Osman's Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire 1300-1923 - Hardcover

Caroline Finkel

3.7

1,297 ratings by Goodreads

9780719555138: Osman's Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire 1300-1923

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0719555132 ISBN 13: 9780719555138

Publisher: John Murray, 2005

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The Ottoman chronicles recount that the first sultan, Osman, dreamt of the dynasty he would found - a tree, fully-formed, emerged from his navel, symbolising the vigour of his successors and the extent of their domains. This is the first book to bring the full story of the Ottoman dynasty - and its empire and peoples - to a broader readership.

Osman's descendants combined the resourcefulness of their nomadic origins with the imperial world-view of conquered Byzantium. The result was a multi-ethnic state that for six centuries held sway over territories stretching - at their greatest - from Hungary to the Persian Gulf, and from North Africa to the Caucasus. The Ottoman path to modernity was every bit as complex as those of the Habsburgs or Romanovs.

Understanding the realization of Osman's vision over the many centuries when the Ottoman Empire controlled the centre of the globe is essential for anyone who seeks to understand the modern world.

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Review:

'An absorbing, monumental story . . . a reliable, authoritative account . . . a balanced assessment of the Ottomans . . . a marvellous achievement, which deserves to provoke widespread debate' (Jerry Brotton, BBC History magazine)

A Turkish delight (Metro (London))

'Splendidly written . . . Finkel's intimacy with the material makes this the most authoritative narrative history of the empire yet published . . . Detailed . . . Her narrative focuses on the dynamics of the imperial story . . . lively analysis' (Jason Goodwin, Literary Review)

'History written with a dynamic, modern feel and penetrating gaze' (Good Book Guide)

Instructive . . . A fine single-volume account of a long and at times complicated period . . . Finkel clearly loves her subject (The Tablet)

'The freshness of Finkel's history [is] striking. The secret, apart from an irresistible narrative style, is a generous openness to every aspect of Ottoman life and culture . . . What has often come across as an impossibly exotic procession of Viziers, Beys and Pashas is here brought vividly home to the reader' (Michael Kerrigan, The Scotsman)

'Excellent' (The Times)

Book Description:

The dynamic saga of the Ottoman Empire from its visionary inception to its final destruction on the battlefields of the First World War

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