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(0)Kenneth W. Harl
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2017.
Language
English
Description
Turn now to a period of decline, most notable for the emergence of the harem as a powerful political institution. Meet sultans including Murad III, a patron of the arts (especially miniaturist painting) and Ahmet I, an ineffective 13-year-old who presided over the "Sultanate of Women."
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
After the Battle of Talas, Islamic expansion halted for 300 years. Explore Baghdad's emergence as an intellectual and economic center of the Islamic world as well as the religion's cultural achievements during this period, particularly in architecture. Then, learn why Turkish merchants converted to Sunni Islam - or their version of it - starting in the 8th century.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2017.
Language
English
Description
Ottoman sultans played two roles: as sultan/warrior and as the caliph of Sunni Islam. Here, unpack the role of the sultan in the Ottoman Empire, including his relationship with the ulema (religious experts), his central administration (called "the Porte"), and with his viziers.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2017.
Language
English
Description
How did the Crimean War vindicate the reformers of Tanzimat? Why was the Treaty of Paris a strategic victory for "the Porte" - that came at a high price? What impact did the empire's catastrophic defeat during the Russo-Turkish War have on its future with the Concert of Europe?
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2017.
Language
English
Description
The Ottoman Sultan and the Safavid Shah clashed frequently over strategic lands between the two civilizations. First, learn why Safavid Iran was the religious and ideological rival of "the Porte." Then, examine five major wars the Ottomans waged against their rivals between 1514 and 1722.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
In contrast to the Islamification of Asia Minor, examine Turkish conquests of northern India in the early 13th century. What were their successes and limitations in creating a Muslim civilization here? Begin by considering the political issues involved, then move to the cultural and religious landscape the Turks found themselves dealing with.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
Han emperors found the tribute system granted Modu chanyu or "five baits" - by which the Xiongnu were promised Chinese brides, among other gifts - humiliating and unacceptable. Look closely at the relationship between the Han Empire of China and the nomadic confederacy of the Xiongnu, including Han attempts to eliminate the Xiongnu threat through war.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
Examine the Sacae and Kushans, two steppe peoples forced west into the Middle East and India by the Xiongnu confederacy. Learn the key role both groups played in developing trade along the Silk Road and how Kushan ruler Kujula Kadphises and his successors carved out an Indian empire while creating conditions for Buddhism to flourish.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
After the Seljuk Turks emerged as a major factor in eastern Islam, they conquered two regions that were not previously part of Dar al-Islam: Asia Minor and northern India near Delhi. Here, take a comparative look at these conquests, including the Turks' seesaw struggle with the crusaders.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2017.
Language
English
Description
The best estimate is that a total of 800,000 Armenians died between 1915 and 1921. In this powerful lecture, examine why the destruction of the Armenian community has come to be seen as the first in a series of similar events that would wreak havoc on the 20th century.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2017.
Language
English
Description
Sultans between the reigns of Murad II and Mehmet IV commanded one of the finest armies in Eurasia. Discover how the Ottoman imperial army matched Europe's best, how money was raised to meet the rising costs of war, why the Ottoman army suffered decisive defeats, and more.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2017.
Language
English
Description
Visit the empire's northern border in Europe to explore its military clashes with the West. Why was fighting in Central Europe so indecisive? Why did the Long-Turkish War prove so embarrassing for three sultans? How did "the Porte" come to ease tensions with the Habsburgs after 1605?
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
How well did the Seljuk Turks use their victory? How did the sultans in Konya, the new center of Muslim Turkish civilization, forge a wider unity? What caused the region's Christian population to convert? Explore how a new Turkish civilization in Asia Minor developed largely through religious architecture and the allure of Sufi mystics.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2017.
Language
English
Description
Conclude with an insightful look at how the legacy of the Ottoman Empire still influences the Middle East - and will continue to do so in the future. Each of the empire's successor states, you'll learn, has its own perceptions of this legacy, and its own lessons learned from history.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
Attila the Hun and Genghis Khan loom large in the popular consciousness as two of history's most fearsome warrior-leaders. Yet few people today are aware of their place in a succession of nomadic warriors who emerged from the Eurasian steppes to seize control of civilizations. Get startling new insights on how the world was shaped and discover cultures and empires you've likely never encountered.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
Conclude by considering why, by the 16th and 17th centuries, the nomadic peoples of the Eurasian steppes ceased to play the decisive role they had for nearly 6,000 years. Then tie together what you've learned with a review of the course and a discussion of what this legacy means to us today.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
Learn about the earliest known nomads of the Pontic-Caspian steppes, beginning with the origins of the Indo-European languages. See how innovations including the raising of livestock, the domestication of the horse, and the invention of the spoked wheel - and ultimately, the light chariot - transformed steppe life and led to migrations across Eurasia.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
Examine the initial contact between Islamic civilization and the Turkish nomads in detail by looking at the wars waged between the early caliphs and Turkish tribes. Conclude with the Battle of Talas, fought between the armies of the Abbasid caliphate and the Tang emperor, which represents a turning point for the Karluk Turks and Islam.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2014.
Language
English
Description
As you shift focus from the original homeland of the Indo-Europeans on the Pontic-Caspian steppes to Mongolia, examine how Iranian and Tocharian nomads came into contact with China, their interaction, and the repercussions this contact had across the central and western steppes, and the great bordering civilizations.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2017.
Language
English
Description
By 1916, the Ottoman Empire was fighting for its very survival. Professor Harl reveals the impact of the Russian Revolution on the war, the steady deterioration of the empire over the course of the fighting, and the army's ultimate collapse, which came suddenly and unexpectedly, in late 1918.
