Mahmud II
Mahmud II,
1784–1839, Ottoman sultan (1808–39), younger son of Abd al-Hamid IAbd al-Hamid Ior Abdülhamit
, 1725–89, Ottoman sultan (1774–89), brother and successor of Mustafa III. His reign, one of decline for the Ottoman Empire (Turkey), saw the end of the war of 1768–74 and the beginning of the war of 1787–91
..... Click the link for more information. . He was raised to the throne of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) upon the deposition of his brother, Mustafa IVMustafa IV,
1778–1808, Ottoman sultan (1807–8), son of Abd al-Hamid I. He was raised to the throne by the reactionary Janissaries who had deposed Mustafa's cousin, Selim III, because they opposed his attempted reforms.
..... Click the link for more information. , and continued the reforms of his cousin, Selim IIISelim III,
1761–1808, Ottoman sultan (1789–1807), nephew and successor of Abd al-Hamid I to the throne of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). He suffered severe defeats in the second of the Russo-Turkish Wars with Catherine II, but suffered no major territorial losses when
..... Click the link for more information. . During his reign, the Eastern QuestionEastern Question,
term designating the problem of European territory controlled by the decaying Ottoman Empire in the 18th, 19th, and early 20th cent. The Turkish threat to Europe was checked by the Hapsburgs in the 16th cent.
..... Click the link for more information. assumed increasing importance. Mahmud inherited the Russo-Turkish War of 1806–12, which ended with Turkey's loss of BessarabiaBessarabia
, historic region, c.17,600 sq mi (45,600 sq km), largely in Moldova and Ukraine. It is bounded by the Dniester River on the north and east, the Prut on the west, and the Danube and the Black Sea on the south.
..... Click the link for more information. . However, Russia was obliged to end its support of the Serbian rebels under KarageorgeKarageorge
, 1768?–1817, Serbian patriot. Born George Petrović, he was known as Karageorge, or Black George. He led the Serbs in their insurrection (1804) against the Ottomans, took (1806) Belgrade, where the Ottoman population was massacred, and was proclaimed (1808)
..... Click the link for more information. , and Serbia returned (1813) to Turkish control. In 1817, Mahmud recognized MilošMiloš
or Milosh
(Miloš Obrenović) , 1780–1860, prince of Serbia (1817–39, 1858–60), founder of the Obrenović dynasty and of modern Serbia.
..... Click the link for more information. as prince of Serbia, a Turkish vassal. He suppressed (1822) the rebellion of Ali PashaAli Pasha
, 1744?–1822, Turkish pasha [military governor] of Yannina (now Ioánnina, Greece), a province of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). He was called the Arslan [lion] of Yannina.
..... Click the link for more information. and defeated the Greeks in the first phase of the Greek War of Independence. At the height of his power he ruthlessly carried out (1826) a long-cherished project—the destruction of the JanissariesJanissaries
[Turk.,=recruits], elite corps in the service of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). It was composed of war captives and Christian youths pressed into service; all the recruits were converted to Islam and trained under the strictest discipline.
..... Click the link for more information. . The Turkish successes in Greece were largely due to the troops sent by the viceroy of Egypt, Muhammad AliMuhammad Ali,
1769?–1849, pasha of Egypt after 1805. He was a common soldier who rose to leadership by his military skill and political acumen. In 1799 he commanded a Turkish army in an unsuccessful attempt to drive Napoleon from Egypt.
..... Click the link for more information. , under the command of Ibrahim PashaIbrahim Pasha
, 1789–1848, Egyptian general. He was the eldest son of Muhammad Ali, governor of Egypt under the Ottoman Empire. Ibrahim conducted (1816–19) largely successful campaigns against the Wahhabis in Arabia.
..... Click the link for more information. . British, Russian, and French intervention led to the destruction (1827) of the Egyptian fleet at Navarino, the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–29, a humiliating peace (see Adrianople, Treaty ofAdrianople, Treaty of,
also called Treaty of Edirne, 1829, peace treaty between Russia and the Ottoman Empire (see Russo-Turkish Wars). Turkey gave Russia access to the mouths of the Danube and additional territory on the Black Sea, opened the Dardanelles to all commercial
..... Click the link for more information. ), and the independence of GreeceGreece,
Gr. Hellas or Ellas, officially Hellenic Republic, republic (2015 est. pop. 11,218,000), 50,944 sq mi (131,945 sq km), SE Europe. It occupies the southernmost part of the Balkan Peninsula and borders on the Ionian Sea in the west, on the Mediterranean Sea
..... Click the link for more information. . The sequel of the Greek war was the invasion of Turkey by Ibrahim Pasha after Mahmud had refused to give Syria to Muhammad Ali as reward for his aid against the Greeks. At Konya, the Turkish army was completely routed (1832), and Constantinople was saved only by the intervention of a Russian fleet. Mahmud was obliged to accede (1833) to Muhammad Ali's demands and, by a secret agreement with Russia, promised to close the Dardanelles to all warships hostile to Russia. In 1839, war with Egypt was resumed, and on the day of Mahmud's death, news came of the ignominious surrender of the Turkish fleet in the harbor of Alexandria. Mahmud's son and successor, Abd al-MajidAbd al-Majid
or Abdülmecit
, 1823–61, Ottoman sultan (1839–61), son and successor of Mahmud II to the throne of the Ottoman Empire. The rebellion of Muhammad Ali was checked by the intervention (1840–41) of England, Russia, and Austria.
..... Click the link for more information. , granted Egypt virtual independence.
Mahmud II
(Mahmut II). Born July 20, 1784; died July 1, 1839, in Istanbul. Turkish sultan from 1808 to 1839.
Mahmud II carried out a series of reforms to overcome feudal disunity, create a centralized governmental and administrative apparatus, and bring a chiefly superficial “Europeanization” to the country. His most important reforms, implemented in the 1820’s and early 1830’s, included the abolition of the Janissary Corps, liquidation of the military fief system, establishment of ministries of the European type, elimination of the governor-generals’ right to maintain their own troops, and the establishment of some secular schools and military academies. However, these reforms failed to eliminate the root causes of the decline of the Ottoman Empire and its gradual loss of economic and political independence. The rise of the anti-Turkish national liberation movement in the Balkans and the Russo-Turkish War of 1828-29 led to independence for Greece and autonomy for Serbia, Moldavia, and Walachia. Mahmud II suffered serious defeats in armed conflicts with the Egyptian pasha Muhammad Ali (in 1831-33 and 1839). Military defeats combined with the privileges granted by Mahmud II to Great Britain and France in the trade agreements of 1838 led to an increase in Turkey’s dependence upon the European powers.