History of Turkey – Turkish, Roman and Byzantine Empires

History of Turkey

Having been dominated by many civilizations and empires, Turkey has been developed as a nation based on a colorful fabric.

This has given the country that rich historical background that has endeared it into the interesting mix of the east and the west. Now it is the right time to discover the mysterious and rich history of Turkey, the ancient kingdoms, the powerful empire and new Turkey.

A. Ancient civilizations that shaped Turkey

As for Turkey, the following are some of the ancient civilizations that influenced the country. Certainly, Turkey occupies a very special position connecting Europe and Asia,

and it has been a center of civilization for ages. Modern Turkey together with the surrounding areas has been a cradle to some of the earliest and most important civilizations which all left their imprint on the history of the region.

 Hittites: The Empire Builders

Also the Hittites were one of the oldest civilizations, which founded a mighty empire in Anatolia (modern Turkey) in the early of 1600 BC.

The Hittites were very skilled in warfare and iron technology that they were able to establish an empire which was equally competitive to that of Egypt.

Key contributions of the Hittite civilization:

1. Specifically the hematite iron works in which improvements in technologies would facilitate growth in the first world.
2. Complex rule of law to maintain a formulated set of laws
3. Multilateral and bilateral relations of varied kind including the oldest known peace treaty in the world
4. Sculptures, paintings, colossal walls and gates that surrounds cities and towns.
5. Such archaeological centers like Hattusa, the capital of the Hittite Empire in modern-day Turkey are world heritage sites, and through visiting, one is able to understand great strides of this empire.

Greek and Hellenistic Influence

After the downfall of the Hittites with their civilization, the territories along the coastal part of modern Turkey became subjected to the influence of those Greek city states.

This was the time that many Greek colonies were founded at coastal areas touching the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas which would become factors of trade routes and civilization.

Notable Greek influences in Turkey:

• Movement towards the establishment of cities such as Ephesus, Miletus and Halicarnassus
• Democracy and philosophy as the concepts that enabled to change the world
• The emergence of the new types of the architecture
• The Greeks also made an effort in dispersing the use and writing of their language.

The Hellenistic period was launched by Alexander the Great’s conquests and brought Greeks penetration even further into this area. It also witnessed some of the most perfect edifices that included the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus one of the wonder of the ancient world.

Roman and Byzantine Empires

The empire of Rome went on its course of developing it occupied a large part of the area that is today called Turkey.

The region was turned into an essential piece of the empire as Ephesus and Antioch turned into huge administrative and learning institution galaxies.

Roman contributions to Turkey’s heritage:

1. Good roads including; tarmac roads, murram roads, gravel roads, etc.
2. Other large structures, which as; Theatres also known as amphitheaters, and water supply systems; which are referred to as aqueducts.
3. Christianity was introduced as a religion displacement of which would eventually lead to dominance of the practice across the Roman Empire.
4. Here are legal and administrative systems that later affected the governance of Turkey;

When the Roman Empire split, the Byzantine Empire or the eastern empire ruled from Constantinople today’s Istanbul for over a thousand years. This period is characterized by the amalgamation of the Roman, Greeks and the Europeans‘ culture to Christianity.

Byzantine legacy in Turkey:

• It will be fitting to mention magnificent religious architecture that has been put up all over the world with the Hagia Sophia being a classic case.
• The purpose of memorizing works with a focus on the civilizing and liberal arts tradition of the canon
• Emergence of unique artistic products for instance mosaics and icons
• The Roman laws were written by Emperor Justinian.

Seljuk Turks: The Islamic Influence

Seljuk Turks: The Islamic Influence Very little has been done to solve this problem till now and it is high time to work towards it and eradicate it before it spreads further due to the Islamic influence.

By 11th century CE, the Turks of Seljuk kite stock had entered the Turkey and this can be regarded as the turning point in the political and cultural development of the country. Anatolian’s first dynastic rule was that of the Seljuks who propagated Islamic civilization and administration in the region.

Seljuk contributions to Turkish culture:

• Introducing the beautiful works of art and attractive architecture of the Islamic world.
• Stations{ Opening of madrasas which are religious schools for Islamic religion and caravanserais.
• The emerging and diversification of the new strain of the Turkish – Persian civilization
• Building the first basics of ottoman Turkish language and literature

A large number of mosques, mausoleum and other Islamic structures were built during Seljuk period most of which are still existent to testify the architectural achievements.

Ancient Civilization	Time Period	Major Contributions
Hittites	c. 1600-1178 BCE	Iron working, legal system, diplomacy
Greek	c. 1000-330 BCE	Democracy, philosophy, architecture
Hellenistic	330-30 BCE	Artistic and cultural synthesis
Roman	30 BCE-395 CE	Infrastructure, Christianity, law
Byzantine	395-1453 CE	Religious architecture, art, preservation of knowledge
Seljuk Turks	1037-1194 CE	Islamic culture, Turkish-Persian synthesis

These ancients societies set the basis for the future multi-ethnic culture of  Turkey, as it is obvious now. The effects of these women can still be evidenced through the archaeological structures, infrastructural developments as well as the traditional customs of the country.

B. Ottoman Empire’s influence

The Ottomans which appeared in the mid-14th century and dissolved in the early twentieth century was one of the coups long-lasting and influential empire ever to existed in the face of civilization.

It impacts the modern Turkey at various levels including language, religion, art and even the food that people take. The Ottoman dynasty rose to power in a relatively short time span of only two centuries and then expanded in power and influence in anonymous century.

The Ottoman Empire was initially a small Turkish principality in western Anatolia founded by Osman I The Ottoman contemporaries conquered with their military force, diplomacy, and managerial skills to form a vast empire.

Key milestones in Ottoman expansion:

1. Sack of Constantinople in 1453 which signified the demise of Byzantine Empire
2. Geographic expansion of ikea into the Balkans and Eastern Europe
3. These great Pharaohs to they conquered Egypt and much of north Africa
4. Taking over the control of the two Holy Cities namely, KSA.

In the apex in mid 16th and 17th centuries the Ottoman Empire covered part of Hungary to the North, Yemen to the south, Algeria to the West and Iraq to the East.

Ottoman Governance and Administration

The show enlighten the audiences on how the Ottomans formulated an elaborate structure of ruling thus enabling them to govern over a diverse empire.

Key features of Ottoman administration:

• Millet system: Permitted each people of the non-Muslim religions to live according their religious laws and customs.
• Devşirme system: To recruit Christian boys for the places in the administration and the defense force
• Timar system: A method of distribution of land which provided support for the military as well as stimulated the advancement of farming.
• They form the political organizational structure of administrative bureaucracy through their central command and extreme chain of command system from the head officials.

From earlier chapters, we can note that the Ottoman legal culture, defined by Islamic Sharia law but containing features from the customary law, were relatively liberal legal cultures.

Cultural and Artistic Achievements

The art, architectures, and cultures during Ottomans period prevailed a lot from that period in Turkey of today.

 Ottoman cultural contributions:

1. Architecture: Growth of the style, and the special ottoman style as manifested in the large mosques of Istanbul
2. Calligraphy: The de-emphasis of Arabic script to an artistry.
3. Miniature painting: Furthermore, there are more elaborated illustrations, which are easily seen in manuscripts.
4. Literature: The Process of Ottoman Sosa and Divani Lebanese. sql
5. Music: History of establishing the Turkish music of the Ottoman period known as classical Turkish music containing the Janissary bands

The Ottoman court was an excellent area for encouraging artists, poets and scholars to work with; everyone, who needed some support in his creative activity could apply to this court.

Impact of Turkish Ottoman Time on the Modern Turkey

They asserted that the remnants of Ottoman empire are still very much part of modern Turkey today.

Lasting impacts of the Ottoman era:

• Language: Modern Turkish has its origin in the Ottoman Turkish which is known to have many features of the spoken language.
• Religion: Islam emerged as the main religion in this part of the world from where Turkey later evolved.
• Cuisine: In many traditional Turkish dishes there is an Ottoman element that is present.
• Arts and crafts: Of course, other arts are also important including the carpet weaving art and the art of ceramics which started during Ottoman period.
• Architecture: A culturally restore attribute of Turkey, the Ottoman style of mosque and palace still stand majestically all over the country.

Aspect	Ottoman Influence on Modern Turkey
Language	Modern Turkish derives from Ottoman Turkish
Religion	Islam as the predominant faith
Cuisine	Many traditional dishes of Ottoman origin
Arts	Calligraphy, miniature painting, traditional crafts
Architecture	Mosques, palaces, and other buildings in Ottoman style
Governance	Some administrative practices and legal concepts

Failure of the Ottoman Empire

Although the Ottoman Empire in its final years was called the ‘Sick Man of Europe’ this decline was not sudden but evolutionary for several centuries.

Factors contributing to Ottoman decline:

1. Decline in the military and loss of provinces
2. Economic difficulties and inflation
3. Neglecting to provide clients products and services in line with the European technological and social growth
4. Coups and nationalists uprisings

Even though its was dissolved after the World War I it left a significant impact on the formation of modern Turkey and vast part of the Middle Eastern and Balkans region.

C. Modern Turkey’s foundation

Modern Turkey came into existence after the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire and strong leaders in person emanating from the person of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.

After the Americans evacuated Turkey in 1920 this period of transition offered the country a new relabeling of a secular, democratic republic which distinguished it from most of the Middle Eastern nations.

Turkish War of Independence

As a result of the Ottomans ‘loss in the First World War most of the territories of Anatolia fell into the hands of the Allied forces. It resulted to the nationalist revolt of a great military hero of the Ottomans known as Mustafa Kemal.

 Key events of the Turkish War of Independence:

1. Turkish Grand National Assembly met at Ankara (1920)

2. Greece’s troops withdrawal from western portion of Anatolia (1921-1922)

3. Deposition of Sultan Ahmad II of Ottoman Empire who ruled in Turkey (1922)

4. In 1923, Lausanne peace treaty that granted the independence of Turkey recognition. This exhibition can undoubtedly show how the Turks were able to effectively fight off any attempts at conquest in their lands and through that create the foundation of a new republic from the ashes of an old empire.

Proclamation of the Republic and Atatürk’s Reforms

The proclamation of the Republic was on the October 29 and the reforms that was started from the 1930s initiated by Atatürk.

October 29, 1923 is regarded as the birthday of modern Turkey and the founding date of today’s Republic of Turkey, in which Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was installed for the first time as the head of state. After this Atatürk proceeded to a series of socio-political and economical reforms that where planned in order to make Turkey a secular state.

Atatürk’s major reforms:

• Ending of the Caliphate and revocation of the religiosity of the state
• Transformation of the civil law of the state through the adoption of new civil code following the Swiss law system.
• Even if Latin alphabet is now in use in many Arab countries instead of Arabic writing system the importance of the latter one cannot be denied.
• According to gender, the rights that women was accredited includes their right to even right to vote
• New modernization of dress, some of them have been pressured into wearing Western-style clothing.
• Change of educational paradigm, focus on Yancovian subjects, science and etc.

These reforms, collectively called Kemalism or Atatürkism, affected all sphere of the Turkish society and are still apparent up to this present time.

Turkey’s Political Evolution

After Atatürk’s death in 1938, Turkey was still able to press on in the direction of the modernization and westernization of the country despite few hiccups.

Key developments in Turkey’s political history:

1. Multiple party system come into operation in the year 1950
2. The coup d’état in 1960 , 1971 and 1980 which portrays the struggle between secular and more Islamic forces.
3. Starting from the mid 1980s there has been economic liberalization and growth.
4. Continual process of seeking the European union membership
5. For an effective participation in the political field, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) emerged in the early 2000s.

Over the years the country has been trying to reconcile the secular, democratic legacy, on the one hand, and Islamic identity and geographical location bordering both Europe and Asia on the other.

Foreign affairs of turkey

The Turkey has been a member of NATO since 1952 and on the way to joining the EU, giving it a vital part to play in global politics.

Turkey’s international engagements:

• In the Cold War structure they are a strategic ally
• Middle Eastern politics are completed and uncompleted by a member of the consortium.
• Energy transit hub as well as the bridge between Europe and Asia
• Sought after ally in the fight against terrorism
• Having become a host to millions of refugees especially from Syria.

The fact that Turkey is a secular state with a majority of Muslim population and whose orientation is now towards Europe but is geographically situated in Asia has seen Turkey as a mediator in most of the international conflicts.

Problems and Prospects in Today’s Turkey

Turkey struggles with different issues despite many achievements since the foundation of modern republic.

Current issues facing Turkey:

1. Still, dealing with secularism, the notion of religious identity has not lost its popularity.
2. Nonetheless, certain issues have to do with the Kurdish minority rights and separatist movements.
3. Overcoming the problem of inequality in distributing the revenue, along with the control of economic development.
4. Navigating complex regional geopolitics
5. Sustaining and strengthening democracy and speaking out for freedoms of the press

 Nonetheless, Turkey’s diverse history, geographical location as well as thriving economy make it play crucial roles in the 21st century map.

Aspect	Pre-Republic Era	Modern Turkish Republic
Political System	Monarchy (Ottoman Sultanate)	Parliamentary Democracy
Legal System	Islamic Sharia and customary law	Secular civil code
Alphabet	Arabic script	Latin alphabet
Women’s Rights	Limited	Equal rights enshrined in law
Education	Religious-based	Secular, modern curriculum
Foreign Policy	Imperial power	NATO member, EU candidate

Modern Turkey is best described as a success story that speaks of post- Ottoman Imperial, religiously tinted state emerging as a secular and democratic republic. This transformation may not have been without its difficulties, however has placed Turkey as the only country of its kind, that is situated in between the East and the West, with its regal history now disseminating democratic principles.

Next, we take a glimpse at how this historical background is reflected in the geography of modern Turkey – that is the country where the European and Asian continents meet, with its monumental cites on one hand, and beautiful beaches and mountains on the other. Thus, travelling through Turkey is not only an interesting process for the tourists and history lovers, but also the potential source of historical knowledge about the evolution of human civilization as well as the significance of the historical legacy in the modern societies.