HI163 - Galleons and Caravans

Wednesday 16 November 2016

Week 7. The Rise and Decline of Land Empires

Lecturer: Giorgio Riello

Introduction

- Empires and Connectedness

- Empires and their Uniqueness

1. Variety of Empire

- Empires: Time and Space

a. Duration

b. Spatial reach

- A working definition

‘The nation-state proclaims the commonality of its people – even if the reality is more complicated – while the empire-state declares the non-equivalence of multiple populations… The concept of empire presumes that different people within the polity will be governed differently’

Jane Burbank and Frederick Copper.

- Categories of Empire

- Theory of Empire

- The ‘mirror-empires’ model: Peter Turchin, ‘A theory for formation of large Empires’, Journal of Global History, 4/2 (2009).

‘those societies inhabiting the warmer, more densely populated and productive hinterlands of Eurasia regularly sought to recruit and co-opt warriors from the northern forests and steppes as allies, auxiliaries, mercenaries, military slaves, march wardens, and royal guards’.

Thomas T. Allsen, ‘Pre-modern Empires’, in Jerry H. Bentley, ed., The Oxford Handbook of World History (Oxford: OUP, 2011), p. 1 (online)

See Table 1

2. Early Modern Land Empires

- The Mongol Empire

- The Timurid Dynasty

- Yuan and Ming China

- The Ottomans

- Safavid Persia

- Mughal India

- The Russian Empire

- The Habsburgs and the Holy Roman Empire

3. Organisation

- The Mughal Jagirs

- The Ottoman Timar

- The Chinese Administrative System

4. Universal empires

As Herfried Münkler states, differently from states, ‘Empires have no neighbours which they recognize as equals, that is, as possessing equal rights”.

  1. Suleyman the Magnificent
  1. Shah Abbas
  1. Shah Jahan

5. Connections

- Trade and Commerce

- Foreign relations

6. The demise of Empires

- Internal causes

- External reasons

Table 1. Mega-Empires in the Historical Record

Date (peak) / Empire name / World region / Area (million sq km)
1270 / Mongol / Central Asia / 24.00
1290 / Khmer / Southeast Asia / 1.00
1310 / Golden Horde / Central Asia / 6.00
1310 / Il-Khanid / Southwest Asia / 3.75
1312 / Delhi / South Asia / 3.20
1350 / Chagatai / Central Asia / 3.50
1380 / Mali / Africa / 1.10
1400 / Mamluk / Africa / 2.10
1405 / Timurid / Central Asia / 4.40
1450 / China-Ming / East Asia / 6.50
1480 / Lithuania-Poland / Europe / 1.10
1683 / Ottoman / Europe / 5.20
1690 / Mughal / South Asia / 4.00
1760 / Maratha / South Asia / 2.50
1790 / China-Manchu / East Asia / 14.70
1800 / Russia / Europe / 15.50
Peter Turchin, ‘A theory for formation of large Empires’, Journal of Global History, 4/2 (2009), pp. 202-3

Chronology of Land Empires

1299. Ottoman. The Ottoman Empire is founded with the reign of Osman

1368. China. Ming empire is founded.

1369. Ottoman. The Ottomans begin the conquest of Bulgaria.

1453. Ottoman. Mehmet II conquers Constantinople ending the Byzantine Empire.

1501. Safavid. The Safavid Empire is founded in Tabriz by Shah Ismai'il I

1520. Ottoman. Suleiman I becomes emperor and start a period of conquest.

1526. Ottoman. Suleiman I crushes the Hungarian army.

1526. India. Babur founds the Mughal Empire

1543. Ottoman. Suleiman conquers Baghdad.

1587. Safavid. Shah Abbas become emperor. He dies in 1629.

1736. Safavid. End of the Safavid Empire.

Ottoman Dynasty

1299-1324. Osman I

1324-1362. Orhan I

1362-1389. Murad I

1389-1402. Bayezid I

1402-1413. Ottoman Interregnum

1413-1421. Mehmed I

1421-1444. Murad II

1444-1446. Mehmed II

1446-1451. Murad II

1451-1481. Mehmed II

1481-1512. Bayezid II

1512-1520. Selim I

1520-1566. Suleiman I

1566-1574. Selim II

1574-1595. Murad III

1595-1603. Mehmed III

1603-1617. Ahmed I

1617-1618. Mustafa I

1618-1622. Osman II

1622-1623. Mustafa I (second reign)

1623-1640. Ibrahim I

1648-1687. Mehmed IV

1687-1691. Suleiman II

1691-1695. Ahmed II

1695-1703. Mustafa II

1703-1730. Ahmed III

1730-1754. Mahmud I

1754-1757. Osman III

1757-1774. Mustafa III

1774-1789. Abduhamid I

1789-1807. Selim III

Continues to 1922

Mughal Dynasty

1526-1530. Babur

1530-1540. Humayun (first reign)

1540-1545. Sher Shah Suri

1545-1554. Islam Shah Suri

1555-1556. Humayun (second reign)

1556-1605. Akbar

1605-1627. Jahangir

1627-1658. Shah Jahan

1658-1707. Alangir

1707-1712. Bahadur Shah

1712-1713. Jahandar Shah

1713-1719. Farrukhsiyar

1719-1720. Shah Jahan II; Neku Siyar; and Mohammed Ibrahim

1719-1748. Muhammad Shah

1748-1754. Ahmad Shah Bahadur

1754-1759. Alamgir II

1759-1760. Shah Jahan III

1759-1806. Shah Alam II

Safavid Iran

1501–1524 Ismail I

1524–1576 Tahmasp I

1587–1629 Abbas I

1694–1722 Sultan Husayn

1729–1732 Tahmasp II

1732–1736 Abbas III

Yuan Dynasty

1260–1294. Kublai Khan

1294–1307. Temür Öljeytü Khân

1308–1311. Qayshan Gülük

1311–1320. Ayurparibhadra

1321–1323. Suddhipala Gege'en

1323–1328. Yesün-Temür

1328-1328. Arigaba

1328–1329. Jijaghatu Toq-Temür

1329-1329. Qoshila Qutuqtu

1329–1332. Jijaghatu Toq-Temür (second reign)

1332-1333. Irinchibal

1333–1370. Toghan-Temür

Ming Dynasty

1368–1398. Hongwu Emperor
1398–1402. Jianwen Emperor
1402–1424. Yongle Emperor
1424–1425. Hongxi Emperor
1425–1435. Xuande Emperor
1435–1449. Zhengtong Emperor (first reign)

1449–1457. Jingtai Emperor

1457-1464. Zhengtong Emperor (second reign)
1464–1487. Chenghua Emperor
1487–1505. Hongzhi Emperor
1505–1521. Zhengde Emperor
1521–1566. Jiajing Emperor
1566–1572. Longqing Emperor
1572–1620. Wanli Emperor
1620-1620. Taichang Emperor
1620–1627. Tianqi Emperor
1627–1644. Chongzhen Emperor

Southern Ming Dynasty

1644–1645Prince of Fu

1645–1646Prince of Tang

1645-1645Prince of Lu

1645–1653Prince of Lu

1646-1646Prince of Tang (Shaowu)

1646–1662Prince of Gui

Qing Dynasty

1616-1626Nurhaci
1626–1643Huang Taiji
1643-1661Shunzhi Emperor
1661–1722Kangxi Emperor

1722–1735Yongzheng Emperor
1735-1796Qianlong Emperor
1796–1820Jiaqing Emperor
1820–1850Daoguang Emperor
1850–1861Xianfeng Emperor
1861-1875Tongzhi Emperor
1875-1908Guangxu Emperor
1908-1911Xuantong Emperor