History of the Ottoman Empire

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The Ottoman Empire was founded c. 1299 by Turkoman chieftain Osman I as a small beylik in northwestern Anatolia just south of the Byzantine capital Constantinople. In 1326, the Ottoman Turks captured nearby Bursa, cutting off Asia Minor from Byzantine control and making Bursa their capital. The Ottoman Turks first crossed into Europe in 1352, establishing a permanent settlement at Çimpe Castle on the Dardanelles in 1354 and moving their capital to Edirne (Adrianople) in 1369. At the same time, the numerous small Turkic states in Asia Minor were assimilated into the budding Ottoman Sultanate through conquest or declarations of allegiance. As Sultan Mehmed II conquered Constantinople (today named Istanbul) in 1453, transforming it into the new Ottoman capital, the state grew into a substantial empire, expanding deep into Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East. With most of the Balkans under Ottoman rule by the mid-16th century, Ottoman territory increased significantly under Sultan Selim...

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