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History

The Ottoman Empire

Overview

Students explore the Ottoman Empire as one of the longest-lasting and most significant empires in world history.

Learning Objective
Students understand the scale, longevity, and significance of the Ottoman Empire and its legacy in the modern world.

Resources needed

  • None

Lesson stages

0 / 7 done
  1. 1 Ask: what do you know about the Ottoman Empire? Where and when was it?
  2. 2 Introduce the scale: at its peak it stretched from North Africa to Eastern Europe to the Middle East.
  3. 3 Describe its longevity: over 600 years, from 1299 to 1922.
  4. 4 Discuss achievements: the millet system of religious tolerance, legal codes, art, architecture, trade.
  5. 5 Ask: how did such a large, diverse empire hold together for so long?
  6. 6 Discuss its decline: military defeats, rising nationalism, World War One, the fall of the sultanate.
  7. 7 Ask: what countries exist today in territory that was once Ottoman? What legacy remains?

Tap a step to mark it as done.

Variations

  • Focus on the fall of Constantinople in 1453 as a turning point in world history.
  • Discuss the millet system as an approach to governing religious diversity.
  • Compare the Ottoman decline to another empire studied previously.
More information

Teach: Ottoman, sultan, caliphate, millet, janissary, nationalism, legacy. Locate the empire on a map — its geographic reach is one of its most impressive features.

Focus on one century of Ottoman history in depth rather than the full 600 years.

Can students describe two features of the Ottoman Empire that explain its longevity? Can they identify one way its legacy is still visible today?

No resources needed. Draw a rough map of the empire's extent in soil.

Students sometimes think the Ottoman Empire was only relevant to the Middle East. Its influence shaped Eastern Europe, North Africa, and the origins of World War One.

The Ottoman Empire's legacy directly shapes current events across multiple regions. It is one of the most important and underteaught empires in world history education.

Activity details
Secondary Medium 25 minutes no prep Small Group, Whole Class Indoor & Outdoor
Topics
Ottoman Empire Islamic History Empire