Decentralization And The Decline Of The Ottoman Empire

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The Ottoman Empire was a Turkish empire that ruled over much of Southeast Europe, Western Asia, and Northern Africa. One type of system of ruling they used was decentralization. The system diverted the power of the government to provincial officials who reported back to the central power. Decentralization was effective in ruling such a big empire with many remote regions, but only for a period of time. Eventually, the government created the Tanzimat Reforms and began modernization in an attempt to stop the decline of the Ottoman Empire. Decentralization motivated the reforming of the Ottoman government which led to the eventual collapse of the empire.

The Ottomans were known for their religious toleration, allowing non-muslims to live in their empire, which was very rare at the time. A majority of religious groups would be executed in other …show more content…

Whether it was centralized or decentralized, there was never a permanent, solid ruling power. At first, the centralized government could not rule over such a big empire, resulting in decentralization. Though this solved most of the issues of a centralized government, it was unpredictable and even more difficult for the government to rule. For example, communication was very difficult because of the distance from some of the provinces to the central government in Istanbul. Eventually the Tanzimat reforms changed the government back to a central power with an increase of surveillance. This new government was also unreliable to the lives of Turkish citizens because of how economically behind they already were. When a group of elites known as the Young Turks formed, their idea of European civilization being the only way of living was fairly new. When the government finally took action, it was too late to satisfy and uphold the empire. The eventual fall of the empire was predictable with the weakening economy and inability to maintain the advantages the Ottomans