The Ottoman Empire: Map & History
Six centuries of cross-continental rule over Southeast Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa, controlling the historic gateways between East and West.
Wikipedia Encyclopedic Compendium
Historiographical synthesis & structured realm registry
The Ottoman Empire, also known historically as Turkey or the Turkish Empire, was a state that spanned much of Southeastern Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th century to the early 20th century, centred in modern-day Turkey. It also controlled parts of southeastern Central Europe between the early 16th and early 18th centuries.
Modern Countries Once Part of The Ottoman Empire
At its mapped extent, The Ottoman Empire covered territory in 36 present-day countries. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
- Jordan1519–1917 CE · nearly all
- Armenia1579–1918 CE · nearly all
- Serbia1459–1814 CE · nearly all
- Bosnia and Herzegovina1463–1879 CE · nearly all
- Cyprus1572–1879 CE · nearly all
- Kuwait1552–1899 CE · nearly all
- North Macedonia1395–1911 CE · nearly all
- Bahrain1556–1563 CE · nearly all
- Montenegro1475–1884 CE · nearly all
- Qatar1552–1912 CE · nearly all
- Iraq1534–1919 CE · nearly all
- Albania1422–1911 CE · nearly all
- Azerbaijan1579–1737 CE · most
- Syria1519–1918 CE · most
- Turkey1305–1923 CE · most
- Bulgaria1375–1884 CE · most
- Egypt1519–1810 CE · most
- Lebanon1519–1917 CE · most
- Palestine1519–1917 CE · most
- Georgia1572–1787 CE · most
- Tunisia1534–1712 CE · most
- Israel1519–1917 CE · most
- Yemen1519–1918 CE · most
- Greece1375–1911 CE · most
- Hungary1529–1686 CE · most
- Saudi Arabia1519–1918 CE · a large part
- United Arab Emirates1552–1563 CE · a large part
- Algeria1556–1705 CE · a large part
- Moldova1673–1790 CE · a large part
- Iran1588–1915 CE · a large part
- Libya1519–1839 CE · a large part
- Austria1529–1686 CE · a small part
- Ukraine1564–1790 CE · a small part
- Croatia1540–1695 CE · a small part
- Romania1395–1876 CE · a small part
- Oman1552–1555 CE · a small part
States and Provinces
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside The Ottoman Empire's borders of that time.
Derived by testing mapped cities against this polity's dated territorial polygons, so the list is indicative and follows the borders in the source dataset.
The Ottoman Empire in Depth
History
As the Rum Sultanate declined in the 13th century, Anatolia was a patchwork of independent Turkish principalities known as the Anatolian Beyliks. One of these, in the Bithynia region on the Byzantine frontier, was led by Osman I (d. 1323/4), a figure of obscure origin from whom the name Ottoman is derived. Osman's early followers were Turkish tribal groups and Byzantine renegades, not all of them Muslim. Osman extended his principality by conquering Byzantine towns along the Sakarya River, and a Byzantine defeat at the Battle of Bapheus in 1302 contributed to his rise. It is not well understood how the early Ottomans came to dominate their neighbours, due to a lack of sources.
Government
Before the reforms of the 19th and 20th centuries, the state organisation of the Ottoman Empire was a system with two main dimensions, the military administration, and the civil administration. The Sultan was in the highest position in the system. The civil system was based on local administrative units based on the region's characteristics. The state had control over the clergy. Certain pre-Islamic Turkish traditions that had survived the adoption of administrative and legal practices from Islamic Iran remained important in Ottoman administrative circles.
Economy
The Ottoman government deliberately pursued a policy for the development of Bursa, Edirne, and Istanbul, successive Ottoman capitals, into major commercial and industrial centres, considering that merchants and artisans were indispensable in creating a new metropolis. To this end, Mehmed and his successor Bayezid, also encouraged and welcomed migration of the Jews from different parts of Europe, who were settled in Istanbul and other port cities like Salonica. In many places in Europe, Jews were suffering persecution at the hands of their Christian counterparts, such as in Spain, after the conclusion of the Reconquista. The tolerance displayed by the Turks was welcomed by the immigrants.
Culture
The Ottomans absorbed some of the traditions, art, and institutions of cultures in the regions they conquered and added new dimensions to them. Numerous traditions and cultural traits of previous empires (in fields such as architecture, cuisine, music, leisure, and government) were adopted by the Ottoman Turks, who developed them into new forms, resulting in a new and distinctively Ottoman cultural identity. Although the predominant literary language of the Ottoman Empire was Turkish, Persian was the preferred vehicle for the projection of an imperial image.
Slavery was part of Ottoman society, with most slaves employed as domestic servants or in the case of female slaves as concubines (sexual slaves).
Agricultural slavery, such as that in the Americas, was relatively rare.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Ottoman Empire (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Interactive map
Ottoman Empire on the World War I map →
See Ottoman Empire’s territory change day by day from 1 November 1914, with every battle it fought.
Ottoman Empire Map Over Time
Dated world maps on which The Ottoman Empire appears, with the other states of the time.
Imperial History & Territorial Expansion
From a small Anatolian beylik founded by Osman I, the Ottomans transformed into a premier gunpowder empire. The conquest of Constantinople in 1453 ended the Eastern Roman Empire, and under Suleiman the Magnificent (r. 1520–1566), the empire reached the gates of Vienna, dominating trade through the Levant, the Red Sea, and the Mediterranean.
Ottoman Empire Timeline
Key historical inflections from foundation to peak territorial expansion
Foundation of the Ottoman principality in north-western Anatolia.
Mehmed II captures the imperial city and transforms it into the Ottoman capital.
Selim I conquers the Mamluks, bringing Mecca, Medina, and Cairo under Ottoman rule.
Golden age of imperial architecture, jurisprudence, and Mediterranean naval supremacy.
Ottoman realm reaches peak extent of 5.2 million km² before the Battle of Vienna.
Key Monarchs, Architects & Strategists
Enduring Planetary Legacy
- ✓Millet system granting judicial autonomy to religious minority communities
- ✓Master architect Mimar Sinan’s imperial mosques (Süleymaniye, Selimiye)
- ✓Control of Mediterranean spices catalyzing European oceanic voyages around Africa
- ✓Continuous administration spanning Europe, Asia, and Africa for over 600 years
Ottoman Empire: Frequently Asked Questions
When did the Ottoman Empire exist?
The Ottoman Empire is dated to 1299 CE – 1922 CE, in the Early Modern & Age of Discovery era.
What was the capital of the Ottoman Empire?
The capital of the Ottoman Empire was Söğüt, Bursa, Edirne, Constantinople (Istanbul).
How large was the Ottoman Empire at its peak?
At its peak in 1683 the Ottoman Empire covered about 5,200,000 km².
How did the map of the Ottoman Empire change over time?
The Ottoman Empire appears on 8 dated world maps in the atlas, from 1400 CE to 1914 CE. Each shows its borders in that year next to the other states of the time.
Geographic Lifelines
Other Sovereign Realms
Industrial Era • Capital: London
Early Modern & Age of Discovery • Capital: Agra, Fatehpur Sikri, Lahore, Delhi
Early Modern & Age of Discovery • Capital: Raigad
High & Late Middle Ages • Capital: Cusco