Introduction

For over six hundred years the Ottoman Empire ruled swathes of the Middle East, North Africa, and Southern Europe. As an Islamic superpower centred on what is now Turkey, theirs is a story of surprising alliances and enemies, trade, war and progress. But who were its leaders? How did it become so powerful? And after its eventual collapse, what legacy did it leave behind?

This is a Short History of the Ottoman Empire.

Written by Danny Marshall. With thanks to Professor Marc David Baer, author of The Ottomans: Khans, Caesars, and Caliphs.

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