Download The Islamic World and India, 1600-1917

The Islamic World 1600-1917
SSWH12:a-b
Time and Geography
POLITICAL
Strengths and Weaknesses of
Ottoman Civilization
• Strengths
– Artistic work in
literature, architecture,
etc.
– Commitment to justice
for all
– Tolerance for nonbelievers
– Literary language
Strengths and Weaknesses of
Ottoman Civilization
• Weaknesses
– Government depended on 1 or 2 individuals
– Government essentially military, needed conquests to
justify itself
– Could not adapt Islamic law to changing needs
– Uninterested in secular education, technology
– Excessive reverence for tradition
Decline of the Ottoman Empire
• Became prey for West
– Russians drove back frontiers
– Balkan peoples rebelled
• Sultanate declined in power as bureaucracy
grew
• Occasional reforms, but not enough
• Other contributing factors
– Economic: shift of trade routes
– Military: loyalties eroding
– Technological: refused to give up old ways
Safavid and Mughal Decline
• Safavids disappeared
by 1700
– Unable to develop into
centralized empire
– Attacked by Afghan
invaders
– India remained under
tribal rule
The Safavid Empire
Safavid and Mughal Decline
• Aurangzeb of India
– Reintroduced Islamic
character to public life
– Heightened friction with
other religions
– Set stage for eventual
Hindu rebellion
The Mughal Empire in 1690
European Presence in India
• Portuguese, Dutch, English,
French
• Mughals comfortable with
British
• French arrival put some
strains on relationship
• European wars involved
India
– Seven Years War put most of
India in British hands
• Attempts to defy British
power were crushed
Muslim Countries until World War I
• Three Muslim empires
overwhelmed by Western military,
financial powers
– India – outright colony
– Persia – divided between Russia,
Britain
– Ottomans – defeated by Russia
– Egypt – occupied by British
Scaling the Heights of Abraham, Seven Years War
Muslim Countries until World War I
• Indicators of intellectual and psychological decline
– Could no longer sustain image of righteous community of
believers
– Recognized need for including Western elements in Islam
– Only adopted them sporadically
– Enormous prejudice, tradition opposed Westernization
The
Period of
Reforms
Different Responses
to the Challenge
•
•
•
•
Ignore or reject changes
Accommodate change
Islamic fundamentalism
Pan-Arabism, Arab nationalism
Sultans of
the Ottoman
Dynasty
Tanzimat
• Sultans realized they had to modernize military
• Tanzimat Reforms
– Sultan Selim III tightened control over provinces
– Created new schools to train officers
• Next sultan ended Janissary opposition, renovated
education
• Rose Chamber Rescript of 1839 – revolutionized society
by declaring equality of all Ottoman subjects
• Young Ottomans
– Young intellectuals, journalists
– Pressured for liberalization of society
– Got constitution, elections before being defeated
Egypt, Sudan under Muhammad Ali
• Reign of Muhammad Ali Pasha was unusual for
longevity and for modernizing the military
• Military reforms
– Convinced of European superiority – used French advisers,
models
– Conscripted peasants, outfitted them with latest weapons
– Established munitions industries
• Other reforms
–
–
–
–
Modern schools, public health systems
Encouraged private land ownership
Sugar and cotton as cash crops
State monopolies of vital industries
An 1840 portrait of Muhammad Ali Pasha
Foreigners and Reactions
• Foreigners
– Foreign investments: railroads, Suez Canal
– Incurred huge debts – had to sell shares in Suez
Canal Company to British
– Britain occupied Egypt in 1882
• The Mahdi Rebellion
– Successful revolt against Egyptians, British in Sudan
– Elements of national resistance and fundamentalist
Islam
– Lasted until British defeated rebels in 1898
Reforms under the Iranian Shahs
• Did not begin reforms until
mid-century
• Intensified military,
commercial ties with West
• Cheap European goods
put local industries out of
business
Reforms under the Iranian Shahs
• Resistance to foreign
interference
• Western control over
mineral, oil rights
• Demands for
constitutional government
began to circulate
• National Assembly called,
but was weak
Wahhabi Fundamentalism
and Jihad
• Wahhabism – militant reform begun in late 1700s
• Fought jihad to purge Islam, believed it was only way for
Islam to survive enemy attacks
• Declared holy war on all neighboring tribes
• Destroyed tombs, even markers on Muhammad’s grave
• Inspired similar violent reactions to change
• Wahhabism today
– Thorough rejection of everything Western
– Only role of government is to create reign of Allah and his faithful
– Any obstacle to that must be destroyed – no compromise
Salafi and Nationalism
• Salafi Movement
– Wanted to reform Islam to allow modern ideas, ways of life
– Urged Muslims to reform themselves to meet Western challenge
– Modernization on Islamic principles
• Return to days of intellectual experimentation
• Were sure Allah did not intend Muslims to be inferior
– Most ulama ignored these ideas
• Arab nationalism
– Pan-Arabism – outgrowth of national consciousness
– Note: “Arab” refers to ethnic group, not religious one
– Christian Arabs especially important in movement
Flag of the Arab League
Discussion Questions
1. What connections do you see between events in the Muslim
world in the 18th and 19th Centuries and the current situation
in the Middle East? To what extent do you see Wahhabism
as an explanation of today’s Muslim reactions to the West?
To Islamic fundamentalism and the Muslim terrorists? Does
the knowledge in this chapter help you to understand their
attitudes today? Why and how?
2. One of the themes in world history is the rise, maturity,
decline, and fall of one powerful state or empire after another.
The Ottoman Empire was yet another instance of this life
cycle. Can you think of any nations today which seem to be
following the same evolution? Can you compare any signs of
decay and decline today to what happened to the Ottomans?