15,697
edits
Changes
no edit summary
====Conclusion====
The Ottoman Empire is known today for being one of the greatest empires of the modern world, but it was perhaps more important for being the third great Islamic caliphate. The Ottomans were able to accomplish this feat through their military ideology and policies, their openness to work with Christians and the West, and the fact that there were no other viable Islamic dynasties that could reasonably challenge to become the caliphate. Ironically, some of the policies that made the Ottoman Empire the premier Islamic dynasty in the Late Medieval and Early Modern historical periods are the same factors that led to its decline in the early seventeenth century.
====Suggested Readings====
<i>The Oxford History of Islam.</i> Edited by John L. Esposito. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999)
<i>The Oxford History of Medieval Europe.</i> Edited by George Holmes. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001)
====References====