OTTOMAN EMPIRE

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 8342, 31 January 1913, Page 10

OTTOMAN EMPIRE

STORY OF ITS RISE A ROMANCE OF THE POWER OF THE SWORD. PRESENT HOUR OF PERIL. ADMITS OF “NO FURTHER CONCESSION." The Turkish reply will thank tne Powers for their benevolent advice, and regret that it is impossible for Turkey to make a further concession.— Cable item. Early in the thirteenth century, in that strange, exclusive period of European history when each nation was almost mythological to its neighbour, far away on the eastern confines of the continent a mighty struggle was going on, the inevitable struggle of those days, a struggle between civilisation and barbarism. The Mongols from the steppes of China, the bleak wastes of Siberia and the highlands of Thibet swept down in almost innumerable swarms over the west country of tho Seljuks, and as, contending ©very inch, these latter gave way before them, colony after colony folded up their tents, while there was yet time to do so in peace, and fled west, seeking safety in distance from their wild and warlike enemies. Among thee© was the clan of Oghuz. And it came about that as they journeyed they came across a battle. A glance showed their loader, Ertnghrul, what was in progress—one of the many struggles, an almost every-day happening at that time, between tho Mongols and some tribe of the Seljuks; a second glance decided him, and just when the Seljuks seemed on tho point of defeat Ertughrul, at the head of 400 trained warriors, rushed down the hillside, and converted defeat into victory. GENESIS OP OTTOMAN EMPIRE.

This was the battle of Angora, and though but little known, yet in its results it was one of tho most momentous battles in history, for the Sultan of Iconium, to whose rescue Ertnghrul had come, granted him right to pasture his flock in his dominion and gave him the city of Sagut sis liis headquarters, and Sagut was the birthplace of the Ottoman Empire. Here in 1358 was born Osman, son of Ertnghrul, who was destined to give his name to one of the greatest empires the world has ever seen, and one which, despite the many losses of the nineteenth century, still embraces within ita borders a large part of the earth's surface. ErtughruPs plan was peace and consolidation—he strengthened his city, trained his followers, executed justice and inspired confidence, and while tho rest of the kingdom was splitting up into various antagonistic factions and petty states h© husbanded his strength, so that when Osman followed Ins father in 1301 he was the strongest man in that corner of Asia Minor. The other section quickly came under his sway, either voluntarily or by conquest, and then Osman sought victories further afield. He looked toward the Greek cities of the Hellespont, and even to Constantinople herself. On© after another they fell before hifh, until, finally ho took Brusa, the capital of Bithynia, and made it the first city in his kingdom.

ERA OF WAR AND CONQUEST. In these two reigns, of Ertughrol and his son Osman, we have outlined in. bold strokes tho policy and history of the Ottoman state-kingdom—and empire for the next 300 years—war and conquest followed by peace and consolidation, and then more war and more conquest—first against the degenerate Greeks of the eastern empire and ultimately against the combined forces of practically the whole of Christian Europe. ‘ Orkhan (1326-59) for the first few years of his reign prosecuted zealously the policy of aggrandisement adopted by his father Osman—took Nicaea in 1330, and a few years later conquered the province Mysia and added it to his kingdom, and then for twenty years there was peace. What a marvellous accomplishment it had been! "In two generations the little clan of Nomads had possessed themselves of the whole north-west corner of A&ia Minor and obtained the command of the eastern shores of the Bosporus and Propontis/' Brusa had ' fallen long ago and now Nicaea, one of the most famous cities in Christendom, had capitulated to these apparently invincible people. HOW GREEKS SOWED THE WIND.

The wealthy pleasure-loving Greeks of Constantinople, whose government was the last word in everything corrupt and emasculated, looked with anxiety across the blue waters of Bosporus towards the white shores of Asia Minor from whence came always the same story of a conquest ever coming nearer. The last thing the Greeks would do was to resort to arms—rather than that they would adopt almost any device, suffer almost any indignity and agree to almost any terms. One of the commonest methods of securing peace was for the Emperor to grant the Ottoman Sultan the right to devastate a Christian province of the empire and carry off the inhabitants as slaves, provided the province was sufficiently far from Constantinople. The people groaned under a great load of taxation enforced in order that an ever increasing tribute demanded by tho Sultan might be paid—'heir children were carried off —brought up as Mohammedans—trained as soldiers of the Ottoman and in a few years led out against their own people.

CHRISTIAN EUROPE REAPS WHIRLWIND.

Such a condition of things could have but one end, and it says much for the ingenuity of the Greeks that it was so long delayed. In 1358 the Turks occupied Gallipoli, and thus gained their first foothold in Europe and a few years later Adrianople and Philippopolis fell before the army of the Sultan, to be followed quickly by Nissa, the birthplace of Constantine, and the subjection of Servia and Bulgaria., Constantinople was now isolated—east, west, north and south, the whole country was in tne hands of the Turks. And now at last Christian Europe began to take things seriously, for what was at first only a distant murmur, listened to one minute and forgotten the next, had grown into a roar, and every courier from the east as he raced through the cities of the great plain of Europe brought only tidings of burning cities and ruined churches, and thousands of Christians, men, women and children, carried off into hopeless slavery. VICTORIOUS, YET VULNERABLE. Lazarus the Servian first took np arms, and, trying to stem the tide, led a great army of Christians against tho Turks, but was severely defeated in the battle of Rosovo (1389), and five years later a vast army of Christians of all Europe, even from the far western shores of Ireland and the mountain valleys of Norway and Sweden, under the Hungarian Kiing Sigismunds. who had vowed a great crusade aaginst the Turks, was defeated and literally annihilated at the battle of Nicopolis (1396) by the Sultan Bajazet I. The power of the Ottoman seemed irresistible, tho capture of Constantinople only a matter of days, and Christendom held its breath and awaited the final onslaught; and then a strange thing happened. Out of that land of mystery and fable whence two centuries before had swept the Mongol hordes driving the Seljnks before them like chaff before the wind, and then with a derisive laugh and a mocking shake of their long swords riding back again into their wilderness —■ thence again through the shrond of the Ea,-t came at this time another horde—the Tartars. AVith incredible swiftness they overran the whole of Asia Minor; defeated the Sultan, by a strange coincidence. at another battle of Angora

(1402), ami flie Ottoman Empire seemed suddenly to conn; lo an end. MOHAMMED “THE KESTOKEB."

But, as with the Mongols, so with the Tartars —disdaining the and luxury of the \ve»t, they rode back again, leaving behind them* ruin and devastation, so that over the vast empire there brooded only the silence of a great waste. But the world was to witness another extraordinary revival, ami under the guidance of Mohammed 1., “The Restorer" (1402-13,), Turkey quickly regained her former power and prestige. Mohammed, waged no wars; he was before ail else a great statesman, and with what has been well described as “ominous foresight" he transferred the capital of his dominion from Asia Minor to Europe, from Brusa to Adrianopoiis, and for ten years pursued a policy of peace and consolidation; and then, under Murad IE (1-421-51), came another outburst. CHRISTIANS PAY DEARLY FOR TREACHERY. A mighty champion of the Christian cause in Europe had arisen in the perbou of Hunyady, the “White Knight" of Wailachia. He defeated the Ottoman at Hormanstadt (1-142) and again at Vasag and Nissa (1443) until at last Murad was glad to conclude a ten years' peace and “weary of war'-' he abdicated in favour of his son Mohammed. As soon, however, as the allies saw the old warrior with, his armour off and his sword laid aside, in shameless violation of their oath they i*aided the Ottoman dominions. But with, a roar Murad was upon them. In an incredibly short space of time he had all the reins of government in his hands again, 40,000 veterans rallied round him, and crossing the Bosporus in ferries and on rafts, and carrying the violated treaty on a lance as his standard, ho fell upon the united forces of the enemy defeated them in the great battle of Vanna (November 10th, 1444), at which fell the King of Poland and the Cardinal Julian, who was leading the Frankish Crusaders. IN THE GOAL-STAMBOUL. And now they were in sight of the end to which every Ottoman looked. Their great father Osman, looking across the Bosporus from the high places of his capital Brusa, had dreamed of the day when his children should reign at Constantinople, and now the dream was to be realised, for in 1452 Mohammed lE, "The Conqueror/'* led an army against Constantinople, and on May 19fch, 1453, tho city was taken, and with it the last remnant of the once great Byzantine Empire was extinguished. The effect of the fall of Constantinople upon the history of Europe and indeed of tho world can scarcely be exaggerated—at the time it seemed a small thing, the inevitable climax to a steadily pursued policy, and indeed the physical results of the incident were nothing, but the dynamic power of the mental effect which resulted from it was stupendous; for with all her unspeakable corruption Constantinople was still easily the most learned city in the world at that time, and when she fell her great scholars took up their books and fled west, scattering themselves in ©verv city, and so commenced that wonderful movement toward higher things to which the world owes so much, and which scholars speak of as the revival of learning. By the fall of Constantinople the Sultan became the undisputed ruler of the whole of the Balkan peninsula, and the Ottoman. Empire had almost readied the limit of its permanent European extension. Bnt eastward and southward vast territories still awaited tho conquest of Selem 11. and Suleyman the Magnificent.