During the later years of the empire, the Ottomans were overtly portrayed by Europeans as callous and tyrannical autocrats who subjugated Christians in the Balkans. Such narratives portrayed the Ottomans as a brutish Islamic empire, whose only ambition was to persecute its Christian minority. Such a notion is not entirely accurate, as it fails to depict the actual relationship the empire had with its minorities.
During the empire’s rise, on the outskirts of the Byzantine border, the burgeoning principality started to see military successes against the deteriorating Byzantine empire. As this Muslim principality began to seize more Byzantine territory, it attracted Byzantine nobles to migrate to this rising state and utilised their ability to administrate and govern, building the bureaucratic institutions that would contribute to the Ottoman Empire’s longevity. Thus, we can observe the Ottomans adopted a pragmatic approach when it came to the construction of their empire, drawing upon the talents of their minority population.
Dhimmis – those who practised Christianity and Judaism, Christians and Jews, were allowed to practise their religion, administer their schools, and had judicial authority over their adherents in exchange for jizya, a tax which facilitated the acceptance of Ottoman rule by these minority groups. This concept is best exemplified by the Jewish Ladino community who were expelled during the Spanish Inquisition, yet found refuge in the Ottoman Empire. Due to their religion, the Ladino established thriving communities, and their cultural practices blossomed and became rather widespread as a consequence.
However, it goes without saying that the tolerance given to its minorities was limited, with such limits illustrated during the unravelling of the Ottoman Empire. During the 19th Century, when notions of nationalism, citizenship, and statehood began to emerge, the Ottomans faced rebellions from minorities who were influenced by Ottoman ideals, pursuing autonomy for themselves. The Greek War of Independence was the beginning of a long line of successive nationalist revolts that weakened the Ottoman Empire. The once multi-ethnic and multi-religious polity desperately attempted to reclaim its authority over its dwindling minority population by enacting radical reforms.
The Tanzimat reforms largely failed to quell the growing tide of nationalism that both consumed the empire and pushed radical nationalist groups, such as the Committee of Union and Progress, to seize control in 1913. This was the final ‘nail in the coffin’ as minorities who persisted in the empire fell into the hands of the administration. The creation of a one-party state signified the tragic end of the once tolerant Ottoman Empire which transformed from a place of refuge into one of peril.