Name ______________________________ Class ________________________ Date _____________
The Muslim World
Lesson 4
The Ottomans Build a Vast Empire
Key Terms and People
ghazi warrior for Islam
Ottoman follower of the most successful ghazi, Osman
sultan ruler of a Muslim state
Timur the Lame conqueror of Persia and Russia
Mehmed II conqueror who made Istanbul his capital
Suleyman the Lawgiver ruler who brought Ottoman Empire to its height
devshirme policy for creating the sultan’s army
janissary soldier slave drawn from conquered Christian territories
Before You Read
In the last lesson, you read about cultural achievements made in the
Muslim empire.
In this lesson, you will read about the rise of the Ottoman Empire,
1300–1600.
As You Read
Use a chart to list the main rulers of the Ottoman Empire and
their successes.
Turks Move into Byzantium 1326, Osman built a strong but small
How did the Ottoman Empire begin? kingdom in Anatolia. Leaders who came
In 1300, the world of the eastern after Osman called themselves sultans,
Mediterranean was also changing. The or “ones with power.” They extended
Byzantine Empire was fading. The the kingdom by buying land. They also
Seljuk Turk state had been destroyed. formed alliances with other chieftains
Anatolia, the area of modern Turkey, and conquered everyone they could.
was now inhabited by groups of The Ottomans used gunpowder. Their
nomadic Turks. They saw themselves as soldiers could use cannons and muskets
ghazis, or Muslim warriors for Islam. to fight. This gave them a great
They raided the lands where non- advantage when attacking others. Even
Muslims lived. walled cities were no obstacle for
The most successful ghazi was the Ottomans.
Osman. Western Europeans thought his The Ottomans ruled in a kindly way.
name was Othman. They called his Muslims had to serve in the army but
followers Ottomans. Between 1300 and paid no taxes. Non-Muslims paid tax
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
22 Guided Reading Workbook
Name ______________________________ Class ________________________ Date _____________
Lesson 4, continued
but did not serve in the army. Many 2. Why, most likely, was Constantinople
joined Islam just to avoid the tax. Most made the capital city?
people adjusted easily to their new rule.
One warrior did not. He was Timur
the Lame. He conquered Russia and
Persia. In 1402, he defeated the Ottoman
forces. Timur captured the sultan and
took him to Samarkand in a cage. Suleyman the Lawgiver; THE
EMPIRE DECLINES SLOWLY
1. How did the Ottomans get
Why was Suleyman the Lawgiver a
their name?
great leader?
Suleyman I took power in 1520. He
ruled for 46 years. He brought the
Ottoman Empire to its greatest size.
Suleyman revised the laws of the
Powerful Sultans Spur empire. His people called him Suleyman
Dramatic Expansion the Lawgiver. Suleyman ruled his empire
How did the empire grow? with a highly structured government.
In Anatolia, the four sons of the last Thousands of slaves served the royal
sultan fought for control of the empire. family. The policy of making people
Mehmed I won control. Later, the slaves was called devshirme. Christian
empire transferred to his son Murad II. boys were taken and made slaves. They
He defeated enemy armies and invaded were educated, converted to Islam, and
other countries, expanding the empire’s then trained as soldiers. The janissaries
size. The next three sultans continued were an elite group of enslaved soldiers
and brought the Ottoman Empire to its who fought fiercely for the sultan. Other
greatest power. Most victorious was slaves held important government jobs.
Mehmed II, who took power in 1451. He The empire allowed people to follow
built a force of 100,000 foot soldiers and their own religion. Jews and Christians
125 ships to gain control of the city of were not mistreated. His empire was
Constantinople. In 1453, he took the also known for great works of art and
city and the waterway it controlled. many fine buildings.
Mehmed made the city his capital. He Although the empire lasted long after
renamed it Istanbul. The rebuilt city Suleyman, it spent the next few hundred
became home to people from all over years in decline. None of the sultans
the Ottoman Empire. were as accomplished as Suleyman had
Other emperors used conquest to been. However, the Ottoman Empire
make the empire grow. After 1514, Selim continued to influence the world into
the Grim took Persia, Syria, and the 20th century.
Palestine. He then captured Arabia, took 3. What were two of Suleyman’s
the Muslim holy cities of Medina and accomplishments?
Mecca, and gained control of Egypt.
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
23 Guided Reading Workbook
Name ______________________________ Class ________________________ Date _____________
Lesson 4, continued
As you read this lesson, fill out the chart below by writing answers in
the appropriate boxes.
What role did each ruler play in the building and expansion of the Ottoman Empire?
1. Osman
2. Murad II
3. Mehmed II
4. Selim the Grim
5. Suleyman
List the achievements of Suleyman in the boxes below.
Social Achievements Cultural Achievements
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
24 Guided Reading Workbook
