The Ottoman Age of Exploration

by Giancarlo Casale

In 1517, the Ottoman Sultan Selim "the Grim" conquered Egypt and brought his empire for the first time in history into direct contact with the trading world of the Indian Ocean. During the decades that followed, the Ottomans became progressively more engaged in the affairs of this vast and previously unfamiliar region, eventually to the point of launching a systematic ideological, military and commercial challenge to the Portuguese Empire, their main rival for control of the lucrative trade routes of maritime Asia.

The Ottoman Age of Exploration is the first comprehensive historical account of this century-long struggle for global dominance, a struggle that raged from the shores of the Mediterranean to the Straits of Malacca, and from the interior of Africa to the steppes of Central Asia. Based on extensive research in the archives of Turkey and Portugal, as well as materials written on three continents and in a half dozen languages, it presents an unprecedented picture of the global reach of the Ottoman state during the sixteenth century. It does so through a dramatic recounting of the lives of sultans and viziers, spies, corsairs, soldiers-of-fortune, and women from the imperial harem. Challenging traditional narratives of Western dominance, it argues that the Ottomans were not only active participants in the Age of Exploration, but ultimately bested the Portuguese in the game of global politics by using sea power, dynastic prestige, and commercial savoir faire to create their own imperial dominion throughout the Indian Ocean.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Middle East, Asia, Audiobook, School, World History

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Amir · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book.

[Mahmoud KHoolef · Rating 4 out of 5]

المؤرخ والمترجم كما يجب أن يكون 👏

رحله تاريخية بين اسطنبول الى الهند ومن بغداد الى الأندلس جزء عظيم من تاريخنا شبه مجهول لكن الكاتب يركز على هذا الجانب المجهول بالتحديد ويصحح المفاهيم بكل حيادية وبعيدا عن العاطفه الدينيه والاسلاميه المبالغ فيها معتمد فقط على المصادر والمعلومات المؤكده والربط بينها في تسلسل جميل كأنه في حوار معك واحيانا يفكر بدلا منك/عنك

الكتاب في الأصل محترم جدا جدا في فكرته بالاخص أنه موجه لغرض معين ولفئه معينه ولم يحيد عنها طول الكتاب لأنه موجه بالاصل لكتٌاب الغرب لتصحيح بعض المفاهيم لديهم وغير موجه للعرب حتى أن المؤلف فوجأ بتواصل المترجم معه باستمرار لشرح كل كبيره وصغيره وأوضح أنه ف الأصل غير موجه لهم لذلك لم يعتمد على مراجع عربيه اطلاقا وتقديرا لذلك اضاف مقدمه خاص بالنسخه العربيه

كان يجب على المؤلف ذكر مقدمه بسيطه بنشأ الدوله العثمانيه وبعد المعلومات التاريخيه عنها وذكر الوضع العالمي المحيط بها في ذلك الوقت وتفاصيل أخرى كانت ستجعل من الكتاب اكثر من رائع لكن كما قلت انه جعل هدفه من الكتاب محددا جدا احترامه للقارئ

[Hamad T Alotaibi · Rating 3 out of 5]

معلومات اول مره اسمع عنها ، الكتاب جيد بشكل وترتيب الفصول وصياغة الترجمه ممتازه

[Baher Soliman · Rating 4 out of 5]

يحاول هذا الكتاب دحض السردية الشائعة عن تدهور الدولة العثمانية مع توسع الإمبراطورية البرتغالية في المحيط الهندي، فهو يستبعد بطريقة أو بأخرى فكرة أن الدولة العثمانية كانت ضحية للتوسع الأوروبي فيما وراء البحار، بل هو يثبت بما لا يدع مجالًا للشك أن العثمانيين قد دخلوا " عصر الاستكشاف" وأنهم شكّلوا تهديدًا حقيقيًا لمكتسبات البرتغاليين ومعاقلهم في المحيط الهندي .

هناك سعة إطلاع كبيرة جداً للمؤرخ " جانكارلو كازالي" على تاريخ ذلك الصراع المرير في المحيط الهندي بين العثمانيين والبرتغاليين، ورغم أن المؤلف لم يعتمد إلا على رؤية تاريخية أحادية لذلك الصراع = وهي الرؤية العثمانية، إلا أنها رؤية إعتمدت على الموضوعية ولم تغفل في أنحاء كثيرة رصد السلبيات في الجانب العثماني، والتي أدت في النهاية إلى انتهاء السيطرة العثمانية على المحيط الهندي مع ظهور منافسين جدد كالهولنديين والإنجليز، هذه السلبيات هي التي دفعت المؤلف أن يقول عن العثمانيين أنهم لم يكونوا ضحية للتوسع الأوروبي بل ضحية لنجاحهم ، وبغض النظر عن مدى دقة هذا التحليل والذي لو فرضنا صحته لقصرناه على المحيط الهندي، إلا أنه من الصواب القول بأنه كان بمقدور الدولة العلية أن تبني على نجاحها في المحيط الهندي، الذي بدأت في إدراك أهميته بعد دخول العثمانيين إلى مصر .

وهذه نقطة مهمة : إذا كانت الدولة العثمانية قد دخلت عصر الاستكشاف فلماذا لم يكن لها وجود في الأمريكتين مع وجود دلائل كثيرة على احتمال معرفة العثمانيين بوجودهما، ويقدم المؤلف تفسيرًا مهمًا وهو عدم وقوع العالم الجديد في طريق العثمانيين إلى الهند، بعكس الحال بالنسبة إلى الأوروبيين الذين كانوا بحاجة للبحث عن طريق أقصر إلى الهند، فما الذي يدفع العثمانيين للبحث عن المجهول في المحيط الأطلسي في الوقت الذي فتحت فيه " مصر" الطريق للعثمانيين إلى الهند!! .

إذن فقد ساعد فتح مصر على وضع العثمانيين في قلب الصراع في المحيط الهندي، وكيف أصبح العثمانيون فاعلًا نشطًا تجاريًا وعسكريًا في المحيط الهندي في ظل هيمنة برتغالية جبارة ، وهذه هي حكاية هذا الكتاب ، حكاية الوجود العثماني في المحيط الهندي من شرق أفريقيا والساحل الجنوبي لشبه الجزيرة العربية والخليج العربي حتى الهند وأرخبيل الملايو [ من وقت فتحهم لمصر حتى فشل حملة مير على بك على شرق أفريقيا في العام 1589 ] .

اتّسم الكتاب بالجانب التحليلي المدهش وهذا أكثر ما أعجبني في الكتاب، إذ أنه بيّن في مواضع كثيرة أسباب الإخفاقات التي أًصابت العثمانيين في المحيط الهندي، فرغم حالة الضربات الموجعة التي وجهها العثمانيون إلى البرتغاليين في المحيط الهندي إلا أن هذا لم يفضي إلى دحر الوجود البرتغالي في المحيط الهندي وقواعده، وربما لأنه في الحقيقة لم يوجد اهتمام كبير من السلاطين العثمانيين بـ " ريّاس البحر الهندي "، مثلًا يتكلم الكتاب عن حالة عدم التقدير من قِبل صدر أعظم براجماتي مثل " رستم باشا" التي عانى منها " الريس سفر" ذلك القائد البحري المدهش الذي أرعب البرتغاليين ، أو حالة الدسائس والصراعات التي أقصت قادة كانت لهم عقلية تهتم بالوجود العثماني في المحيط الهندي مثل الصدر الأعظم إبراهيم باشا أو سليمان باشا الخادم ، من هنا يؤكد الكتاب أن عصر الاستكشاف العثماني كما بدأ برؤية سياسية واعية ، فقد انتهى كذلك برؤية سياسية قاصرة .

يُمكن أن يقال بحق أن هذا الكتاب الفريد في بابه ملحمة كبيرة من ملاحم العثمانيين، ولكن هذه المرة في البحر لا في البر، وهى ملحمة تبدد أوهام معاهدة "تورديسيلاس" التي وُقعت بين ملكي البرتغال وإسبانيا برعاية البابا لتقسيم كامل العالم الأوروبي فيما بينهما، وقد رد العثمانيون عمليًا على هذه الأوهام ، فهذا الكتاب هو سيرة ملحمية أبطالها ربما نختلف في تقييمهم، لكنهم بالنهاية صمدوا صمود الأبطال أمام المطامع البرتغالية، التي وإن كانت اقتصادية إلا أن الكتاب يؤكد أنها كانت أيضًا صليبية في جوهرها ، ومن هنا يؤكد الكتاب أيضًا أن رد العثمانيين على البرتغاليين ولاسيما في الحرب العالمية التي شنّها عليهم سليمان باشا الخادم كان ردًا له طابع أيديولوجي أيضًا منطلقًا من قول السلطان سليمان القانوني في رسالته إلى سليمان باشا الخادم " وحرر تلك البلاد من أذى الكفار البرتغاليين الذين قطعوا الطريق للمدينتين المشرفتين مكة والمدينة، وضع حدًا لنهبهم في البحر".

الكتاب حقيقة ممتاز وفريد في بابه وبترجمة رائعة للمترجم الرائع مصطفى قاسم والذي أثرى الكتاب بمقدمته الرائعة وبتعليقاته في هوامش الكتاب التي أضافت له الكثير جدًا من الفوائد القيمة.

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to this book from Audible and thought it was fantastic. I'm not sure if it was an aspect of listening to the book versus reading it but I did find it terribly difficult to follow just which people were doing what. All the Ottoman names sounded the same and I ever felt sure who the book was referring too.
That said, the information was well presented and really interesting. The book was very well written and laid-out. It definitely piques my curiosity in the overall history of the Ottoman Empire.

[Roger Burk · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title is misleading. The Ottomans did not have access to or indeed think much about the Indian Ocean until 1517, when they conquered Egypt. By then the ocean had already been well explored by Arab and Portuguese sailors. But some Ottomans saw an opportunity to get in on the spice trade, plunder some infidels, and maybe build some kind of a maritime empire. By 1538 they had taken over Yemen, and in 1546 they occupied Basra on the Persian Gulf. But they needed to build a fleet in an area without trees. So their galleys were built in Suez on the Red Sea out of Anatolian timber carried across the isthmus on pack animals. They had some success: their galleys could escape Portuguese warships by rowing upwind or into shallow waters, though they handled poorly in the open ocean. Progress was halting because of inconsistent support from the Porte (there are many entertaining stories of typical Ottoman corruption, palace intrigue, assassination, summary executions, and sycophancy). After the Battle of Lepanto (1571) I guess the Empire had to retrench; after 1589 official Ottoman presence in the Indian Ocean faded. (Systematic imperial development was also hindered because printing was forbidden in the Ottoman Empire up to the 17th century!) Ottoman trade in the area burgeoned, however, since it was a great way to get rich. Portuguese presence also faded. In 1623 Basra was lost, in 1636 Yemen, and Ottoman official presence in the Indian Ocean had all but vanished. Within 120 years of their advent, trade was controlled by the Dutch, the English, the Safavid Persians, and the Indian Mughals.

This is a PhD dissertation worked up into a book, and it shows: there's all that can possibly be said about an obscure and mildly interesting area of scholarship. But it was an interesting peek into a piece of history I knew almost nothing about, and I enjoyed reading it.

[فيصل بوعقة · Rating 4 out of 5]

رُيَّاس البحر الهندي : عصر الإستكشاف العثماني
عند التعرض للحديث عن عصر الإكتشافات الجغرافية الكبرى ، فغالبا ما يتطرق إلى أذهاننا السبق الأوروبي الغربي ( إسبانيا والبرتغال في البدء ثم الهولنديين والإنجليز لاحقا ) في بسط النفوذ والسيطرة على مناطق استراتيجية عبر العالم وإنشاء مراكز تجارية وإقامة تحصينات عبر مضائق تمر منها طرق تجارية حيوية ، كل هذا يتبادر إلى أذهاننا على أنه سبق أوروبي حصري في تطبيق الماركنتلية والتأسيس لمفهوم الإمبريالية. وإذا نظرنا إلى الشرق في تلك الفترة نجد الإمبراطورية العثمانية تبسط نفوذها السياسي على البلدان العربية الشرقية ، مما يبدو في الظاهر تأكيدا للقول النمطي السائد بأن الدولة العثمانية لم تكن إلا مجرد صورة أخرى للـ" الدول الإسلامية التاريخية " القائمة على التوسع البري فقط وضم الأقاليم.
غير أن كل هذه الآراء النمطية التقليدية السائدة ، يتعرض لها أستاذ التاريخ بجامعة مينيسوتا ، جانكارلو كازالي ، بالنقد وذلك من خلال أن العثمانيين لم يكونوا ضحايا لتخلف موهوم عن الأوروبيين في عصر الاستكشاف بل على العكس من ذلك كانوا لاعبين فاعلين في صياغة الاستكشاف ، وذلك من خلال إماطة الستار عن الصراع العثماني - البرتغالي في المحيط الهندي والذي يُعتبر " أول الحروب العالمية " ( وانا شخصيا كنت أعتبر أن الحروب العثمانية مع آل هابسبورغ يمكن وصفها بأنها أول الحروب العالمية).
ينطلق كازالي من فرضية أن العناصر التي طبعت عصر الإكتشافات الجغرافية الكبرى وهي : العزلة الجغرافية والثقافية في البداية - تبني أيديولوجيا توسعية مركزة على طرق التجارة - التقدم التقني والعسكري - الاهتمام الفكري بالعالم الخارجي تنطبق تماما على السياسة العثمانية في صراعها مع التواجد البرتغالي في المحيط الهندي... ومتحديا للمنطق السائد فالكاتب يخلص على أن العثمانيين خرجوا من الصراع منتصرين. وإن كان هذا الانتصار قد حُمل في خضم أزمة ضخمة هزت الامبراطورية.
معتمدا على مختلف الوثائق العثمانية والبرتغالية , ينطلق كازالي في سرد تاريخي ممتع ومثير ومفيد حول التدخل العثماني في المحيط الهندي ، بدء في التعرف الاول للعثمانيين على مستجدات الأحداث في المحيط الهندي مع انتصار سليم الاول على المماليك وضمه لمصر والشام و كاشفا عبر هذه السردية التاريخية عن جوانب مخفية، منها وجود مجموعات ضاغطة " لوبيات " داخل البلاط العثماني ومنها " عصبة المحيط الهندي" المؤلفة من عدة رجال سياسيين مرموقين شكلوا مجموعة ضاغطة داخل البلاط العثماني وهي المسؤولة عن خلق السياسة العثمانية تجاه التواجد البرتغالي ، وكذلك عن جانب مهم ايضا وهو التحركات الإستخباراتية العثمانية والبرتغالية ، و كيف تم خلق سياسات الإحتواء ( الشبيهة جدا بسياسة الإحتواء الأمريكية للتمدد الشيوعي في القرن العشرين) من خلال الوقوف على فكرة الخلافة الإسلامية والوحدة الإسلامية العالمية. كما أبرز علاقة التاجر بالدولة واختلاف هذه العلاقة بين الدولة الإسلامية والدولة الغربية المسيحية. ويخلص الكاتب في الفصل الأخيرة إلى تطور المعرفة الجغرافية العثمانية من خلال تطور سوق بيع الخرائط والكتب.
الكتاب ممتع جدا ومثير لتعرضه لموضوع تاريخي هام ومجهول ، مع ترجمة متميزة جدا عوّدنا بها الدكتور مصطفى قاسم.

[Rindis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everyone knows of the Age of Exploration, and the Portuguese efforts to find a sea-route around Africa to India. If you know a little more history, you know something of their efforts related to controlling trade in India and the Indian Ocean.

What is even less known is the efforts the Ottoman Empire expended in controlling the Indian Ocean. We mostly remember the Ottoman Empire as a land power. But it controlled the bulk of the Mediterranean for quite a while, mostly during the 16th Century, and the celebrated defeat at Lepanto was celebrated because it was in the face of heavy naval superiority, which Lepanto did not affect. What almost no one remembers is that the Ottoman Empire gained control of the Red Sea and Persian Gulf during this period and challenged Portugal for control of the Indian Ocean.

Part of this might be because both powers were operating far from home at the end of administrative and logistical support. There's not a lot of huge conflicts here—there are some important ones, but the size of the forces involved tends to be much less than we are used to thinking in terms of. Casale's book is a very enlightening look at this entire situation from the Ottoman point of view.

The main focus of the book is a group that he calls the "Indian Ocean Faction" in the Ottoman government. I think he presents them as a more coherent and unified group (partially through use of that name) than I guess they really were, but it looks pretty evident that they did help and promote each other as they could, and were a legitimate faction. In general, Casale covers the Ottoman "discovery" of the Indian Ocean (an area that they didn't know much more about than Western Europe for some time) through an attempt to draw the eastern Muslim world into the Ottoman political orbit, policy changes, and the end of both Ottoman and Portuguese efforts at taking the entire pie.

As if politics, war, negotiations, and trade aren't enough, Casale also talks about maps and mapmaking. After reading The Fourth Part of the World this was very welcome, and also well handled, though I think there a need for better analysis.

One thing I wish, is that the book tied in events elsewhere better. Lepanto is mentioned, and conquest of Cyprus, but other major events, such as the siege of Malta, are not mentioned, nor is their possible impact on other projects examined. Still, this is a very important book for gaining a better appreciation of the period from 1512 to 1589.

[Tasneem Nassar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very excellent book!
The only flaw is that the writer has described too many events for a relatively small book.

[Azza Masmoudi · Rating 4 out of 5]

يدحض الكاتب من خلال هذا الكتاب فكرة أن عصر الاستكشاف كان حكرا على الأوروبيين (الإسبان والبرتغاليين خاصة) فقط بل لعب العثمانيون دورا هاما في استكشاف المحيط الهندي.
يقوم الاستكشاف حسب الكاتب على أربع خصائص أساسية وهي:
- العزلة الجغرافية والثقافية النسبيتين في البداية
- التبني اللاحق لأيديولوجيات سياسية توسعية تركزت بوجه خاص على طرق التجارة والملاحة البحريتين
- الابتكار في بضعة مجالات رئيسية من مجالات التقنية العسكرية والبحرية
- الاهتمام الفكري المكثف بالعالم الخارجي
وقد انطبق هذا التعريف على الامبراطورية العثمانية خلال القرن السادس عشر في علاقتها بالمحيط الهندي وجزر الهند الشرقية خاصة بعد غزوها لمصر سنة 1517 إذ جعلها على علاقة مباشرة بالعالم التجاري في المحيط الهندي. وبالتالي يعتبر غزو مصر فاتحة عصر الاستكشاف العثماني.
بدخولهم للمحيط الهندي تمكن العثمانيون من وضع حد لاحتكار البرتغاليين للتجارة في تلك الفترة وضمان حرية التجار وحماية مصالحهم. ينقسم الكتاب إلى :
- مقدمة قام الكاتب فيها بإبراز أن عصر الاستكشاف العثماني اشترك مع نظيره الأوروبي في السمات الأربعة الرئيسية مع بيان مميزات وخاصيات كل عصر
- يقدم الكاتب في الفصل الأول أول خطوات العثمانيين في المحيط الهندي والجزرالهندية في عهد سليم الأول بعد دخولهم لمصر كما طور فكرة أن سياسات المحيط الهندي التي تبناها السلطان سليم الأول لم تختلف عن سياسات هنري الملاح البرتغالي
- يناقش الفصل الثاني العقدين الثالث والرابع من القرن السادس عشر في السياسة العثمانية بقيادة الصدر الأعظم ابراهيم باشا وفي عهد السلطان سليمان القانوني. إذ تمكن إبراهيم باشا من إعادة الاستقرار لمصر بعد تمرد واليها والسيطرة على اليمن التي تعتبر "سيدة بلاد الهند" وعلى العراق أيضا
- الفصل الثالث يسرد قصة الحرب العالمية اللأولى التي حاول العثمانيون من خلالها بقيادة سليمان الخادم باشا السيطرة على بحر العرب وأجزاء الهند الإسلامية وأجزاء من القرن الإفريقي.
- الفصل الرابع أي عهد رستم باشا الذي كان في مواجهة عصبة المحيط الهندي وهو الاسم الذي أطلقه الكاتب على جماعة ضغط داخل البلاط والنخبة الحاكمة من اجل توسيع الوجود العثماني في المحيط الهندي.
-يتقصى الكاتب في الفلان الخامس والسابع ذروة التقدم العثماني في المحيط الهندي خلال العقدين السابع والثامن بصدارة محمد باشا صوكولو ثم أنصاره بعد وفاته
- اما الفصل الأحير فتناول المؤلف فيه تراج القوة السياسية والعسكرية العثمانية في آخر القرن السادس عشر
الكتاب ممتع ومفيد جدا خاصة واني أحب الاطلاع على التاريخ العثماني. كما أنه تعرض لفترة مهمة ومجهولة بأسلوب أدبي مختلف على الأساليب التقليدية المعتمدة في الكتب التاريخ وترجمة مميزة لدكتور مصطفى قاسم.
الجميل والمختلف في هذا الكتاب أن كاتبه الإيطالي وجهه لجمهور القراء الأوروبي والاميركي فقط من أجل تحدي نظرتهم إلى عصر الاستكشاف باعتباره تاريخهم من خلال تقديم مثال لدولة مسلمة شاركت في استكشاف ما وراء البحار.
كما ان في عادة الكتب التي تنقل تاريخ إحدى الدول يكون التركيز على الملوك او السلاطين لكن في هذا الكتاب قام الكاتب بالإضافة إلى التعريف بالسلاطين بذكر صدور أعظمين وولاة ورياس بحر وقراصنة كانوا الأبطال الفعليين لعصر الاستكشاف العثماني.

[خَـــالِــدٌ المُقَـــــــدِم · Rating 4 out of 5]

يقع الكتاب في حدود 330 صفحة غير ما يقرب من ال70 صفحة ما بين الهوامش والمصادر
للكاتب د.جانكارلوكازالي و هو استاذ تاريخ العالم الاسلامي جامعة مينسوتا الامريكية
الكتاب موجه بالاساس للقارئ الغربي واراد الكاتب به ان يصحح بعض المفاهيم المغلوطة هناك من خلال بحثه في الوثائق التارخية العثمانية
مجموعة النقاط التي اثارها الكاتب :
- ان الاستكشاف البحري لم يكن حكرا علي الاوروبيين وفقط، فالكاتب وضع مجموعة من الاعتبارات يمكنك من خلالها تعريف الاستكشاف وهل ما فعله العثمانيين يمكن تسميته استكشافا ام لا وهي اربعة معايير: 1- العزلة الثقافية والجغرافية
2- التبني لايدلوجيات سياسية توسعية
3- الابتكار في مجالات التقنية العسكرية والبحرية
4- الاهتمام الفكري المكثف بالعالم الخارجي
فاثبت من خلال هذه العناصر ان ما فعله العثمانيين كان ايضا استكشاف

-اثبات ان تدخل الدولة العثمانية في المحيط الهندي كان ف المقام الاول لضمان حرية التجارة وحماية مصالح التجار

-بالاضافة لسرد الوقائع التاريخية بين العثمانيين والبرتغاليين

[Avempace · Rating 4 out of 5]

At its apogee in the 16th century, the Ottoman Empire was engaged in a colossal struggle for supremacy against formidable foes across far flung fronts: against the Habsburgs to the North in Europe, Spain to the West in the Mediterranean, the Russians to the East/NorthEast, the Savafids to the East/SouthEast in Turkey, Iraq and Western Iran, and the Portuguese to the South in Indian Ocean. Of the incessant campaigns swirling around the boarders of the empire, those focused on the Indian Ocean have been the least noted by historians. Yet, they served essential purposes for the empire, both politically and economically. Politically, they emphasized its claim as the heir to the classical Islamic commonwealth of trade routes and faith communities stretching from the Middle East through the Indian Ocean to the far East. Economically, they fulfilled a vital function in securing control over the spice and trade routes, and ultimately the monetary flow in the form of precious metals eastward. It is often forgotten that the conquest of Egypt by the Ottomans in 1516 was heralded by the defeat of the Mamluk fleet by the Portuguese in 1509. It is the threat of Egypt, and the entire network of Indian Ocean trade routes, being lost to the Portuguese that ushered the Ottoman-Portuguese struggle for supremacy over the Indian Ocean network, the focus of this book under review.

The crafting of the stratagems underpinning the Ottoman imperial wars as well as their execution fell to the Grand Viziers of the empire, many of who were capable men who commanded a well oiled bureaucratic and military machine. Beautiful mosques honoring those men, most notably Rustem Pasha and Mehmet Sokollou Pasha, still adorn the seashore of modern day Istanbul. The grand viziers had to deal with all these fronts simultaneously in real time and in a strategically integrated fashion. In that sense, it is no wonder that different factions emerged within the bureaucracy arguing for one front at the expense of another. The Indian Ocean was a relatively neglected frontier securing modest resources compared to the massive efforts sunk against foes on other fronts. Yet it could be argued that strategically it was the most interesting of the lot and the most relevant to the viability of the Ottoman empire as a world power, spawning vexing "what ifs" alternative histories to match.

With this background in mind, the Ottoman Age of Exploration does a remarkable job of relating the 16th century history of the Ottoman encounter with the Indian Ocean and their face-off with the Portuguese. Amongst its strengths are a wealth of primary sources, both Ottoman and Portuguese, a clear analysis of the political and military events surrounding the Ottoman Indian Ocean expansion, and an interesting array of lively personalities involved in that struggle. The figure of Sokollou Pasha in particular towers above the rest as the architect of a global Ottoman vision extending into the Indian Ocean that was frustrated by events mostly beyond his control. The book has some weaknesses that need to be addressed. To my mind, the Ottoman Indian Ocean venture was not an age of exploration as much as an age of reclamation of a classical Islamic heritage of trade routes and centers, as outlined above. Another potential weakness is that in its sharp focus on the Indian Ocean front, it blurs by necessity the global vision of the empire engaged across its many fronts, with all the interconnected challenges and complexities that the Ottoman policy maker would have had to consider. Not withstanding these shortcomings, the Ottoman Age of Exploration remains a significant piece of scholarship and an interesting one at that.

[Abraham Gustavson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Historians have studied the Age of Exploration for centuries. Americans above and below the Rio Grande owe the formation of their national histories to efforts made by Transoceanic explorers from the Italian city-states, Spain, Portugal, and later England and France. Historian Giancarlo Casale turns our focus away from our familiar Eurocentric and Atlantic visions and explores the lesser known efforts made by Ottoman navigators in the Red Sea, Indian Ocean, and Swahili Coast throughout the sixteenth century. His work, Ottoman Age of Exploration (2010), attempts to upend the notion that the Ottoman Empire was primarily a land-based empire focused primarily on territorial acquisitions in the Balkans, Near East, and Persia. His aim is to highlight the achievements of navigators and cartographers such as Selman Reis, Miri Ali Beg, and Piri Reis. Casale argues that while the Ottomans failed to attain direct control of the Indian Ocean trade, their continuous efforts undermined and bankrupted their Portuguese rivals. He concedes that a combination of environmental factors, prohibitive costs, lack of sufficient maritime technology, and a cascade of small competing states limited Ottoman expansion to the Red Sea and Persian Gulf. He writes that the “improbably complex and exorbitantly expensive logistical effort” made direct control impossible by the beginning of the seventeenth century. Still, the sultan maintained jurisdiction over Red Sea trade routes and their access to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. This sixteenth century development had an impact that would last until the First World War and dissolution of the sultanate.

The Ottoman Age of Exploration is a multifaceted book that blends themes in intellectual history, environmental history, and a new relatively field known “Encounter Studies.” Casale also aims to tell the story of Ottoman exploration from a narrative as well as biographical standpoint. Whole chapters are dedicated to policy decisions made by the “Indian Ocean faction,” vaguely defined as a combination of viziers, admirals, navigators, and cartographers who sought to influence the priorities and decisions made by the sultan. Casale also does an excellent job highlighting the multiethnic backgrounds of those who engaged in exploration. Explorers such as Sinan the Jew and Mamluk Egyptian Selman Reis display the polyglot nature of Ottoman expansion. Compared to the crusading ideology of Portuguese sailors, the Ottoman navigators come across as more level headed and strategic than their foes. Ottoman navigators had to adapt from the Mediterranean the style of naval warfare to more resourceful tactics required in the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf. Ottoman viziers also pushed for a canal to be built in Suez, which eventually falls apart due to lack of resources and unfeasibility. The Ottoman Age of Exploration also excels in tracing the intellectual history of Ottoman cartography, much of which was kept in the Topkapi Palace as a state secret and was not distributed to the general public. Casale aims to highlight the Ottomans as not a static state, but an empire whose vision of the world was adapting with the time.

The main weakness of book is that the title is misleading. Exploration implies discovery, but the Indian Ocean trade networks were well established and understood by Indian, Chinese, and Portuguese sailors before the Ottomans arrived around 1520. Casale counters this argument by arguing that the discovery occurred “in the mind” of the Ottomans. One wonders do the Ottomans need to be masters of the Indian Ocean in order to have significance in world history? The second major criticism is that the war against the Portuguese was a sideshow compared to events that took place in the Balkans, the Mediterranean, and Persia. Casale is eventually forced to discuss topics that are of major significance such as the Safavid Wars in the 1530s and the outcome of the Battle of Lepanto in 1571 that drained resources, manpower, and intellectual focus from the Indian Ocean theater. There is also a sense that the many of the navigators that were hired by the Ottomans were plucked from an established Mamluk, Jewish, and Greek maritime cultures. The ethnic diversity that makes the book so interesting also shows that these naval expeditions were subcontracted to their subjects. But the main criticism is that, though the Ottoman navy adapted to the difficulties presented by the Indian Ocean, they were overall unsuccessful at achieving their goals and by 1565 had to resort to a “Soft Empire,” whereby Indian and Arab states collected taxes and controlled trade on behalf of the Ottoman Empire. This system eventually descended into corruption, mismanagement, and in time, irrelevance.

The Ottoman Age of Exploration utilizes sources from both the Ottoman and European worlds. In the bibliography, Casale organizes these sources into two distinct sections. A list of secondary sources numbers several hundred. Illustrations that display maps and drawings of ships have been taken from the Topkapi Palace Museum and the Istanbul Archaeological Museum. Many of the maps Casale discusses cannot be found on the internet. It is clear that he has referenced these sources directly from the Turkish, Spanish, and Italian museum archives. The author also utilizes sources in a highly effective manner that helps move the narrative along and gives balance to an overly Ottoman or Eurocentric perspective. Casale is sometimes forced to utilize only Portuguese sources when Ottoman sources are insufficient. He is careful to note this when using such a source. One minor criticism might be that there seems to be a lack of Indian and African sources in the bibliography. But one wonders if such sources even exist or were accessible to the author.
The Ottoman Age of Exploration received mostly positive reviews from historians in several different book review journals. Casale’s colleagues praised his attempt to highlight an obscure topic in a neglected region. One historian compared his use of a global history framework to the popular world historian Felipe Fernández-Armesto. Another historian wrote that “the work is a success, not because it is the definitive account of the period, but because it whets the scholarly appetite for many of the themes and issues Casale has raised.” But there were also criticisms. One historian argued that Casale’s “rhetorical excesses mar the argument.” But this criticism could also be considered one of the strengths of The Ottoman Age of Exploration. Casale gives a narrative voice to sailors, navigators, and visionaries who have until recently only been considered pirates and corsairs in a overtly Eurocentric historiography. Casale’s attempt to build a narrative, when in reality the Ottoman “Age of Exploration” was probably more practical and opportunistic than ideological, might also be a leap of creative prose, but is still true to the historian’s craft.

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

In many ways this book reads like a textbook but it is highly readable. The news from the Middle East recently triggered me to learn more about the history of the area. Giancarlo Casale, a professor of history, proceeds chronologically, weaving together political and intellectual history of the Ottoman Empire throughout the 16th Century. He focuses on a number of high officials among them were the Grand Viziers Ibrahim Pasha, Hadim Suleiman Pasha, Rustem Pasha, the one Grand Vizier opposed to the whole Indian Ocean enterprise, and Sokolla Mehmed Pasha, probably the strongest supporter. They were aware of what advantage a strong Ottoman presence in the Indian Ocean could be to the profitable Spice trade. The Ottoman controlled the area from the Red Sea to Atjeh in Sumatra. In response to the Portuguese global claims the Ottoman declared that the Sultan was the “Caliph of all Muslims”. The Caliphate united all Muslims under the same religious authority, much as the Papacy did for Christendom. The author shows that shifting priorities and bitter personal rivalries at the Ottoman court hampered the development of a long term global policy. Slowly the conviction grew that tax income from land was preferable to the profits made from the government controlled spice trade.
Casale’s aim is to show the achievements of the “Ottoman age of exploration” not only the military and commercial but the intellectual and political ones. He does so in a convincing manner, making both sides, the Ottoman and the Portuguese, come alive in their negotiations, their self views and perception of their opponent. The book is well researched. Casale speaks Turkish, Portuguese and Italian, enabling him to consult all the relevant archives and secondary literature. I read this as an audio book downloaded from Audible, therefore missed out on the maps and pictures. James Adams narrated the book.

[Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish I could say why I didn't love this book. Perhaps because there wasn't quite an Ottoman age of exploration? They didn't change the shape of the world like when the Portuguese rounded the Cape of Good Hope. They wanted to get to India (most of which was under Islamic rule at the time) to dominate trade, but along routes that were already established. The Ottomans notably attempted to dig early versions of the Suez Canal and the Volga-Don Canal (the latter of which wouldn't be completed until Stalin had enough conscripted labor post-WWII). The Ottomans also sought to become the leaders of the Islamic world and have scattered Muslim people feel invested in the empire's continued expansion and success, first and foremost by creating secure routes for pilgrimage to Mecca. The Ottomans attempted to capitalize on their Islamic faith as a means of building diplomatic ties with Muslims abroad, to the detriment of the Portuguese. Ultimately it mattered little, as both nations gradually lost their zeal for such competitive trade as Portugal was absorbed into the Spanish Empire and the Ottomans were occupied with rivalries elsewhere, and somewhat hamstrung by a top-heavy government and decreasing pursuit of certain sciences due to fundamentalism.

Aside from learning about early attempts at great canals, the second best thing I learned about was the life of Ibrahim Pasha, the grand vizier/childhood friend of Suleiman the Magnificent, who was one of the masterminds behind the Ottoman expansion, particularly in maritime trade and warfare, and who was put to death due to palace intrigue stemming from Suleiman's legal wife Roxelana.

[Murtaza · Rating 3 out of 5]

A thorough recounting of Ottoman relations with Muslim powers in the Indian Ocean, during a time when the idea of universal Ottoman sovereignty was beginning to come into power. There are a lot of interesting tidbits of these relationships (spanning all the way from Eritrea to modern Indonesia) as well the nature of the rivalry between the Ottomans and Portugal over these lands and waters.

The best part of the book I think are the profiles of various Ottoman politicians and seafarers who sought to build an Indian Ocean empire, including the wizier Mokullu Mehmed and the captain Sefer Reis. The maps and books referenced show that there was a great degree of intellectual ferment on this subject, including in contemporary Ottoman views on developments in Europe with regard to the New World.

It does kind of read like a textbook so is probably only meant for those with a keen interest in the subject. I found there was lots that filed in the gaps of my own knowledge on the nature of Ottoman empire building during this period; showing that contrary to the lazy generalizations of some the Ottomans were far from being a docile, land-based nation during the time of the discovery of the New World. At the time the New World didn't seem that important in itself, its discovers were themselves looking for India, and the Ottomans were looking to have power in that region as well.

[Lauren Albert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating look at an ignored subject. Casale believes that scholars have underestimated the importance of the Ottoman's "soft empire" which as he writes as "based not on territorial expansion, but instead on an infrastructure of trade, communication, and religious ideology." They wanted everyone to trade freely--but the Portuguese felt too threatened by Ottoman success and continued to attack their merchant ships. The Ottomans were willing to ally with anyone who would promise to allow free trade--they even sent a letter to Protestants in the Low Country suggesting they align themselves with the persecuted Moriscos of Spain. Unfortunately both the Portuguese and powers within the Empire preferred if the Ottomans closed themselves off from further expansion. But it was their success at building a rationalized spice trade, believes Casale, that doomed them--when the Portuguese were no longer a threat and the trade was profitable, officials and others started illicitly trading for themselves. The Portuguese threat had also given impetus to Ottoman growth and exploration--when that was gone, it was harder to sustain unified action.

[Ravi Singh · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book covering a lesser known but important part of 15th and 16th history affecting the regions of the Red Sea, African Coast, India, Indian Ocean all the way up to Sumatra, areas which were under the influence of the Ottoman Empire at its zenith. The time when it competed with the Portuguese for the control of these areas. However history does more justice to the latter and hence the importance of this book.
There are main actors like Hadim Suleiman Pasha, Ibrahim Pasha etc whose vision and personalities made this great expansion possible and many other important characters from history like Akbar of India and Sultan of Aceh and a number of Portuguese who played an important part i the rise and ebb of the empire. A very detailed account referring to many other lesser known, obscure account to get the facts in line.
All in all a well researched, detailed and fascinating account.

[Jindřich Zapletal · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book containing many pointers for further study. Supported by no doubt enormous amount of original research in Istanbul libraries. Excellent!

My only complaint is the title. Exploration is just not the correct word. The author spends quite some time to argue that Ottomans of 1500 shared the same geographical knowledge with the rest of the Mediterranean, ergo they were nearly ignorant of Indian Ocean navigation, and their expansion deserves the title of exploration. The proof of this assertion is mostly proof by silence of the sources, but OK. However, the rest of the book basically shows that once they conquered Egypt, they simply inherited (and further pursued) the old strategic and trade interests of the Mamluks in the Indian Ocean. That is not exploration in any sense of the word.

[Zayn Gregory · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Ottomans were very active throughout the Indian Ocean world during the 1500s despite having no access to or knowledge of the area at the beginning of the century. The author shows their exploration of the Indian Ocean is closely analogous to the activities of the Portuguese in same period. The most remarkable aspect of the story is the way Muslim peoples from East Africa to Sumatra were all prepared to give their loyalty and even their sovereignty to the Osmani Khalifah simply for showing up once with a boat or two on their shores. Aceh is described mostly just in the context of Ottoman diplomacy. I'd like to read more about the Sultanate of Aceh next.

[ريمة · Rating 5 out of 5]

من أعمق الكتب التاريخية التي قرأت، وقد أماطت اللثام عن الحقائق، بعد تصوير الامبراطوية كبلاد مختلفة جدا في كتب كثيرة، رغم أن الحقب التي سجلت دعما للعلم والثقافة مجدودة، كانت فنية الكتابة سردا رفيعا جدا، وذو طابع حكائي، لم يخل من متعة وحيادية الباحث، لم تسمح للقارئ ، بالقول أنه صور المستكشفين كقراصنة، إنما هو زمن السياسة والباقء للأقوى، كان عليه أن يبين قليلا ويتكلم عن الطرف المقابل أكثر وخاصة البرتغالببن ذوي الأصول اليهودية المطرودين من الأندلس ، بشكل عام ، يعتبر من الكتب التاريخية النادرة التي تشعرك بموضوعية الباحث.

[Courtney Homer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very readable, thorough, and interesting history of the Ottoman's involvement in the Spice Trade of the Indian Ocean during the 15th/16th century. Casale argues that the Age of Exploration is not limited to Europe and that the Ottomans actually played a rather large role. Perhaps the term "Age of Exploration" comes a bit heavy with connotation, but still it's a worthwhile perspective and very accessible history.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

Main issues: sourcing, scope/main argument*, and an annoying dig at world history on p. 10.

*not sure if even what Casale discusses constitutes "exploration" but rather some attempts at hegemony in the Indian Ocean which didn't even last that long for the Ottomans.

Otherwise, an awesome book in that it is very readable and gives some insight into interactions which the Ottomans had which have been overlooked.

[Daniel Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an incredible book that changed how I think about the Ottoman Empire. We today are accustomed to states that have - at least in theory - immediate access and knowledge of everything that goes on within their borders. Modern travel, direct telecommunications, satellites and surveyors, and the ability to choose from hundreds of advisors or ministers or civil servants who are accomplished experts in the field.

This was not the case in the 1500s. In the conclusion on Page 201, the author writes:

"In modern maps of the sixteenth-century Indian Ocean, the Ottoman Empire typically appears as a mass of solid color in the upper left-hand corner of the page, its control stretching seamlessly over virtually all of the Middle East, the Arabian Peninsula, and northern Africa. In contrast, the Portuguese Estado da Índia is most often represented by a scattering of simple dots, each placed strategically at a spot along the Indian Ocean's coasts and connected to the next by the region's most important corridors of oceangoing trade. To the uninitiated, such maps may therefore appear, at least at first, to present the Ottoman Empire in a comparatively favorable light, its territorial heft dwarfing the Portuguese and their paltry collection of coastal settlements. But on a deeper level, the impression left by such maps is one of Ottoman complacency rather than of Ottoman power, implying a state that was content to live off the revenues from own its vast landed estates and, in consequence, bath unwilling and incapable of engaging with the dynamic political economy of the world beyond its borders.

But what if an alternate map of the empire's Indian Ocean provinces could be drawn, one based on a very different understanding of Ottoman power in the harsh physical environment of the Red Sea and Persian Gulf? This map, if placed in the hands of a gifted enough mapmaker, might convey a sense of the scarcity of locally available resources, the dependence of the local economy on the patterns of oceanic trade, and the absence of any direct maritime link with the Ottoman Mediterranean.

In addition, the empire's own presence in the region might be represented as something other than solid swaths of sovereign territory, consisting instead of a series of tiny but strategic islands of authority, isolated from one another except by sea, hugging the coast, and surrounded, in most cases, by hundreds of miles of the most inhospitable deserts on earth".

This book is the story of THAT Ottoman Empire - of a state that is overwhelmingly concentrated on the Mediterranean Basin but which in the 1500s attempted to reach out into the Indian Ocean world to counteract the Portuguese. This first starts as securing Yemen and the Red Sea from Portuguese threats to both trade and to the pilgrimage centers of Mecca and Medina, and soon expands thousands of miles away into Asia and Africa. Ottoman troops, weapons, and artillery were sent as far afield as Gujarat, Aceh, and the Swahili Coast. Ottoman navies besieged the Portuguese in India and harassed their allies in East Africa, as Ottoman armies battled the Ethiopians in the highlands and the Persians for Mesopotamia. Ottoman ministers came up with unfulfilled plans to carve canals connecting the Mediterranean and the Red Sea and the Caspian with the Volga/Don/Black Sea, thereby dreaming of a vast pan-Islamic world with Istanbul at the center. The Ottoman sultan's name was proclaimed in the Friday prayers in mosques as far afield as Calicut, Ceylon, and the Maldives.

And all of these projects were embarked upon with incomplete knowledge and woeful logistics. To people who love grand strategy computer games, this is such a different way of thinking about the Ottoman government. They conquer Yemen, only to see the province fall to Zaydi rebels. They besiege Diu with grand fleets - twice - only to underestimate the defenses and be forced to withdraw. They fortify Mombasa from the Portuguese, only to be caught blindsided by the totally-unknown Zimba army. Ministers requisition ships from the Suez arsenal, only to have the fleet fail to form either due to lack of resources or to blatant sabotage from political rivals. Any diplomacy in South Asia takes months or years to coordinate from the sheer logistics of traveling across Eurasia and reporting back. Trade, pilgrimage, and naval warfare are all dependent upon the vagaries of weather and the monsoon season.

Yet despite all these challenges, the Ottoman state persisted in its attempts to extend its influence throughout the Indian Ocean world throughout the 16th century. That these attempts faded away after 1600 is because the Ottomans managed to break the Portuguese monopoly to allow for freer trade and travel across the region.

This book is an incredible read because we get to accompany the Ottoman (and at times Portuguese) mariners in these foreign adventures, with a taste of the mystery, suspense, and drama that they experienced. The author is skilled at revealing the history as they experienced it, rather than "spoiling" how any particular campaign or venture is going to play out. This reinforces the point that the fate of these projects depended on good fortune just as much as good planning, and makes the book incredibly fun to read.

[Frank Thun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did you know that the Ottomans ruled a part of India in the 17th century? That they threatend the portugese trade in the Indian ocean? That they send pirates out up the american coast, quite succesfully?

Got to give it 4 stars, for the glory of the Ottoman empire!

[Chuck · Rating 3 out of 5]

now this book is right up my alley of useless information

[Cinderella Diab · Rating 1 out of 5]

Haven't finished.. boring.

[Anubis · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book.

To start, the book of course doesn't talk of the Exploration as quite the same way the Europeans did, there was no Ottoman admirals sailing into the unknown, but it talks about the Ottoman involvement in the East, and focuses mainly on their rivalry against the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean.

I've probably read over 20 books on the Ottomans and Portuguese Empires, yet this book was a treasure of information that is simply ignored in the rest. For example, the Portuguese are far from the main topic of the book, yet their strategy is clearly explained, expeditions which are just ignored in other books are described here, and the dynamic with the wider Indian world given in context of their time.

The book really highlights the importance of the Ottoman involvement in the Indian Ocean, and the ambitions of the Ottoman Empire to expand it's influence to the far east and Africa. Usually the Ottoman involvement in India is presented as allies coming to help the Indian Islamic states. However, as the book clearly shows, the Ottomans often considered conquering those areas for themselves, not just helping out others.

We are given to thinking about tantalizing ideas to what could've happened if one of the sieges of Diu was successful. Important towns such as Surat were willing to accept not just Ottoman suzerainty, but were willing to be incorporated directly in the Ottoman State as a province. Even the ruler of the far away Sultanate of Aceh wrote in a letter to the Sultan a request to be considered a provincial lord of the Ottoman Sultan, and be recognized as a sanjakbeg of the Ottoman Empire, willingly demoting his title. Of course, theory and practice differ, but it does stimulate the imagination to think about it.

The geographical scope of the book is great as well. We go from famous sieges of Muscat, Diu, Aden and Hormuz, to expeditions deep in the Arabian and African interior, to the Islands of Indonesia and of course India.

Also very important is the style in which the book is written. It is very engaging, the language is not too difficult, and the book is clear and concise, with plenty of footnotes if you want to go into the details. A small detail i like is that there are subchapters all over the place, which give really nice spots to take a break and make the reading more fluid overall.

The book does perhaps work best if you have some background knowledge already. Some reviewers didn't like the amount of names in the book, but if you know the main Ottoman officials of the times it's not an issue. It's actually a breath of fresh air to learn about the Ottoman admirals, diplomats and corsairs that worked exclusively in the East, which are ignored in basically all the books about Ottoman history.

It's amazing how such an interesting and important part of world history is completely ignored in basically all other books on the wider subjects. We have 100s of books about the siege of Malta, but so few on the sieges of Diu. I really wonder which capture would have a bigger difference to the world today. Conventional wisdom would say Malta without thinking, but after reading this book i am not so sure. If the coastal towns would indeed go through with their allegiance to the Ottomans, it is very likely that the Deccan Sultanates would willing accept Ottoman suzerainty.

If i go down the rabbit hole with this thinking there would be even closer rivalry of the "Gunpowder Empires". The whole dynamic would change. The Safavids had issues being in a sandwich between the Ottomans and Mughals, but the Ottomans actually having claims in India would probably pit the Mughal Emperors directly with the Ottomans as well making a really interesting dynamic that could've changed the history of the world on a grand scale.

There are the standard downsides which seem apparent in most books; the maps could be better, and the figures are black and white with often poor details. However, the content itself is really amazing, well worth a purchase.

[A. Sacit · Rating 5 out of 5]

“…Ottoman worldview translated into concrete strategies for imperial expansion overseas, it demonstrates that the Ottomans of the sixteenth century were able to act as protagonists of the first order in creating a newly integrate world system of competing imperial states.”

“…the Ottoman’s lack of involvement in the Western Hemisphere can hardly be considered a manifestation of collective failure. Instead, it was a logical reflection of the fact that, unlike the Europeans, the New World for them was not on the way to India. As a result, once they successfully conquered Egypt (a prize for which Spanish and Portuguese would gladly traded all their claims in the Americas), the Ottomans quite reasonably took advantage of the Red Sea and Persian Gulf to gain access to the treasures of the East, rather than vainly searching the Atlantic for a shorter route that simply did not exist.”

“…Contemporary Ottomans shared a similar set of goals – and if we keep in mind that, at the down of the age of exploration, they were no closer to achieving them than were the Portuguese – than the Ottoman’s accomplishments during the course of the sixteenth century seem very impressive indeed.”

“…in the Red Sea, the state itself became an active participant in trade by organizing a regular convoy of ships that imported state-owned spice cargoes from Yemen and resold them in Egypt at a handsome profit. Farther afield, Ottoman commercial agents were established in remote trading centers like Hormuz, Calicut (India) and Aceh (Sumatra) and contracted business for the imperial treasury in these overseas markets as well. Together, these initiatives amounted to a comprehensive strategy for controlling Indian Ocean trade, which over time proved more than a match for the Portuguese Estado da India.”

“…Ottoman seaman were able to adapt traditional galley technology to the special conditions of the Indian Ocean, and by mid-century had grown confident enough to launch a string of predatory corsair attacks targeting the Portuguese shipping. Eventually, such attacks proved so effective at undermining the Portuguese maritime blockade that the Ottomans were able to appropriate the lion’s share of the transit trade in spices previously carried in Portuguese ships around the Cape of Good Hope.”

“Finally, the Ottoman Age of Exploration was, like its European equivalent, defined by as much by cultural and intellectual expansion at home as by economic and territorial expansion abroad.”

This book is the outcome of a painstaking, extensive scholarly research by the author from mostly obscure Portuguese, Ottoman, Arabic, and Far Eastern sources which sheds light to sixteenth century Ottoman Age of Exploration at an astonishing detail. The fact that all second half of the book consists of list of the sources and their explanation is a testimony to the research efforts expended by the author.

In the past, I have come across some analysis by some charlatan, arm-chair historians who miss-represented and belittled the Ottoman involvement in the Indian Ocean and Far-East in the 16th century based on scant research, hear-say and gossip. They should read this book.
Finally, glory to the Ottoman seaman and corsairs, the likes of Piri Reis, Sefer Reis, Mir Ali, and many others who made the 16th century truly an Ottoman Age of Exploration in the Indian Ocean!

[حسن الهلالي · Rating 4 out of 5]

كتاب رائع يسبح بقوة عكس التيار القائل بتدهور الأوضاع في الدولة العثمانية بعد فتح الأقطار العربية حيث إنه يوضح بعد فتح البلاد عربية كانت الإنطلاقة الكبري في إنتظار العثمانيين نحو الصراع البحري في المحيط الهندي و البحر الأحمر و كيف إن هذه الإنطلاقة أذابة حائط الجليد بين أكبر قوتين في ذلك الوقت الدولة العثمانية و البرتغالية .

يظهر من الكتاب إن المؤلف على سعة إطلاع عالية جداً و ملم بكتابات التاريخية من المعسكرين سوء كانت بالعربية أو التركية أو البرتغالية و ينقل تفاصيل ربما يكون أول كتاب يتفرد به بهكذا شكل و دقة .

يرى الكاتب إنه و مع دخول السلطان سليم الأول للديار المصرية أصبحت القاهرة هي العاصمة الشرقية للدولة العثمانية و مركز العمليات التي تخرج منها الحملات لإفريقيا و الهند و اليمين و إن ميناء السويس و خليج الطور لعب دوراً مهماً في إحتواء الترسانة التي سينطلق منها إسطوال الإسكشاف الضخم الذي سيغزوا المحيط الهندي .

يشير الكاتب على إنه بعد حصول البيت العثماني على شرف خدمة الحرمين الشريفين و الإمامة الكبري لعب هذا الأمر دوراً بارزاً في صراع الهيمنة العثماني البرتغالي و تحديداً على الشواطئ الآسيوية الشرقية حيث يقطن أعداد كبيرة من المسلمين و هذه الدعاية الدينية وصلت لأعلى مستوياتها في عهد الوزير الأول محمد صقولوا باشا

يبرز في الصراع أسماء مثل مصطفي باشا الصدر الأعظم و صهر السلطان سليمان القانوني الذي أطلاق شرارة البداية للأعمال الإستكشافية في المحيط الهندي و سليمان باشا الخادم صاحب الحملة الأكبر على قلعة الديو البحرية و التي إنطلقت من مصر و التي برغم فشالها إلا إنها حققت نجاحاً مذهلاً في اليمين ثم رستم باشا الباشا الماكر و علي سيمز و محمد صقولوا باشا الذي وصلت في عهد الملاحة العثمانية لأعلى مستوياتها و من بعده بدأ التراجع حيث إن هزيمة ليبانتو و الحملة الصفوية في عهد مراد الثالث أجهضت كل المحاولات الإصلاحية التي كان يهدف إليها سوء عن طريق تطوير الترسانات و على رأسها ترسانة السويس أو إعادة حفر القنوات مثل مشروع حفر قناة السويس الذي لم يخرج عن كونه فكرة و حلم في وقتها و طبعاً بروز اسماء لريسين البحار مثل الريس سلمان و بيري و الريس سفر الرجل الذي كان بمثابة الأخطبوة البحري الذي يبتلع السفن البرتغالية و الذي أرق منامهم .

يستطيع القراء إن يعرف و بوضح إن الدعوة التي تقول بأن السردية المظلمة التي تدرس عن هذه الفترة لا تعلو إلا أن تكون أضغاث أحلام و ضرباً من خيال يُخالف ما كان عليه الواقع