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The Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Empire was an Islamic superpower founded by Turkish tribes in Anatolia that grew to dominate the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and parts of Europe. Reaching its absolute territorial peak during the 16th century under Suleiman the Magnificent, the empire controlled vital trade routes connecting the East to the West. The Ottomans are incredibly significant to history because they built a highly sophisticated bureaucracy and a formidable military machine powered by elite Janissary infantry. They completely extinguished the Byzantine Empire by capturing Constantinople in 1453.
Despite centuries of unmatched military dominance, the empire slowly stagnated as global trade shifted to the Atlantic Ocean and European rivals rapidly industrialized. They suffered a string of devastating military defeats against the rising Russian and Habsburg empires, forcing them to cede massive amounts of European territory. The state desperately attempted to modernize its army and institutions throughout the 19th century to stave off complete collapse. These efforts ultimately failed to prevent the empire from fracturing entirely after choosing the losing side in World War I.