Dept. of History - Ph.D. / Sc.D.

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Open Access
Body, disease and late Ottoman literature : debates on Ottoman muslim family in the Tanzimat period (1839-1908)
(Bilkent University, 2008) Demirci, Tuba; Özel, Oktay
This study analyzes the development and transformation of Ottoman population policies and medical regulations together with their social impact in the Tanzimat Period. It also aims to document the transformation of Ottoman modern state apparatus in the scope of population policies, which characterized the era for their political, economic, moral, sanitary and military significance. Population and public health policies, diverse regulatory discourses related to these policy orientations, and finally literary works belonged to the Tanzimat period are evaluated to historicize the re-construction of power, and the emergence of Ottoman modern (Muslim) family and individual.
Open Access
British philosophical history and the empires of antiquity
(Bilkent University, 2006) Ataç, C. Akça; Leighton, C. D. A.
Although eighteenth-century British empire may seem a topic much exhausted by historians, there is still room for fresh primary sources and new approaches. Ancient Greek and Roman histories published in eighteenth-century Britain are in fact valid primary sources to contribute to the studies of empire. This dissertation strives to place these sources among the vast literature on the eighteenth-century British empire. In comparison with other types of history, ancient history was believed to play a more significant role in the design of guiding the political nation. Historians were attracted to ancient history particularly on account of the belief that the ancients had already experienced all the hardship that troubled the moderns in their political life. In this sense, the eighteenth century witnessed the publication of an inordinate number of texts on ancient history. Throughout the first half of the century, in particular, the analogy between Rome and Britain so predominated that the historians of antiquity thought of little else than demonstrating a common interest in producing the most authentic, well-written and informative Roman history ever, with the hope of providing the political nation with all the instruction required. Only from the 1740s onwards was the attention of the historians with ancient history diverted to ancient Greece to a certain degree. Therefore, it was an eighteenth-century truism that ancient history had the capacity to offer valuable insights into all contemporary political debates among which the question of empire had a prominent place. The British looked into a multitude of sources with the hope of finding guidance in the unknown path to imperial greatness. Eighteenth-century ancient history writing offered insights into imperial matters such as expansion, colonial governance, the role of commerce as a substitute for military action, the desirable degree of interaction with natives and the fight against decline. Under the influence of Plutarch and venerable literary genre, the “mirror for princes,” ancient Roman histories elucidated those subjects. As for ancient Greek histories, whose publications mostly coincided with the rise of discussions about civilisation, they sought to deliver their remarks on empire through comparisons of the states and civilisations that ancient Greece sheltered.
Open Access
The city as a reflecting mirror : being and urbanite in the 19th century Ottoman Empire
(Bilkent University, 2015) Demirakın, Nahide Işık; Özel, Oktay
The physical and social transformations taking place in İstanbul, İzmir and Salonica throughout the 19th century Ottoman Empire had been the subject of many studies, however, the degree to which urban population identified themselves with the novelties of the era’s urban living still remains in shadow. This dissertation aims to interpret the 19th century Ottoman Empire by focusing on the urban population of the Empire’s three largest cities and the contemporary narratives written by people from different segments of the society. Their descriptions and interpretations of the milieu they live in reveal how they perceived the modernising processes of the Empire reflected through the city and the varying degrees of identification with not only being an urbanite but also with the changing relationship between the state and the population, transforming from one of subjecthood to citizenship. In addition to traditional distinctions between Muslims and non-Muslims as well as private and public designated along gender within the urban space, it appears that the 19th century brought about new points of convergence and divergence into the scene redefining the boundaries of private and public and offering a possibility for a new identity that transcended communal, religious and ethnic differences, thereby complicating the urban network of relationships. In this sense, new modes of communication within the city that were now spread through the educational reforms and the burgeoining press became major influences, and contested the view of state imposed reforms by offering their versions of modernity and encouraging urbanites to take part in the process.
Open Access
Contested nationalisms : Turkish nationalist propaganda in the Sanjak of Alexandretta
(Bilkent University, 2015-12) Demirci Akyol, Esra; Kireçci, M. Akif
This thesis analyzes the Turkish nationalist propaganda carried out in the Sanjak of Alexandretta during the process of annexation to demonstrate that the Sanjak provides a special case for the study of Republican Turkish nationalism by showing its highly pragmatic and speculative political/ideological discourse in the 1930s. The ways with which the Sanjak region was integrated into the newly defined “Turkish nation” are examined by utilizing archival documents, secondary sources as well as oral history interviews. The special case of the migration of the conservative Sunni Turks to Damascus and the nationalist propaganda towards the Alawite population of the region are brought forward as examples for the pragmatically inclusive nature of Kemalist nationalism.
Open Access
Court chivalry and politics : nominations and elections to the order of the Garter : 1461-83
(Bilkent University, 2007) Gümüş, T. Tolga; Thornton, David
This thesis discusses the probable causes behind the nominations and elections of the knights to the Order of the Garter during the reigns of Henry VI, Edward IV and Richard III. The Study argues that various considerations played role in the nominations of particular knights by different companions. The main concern of the Kings and the knights of the Order was the politics of the time in nominating a knight to the Order. Parental closeness and previous military success of the knightcandidates were also important in their decisions. This thesis also suggests that while Anstis’s edition of Liber Niger is constantly used by the historians as the main primary source for the Order, another important register, the so-called French Register must be also taken into account when constructing Order’s history. Chapter 1 is a general introduction to the history of the order, Chapter 2 discusses the main problems of the primary sources of the Order, Chapter 3 discusses the causes of the nominations and elections of the knights in Henry VI’s time, Chapter IV discusses the causes of the nominations and elections of the knights during Edward IV and Richard III’s time. Chapter V is conclusion.
Open Access
The Crescent, the Lion and the Eagle: re-analyzing the Ottoman Apulian Campaign and Attack on Corfu (1537) in the context of Ottoman-Habsburg rivalry
(Bilkent University, 2018-01) Otman, Elvin; Latimer, Paul
This dissertation produces a detailed historical narrative of the Ottoman Apulian Campaign and the Attack on Corfu in 1537. Although the Apulian Campaign, a natural consequence of the Ottoman-Habsburg rivalry, which characterized the sixteenth-century Ottoman policies and discourse of universal sovereignty, was originally planned as an Ottoman-French joint military operation, it remained as an individual Ottoman attack on the south eastern Italy since the French King did not offer his already promised military support during the campaign. The attacks of Andrea Doria and the Venetian captains on the Ottoman ships during the campaign changed the course of the initiative and Sultan Süleyman I ordered the attack on the island of Corfu, under Venetian control. The Ottoman attack were ended since the season of war ended and the Ottoman army returned to Constantinople without having completed the conquest of Corfu. This dissertation mainly argues that one could not understand why the Ottomans engaged in such a venture without analyzing the nature of the rivalry between the Ottoman and Habsburg dynasties in the sixteenth-century. The study defines the campaign as the Apulian Campaign and defends the argument that the Ottoman sought to establish some sort of suzerainty in south eastern Italy, bound to the Habsburg realm. Moreover, it asserted that the campaign should not be evaluated as the “Expedition of Corfu” by stating that Corfu was not the principal target of the Ottomans in 1537. The impact of the 1537 Campaign on the Ottoman-Venetian relations is also discussed in this study.
Open Access
Danubian border in the second half of the 16th century : revolution and transformation, tradition and continuation on the eve of a new era
(Bilkent University, 2013) Ocaklı, Nuray; İnalcık, Halil
This study focuses on pre-Ottoman Turkic presence and their remainings as the first phase of the Turkic presence and examines how the Ottomans adapted, re-organized and re-structured the existing military organizations, distribution of population and settlement system against the changing priorities and military concerns of the central authority during the 15th and 16th century as the second phase of the Turkish presence in the Danubian frontier. As the turning point on the eve of a new era, this study examines reactions of pre-Ottoman military aristocracy most of whom were Christian former nobles excluded from the timar system. Their rebellious attapt broken out at the end of the 16th century was supported by the anti-Ottoman alliences formed on the north of Danube as a continuation of the rebellious tradition of the region. The resulting picture of the Danubian frontier in the 15th and 16th century reveals the tradition and continuation, revolution and transformation in the Nigbolu Sandjak during the period from the post conquest era to the end of the 16th century, on the eve of a new era.
Open Access
Depicting the enemy : Russians and Ottomans in the press during the First World War
(Bilkent University, 2007) Zardykhan, Zharmukhamed; Özel, Oktay
The intricate course of events that led both the Russian and Ottoman Empires towards the Great War had been the culmination of long-lasting domestic and international developments, which were reflected in their policies towards the other side. However, despite the ardent hatred and evident enmity that prevailed over the Russo-Ottoman relations for centuries, both of these empires were faced with similar problems of political, socioeconomic and national character that distinguished them from the rest of Europe and Asia. Whether out of hopelessness, inevitability, greater expectations or simply as a precious opportunity to rehabilitate their former reputation, seriously damaged after iv the humiliating Russo-Japanese and Balkan wars, the levying of war against their historical enemies deeply affected each countries' entire population. The effect was particularly strong because of the advanced and elaborate total war propaganda techniques employed primarily by the press, while the religious, nationalistic and historical aspects of the confrontation made the propaganda warfare a diverse and complicated battlefield. The main objective of this work is the presentation, comparison and analysis of a great variety of controversial pieces of information related to the Russo-Ottoman confrontation prior to and during the First World War. This information reveals personal prejudice, ethnic, religious and political affiliation of the authors, as well as deliberate attempts to spread misinformation and propaganda.
Open Access
Diplomacy and business in capable hands: The American officials who shaped U.S.-Turkey economic and commercial relations in the early Cold War period
(Bilkent University, 2022-12) İplikçi, Murat; Weisbrode, Kenneth
Turkey-U.S. relations, which started to deepen at the beginning of the Cold War, turned into a political and military partnership with Turkey's joining NATO in 1952. As another significant pillar of this partnership, an integration in economic and commercial relations between the two countries can be mentioned. Turkey's inclusion in the Marshall Plan announced in 1947 not only increased American goods and services entering the Turkish market. At the same time, concepts such as free trade and privatization, which have an important place in the American economic model, have been adopted by Turkish decision-makers, and new laws encouraging foreign investment have been enacted in these years. The American political actors and economic consultants working in Turkey during this period played key roles in such changes. It is seen that high-ranking multinational company executives and academics from various branches of the American business world have been appointed to Turkey with titles such as ambassador and economic consultant representing the U.S. administrations. These actors, benefiting from their business orientation and political titles, significantly influenced the Turkish decisionmakers and have helped many American multinational companies to enter various markets and business areas of Turkey. This thesis aims to provide a comprehensive reading of the commercial and economic structure shaped between Turkey and the U.S. in this period through these people. Based on the personal memories of American political actors and primary sources such as company, state, and newspaper archives, this study aims to contribute both to the literature on Turkey- U.S. relations in the early Cold War period and to concepts such as business diplomacy and business diplomacy that are becoming more common nowadays.
Open Access
Diplomatic encounters between the Venetians and the Ottomans in case of captivity (1560-1590)
(Bilkent University, 2023-01) Nalçacı Baş, Nida Nebahat; Zavagno, Luca
This dissertation is about the transformation of the legal, economic and social status of captives taken during the wars between the Ottomans and Venetians. It also covers how the events between 1560-1590 affected both countries' and the Mediterranean's history. This study argues that the political, military, and economic interaction between the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire profoundly affected the history of slavery in the Mediterranean. This dissertation focuses mainly on these two states. The changes in the status of war captives and slaves through the years were studied, along with the changes caused by the establishment of Ottoman domination in the region. After the emergence of the Ottomans, a regional power, it took a long time for the Venetian Republic, a European state with active commercial operations both in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea, to develop a reflex for liberating her subjects from captivity. While other states usually outsourced their liberation operations to religious institutions, Venice used her government agencies for such purposes. But as the number of Venetians increased steadily, they introduced some regulations. By tracking the transformation of such practices, this study contributes to the historiography of the Early Modern Mediterranean. This dissertation argues that the War in Cyprus in 1570 was a major turning point during the aforementioned transformation. The events that occurred during and after the war significantly affected the law of war captives and slaves through social, economic, and military means.
Open Access
Electrification of İstanbul (1878-1923)
(Bilkent University, 2019-01) Aysal Cin, Ulaş Duygu; Kireçci, Mehmet Akif
This dissertation focuses on the history of introduction and development of electrical technology in Ottoman Istanbul with a special focus on the 1910 concession, and its implementation, which was held to construct the first power plant in Istanbul, the Silahtarağa Power Plant. The concession became the arena for international competition, and revealed the critical roles of multinational companies, consortiums, and the international banking in the electrification business of Istanbul, along with the various diplomatic maneuvers of European and American states, which depicted the diffusion of foreign capital into the Ottoman lands. Under this complex competitive environment, rather than being a passive receptor of technology, the Ottoman bureaucracy and engineers played an active, well-informed and sophisticated role that they were able to select the appropriate technology to be applied in Silahtarağa plant, design necessary rules and regulations for it and control technology’s implementation stage.
Open Access
Family and estate : the Slupica family and Kuna 1390's - 1640's : a case study on the Ruthenian nobility in Eastern Podolia
(Bilkent University, 2005) Nykiel, Beata K.; Kermeli, Eugenia
The subject of this thesis is the Ruthenian family of the Shipica representing the upper gentry group of lords and their Kuna estate in Eastern Podolia (Bratslavshchyna). So far both the area itself, as well as, the Ruthenian nobility did not attract much scholarly attention, mainly due to the opinion that source material was scarce. The main goal of this thesis is to discuss, based on new sources, the history of the Bratslav area from the late medieval period until the mid-17*’’ century focusing primarily on the Ruthenian lord group. Due to the source material, mainly of judicial character, the thesis is divided into two parts. The first one discusses the nature of the sources used, secondary literature and legal issues. A brief introduction to the area and its social and political history is given focusing on the Shipicas and their engagement in political, military and public activities, as they took part in many of the important events in the Bratslav territory. Special attention is also paid to the Tartar and Cossack factor in the developments of both the area and the Shipica family. The second part focuses primarily on the family and its estate. It examines the way the Shipicas acquired their first endowments, how they enlarged their estates, and their struggles to maintain their inheritance. Finally the efforts of the direct successors to keep the estate’s integrity and their loss of a large part of inherited lands, is examined. This part also endeavours to reconstruct the range of economic activities of the Slupica estate. An Abbreviation list, bibliography, glossary and appendixes of the family genealogical tree and documents, maps of the area, accompany the text.
Open Access
The first Dutch ambassador in Istanbul: Cornelis Haga and the Dutch capitulations of 1612
(Bilkent University, 2003) Ari, Bülent; İnalcık, Halil
This dissertation evaluates the granting of capitulations to the Dutch Republic by the Ottoman Sultan in 1612, and early years of first Dutch ambassador Cornelis Haga. The United Provinces, formed by seven provinces of the Low Countries in 1579, signed Twelve Years Truce with Spain in 1609. The truce was the beginning of Dutch primacy in world economy, which would last until mid 17th century. The Dutch Republic sent sent Haga to achieve grant of capitulations by the Sultan Ahmed I. Despite intensive opposition of Venetian, French and English ambassadors at the Porte, Haga fulfilled his mission and remained in Istanbul as resident ambassador. From Haga's arrival onwards, Vizier Halil Paşa Provided all kinds of assistance to him in establishing diplomatic relations with the Porte. In a few years Dutch consulates were opened in major port cities throughout the Mediterranean. Haga remained in Istanbul for 27 years, where he came for a temporary mission. Halil Paşa's protection was always crucial both for Haga and for the Dutch merchants. This study analyses the story of Haga as an ambassador relying on his register book including all diplomatic correspondences of his embassy. In other words, the dissertation is a case study for granting of capitulations by the Ottoman Sultan and the diplomatic maneuvers resorted to by other ambassadors at the Porte.
Open Access
Fragile alliances in the Ottoman East: the Heyderan Tribe and the empire, 1820 - 1929
(Bilkent University, 2018-04) Çiftçi, Erdal; Özel, Oktay
This dissertation discusses how tribal agency impacted the eastern margins of the empire in terms of tribe-empire relations during the nineteenth century. The Heyderan, a confederative form of tribal social organization, acts as a case study, used to explore and analyze how local, provincial and imperial agencies confronted the real political situation. This study follows the transformation of the Ottoman East from a de-centralized to a centralized structure, until the emergence of the modern nation-state. During the long nineteenth century, this study argues that the tribes and the empire were separate agencies, and that the two bargained in order to expand their power at the expense of the other. As a separate imagined community, the Heyderan were not passive and dependant subjects, but rather, enacted their own political and economic agendas under a separate tribal collective identity. Relations between local and imperial agencies were dynamic and fragile, but tribe and empire often supported each other and became allies who benefited from shared missions. Therefore, politics in the Ottoman East did not develop through a top-down implementation of the imperial agenda, but rather in combination with the bottom-up responses and agency of the local Kurdish tribes. Finally, rather than completing this study in July of 1908 with the collapse of the last Ottoman Sultan, this thesis concludes by analyzing the changes in the region until 1929, when the tribe lost its political-military power, and paramount Heyderan tribal leader, Hüseyin Pasha, due to the emergence of the modern nation-state.
Open Access
Freemasonry in the Ottoman lands: a transnational history
(Bilkent University, 2022-07) Tiryaki, Rüştü Murat; Weisbrode, Kenneth
Early encounters with Freemasonry in the Ottoman lands took place in the eighteenth century. Its significance as a sociocultural institution developed after the Crimean War, when Ottoman subjects belonging to different ethnic and religious backgrounds joined an increasing number of lodges formed in Istanbul and Izmir, as well as the Balkans, Egypt and Palestine. Following the Young Turk Revolution of 1908, Ottoman Freemasonry formed its own sovereign administrative body and was highly engaged in the political climate of the period during which the Committee of Union and Progress became a major political actor. A significant characteristic of Ottoman Freemasonry after the middle of the nineteenth century was its inclusivity towards different elements in the empire. It was seen by its adherents as a vehicle towards the ideal of a fraternal existence within the remaining territories of the empire, epitomized in the Young Ottoman movement and later that of the Young Turks. This work endeavors to place Ottoman Freemasonry in the broader sociopolitical picture of the Ottoman Empire from the late 18th century until the collapse of the empire following the First World War. The history of Ottoman Freemasonry during this period is significant historically because of its association with individuals from Ottoman society’s diverse ethnic and denominational components, many with prominent standing in the cultural and political history of the empire, and also, because of its relation with the various significant sociopolitical processes which took place during this period.
Open Access
Friendship, crisis and estrangement : US-Italian relations, 1871-1920
(Bilkent University, 2007) Gürsel, Bahar; Roberts, Timothy M.
In the 1870s, the united Kingdom of Italy brought together nearly the whole Italian peninsula under a single flag, and the United States left behind a civil war and strengthened the country and its institutions. This dissertation is an account of the relations between the United States and Italy from 1871 to 1920. This era witnessed numerous important incidents like the mass Italian immigration to America beginning in the 1880s, military service and the problem of naturalization, the lynchings of Italian immigrants particularly in the southern United States, anarchism in both countries, Italian colonialist activities in North Africa, the beginning of American overseas expansion, and World War I. By analyzing both countries’ laws, political circumstances, internal affairs and ideological developments, the dissertation aspires to explore the aspects that shaped Italian and American foreign relations. While emphasizing these features, it seeks to clarify the fact that the main issue which both countries focused on was national greatness.
Open Access
From height to crisis: The last half century of Nizâm-i Kadîm and Ottoman society as seen by the Gazette de France, 1740-1787
(Bilkent University, 2022-09) Flynn, Sébastien; Ergenç, Özer
This dissertation focuses on the period of 1740-1787 which was one of the last high points in the history of the Ottoman Empire. It uses the French monarchy’s official periodical, the Gazette de France, as its main source to find new and valuable information on the Ottoman Empire during this era. This period saw Ottoman society and elites prosper as they were able to accumulate wealth over multiple generations. Ottoman women played a prominent role in this dissertation and their role within the Empire’s political culture is examined in detail. The city of Istanbul and Ottoman society take center stage along with Ottoman diplomacy as major topics covered in this work. Overall, this dissertation demonstrates the length to which this period in Ottoman history has been under researched and to what extent it is one of the more interesting periods in the history of the Ottoman Empire.
Open Access
A gate to the emotional world of pre-modern Ottoman society: an attempt to write Ottoman history from “the inside out”
(Bilkent University, 2016-05) Tekgül, Nil; Ergenç, Özer
Beginning in the 1980’s, the research produced on various fields of knowledge including history, neuroscience, sociology, psychology and anthropology asserted that emotions are not only a product of biochemical but also cognitive processes. It is now commonly accepted that emotions do have a history, they are socially constructed changing across time and space. This thesis is an attempt to revisit the relations established within the pre-modern Ottoman society, by taking emotions into consideration. The relations are analyzed within three dimensions; the state and the subjects, intra-communal relations and familial ties. It is argued that the Ottoman state, each taife/cemaat within the society and families were not only social but also emotional communities. The collectively constructed emotional norms and codes of each emotional community and their reflections in political relations, negotiations and daily practices are elaborated via linguistic and discourse analysis of the primary sources. This thesis offers a new perspective and direction in Ottoman social history and thus stands as a first such attempt. The main emotion code, as reflected in the primary sources, was “telif-i kulûb” and “mahabbet” between the ruler and the ruled; “rıza ve şükran” for the community members; and “hüsn-i zindegani ve musafat” for husbands and wives. It is emphasized in this thesis that not only the material but also the emotional dimension of the political and social relations was important in shaping relations and that they should not be avoided in Ottoman social history studies.
Open Access
Hamidian epic: war literature in the late nineteenth century ottoman empire
(Bilkent University, 2016-05) Çekiç, Can Eyüp; Kireçci, M. Akif
This study explores the ways in which epic literature represented, supported, and legitimized the Ottoman regime and its ideology in the late nineteenth century. During the Hamidian Era (1876–1908), reinventing an authentic source, an old genre in the Ottoman literature, for its social and political desires, the regime became resourceful to create a harmonious relationship and prevented potential antagonisms between imperial objectives and popular nationalisms. Epic literature reproduced, created, and promoted a sacred aura around the Ottoman dynasty and the personality of Abdülhamid II. In line with this, epic themes refashioned the concept of ghaza and re-invented the image of the ghazi sultan to confront nationalist and/or constitutionalist criticisms and to consolidate the political power of the ruling dynasty and the sovereign.
Open Access
The historical archaeology of the Early Ottomans : a new perspective on arguments about the foundation of the Ottoman Empire
(Bilkent University, 2015) Dikkaya, Fahri; İnalcık, Halil
This dissertation aims to evaluate the socio-economic structure of the Early Ottoman Period, and is based on an archaeological approach to reconstructing the early Ottoman state and its foundation. In this context, the settlement patterns of the region between Eskişehir and Bilecik and their reflection on settlement distribution and modification from the Late Byzantine to Early Ottoman Periods will be analyzed and interpreted using archaeological and historical data through the reconstruction of the Early Ottoman landscape in the region. The dissertation first examines archeological evidence relating to the Late Byzantine and Early Ottoman periods, including pottery and architecture. In the second part, it presents the extant evidence for and critical analyses of the relevant historical data dating a period from Mantzikert to Bapheus Battles. Through these evidences, the collected data from archaeological survey in the research area in Eskişehir and Bilecik provinces are analyzed. In this analysis, the data is discussed in the methodology of historical archaeology, especially documentary archaeology based on examining archaeological artifacts and historical texts together. Lastly, this study investigates the settlement patterns of Early Ottoman State in the research area and its reflection of social and cultural phenomenon characterized by the frontier (uç) cultural atmosphere. The research area was the conjunction and interaction area for two main cultural complexes, which were newcomers Turkmens and local Byzantines. The effect of these two cultural complexes to the settlement pattern was based on settlement strategies in the topography and the frontier social and cultural phenomenon in the both societies. In this context, the restricted and problematic topography and the pastoralist system determined the cultural, political and economic landscapes.