The Ottoman and Safavid Empire were two of the most important and significant and major empires in the Islamic world. The Ottoman Empire was the second longest-lived Islamic empires and the Safavid Empire had one of the richest productions of art in the Islamic Empire history. Both empires share many similarities and differences, from their religious practice and affiliations to their expansions and strengths, the two great empires have a very rich history.
The Ottoman Empire and the Safavid Empire share many similarities such as their behavior towards other religions and the way they went about gaining their strength. Both Empires in some way oppressed or shut down practices of religions that were not their own, for example “In specifically
…show more content…
The Ottoman empire had years of expansion before the Safavid empire separated from them and “As the Sunni Ottoman Empire expanded into the Balkans and central Asia and the Shi'a Safavid dynasty spread through the Persian Empire.” (5) A noticeable difference between to the two empires was their geographical position. The Ottoman empire expanded towards central Asia surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, the Black Sea and part of the Persian Gulf. While the Safavid empire spread towards the Persian empire surrounding both the Caspien Sea and the Persian Gulf. Noticeably both empires were completely different geographically. Another huge difference between the two empires that caused a lot of tension and was the reason the Safavid empire separated from the Ottoman empire was because of their religious practice. The two empires are known “as the Sunni Ottoman Empire... and the Shi’a Safavid dynasty.” (6) The most significant difference between the Safavid empire and the Ottoman empire was their religious point of view. There has always been a division between the Sunni and Shi’a in the history of Islam. Seeing that both empires follow on each side of a long war it isn’t surprising that the two empires have conflict with each other due to their religion. In conclusion, the two empires also share many differences including their geographical location and their religious