Name _____________________________ Class _________________ Date __________________
New Asian Empires
Section 1
MAIN IDEA
The Ottoman and Safavid empires flourished under powerful rulers who
expanded the territory and cultural influence of their empires.
Key Terms and People
ghazis nomadic, militaristic “warriors for the Islam faith”
Ottomans Western name for Osman I and his descendants
sultan the Arabic term for “ruler”
Janissaries enslaved Christian boys who were converted to Islam and trained as elite
soldiers, loyal only to the sultan
Mehmed II sultan at the time of the Ottoman Empire’s spectacular phase of expansion,
conquered Constantinople and made it his capital
Suleyman I sultan whose rule brought the Ottoman Empire to its height
shah Persian title for “king,” leader of the Safavid Empire
‘Abbas greatest shah of the Safavid Empire
Taking Notes
As you read the summary, take notes in a graphic organizer like this one to
record key facts about the Ottoman and Safavid empires.
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New Asian Empires
Section 1
Section Summary
THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE
In the early 1300s, Anatolia was flanked by the
Byzantine and Muslims empires. The warlike,
nomadic Muslim Turks of Anatolia were Muslim.
They thought of themselves as ghazis, or “warriors for
the Islam faith.” By 1300, the ghazi leader Osman I
built a strong state in Anatolia. He and his
descendants were called Ottomans by Westerners.
Osman’s son Orhan I declared himself sultan, an
Arabic term for “ruler.” Ottoman forces attacked the
Byzantine Empire in the Balkans, then in 1361 they
took the important Byzantine city Adrianople and
made it their capital, Edirne. Soon, the Ottomans
became a true empire and a European power.
The Ottomans succeeded due to their military,
which contained enslaved Christian boys converted to
Islam and trained as elite soldiers called Janissaries.
The Ottomans also used gunpowder cannons, which
enabled them to invade heavily walled cities.
Timur (TEEM-uhr), also known as Timur the Lame
because of an old leg injury, was a great Central Asian
conqueror who attacked the Ottomans in 1402. His
army crushed Ottoman forces at the Battle of Ankara,
then withdrew, leaving the empire in shambles.
Following this decline, Sultan Mehmed II
conquered Constantinople, the great Byzantine capital,
in 1453. In 1514, the Ottomans defeated the Safavids
in Persia, then swept through Syria, Egypt, and the
holy Islamic cities of Mecca and Medina.
The Ottoman Empire reached its height under
Suleyman I (soo-lay-MAHN), known in the West as
Suleyman “the Magnificent.” During his reign, from
1520 to 1566, Ottoman forces pushed through
Hungary up to Vienna and gained control of the
eastern Mediterranean and the North African coast.
Suleyman reformed the tax system and government
bureaucracy, improving the court system and issuing
laws to reduce corruption. Architects built grand
mosques and palaces, and culture reached its peak.
Two classes existed in Ottoman society, the
privileged ruling class that included the sultan, and
everyone else. Non-Muslims had to pay heavy taxes,
Identify the reasons for the
Ottomans’ military
success.
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________
Why do you think
Westerners called
Suleyman “the
Magnificent”?
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________
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New Asian Empires
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but they did not have to serve in the military. NonMuslims also formed millets, or religious
communities where they could follow their own
religious laws.
After Suleyman’s reign, the Ottoman Empire
gradually declined, in part because of the practice of
new sultans killing their brothers to eliminate rivals.
After the 1600s, they locked up princes in the royal
palace instead. But when the prince was finally
released to become sultan, he had no experience with
governing. Despite a series of weak sultans, the
empire lasted until the early 1900s.
THE SAFAVID EMPIRE
The founder of the Safavid Empire was a 14-year-old
boy named Esma’il (is-mah-EEL). In 1501, he led an
army of supporters on a sweep of conquest in Persia.
A series of victories gave him control of what is now
Iran and part of Iraq. Esma’il then took the Persian
title of shah, or “king,” of the Safavid Empire. He
made Shiism the official Safavid religion even though
most people in the empire were Sunnis.
The blending of Shia religion and Persian tradition
gave the Safavid state a unique identity and laid the
foundation for the national culture of present-day Iran.
Shiism also separated the Safavid state from its Sunni
neighbors, the Ottomans and the Uzbeks.
The Ottomans defeated Esma’il at the Battle of
Chaldiran in 1514 by using gunpowder weapons.
Later Safavid shahs struggled to keep the empire
together. Then in 1588 the greatest Safavid leader,
‘Abbas, became shah. He reformed the government,
strengthened the military, and acquired modern
gunpowder weapons. He also had slave youths
captured in Russia trained to be soldiers. Under his
rule, the Safavids defeated the Uzbeks and gained
back land lost to the Ottomans.
‘Abbas’s achievements produced a golden age in
Safavid culture. Glazed tiles and ceramics, graceful
arches, lush gardens, and domes were created.
Products like hand-woven Persian carpets brought
wealth that helped establish the empire as a major
Muslim civilization. The empire lasted until 1722.
What did the Ottomans
require of non-Muslims in
the empire?
_______________________
_______________________
Circle the official Safavid
religion. Were most of the
people in the Safavid
empire Shia or Sunni
Muslims?
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________
Why was ‘Abbas
considered the greatest
Safavid leader?
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________
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