(LBE) The Muslim Gunpowder Empires Lesson

The Muslim Gunpowder Empires Lesson

The Muslim "gunpowder" empires developed after the fall of the Mongols in the Middle East during the late 13th and early 14th centuries. Even though the Mongols had destroyed the Abbasid caliphate, the Muslim tradition continued under the leadership of three different empires: the Ottoman in the Middle East, the Safavid in Persia (present day Iran), and the Mughal in Northern India. Unlike the previous Abbasid rulers, the Ottomans, Safavids, and Mughals all had nomadic Turkish origins. Although these empires remained strong throughout the 1450-1750 time period, each began to weaken around the beginning of the eighteenth century as they came into increasing contact with the West.

 

The Muslim Gunpowder Empires (1450-1750)

• The Ottoman rulers were Sunni and ruled over a Sunni majority. The Safavid rulers were Shiâa, as were most of their subjects. The Mughals were Sunni Muslims, but ruled over a Hindu majority.
• The Ottomans overthrew the Byzantine empire and captured Constantinople in 1453. The city then became known as Istanbul.
• Janissaries were Ottoman slaves who were trained to fight in the military. Because of their military expertise, Janissaries became very politically powerful within the Ottoman court.
• The Ottoman and Safavid empires periodically clashed on the battlefield, as in the 1514 battle of Chaldiran. There, the Ottomans used a superior knowledge and supply of firearms to defeat the Safavids.
• The Mughal rulers were known for their religious tolerance of the Hindu majority. The ruler Akbar (1556-1605) was particularly renowned for his religious tolerance

 

[CC BY 4.0] UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED | IMAGES: LICENSED AND USED ACCORDING TO TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION