what did the ottoman empire look like?
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 In the mid 14th century the Ottomans started uniting Anatolia and created an empire encompassing much of Southeastern Europe , Western Asia and North Africa , becoming a major power in Eurasia and Africa during the early modern period . The empire reached the peak of its power in the 16th century , especially during the reign ( 1520 – 1566 ) of Suleiman the Magnificent . After the second Ottoman siege of Vienna in 1683 and the end of the Great Turkish War in 1699 , the Ottoman Empire entered a long period of decline . The Tanzimat reforms of the 19th century , which aimed to modernize the Ottoman state , proved to be inadequate in most fields , and failed to stop the dissolution of the empire . 

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 The Ottomans quickly transformed the city from a bastion of Christianity to a symbol of Islamic culture . Religious foundations were established to fund the construction of ornate imperial mosques , often adjoined by schools , hospitals , and public baths . The Ottoman Dynasty claimed the status of caliphate in 1517 , with Istanbul remaining the capital of this last caliphate for four centuries . Suleiman the Magnificent 's reign from 1520 to 1566 was a period of especially great artistic and architectural achievement ; chief architect Mimar Sinan designed several iconic buildings in the city , while Ottoman arts of ceramics , stained glass , calligraphy , and miniature flourished . The population of Istanbul was 570 @,@ 000 by the end of the 18th century . 

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 Effectively controlled by the Three Pashas after the 1913 coup d 'état , the Ottoman Empire entered World War I ( 1914 – 1918 ) on the side of the Central Powers and was ultimately defeated . During the war , the Ottoman government committed ethnic cleansing or genocide against its Armenian , Assyrian and Pontic Greek citizens . Following the war , the conglomeration of territories and peoples that formerly comprised the Ottoman Empire was divided into several new states . 

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 The Ottoman Empire 's power and prestige peaked in the 16th and 17th centuries , particularly during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent . The empire was often at odds with the Holy Roman Empire in its steady advance towards Central Europe through the Balkans and the southern part of the Polish @-@ Lithuanian Commonwealth . At sea , the Ottoman Navy contended with several Holy Leagues , such as those in 1538 , 1571 , 1684 and 1717 ( composed primarily of Habsburg Spain , the Republic of Genoa , the Republic of Venice , the Knights of St. John , the Papal States , the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the Duchy of Savoy ) , for the control of the Mediterranean Sea . In the east , the Ottomans were often at war with Safavid Persia over conflicts stemming from territorial disputes or religious differences between the 16th and 18th centuries . The Ottoman wars with Persia continued as the Zand , Afsharid , and Qajar dynasties succeeded the Safavids in Iran , until the first half of the 19th century . From the 16th to the early 20th centuries , the Ottoman Empire also fought many wars with the Russian Tsardom and Empire . These were initially about the Ottoman territorial expansion and consolidation in southeastern and eastern Europe ; but starting from the latter half of the 18th century , they became more about the survival of the Ottoman state , which began to lose its strategic territories on the northern Black Sea coast to the advancing Russians . Between the 18th and the early 20th centuries , the Ottoman , Persian and Russian empires were neighbouring rivals of each other . 

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 = = = Ottoman dispositions and preparations = = = 
