Term Paper on "Iraq in the Ottoman Empire Ottoman Rule"

Term Paper 7 pages (2468 words) Sources: 4 Style: MLA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Iraq in the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman rule in Iraq began in 1535 and lasted until World War I.

During this time Iraq became a central player in Ottoman religious,

economic, and political developments, as it was important to Ottoman

interests in protecting its lands from the Eastern threats, primarily those

of modern day Iran. Also, Iraq helped the Ottoman's to increase economic

trade and resist Shiite influence on their own Sunni Muslim population.

Thus it was important to Ottoman ends of political security and protection

from the Persians and future encroachments, which is reflected in the

constant turmoil in the region. It is also noteworthy that the Ottoman's

at times struggled to administrate Iraq, and although the Mumlaks

encouraged stability, this would not be permanent as the Ottoman

ineffectiveness is reflected in the British influence in the area. As

World War I drew near and the Ottoman's allied with the Central Powers, it

became clear that the British would be at war with the Ottoman Empire.

Thus Ottoman interest in Iraq was lost through the war and British colonial

interests and military might regain control. But because the Ottoman's had

not properly addressed control over Iraq and encouraged divisions among

different religious and tribal groups, Iraq continued to maintain a

splintered religious and political society that colonialism did not and

could not cure. The Ottoman's handed over a territory that could only be

ruled through dictatorships and thus political hardships and the Ottoman's

rule over Iraq meant that Iraq would be a colonized land in which the

problems of political rule would not be addressed. The progression of

Ottoman influence in Iraq meant that Iraq was not able to develop as its

own political entity resulting in years of political and religious

frustrations that are still manifesting themselves today.

Iraq came under Ottoman rule in the 16th Century as the Ottoman's

brought all the holiest cities of Islam under their domain from the

Persians. The conflict over Iraq to the Ottomans was that the Ottoman

Empire feared the Persians from East and thus sought to create a Sunni

buffer state in opposition to the Shiite Persians of the East. The

Ottomans had important territories in what would become modern day Turkey

and Syria and Persia posed a direct threat to them. This means that Iraq

had a political purpose for the Ottoman Empire and encouraged the Ottomans

to take control of the area. Creating a buffer state would not only help

with international stability and security, but the political conquest of

Iraq would help to cement Ottoman control over Sunni territory and heighten

Ottoman influence in the Eastern portion of their Empire while securing

their borders from their main Eastern threat.

This political purpose spread to the religious sphere as well, as the

differences between Sunnis and Shiites influenced Ottoman policy towards

Iraq. After Muhammad there was a schism in Iraq, thus causing a split in

Islam into two groups that would become known as Sunnis and Shiites. Iran,

or Persia in the Ottoman days, was the center of the Shiites and the Arabs

were predominately Sunni. While Iraq had a decent sized Shiite population,

it was primarily Shiite. And because the Shiites of Persia were the

enemies of the Ottoman Empire, the Ottomans feared Shiite influence into

their Sunni lands of modern day Turkey, which was a critical area to the

Empire. Therefore, having Iraq in its position would not only serve as a

political buffer, but a religious buffer whose religious impact spread into

the political sphere.

Furthermore, early Ottoman control of Iraq also meant economic

significance to the Ottoman Empire. Important East-West trade routes

passed through modern day Iraq and encouraged the Sultan of the Ottoman

Empire to control the land and control trade. According to one estimate,

"control of the trade routes passing through the Red Sea and up the Tigris

and Euphrates rivers..... was an important element in the Sultan's efforts

to ensure that east-west trade would continue to flow through his

territories" (Iraq History Page). This was because there were newly

opened trade routes through Africa that might pose a threat to Ottoman

trade in the East. This shows the economic importance of what would become

modern day Iraq for its inclusion into the Ottoman Empire.

From the early conquest of Iraq by the Ottoman Empire in the 16

century, there would be a continued conflict between the Safavid Empire in

Iran and the Ottomans that would continue to make Iraq an important

religious and political entity to the Ottoman Empire. This was because the

Safavid Empire in Iran declared Iran to be Shiite and had their eyes set on

holy places within Iraq and the prestige from conquering important areas of

Islam and Arab culture, such as Baghdad (Library of Congress 2007). This

meant that the initial Ottoman conquering of Iraq would not be permanently

recognized, but that it was subject to continual threats from Persia such

as that in 1623 when Persia conquered Iraq, but were eventually overthrown.

But the potential for Persian conquest and a threat to the Eastern half of

the Ottoman Empire made Iraq of significance to the Ottoman Empire's

political, religious, and economic vitality in the Eastern half of its

Empire.

Also, because the Ottomans were constantly threatened by the

Safavids Persian influence on Iraq, their influence was weakened and they

faced a loss of authority in Iraq.

In the 17th century, the Ottoman Empire was weakened, which allowed for

increased independent rule of the Iraqi areas of the Empire. Local Iraqi

tribes succeeded in acquiring power, and one man, Afrasiyab purchased the

governorship of Basra and allowed Western influence to permeate Iraq

through British, Dutch, and Portuguese merchants. This introduction of Red

Sea Trade in Basra by the British perhaps influenced the British in their

future endeavors and eventual colonization of modern day Iraq. It is also

important to note that these local leaders were also responsible for the

Persian conquest of most of Iraq as the Baghdad governor Bark Su Bashi

revolted and joined with the Safavid in order to strengthen his role in

relation to the Ottoman Empire. The result was religious and political

conflict in Baghdad which while allowed for Persian control, the Ottomans

eventually restored their power to Iraq and they would retain control until

modern times by the Treaty of Qasr-i-Shirin which ended the aforementioned

conflict between the Sultan and the Persian Empire. However, there would

be indirect conflict in the 17th century such as for control over Basra as

the Ottoman's were forced to focus much of their attention and resources to

Europe where they faced warfare and waning influence as a political Empire.

This notion in which the Ottoman Empire became known as the "sick man

of Europe" in which they had lesser political control but significant land

holding also was because of and spread to their territory in Iraq. There

were weak Sultans such as Ibrahim I whose porous policy spread to Iraq and

encouraged the disunity and opposition to Ottoman influence in the region.

This contributed to political and economic problems and furthered the

chance of religious tension between Shiites and Sunnis. This Shiite and

Sunni tension was heightened by the pro-Sunni stance of the Ottomans and

the pro-Shiite stance of the Persians and thus the conflict spread to

create religious cleavages between the two religious groups. The Persians

encouraged the Shiites and the Ottomans the Sunnis and thus when ruled by

one group, the opposition was oppressed. This would influence Iraq far

into the future and into the modern day.

In the 18th Century, Iraq and its relationship within the Ottoman

Empire became more stable. A European model of governing influenced the

Ottomans and this was carried over to Iraq. The key aspect of this period

was that the governor sent to rule Iraq from the Ottomans was Georgian and

he established a Georgian Mamluk authority over the Iraqi province. The

Mamluks became influential in helping to secure Ottoman influence in Iraq

which benefited the Empire and they helped collect tribute which was

beneficially economically to the Ottomans. This meant a period of economic

and political stability for the Ottomans in Iraq that also included

modernizing efforts and military gains (Library of Congress 2007). This

helped cement Iraqi incorporation into the Ottoman Empire and alleviate

Ottoman concern over the region. The Mamluks had a military in the Empire

which made the defense of Iraq not subject to the Ottoman's European

campaigns and thus trade routes became a source of revenue that was not at

risk. By this time however the Safavid's lost power in Iran and those who

took power meant a new threat to the Ottoman's control of Iraq. But

through the influence of the Mamluks, the Ottomans were able to retain

control, but the Mamluk regime retained greater influence than other

regimes prior. During this time the future of Iraq was hinted as the

British East India Company established a post in Basra in 1763.… READ MORE

How to Reference "Iraq in the Ottoman Empire Ottoman Rule" Term Paper in a Bibliography

Related Term Papers:

Iraq War John Keegan Tackles Research Proposal

Iraq War

John Keegan tackles what he admits to be the one of the most controversial wars in recent American history in the Iraq War. However, Keegan's first edition of… read more

Research Proposal 4 pages (1226 words) Sources: 1 Topic: World History

---

Ottoman Early American Relationships to Religious Hierarchy Caliph Church of England Term Paper

America and the Ottoman Empire

Currently, the United States and the Islamic world are at odds over many issues, and while the policy of the U.S. is to find ways… read more

Term Paper 17 pages (5100 words) Sources: 15 Style: MLA Topic: Religion / God / Theology

---

Middle Eastern Civilization Essay

Middle Eastern Civilization

The era before the rise of Islam, the first six centuries of the Common Era, were set forth due to the development of major events. One of… read more

Essay 4 pages (1298 words) Sources: 0 Topic: Religion / God / Theology

---

Compare and Contrast the End of the Roman Empire to Today Term Paper

Roman empire to today

The issue of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire is a source of fascination for both the broad public and the scholarly world. From… read more

Term Paper 40 pages (13231 words) Sources: 5 Style: MLA Topic: World History

---

Women in Iraq Research Paper

Women in Iraq

Brief History of Iraqi Women

The area known as Iraq is referred to as the "cradle of civilization" dating back 5,000 years to the civilization of Mesopotamia.… read more

Research Paper 6 pages (2169 words) Sources: 8 Topic: Israel / Palestine / Arab World

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>