Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #23390 in Books
• Published on: 1979-12-31
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 640 pages

Synopsis
Presents the complete account of one of the greatest imperial powers in history--the Ottoman Turks--from the beginnings of their sultanate in 1300 A.D. under Osman I through the height of their civilization under Suleiman the Magnificent.

Customer Reviews

An extraordinary and extraordinarily well-written history of the Ottoman Empire!
I recently purchased two books about the Ottoman Empire but I have read them out of order. That which deals with the demise of the empire, 'A Peace to End All Peace,' is reviewed elsewhere and I have given it five stars, describing it as a 'brilliant book.' The other, which I should have got into first, is 'The Ottoman Centuries,' reviewed here and also given five stars.

I became more curious about the Ottomans as I learned that their empire was not, as is sometimes portrayed, a totally intolerant and Islamic entity intent on imposing its control on such as down-trodden Christians and Jews. Indeed, there is strong evidence to suggest that those peoples were pretty well off under successive Sultans. There is also strong evidence that such as Winston Churchill wanted an alliance between the British and Ottoman Empires and the continuation of the latter as a neutral influence during the so-called 'Great War.' I believe that Churchill was right then.

But does the earlier Ottoman history, as written by Lord Kinross, lead one to other and different conclusions? Also, is Kinross's work relevant to more recent tragedies and conflicts?

For a start, it is much clearer to me now that the Ottoman Empire was a powerful political organisation and not necessarily a religious one. Kinross's book emphasises the importance of Islam on numerous occasions but his study shows that in the old Ottoman world, Christianity and Judaism were also important elements. Indeed, it is all too apparent that, in the most simplistic terms, the Ottomans took over the ruling role of Byzantium and absorbed it, religion and all.

Moreover, despite Islam being the ruling religion so far as Ottoman governments were concerned, many Sultans were sons of Christian mothers - often favourite slaves in the harems of their predecessors. We may not approve of either slavery or harems, but this is still historic fact.

Lord Kinross provides an extraordinary and extraordinarily well-written history of the Ottoman Empire, from before it was an empire and the time of Osman (1238 - 1326) until its final collapse in the early twentieth century under Sultan Mehmed VI (1861 - 1926). The book is populated by a succession of amazing and often unattractive characters, and includes excellent studies of Selim I, Suleiman the Magnificent and Mahmud II, as well as many influential and important Grand Vezirs. It also explains the significance of the Janissaries, the elite strike force created by the Sultan Murad I and using Christian slaves. I especially enjoyed learning more about Serbian history and why it is that the year 1389 is so important in the context of Kosovo.

This otherwise magnificent history has three weaknesses, in my opinion.

First, whilst I assume that Lord Kinross was thorough in his research, there are very few source notes, merely a 'select bibliography.'

Second, whilst I assume that documentation regarding the Ottoman rulers is likely to have been more readily available, it is a pity that the lives of ordinary people living under successive Sultans are described little.

Third, whilst I also assume that the author nurtured sympathy if not outright admiration for the Ottomans and for early modern Turkey under Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk), his biography of the latter being generally acclaimed, surely it was mistaken seemingly to gloss over the appalling treatment of the Armenians (page 607) in the following two sentences: "The British failure at Gallipoli gave a breathing space to the Young Turk triumvirate, leaving it free to pursue, without external interference, a premeditated internal policy for the final elimination of the Armenian race. Their proximity to the Russians on the Caucasus front furnished a convenient pretext for their persecution, on a scale far exceeding the atrocities of Abdul Hamid, through the deportation and massacre of one million Armenians, more than half of whom perished." (The last phrase is actually a contradiction in terms - accidental or no - in that in a massacre surely they all 'perished,' but what are half a million Armenians among friends?).

And my conclusions?

First, that, whilst various Ottoman rulers embodied a sort of civilisation recognisable in the fourteenth century West, by and large, the majority of those selfsame rulers were barbaric and uncivilised and ran barbaric and uncivilised regimes.

Second, that, whilst Churchill was right in backing an alliance with the Ottomans before 'The Great War,' such an alliance could not have lasted.

And, third, that this history of 'The Ottoman Centuries' is proof of good reasoning in the minds of many present-day Western statesman that present-day Turkey carries too much historical baggage to qualify for membership of the European Union.

Excellent general history of the Ottoman empire
This is a well written and researched history book - assertions that is it like fiction or reads like a soap opera (suggested by a couple of other reviewers) are simply wrong.

Kinross manages to squeeze about 500 years of history into ~600 pages and in my opinion succeeds in covering the most important content in sufficient depth for the general reader. I particularly enjoyed the coverage of Ottoman diplomacy conducted with European powers in the latter part of eighteenth century onwards.

On the negative side, I believe that there are too few pictures and certainly too few maps for a book of this length, and those that are included are not high quality. The paper itself is also low grade, which is a shame considering the content is otherwise really good.

I highly recommend getting a copy of this book, but it is perhaps worth exploring editions published by other companies - the Amazon marketplace appears to have several.

An entertaining and informative read
Lord Kinross takes on the huge task of detailing the Ottoman Empires history from its birth in the 14th century, until its dissolution in 1923. Yet Kinross manages to keep the reader constantly attached to unfolding events which at its zenith, under Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent, made the Ottoman Empire the most powerful civilisation in the world. He is equally adept at describing its downfall, spurred on by infighting, corruption and less capable Sultans. The book is an excellent prequel to his other huge work, Ataturk, the biographical account of the founder of the Republic of Turkey.