Pan-Ideologies In The Ottoman Empire Against The West: From Pan-Ottomanism To Pan-Turkism

Authors : Yelda Demirağ

Pages : 139-158

Doi:10.1501/Intrel_0000000109

View : 13 | Download : 12

Publication Date : 2005-05-01

Article Type : Research

Abstract :After the Karlowitz Treaty of 1699, the Ottoman Empire began to lose constantly in every fıeld, when compared to European gains in economy, territory, industry and social changes. The ideas of the Enlightenment such as positivism and nationalism also undermined the foundations of the Ottoman social system millet that gave a common sense of identity to ali the communities of the Empire. Beginning from that time, the Ottoman bureaucracy began to search for the meaning of being European. The most important question was vvhat should be done in order to save the Empire. The first solution found for the problem vvas the reorganization of the Ottoman Army vvhich vvas superior in comparison to its European counterparts. As it became obvious that this attempt vvas not enough, using Western values against the West by arrangements on education and diplomacy, and when these failed too, it vvas attempted to change the legal sphere by introducing Western secular values to coexist vvith Ottoman sharia system. These attempts made to prevent stagnation and decline from the 17* century onvvards, did not prevent the decline of the Empire. In the 19lh century, it is seen that some currents of thought emerge among the Ottoman intellectuals. The common point of ali these currents vvas to save the "sick man of Europe" as uttered by the Russian Tsar, but the proposal differed. This study vvill discuss Pan-Ottomanism, vvhich started in the mid-19th century as an ideology of unity, but developed to be a nationalist ideology in the early 20lh century against the independence demands of the Ottoman non-Muslim as vvell as Müslim communities. The study vvill also discuss the influence of Ottoman pan-ideologies in the establishment of modern Turkey.
Keywords : Ottoman Empire, Pan-Ottomanism, Pan-Turkism, Pan-Islamism, Occidentalism.