The Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe

Daniel Goffman's lucid and accessible book examines Ottoman relations with Europe in the Early Modern period.

Daniel Goffman (Author)

9780521452809, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 25 April 2002

300 pages, 30 b/w illus. 6 maps
23.6 x 15.7 x 2.4 cm, 0.578 kg

'His text is suffused with an impassioned plea for recognition … a deft restatement of familiar topics that is both original and accessible … Goffman's new book convincingly shows that the history of the Ottoman Empire desperately needs re-telling … The Ottoman Empire and early modern Europe contributes to one of the most urgent historical tasks of our time …'. School of Oriental & African Studies

Despite the fact that its capital city and over one third of its territory was within the continent of Europe, the Ottoman Empire has consistently been regarded as a place apart, inextricably divided from the West by differences of culture and religion. A perception of its militarism, its barbarism, its tyranny, the sexual appetites of its rulers and its pervasive exoticism has led historians to measure the Ottoman world against a western standard and find it lacking. In recent decades, a dynamic and convincing scholarship has emerged that seeks to comprehend and, in the process, to de-exoticize this enduring realm. Dan Goffman provides a thorough introduction to the history and institutions of the Ottoman Empire from this new standpoint, and presents a claim for its inclusion in Europe. His lucid and engaging book - an important addition to New Approaches to European History - will be essential reading for undergraduates.

1. Introduction: Ottomancentrism and the West
2. Fabricating the Ottoman State
3. A seasoned polity
4. Factionalism and insurrection
5. The Ottoman-Venetian Association
6. Commerce and diasporas
7. A changing station in Europe
8. Conclusion: the greater western world.

Subject Areas: Early history: c 500 to c 1450/1500 [HBLC], European history [HBJD]