7. The Ottoman Empire

Waging constant wars with the Seljuks, the Crusaders lost their military power and followers either in the battle or due to their ideological shift.

The Crusades began to trade exotic items obtained from the Anatolian areas and left their conquests mid-way. Simultaneously, the nobility in the east lost its control over the land as they were engaged in warfare.

 

 

The Peasants or the Serfs who were working on the lands of the Nobility attained freedom from the clutches of their masters and took control over the lands.

Trade practices were enhanced under the noble class. The interest of the nobles also turned towards the sciences and medicine which brought an intellectual approach among the noble class.

The most significant development that took place during the Crusade downfall was the end of the supremacy of the Pope.

 

The Seljuk Turks faced the wrath of the Mongol empire and lost many of its territories. The Ottomans who were seeking asylum in the Seljuk empires rose to the occasion when the Seljuks power went on the wane.

Mohammed II, the ruler of the Ottoman Empire, invaded and conquered “Constantinople”, the capital city of the Byzantine empire, in \(1453\), which ended the reign of the empire in Eastern Europe.

 

The Renaissance movement, which strengthened during the \(16^{th}\) century across Europe, ignited people's minds through intellectual thoughts. The slow emergence of Industrialisation across Europe also dented the march of the Ottoman empire.

Internal squabble among the rulers of the empire and Balkan wars further weakened the empire. The culmination of the empire came with the advent of World Wars.