. www.britannica.com
4. www.Wikipedia.com