130. Karen Armstronglims retain the upper hand militarily and politically. So con-
cerned was he, that Shah Valli-Ullah even supported the dis-
astrous Afghan attempt to revive Muslim power. A defensive
strain had entered Muslim thinking, and this would continue
to characterize Islamic piety in the modern period.
The Ottoman Empire
When the Ottomans had conquered Constantinople (which
now became known as Istanbul) in 1453, they were in a posi-
tion to establish an empire, which, because it had been able to
evolve so gradually, was more firmly grounded than the other
empires, and would become the most successful and endur-
ing. The early Ottoman chiefiains had been typical ghazi
rulers, but in Istanbul the sultans established an absolute
monarchy, on the Byzantine model, with an elaborate court
ritual. The state was chiefly based on the old Mongol idea,
however, seeing the central power as a huge army at the per-
sonal disposal of the sultan. Mehmed the Conqueror's power
was based on the support of the Balkan nobility, many of
whom were now converting to Islam, and the infantry-the
"new troop" [yeni-chert)—which had become more important
since the advent of gunpowder. The Janissaries, who, as con-
verted slaves, were outsiders with no landed interests, became
an independent force, solidly behind the sultans. The Ot-
tomans also retained the ethos of their old ideal, seeing them-
selves as manning a frontier state, dedicated to a jihad against
the enemies of Islam. To the west they faced Christendom,
and to the east were the Shii Safavids. The Ottomans became
as murderously sectarian as the Safavids, and there were mas-
sacres of Shiis living in Ottoman domains.
The jihad was phenomenally successful. The campaign of
Selim I (1467-1520) against the Safavids, which had stopped
the Iranian advance, developed into a victorious war of con-