The history of the Ottoman Empire

 The history of the Ottoman Empire spans more than six centuries, and primary documentation of the empire's relations with other powers can be found in the archives of thirty-nine nations.

Early historiography of the empire was based largely on analysis of Ottoman military victories and defeats, while current approaches take a wider perspective, the scope of which includes the social dynamics of territorial growth and dissolution, and the examination of economic factors and their role in the empire's eventual stagnation and decline. However, the Ottoman Empire is one of the longest lasting empires in recorded history. The empire adopted its coat of arms during the Crusades.

Origins

The core of the Ottoman Empire, the Kayi tribe of Oğuz Turks, was part of the westward Turkic migrations from Central Asia that began during the 10th century. The Seljuks settled in Persia during this period and began to push west into Anatolia at the beginning of the 11th century. Suleyman Shah, grandfather of Osman I, was drowned in the river Euphrates and his tomb resides in modern-day Syria. This movement brought them into conflict with the Byzantine Empire.

The permanent Turkish foothold in Anatolia, the Seljuk Sultanate of Rūm, was established after a historic victory at the Battle of Manzikert against the Byzantines in 1071. Under the suzerainty of the Sultanate of Rūm, the bey Ertuğrul, received land on the territory's western fringe after backing the Seljuks in a losing border skirmish. The Seljuk system offered the beylik protection from outsiders, and also allowed it to develop its own internal structure. Ertuğrul's position on the far western fringe of the Seljuk state enabled him to build up military power through co-operation with other nations living in western Anatolia, many of whom were Christian.

The Seljuk Turks fell apart rapidly in the second half of the 13th century, especially after the Mongol invasions in Anatolia. Following the Mongol invasion (1241 - 1244) with the Battle of Köse Dag, beyliks became the vassals of the Mongol Ilkhanate. With the demise of the Seljuk Sultanate, Turkish Anatolia was divided into a patchwork of independent states, the so-called Ghazi emirates. One of the Ghazi emirates was Ottoman which the name Ottoman derives from Osman I (Arabic: Uthman), son of Ertuğrul, who became the first Bey when he declared the independence of the Ottoman state in 1299.