Balikesir
KHHV | Hobby historian and Geneticist
★★★★
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2024
- Posts
- 304
The Turkic peoples have always been a minority amongst the denizens of Anatolia. Instead of subjecting the locals to their central Asian culture and traditions. The Turkic peoples adopted the local culture and customs. The only thing that was foreign to Anatolia for an Anatolian Greek at the time was the religion.
Converting to Islam wasn't a bad choice for most of the Greek population of Anatolia. The byzantine Empire, a crumbling corrupt mess, could no longer keep their country safe, it no longer had any prestige, and worst of all the orthodox byzantine Empire caved to the demands of the west.
Many Byzantine Greeks felt betrayed and instead of converting to Catholicism, the religion of the westerners, they had allied with the Turkic peoples. The new rulers of Anatolia.
"Better the Turk than the Pope"
- George Gemistos Plethon
The Byzantine elite was very greedy, corrupt and disgusting. It was very much like our modern day elite. Sucking up every penny from the locals however possible. Taxation became unbearable.
Osman Ghazi on the other hand was known for his generosity. This fame would garner him a favorable image amongst the local Anatolians, and they would join in hi raids against the Byzantine Empire.
It shouldn't be surprising that the majority, no the vast majority, of the Ottoman court, army and peasantry was made up of Anatolian locals.
These Greeks would quickly assimilate into the new Ottoman culture. Which was essentially the Byzantine culture but Muslim.
Some Seljuks and early Ottomans would even baptize their children in accords to Byzantine tradition. Truly a fun fact.
View: https://www.reddit.com/r/byzantium/comments/1bxilcd/did_you_know_medieval_turks_used_to_get_baptised/
What did the people of Anatolia identify as? Some will tell you that they identified as Turks, others will tell you they identified as Ottomans. Neither is true. Most commonly the people of post medieval Turkey identified as Rums. Rum meaning Roman, but in this context it refers to the Anatolian peninsula. Because Anatolia was called Rum. Regional identities were also a thing. Such as Izmirli, Aydinli...
Ethnically the people would maintain their local heritage. Western Turkish people are of Byzantine Greek heritage, Central, southern and Northern/Northeast Turks as well.
A historian named Mustafa Ali (Gelibolu Ali) says this:
"Most of the inhabitants of Rûm are of confused ethnic origin. Among its notables there are few whose lineage does not go back to a convert to Islam."
In other words; we all descent from converts.
The early Ottomans viewed themselves as the successor state to the Byzantines because of this. Fatih Sultan Mehmed (Mehmed the Conqueror) was one of the biggest Roman advocators. This is why taking the city of Constantinople was so important to him.
Not to forget the flag of Orhan bey was the Byzantine flag but helal
View: https://imgur.com/a/j0FF0rN
Here's the Byzantine flag for comparison
View: https://imgur.com/a/tmbDz88
The flag was most likely the idea of Orhan Beys wife. Who was a Byzantine princess.
To no surprise the Byzantine Emperor dynasty, Palaiologos, converted to Islam and was prominent in the Ottoman court. They were later noted for their hatred of Christians.
The money provided by the papacy was gradually cut back and Manuel eventually left Rome in 1474 in order to seek his fortune by offering military service to various nobles and rulers in Europe, including Galeazzo Maria Sforza of Milan and Charles the Bold of Burgundy. Disappointed with the offers he received, and with the papacy cutting the money back further, Manuel surprised the establishment in Rome by travelling to Constantinople in 1476 and throwing himself on the mercy of the Sultan Mehmed II, who had conquered the city 23 years earlier. The sultan generously received Manuel, who stayed in Constantinople for the rest of his life. The Ottomans called him "el Ghazi" ("holy warrior").
Though Manuel maintained his Christian faith, it is possible that he served in the Ottoman navy. He fathered at least two sons; John, who died young, and Andreas, who converted to Islam.
I made this post to talk about lesser known things about early Turkish history. Many people assume that the Turks came, genocided every single person in Anatolia, and drastically changed the culture. The only difference between the Ottoman period and Byzantine period is the religion and language. (I was also very bored )
Here's a population list of Anatolia. The vast majority of Greeks were Muslims.
View: https://i.imgur.com/2VXnqD4.jpeg
This book is called "The decline of Medieval Hellenism in Anatolia" by Speros Vryonis. This book goes even deeper into the corruption of the Byzantines and why conversions were so high amongst Anatolian Greeks.
Converting to Islam wasn't a bad choice for most of the Greek population of Anatolia. The byzantine Empire, a crumbling corrupt mess, could no longer keep their country safe, it no longer had any prestige, and worst of all the orthodox byzantine Empire caved to the demands of the west.
Many Byzantine Greeks felt betrayed and instead of converting to Catholicism, the religion of the westerners, they had allied with the Turkic peoples. The new rulers of Anatolia.
"Better the Turk than the Pope"
- George Gemistos Plethon
The Byzantine elite was very greedy, corrupt and disgusting. It was very much like our modern day elite. Sucking up every penny from the locals however possible. Taxation became unbearable.
Osman Ghazi on the other hand was known for his generosity. This fame would garner him a favorable image amongst the local Anatolians, and they would join in hi raids against the Byzantine Empire.
Historian and writer Lord Kinross writes that Osman was a wise, patient ruler, whom people sincerely respected and were ready to serve him faithfully. He had a natural sense of superiority, but he never sought to assert himself with the help of power, and therefore he was respected not only by those who were equal in position, but also those who exceeded his abilities on the battlefield or on wisdom. Osman did not arouse feelings of rivalry in his people—only loyalty
It shouldn't be surprising that the majority, no the vast majority, of the Ottoman court, army and peasantry was made up of Anatolian locals.
These Greeks would quickly assimilate into the new Ottoman culture. Which was essentially the Byzantine culture but Muslim.
Some Seljuks and early Ottomans would even baptize their children in accords to Byzantine tradition. Truly a fun fact.
View: https://www.reddit.com/r/byzantium/comments/1bxilcd/did_you_know_medieval_turks_used_to_get_baptised/
What did the people of Anatolia identify as? Some will tell you that they identified as Turks, others will tell you they identified as Ottomans. Neither is true. Most commonly the people of post medieval Turkey identified as Rums. Rum meaning Roman, but in this context it refers to the Anatolian peninsula. Because Anatolia was called Rum. Regional identities were also a thing. Such as Izmirli, Aydinli...
Ethnically the people would maintain their local heritage. Western Turkish people are of Byzantine Greek heritage, Central, southern and Northern/Northeast Turks as well.
A historian named Mustafa Ali (Gelibolu Ali) says this:
"Most of the inhabitants of Rûm are of confused ethnic origin. Among its notables there are few whose lineage does not go back to a convert to Islam."
In other words; we all descent from converts.
The early Ottomans viewed themselves as the successor state to the Byzantines because of this. Fatih Sultan Mehmed (Mehmed the Conqueror) was one of the biggest Roman advocators. This is why taking the city of Constantinople was so important to him.
Not to forget the flag of Orhan bey was the Byzantine flag but helal
View: https://imgur.com/a/j0FF0rN
Here's the Byzantine flag for comparison
View: https://imgur.com/a/tmbDz88
The flag was most likely the idea of Orhan Beys wife. Who was a Byzantine princess.
To no surprise the Byzantine Emperor dynasty, Palaiologos, converted to Islam and was prominent in the Ottoman court. They were later noted for their hatred of Christians.
Mesih Pasha - Wikipedia
en.m.wikipedia.org
Manuel Palaiologos - Wikipedia
en.m.wikipedia.org
The money provided by the papacy was gradually cut back and Manuel eventually left Rome in 1474 in order to seek his fortune by offering military service to various nobles and rulers in Europe, including Galeazzo Maria Sforza of Milan and Charles the Bold of Burgundy. Disappointed with the offers he received, and with the papacy cutting the money back further, Manuel surprised the establishment in Rome by travelling to Constantinople in 1476 and throwing himself on the mercy of the Sultan Mehmed II, who had conquered the city 23 years earlier. The sultan generously received Manuel, who stayed in Constantinople for the rest of his life. The Ottomans called him "el Ghazi" ("holy warrior").
Though Manuel maintained his Christian faith, it is possible that he served in the Ottoman navy. He fathered at least two sons; John, who died young, and Andreas, who converted to Islam.
I made this post to talk about lesser known things about early Turkish history. Many people assume that the Turks came, genocided every single person in Anatolia, and drastically changed the culture. The only difference between the Ottoman period and Byzantine period is the religion and language. (I was also very bored )
Here's a population list of Anatolia. The vast majority of Greeks were Muslims.
View: https://i.imgur.com/2VXnqD4.jpeg
This book is called "The decline of Medieval Hellenism in Anatolia" by Speros Vryonis. This book goes even deeper into the corruption of the Byzantines and why conversions were so high amongst Anatolian Greeks.