UNIT 3: LAND-BASED EMPIRES [1450-1750]

• Land-based Empire


  An empire whose power comes from the extent of its territorial holdings
• 4 land-based empires to know


  • Ottoman Empire
  • Safavid Empire
  • Mughal Empire
  • Qing Dynasty
• Ottoman Empire


  • Founded in 14th century
  • Adopted gunpowder weapons
  • Conquered Constantinople in 1453
  • Enslaved Christians and converted them to Islam, forming the Janissary elite force
• Safavid Empire


  • Founded in early 16th century
  • Lacked natural defensive barriers, so built up military with gunpowder and enslaved Christian soldiers from Caucasus region
  • Shia Muslim, unlike the Sunni Ottoman Empire
• Mughal Empire


  • Established in first half of 16th century
  • Wiped out Delhi Sultanate
  • Under Akbar, became most prosperous 16th century empire and was tolerant of diverse beliefs
• Qing Dynasty


  • Also known as the Manchu Empire
  • Ethnically Han Chinese, overthrew the Ming Dynasty
  • Used gunpowder weapons to expand
• Land-based empires expanding


  Inevitable clashes between them, such as the Safavid-Mughal conflict
• Legitimize power


  Methods a ruler uses to establish their authority
• Consolidate power


  Methods a ruler uses to transfer power from other groups to themselves
• How rulers legitimized and consolidated power


  1. Formation of large bureaucracies

  2. Reliance on elite military forces

  3. Ideological justification through religion or culture

  4. Dynastic succession
• Ottoman bureaucracy


  • Used the devşirme system to staff bureaucracy with highly trained individuals, many of whom were enslaved Christians from the Balkans
• Officials that ensure laws are kept throughout the Empire
• The bureaucracy is used by rulers to maintain control of their Empire
• Dev sheer system


  Used by the Ottomans to staff their bureaucracy with highly trained individuals
• Many Christians converted to Islam were sent to an educational institution and the top performers were appointed to elite positions in the Ottoman bureaucracy
• Extensive education and training made the Ottoman bureaucrats wise administrators and loyal to the Sultan
• Military professionals


  • Used by rulers to administer their Empires
• The Janissaries were an example of military professionals used by the Ottoman Empire
• Three ways rulers administered their Empires


  • Religious ideas
  • Art
  • Monumental architecture
• Divine right of kings


  Religious belief that monarchs were God's representatives on earth, legitimizing their authority
• Use of art to legitimize power


  • Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty hung Imperial portraits of himself surrounded by books to convince the Han population of his legitimacy
• Use of monumental architecture to legitimize power


  • The Sun Temple of Cusco in the Inca Empire, with its gold walls and statues, legitimized the Inca rulers' association with the gods
• Use of monumental architecture to consolidate power


  • The Palace of Versailles built by Louis XIV in France, which required the French nobility to live there and compete for his attention, transferring power to the monarch
• Four ways rulers administered their Empires


  • Innovations in tax collection systems
  • Religious ideas
  • Art
  • Monumental architecture
• Zamar system


  Used by the Mughal Empire, where elite landowners (zamindars) were granted authority to tax peasants on behalf of the Imperial government
• Ottoman tax farming system


  The right to tax subjects was awarded to the highest bidder, who could then charge more than required and enrich themselves
• Aztec tribute lists


  Conquered regions were required to send a variety of goods to the Aztec Empire, communicating who was in charge
• The Roman Catholic Church in Europe had become plagued with corruption, including the sale of indulgences to finance building projects
• Martin Luther


  A Catholic monk who criticized the Church's practices and published the 95 Theses, leading to the Protestant Reformation
• The Catholic Church initiated its own Reformation, cleaning up corruption and reaffirming its doctrine, leading to a permanent split between Catholicism and Protestantism
• The decision of Shia ruler Ismail to declare the Safavid Empire as Shia intensified the Sunni-Shia split in Islam, with Sunnis in the Empire often being slaughtered
• Sikhism developed as a syncretic blend of Hindu and Islamic doctrines, retaining some elements of both while discarding gender hierarchies and the caste system