Daily Life In The Ottoman Empire Read Online Free Page B

more men and
much more equipment than the troops of the Holy League, which included
Habsburg, Spanish, and French units. When the peace treaty was negotiated at
Vasvár, however, the Habsburgs agreed to evacuate their troops, and Ottoman
rule over Transylvania was once again secured.
    When Köprülüzade Fazil Ahmed died in 1676, his
brother-in-law, Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Paşa, succeeded him. The new grand
vizier pursued the policy of the two previous Köprülüs, focusing his energies
on checking Russian advances on the northern shores of the Black Sea and
crushing the Habsburg’s military machine. Convinced that the Habsburg military
was on the verge of collapse and encouraged by the French, who viewed an Ottoman
invasion as essential to their victory in the west, Kara Mustafa Paşa
moved with a large army against Vienna in June 1683. By July, the Habsburg
capital was under Ottoman siege. The Habsburg emperor had, however, organized a
coalition that included Jan Sobieski of Poland, the Pope, the Spanish, and the
Portuguese. In a fierce battle on September 12, the Ottoman forces were routed
and 10,000 men were killed on the battlefield. The Ottoman army disintegrated
and lost any semblance of organization and discipline, leaving behind its heavy
cannon and badly needed supplies. The shocked Kara Mustafa Paşa tried to
rally his army in Belgrade, but it was already too late. His enemies in
Istanbul had convinced the sultan that his chief minister was solely
responsible for the humiliating debacle at the gates of Vienna. On 25 December
1683, the grand vizier was executed by the order of his royal master.
     
     
    MILITARY DEFEATS IN EUROPE AND LOSS OF
CONFIDENCE
     
    The execution of Kara Mustafa Paşa only exacerbated
the political and military crisis. Without a commander capable of rallying the
troops and facing a shortage of equipment and supplies, the Ottoman forces fell
into disarray. Worse, a new Holy League was formed in 1684 that included the
Habsburgs, Venice, Poland, the Pope, Malta, Tuscany, and later Muscovy
(Russia). After repeated attempts to regain the territories they had lost, in
November 1698 an Ottoman delegation began to negotiate a peace treaty with
representatives of the Holy League powers. According to the Treaty of
Karlowitz, signed in January 1699, the Habsburgs remained in control of Hungary
and Transylvania while the Ottomans maintained their rule over the Banat of
Temeşvár. Poland received Podolia (Podole), and Russia established its
rule over Azov and the territory north of the Dniester. Venice emerged as the
master of Dalmatia, the Morea, and several strategic islands in the Aegean. According
to the terms of the treaty, the sultan was also forced to guarantee freedom of
religion for his Catholic subjects. Thus, the Ottoman Empire entered the 18th
century in turmoil and decline. The past glory of its able and charismatic
sultans had become, by 1700, a distant memory. Long wars against the Habsburgs,
Venice, Poland, and Russia had drained the resources of the state, which could
not even pay the salaries of its officials and troops. Consequently, corruption
and nepotism became rampant. Against this background, the Ottoman elite once
again appealed to a member of the Köprülü family to save the empire. Amcazade Hüseyin
Paşa became the grand vizier in September 1697 and embarked on another
series of reforms aimed at reducing the financial burdens of the state without
imposing heavier taxes on the peasantry. But, as would happen again and again
over the next two hundred years, the new chief minister ran into formidable
opposition from the traditional elite, who forced him to step down in September
1702.
     
     
    CONFRONTING THE HABSBURG MONARCHY AND
RUSSIA
     
    Once again, the process of decline accelerated. Taxes
remained uncollected, and government officials and troops were not paid their
wages. The treasury was drained, and corruption spread to all levels of the
civil administration. The