THE EFFECTS OF THE TULIP AGE INNOVATIONS ON THE LIFE OF TURKISH DEMOCRACY IN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE OTTOMAN RENOVATION MOVEMENTS

Abstract

The Ottoman Empire’s identity was on the way to becoming a powerful state in the XVII. Preserved for centuries. In this century, the defeats in the wars and military and financial defeats started to lead the state to decline. Ottoman XVIII. When it came to the century, it looked like a state that was tired of wars, was weak, and had lost many lands. The state decided to seek remedies for this worsening situation. Although the superiority of the West was not accepted in the beginning, envoys were sent to Europe to follow the modernization activities here closely. The modernization activity carried out by taking the example of the West contributed to the development of the democratization process of the Ottoman Empire. This modernization process, which started with the tulip era, did not last long. Because the Western-style modernization activity implemented in the Ottoman Empire did not produce a result that progressed in parallel with the developments in the West. Therefore, the process of democratization and its outcome were different, as the Ottomans’ efforts for change emerged for different reasons than the situation in the West. Therefore, it will provide a more accurate assessment to consider the modernization process of the Ottoman Empire together with the democratization process. Since the Tulip Era innovations, which constituted the beginning of the modernization process in the Ottoman Empire, have a special place in the history of Turkish democracy, it is important to see how the events experienced in this period affected the democratization process.