A portrait of Osman I
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The Ottoman Empire was founded by Osman I. Osman I was the leader of many Turkish Tribes located in Anatolia. Osman I wanted his kingdom to grow in power. To do this, he decided to bring together many of the states of Anatolia who lived independently under strict rules. He then founded a formal government. They later became the Ottoman Turks. The Ottoman Turks were Muslims but they did not force their religion on people and they were accepting and tolerant of many religions, including the people they took control of. The Ottoman State began as a small Turkish state that emerged in Asia Minor, near the boundary of the Byzantine Empire.
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A map of the Ottoman Empire
and surrounding areas. The
part of the map highlighted in
orange shows the areas in
which the Empire was located
in and eventually expanded to. From this map, we can tell that the Ottoman Empire at its greatest extent was able to reach the border of Vienna.
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The Ottoman state was amongst the many small Turkish states that emerged once the Empire of the Seljuk Turks had broken down. Afterwards, the Ottomans began pushing the Byzantines further back towards Europe. Ghazis (Muslim warriors who typically fought against non-Muslims) came together to join the Ottoman Empire. From there, the Ottoman Empire started to grow in power and influence.
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