The Ottoman Empire – From Conquest to Collapse
Explore the reasons behind the rapid expansion of the Ottoman Empire, including its military conquests, political organisation, and relative religious tolerance, as well as the challenges and weaknesses that led to its eventual decline.
Special guests include renowned Ottoman empire authors, Eugene Rogan, Caroline Finkel and Marc David Baer. They offer insights into one of the most influential empires in history and the lessons that can be learned from the empire’s rise and fall.
About the Speakers
Professor Eugene Rogan
Eugene Rogan teaches the modern history of the Middle East at the University of Oxford, where he serves as Director of the Middle East Centre. He is author of The Arabs: A History (Penguin, 2009, 2017), The Fall of the Ottomans: The Great War in the Middle East (Penguin, 2015), and The Damascus Events: The 1860 Massacre and the End of the Old Ottoman Order. His works have been published in 19 languages.
Caroline Finkel
Caroline Finkel has lived in Istanbul for many years and travelled widely in Turkey and the former Ottoman lands. She has published articles in academic journals and popular outlets, done TV and radio turns in the UK and Turkey and, Osman’s Dream apart, has written/co-written books on Ottoman military history, Ottoman historical seismology and the Ottoman traveller Evliya Çelebi. She was a participant in a 40-day ride in western Anatolia following the early stages of Evliya’s 1671 pilgrimage route, and co-director of a historical-archaeological expedition in western Ukraine. Her most recent publication (online) is Hiking Istanbul’s Hinterland.
Marc David Baer
Marc David Baer is Professor of International History and Head of Department at the London School of Economics and Political Science. An expert on Muslim-Jewish relations and the Ottoman Empire, David Baer is the author of Children of Abraham, The Ottomans, Honoured by the Glory of Islam and Sultanic Saviors and Tolerant Turks. David Baer’s award-winning work explores Ottoman, Jewish and Muslim histories and their enduring legacies.
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