State Organisation of the Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire grew into a despotic autocracy over the centuries. The Sultan was the sole ruler of a centralized government with effective authority over its regions, authorities, and citizens. Wealth and status may be inherited, but they were also earned. Titles like viziers and aghas were used to describe positions. Many issues could be solved by serving in the military. The Empire's development necessitated a systematic administrative organization that evolved into a dual system of military and civil administration, resulting in power separation. Military authorities were in charge of higher executive responsibilities, while civil authorities were in charge of judicial and fundamental administration. Various forms of vassal and tributary states existed outside of this structure. Most of the Ottoman-ruled regions were named clearly in the Sultan's official complete style, which included various high titles intended to underline imperial position and portray the Empire as "successor-in-law" to seized kingdoms. The Empire was divided into vilayets, with each vilayet having its governor. The Seljuk vassal state in central Anatolia gave birth to the vilayet concept. Over time, the Empire evolved into an amalgamation of pre-existing polities, the Anatolian beyliks, which were placed under the control of the governing House of Osman.

The Sultan and his servants made up the central government, known as the "House of Osman." The Divan, which consisted of the Grand Vizier and the governing class, counselled the House of Osman. Noblemen, court officials, military officers, and the religious class known as the ulema made up the ruling class known as the askeri.

House of Osman

In terms of size and duration, the Ottoman dynasty, often known as the House of Osman, was unparalleled in the Islamic world. Though he did not always exert full power, the Ottoman sultan pâdişâh served as the Empire's sole regent and was regarded as the embodiment of its administration. The Ottoman family, like its citizens, was initially of Turkish descent. However, through mating with slaves and European nobility, the kingdom gradually acquired a diverse ethnicity. Despite the sultans' superior de jure authority and the Grand Viziers' occasional exercise of de facto authority throughout Ottoman history. Local governors behaved autonomously and even in opposition to the ruler on numerous occasions. The Sultan was ousted on eleven occasions because his foes saw him as a threat to the state. In Ottoman history, there were just two attempts to depose the ruling Osmanl dynasty. Both failures point to a political system that, for a long time, was able to handle its revolutions without causing excessive instability. The new republic abolished the Sultanate and Caliphate after the breakup of the Empire, and members of the House of Osman were declared personae non-gratae of Turkey. The Grand National Assembly of Turkey awarded descendants of the old dynasty the right to Turkish citizenship fifty years later in 1974. Dündar Aliosman is the current head of the House of Osman.

• Harem Imperial: The Harem was one of the Ottoman court's most powerful institutions. The Valide Sultan administered it, the ruling Sultan's mother, who wielded absolute power over the Harem and consequently wielded considerable power in the court. The Valide Sultan would occasionally become involved in state politics, and via her influence, she may weaken the Sultan's power and position. The women of the Harem effectively ruled the state during a period beginning in the 16th century and lasting into the 17th, in what was known as the "Kadınlar Saltanatı" (Sultanate of Women). The Harem had its internal structure and policy-making process. The Haseki Sultan, the Sultan's main consort, was below the Valide Sultan in the hierarchy. When her son rose to the throne, she had a chance to become the next Valide Sultan. During the 16th and 17th centuries, this job existed. The Sultan had four more official consorts, all of whom were named Kadn. His eight favourite concubines were next in line after the Sultan's wives. The Sultan's other concubines, known as gözde, were favoured by the Sultan. The concubines of other court dignitaries were next in line. Pupils and novices were younger women who had either not yet graduated from the Harem School or were waiting to be married off. 
• Palace schools: The Palace schools were divided into two tracks. The first was the Muslim Madrasa, which taught academics and government officials according to Islamic tradition. The Medrese's financial load was shared by vakifs, allowing children from low-income households to progress to higher social levels and earn more money. The Enderun School, the second track, was a boarding school for converted Christians that conscripted 3,000 pupils annually from Christian boys aged 8 to 20 from around one out of every forty families in Rumelia and the Balkans. Devşirme was the name given to this technique. Single children, orphans, Jews, married boys, and the sons of merchants and shepherds were all exempt. The Palace Schools did a good job of integrating kids from different cultures. This method produced some statesmen. The system was solely for the benefit of the government. The graduates were completely devoted to government service and had no desire to build bonds with people from lower socioeconomic classes. The new students were known as the inner boys. To graduate, it needed seven years of professional development. The apprenticeship began in the Sultan's service and progressed to natural and Islamic sciences mastery. Finally, physical fitness and vocational or artistic talents must be developed.

The Divan

The "sublime monarch" was the Sultan. He had a slew of advisers and ministers at his disposal. The viziers of the Divan or Imperial Council were the most powerful of these. The Grand Vizier was in charge. The Divan was a council where the viziers convened to discuss the Empire's politics. It was the Grand Vizier's responsibility to tell the Sultan of the Divan's opinion. The Sultan often heeded his vizier's recommendations, although he was under no need to obey the Divan. If the Sultan had anything essential to tell his viziers, such as impending war, he might call a Divan assembly himself. The viziers then carried out his directives. In the 14th century, there were three viziers, and in the 17th century, there were eleven. They were all Viziers of the Dome, and four of them were Viziers of the Dome. Next to the Grand Vizier, it was the most powerful minister. The commander of the Janissaries would occasionally attend Divan meetings as well. In 1453, Mehmed II took Constantinople and established his court there. The Sultan presided over the Council of State in person. It was known as Divan. After that, he sat until an incident developed when a ragged Turcoman barged into a Divan meeting and demanded. Mehmed was furious, and the Grand Vizier advised him to take a seat above the fray. As a result, a latticed bay was built, allowing Mehmed to look down without being seen.

The rayah was a lower social stratum made up of city dwellers, villagers, and farmers. It refers to non-Muslim subjects, also known as zimmi, in contemporary and current usage. A second parallel system of a small city or rural unit called kazas, administered by a qadi, handled civil and judicial administration. The nahiyas were partitioned from the kazas. The Sultan's legal power is represented by the qadis, which comes from the ulema. Because beys who represented executive authority couldn't carry out punishment without a qadi's sentence, the civil system was seen as a check on the military system. Similarly, qadis were not allowed to administer punishment directly. Instead, qadis were directly responsible to the Sultan in the fields of sharia and kanun law.

The Ottoman Empire had numerous vassal states of various sizes. Vassals paid taxes to the Sultan and frequently participated in Ottoman military expeditions with troops. Before being reduced to provinces, many of the imperial provinces were vassal nations. For example, in Crimea's territory, the Khanate of Crimea was a vassal state that never became a province.

• The Greek orthodox monastic republic' of Mount Athos was unique in that Constantinople was solely represented in Karyaes by an aga (officer).
• As the Empire's military strength deteriorated, it would inevitably lose power due to foreign triumphs. As a result, Russia annexed significant swaths of territory and aided the secession of sections of the Balkans. The hospodars, for example, are frequently following a vassalic stage. However, real control over several of its provinces has slipped to a status of tributary, de facto autonomous entities with little more than formal sovereignty.

In North Africa, the latter occurred. The Beys or Deys of Tunis and Algiers established themselves as regencies,' and Egypt, under its great khedive Mohammed Ali, went its way as well. As protectorates of France and Britain, they would be exposed to European colonial control.