The early modern period: beginning of the 16th century-the first half of the 18th century
Three events occurred that would re-define the middle east: 1. Emergence of large-scale, long lived empires in the middle east and beyond * The Ottoman Empire was the largest and long-lived ‘ (a) Provides us with a direct link from the early modern period through the modern period (b) Governed territory in the middle east, north Africa, and
South eastern Europe * The second empire to emerge at the beginning of the 16th century was the Safavid Empire (a) Lasted from 1501-1722 (b) Established a state whose boundaries coincided with the boundaries of present day Iran and the population of Persia became adherents of the Shi’i branch of Islam * The third empire to emerge was the Mughal Empire founded in 1526 (a) Stretched from Afghanistan down the Indian sub-continent (b) Was demolished by the British who then made India into a British colony 2. The second event that occurred at the dawn of the early modern period was the commercial revolution in Europe * Trade between Europe and other parts of the world began to increase dramatically * The commercial revolution set off a chain of events that would culminate in the establishment of the modern world economy 3. The final event was he Protestant Reformation 1517 * Martin Luther nailed his ninety-five theses on the door of the Wittenburg Cathedral in Germany * The Protestant Reformation split Europe into separate Protestant and Catholic kingdoms and principalities ending the idea of a universal Christian state. * Culminated in a series of religious wars * As a result of these wars, Europe divided into political units.
The effects of Modernity in the Middle East
The Middle East underwent wide spread social, economic, and cultural changes that