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Millets (central representation)
The community governing was a hierarchical system with the elders as the smallest group which forms the millets. Beginning with Tanzimat millets have their own selected councils, which was another layer between the patriarchs and elders.
Under Ottoman rule the major religious groups were allowed to establish their own self-governing communities, called millets, each retaining its own religious laws, traditions, and language under the general protection of the sultan. Millets were led by religious chiefs, who served as secular as well as religious leaders and thus had a substantial interest in the continuation of Ottoman rule. Elders (local representation)
On a deeply local level cities and villages belonging to a millet were allowed to keep their power micro-structures that would signify a level of "autonomy", e.g. the Greek villages and cities were up to a point being steered by councils of the "Elder (religious)" (Dimogerontes, Gerontes, Prokritoi) that had the responsibility of representing their people to the Region's Pasha like it was happening during the late Byzantine years.
Quite interesting is the fact that in several well economically established areas this Prokritoi class would eventually become a type of nobility. In Athens for example the Gerousia (council of the elders) became a closed club occupied mostly by 10-13 Houses (e.g. the Houses of Benizelos, Palaiologos, Gerontas). Mehmed II used the conquering army to restore the physical structure of the city. Old buildings were repaired, streets, aqueducts, and bridges were constructed, sanitary facilities were modernized, and a vast supply system was established to provide for the city's inhabitants. Vassal states
The Ottoman Empire had many vassal states of varying size attached to it. Vassals paid taxes to the sultan and often contributed with troops in various Ottoman military campaigns. Many of the imperial provinces were vassal states before being reduced to provinces. A vassal state that never became a province was the Khanate of Crimea in the region around Crimea, north of Black Sea - it would fall to Russia instead (1774-83; later in modern Ukraine).
* A special case was the Greek orthodox 'monastic republic' of Mount Athos, were Istanbul was only represented by an aga (officer) as its agent in Karyaes.
* As the empire weakened militarily, it would inevitably lose control through foreign victories (Russia took large chunks of territory; the Christian empires helped ever more parts of the Balkans secede, often after a vassalic stage, such as the hospodars) but also see real control over some if its (mainly remote) provinces slip away to a state of little more than formal sovereignty over tributary, de facto autonomous states.
This happened in North Africa: the Beys/Deys of Tunis and Algiers established themselves as 'regencies' and even Egypt went its own way under its great khedive Mohammed Ali - they would in turn be subjected to European colonial dominance (in name only protectorate) of France and Britain.
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