Compare And Contrast Ottoman And Ming Chinese Bureaucracy

Although both empires shared common features and drafting systems regarding their military, the Ming Chinese and Ottoman Empire exercised different levels of bureaucracy as well as varying outlooks on foreign cultural influences. Ming China and the Ottoman Empire were both originally ruled by a single monarch as well as officials personally appointed by the ruler, but eventually, the Ottoman government transitioned to a less bureaucratic system. These varying government systems each had their own assets and liabilities in gaining and maintaining their power. In Ming China, the power was mainly concentrated in the emperor himself, while a cadre of eunuchs personally loyal to the emperor exercised great authority. These eunuchs were each assigned

Since the power and esteem of the sovereign as well as the general hierarchy were emphasized, empires could maintain order and maximize efficiency in achieving the goal of gaining and maintaining their power. Contrarily, Suleyman, who rose to the Ottoman throne in the mid-1500’s, eventually reduced government bureaucracy, and elected representatives replaced state officials. However, just as eunuchs were chosen through their ties with the emperor, civil service members were also personally selected according to their performance on examinations. As government officials were decided through empirical selection instead of representative election, the Ming Chinese political structure was far more bureaucratic than that of the Ottoman Empire. In a way, personal freedom was threatened by the bureaucratic Chinese system, creating an empire in which individuals were limited within the predominant government. This system could have potentially discouraged the unity and, therefore, the expansion of the empire as well. Despite their similarities in that of originally

In 1557, the grand Süleymaniye Mosque was constructed under the order of the sultan, Suleyman, to represent his power and the eternal prosperity of his empire. Likewise, Zhu Di, the emperor of Ming China, created the Forbidden City in the center of the empire in 1420 to serve as his palace. These monumental pieces of architecture likely bolstered the rulers’ authorities while they reigned. Therefore, the empires themselves gained respect from the people and led to power retention. Regarding foreign impacts on the Ottoman Empire, painters and poets looked to Persia and Arabia for models; the works produced used these foreign influences to express original Ottoman ideas in the Turkish style. On the other hand, China attempted to eliminate all signs of foreign direction, discouraging the use of nonnative names and dress. The outlook of the Ottoman Empire focused on gathering the skills and knowledge of other empires, resulting in cultural blending and, consequently, an improved insight of different perspectives. The strategy in which the Chinese discouraged foreign cultural behaviors addressed the issue of the sophisticated, productive empire being disrupted by a century of Mongol rule. Since the Ottoman necessitated innovative insight to further develop their empire, they welcomed