The Collapse of the Ottoman Empire: An Evaluation on the Impact of Milestones in Europe

One of the largest empires in world history, the Ottoman Empire had its golden age in the 16th century. However, in this period, when the Ottoman Empire was the strongest and unbeatable, some problems began to occur. The empire, which could not keep up with the developments and innovations in the world required by the period, collapsed over the centuries due to its weak internal structure. In the meantime, Europeans found new trade routes and colonised many places with geographical discoveries, advanced in science, art, and technology with the Age of Enlightenment, mechanised with the Industrial Revolution, and democratised with the French Revolution. While all those developments took place in Europe, the Ottoman Empire could not provide the necessary modernisation. In this direction, with its weakened internal structure in the military, economic, political, administrative, and educational fields, it could not prevent that process. Thus, it gradually became a state that fall behind in every area from Europe over the centuries and eventually collapsed. Accordingly, this study has comprehensively analysed the Ottoman disintegration process, which had started in the 16th century, by considering the significant historical developments in Europe and the gradually weakening Ottoman internal structure.