Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 19.djvu/650

* TUBKEY. 560 TURKEY. Turks form a large element in the population of Constantinople and Adrianople, in the interior of Thrace, and in parts of Macedonia. All the remain- der of the population of European Turkey, with a small excei)tion, is divided between Slavic peoples and those belonging to the Mediterranean race, chiefly Greeks in the south and east, and Alba- nians" (Shkipetars) on the Adriatic. The Slavs of Turkey are of Serb and Bulgarian stock. There are a* num1)er of Wallachs (Rumans) in the southwest, who are known as Tsintsars. The Jews are numerous in Constantinople and Sa- loniki, and the Armenians are also well repre- sented in the urban population of European Turkey. The trade of the Turkish Empire is to a great extent in the hands of the Greeks (who carry on much of the sea trade), Armenians, Jews, and Arabs. For the religion of the non- Turkish inhabitants, see Albania, Akmenia, Kurds, etc. TIlstory. In the first half of the thirteenth century, at the time of the Mongol invasions un- der Genghis Khan, a small body of Mohammedan Turks moved westward from their home in Iran, and nuide their way to Asia Minor. Under the lead of Ertogrul, they entered the service of Ala- ed-Din. the Sultan of Iconium (or of Rum, aa the State was known to the Moslems), the last surviving renmant of the great empire estab- lished by the Seljukian Turks in Western Asia. Ala-ed-Din granted them some land in Thrygia. The son of Ertogrul, Osmau or Othman (128S- 1320), laid the foundations of the independent power of his tribe (to which his name became at- tached) on the ruins of the Seljuk dominion in Asia Minor. Osman's son and successor, Orkhan (1320-59), continued the aggressive policy of his father. He made Brusa, the ancient capital of Bithynia, which had Ijeen wrested from the Byzantines, his residence, and gained a foothold in Europe by the taking of Gallipoli ( 1354 ). Orkhan was tlu! organizer of the Ottoman power. He ex- acted a tribute of children from conquered Chris- tian peoples, and these, reared as Jlohammedans and trained under rigid military discipline, were organized into that efficient fighting machine, the Janizaries (q.v.). He was succeeded by Amurath I. (1359-89), under whom the Otto- man realm became a European as well as an Asiatic power. At this time, by the side of the declining Byzantine or Greek Empire, the King- dom of Servia had risen to considerable power. Eastward to the Black Sea, south of the Danube, the Bulgarian czars held sway, and beyond the Danube the principalities of Moldavia and Wal- lachia had lieen struggling into existence. Venice and Genoa had extended their power and do- minion into the eastern Mediterranean, Amurath I. conquered Adrianople in 1301 and made it his capital. The Turks began to close in upon the Byzantine Empire, and the dominion of Con- stantinople was reduced to Thrace, Macedonia, and parts of Greece. Amurath greatly extended the Turkish dominions in Asia Minor, and in 1389 he broke the power of Servia in the bloody battle of Kossovo. The Sultan was struck down in the moment of victory and was suc- ceeded by his son, Bajazet I. (1389-1402). Ba- jazet began his reign with the conquest of Bulgaria and with a war against the Wal- lachs. A crusading army of Hungarians, Poles, and French, under the command of Sigis- mund. King of Hungary, was totally routed at Nicopolis in 1390. In 1402 Timur with his Mon- gol horde swept over Asia Minor, overthrew Bajazet at Angora, and carried him off a cap- tive. On the fall of Bajazet (who died in 1403) there was a struggle for dominion between his sons, which lasted a decade. Finally, in 1413 the youngest son, Mohammed I., found himself in undisputed possession of the whole empire. Amurath II. (1421-51) extended the Turkish dominion over Macedonia, conquered part of Greece, waged fierce wars with the Hungarians, over whom he finally triumphed, and attacked the Albanians, although without success. The most memorable event of his reign was his vic- tory over the Hungarians under King i^adislas 111. (q.v.) and Hunyady (q.v.) at Varna in 1444. Mohammed II. (1451-81), the son of Anuirath II., prepared immediately on his accession to ef- fect the conquest of Constantinople. The city fell on May 29, 1453, and the Byzantine Empire was at an end. An offshoot from the Greek realm, the Empire of Trebizond, was conquered in 1401, and about the same time the Turks com- pleted the conquest of the Morea. The seat of the Ottoman Empire was transferred from Adria- nople to Constantinople. The Turks, merciless as they were toward their conquered foes, allowed the Christian cluu'ches to maintain their organi- zation. In 1450 Mohammed 11. undertook the siege of Belgrade, the key to Hungary, but the city was delivered by the signal victory of Hun- yady. A few years later Servia was incorporated into the Turkish Empire and Bosnia was sub- dued. In 1470 Negropont (Euboea) Avas wrested from the Venetians and in 1475 the Tatar Klian of the Crimea became a vassal of the Ottoman Sultan. Albania, which under the lead of Scan- derbeg had long heroically held out against the Turks, was at" last subjugated. In 1480 the Knights of Saint John successfully defended Rhodes against a Turki.sh attack. At this time the Turks obtained a momentary foothold in Italy by the conquest of Otranto. The reign of Bajazet II. (1481-1512), the successor of Mo- hammed II., was uneventful, but under Selim I. (1512-20) the tide of Ottoman conquest rolled irresistiblj' eastward and southward. He carried his arms successfully into Persia, conquered Syria (1510), annexed Egj-pt (1517), and as- sumed the guardianship of the sanctuary of Mecca, thus proclaiming himself the successor of the caliphs. At this time Moldavia became tributary to the Porte, a position to which the sister principality of Wallachia had been pre- viously reduced. At "the close of Selim's reign, the famous corsair Khair-ed-Din (Barbarossa), who ruled Algeria, placed himself under Turkish suzer- ainty. Under Solyman the Magnificent (1520- 00) the Ottoman Empire stood at the height of its power and splendor. Belgrade was taken in 1521 and Rhodes was conquered in the following year. The victory over the army of Louis 11. "of Hungary at Mohacs in 1520 broke up the Hungarian realm. It was followed by a succession of campaigns against the Hapsburgs, in one of which (1529) Vienna itself was be- sieged, and which converted the heart of Hun- gary (including the capital. Buda) into a Turk- ish proviiice. ( See Hungary ; Soltman II. ) Conquests were also made from Persia. On the