The Ottoman Age of Exploration by Giancarlo Casale

war frigates that watched the evolution of the events, in a period when the Ottoman Empire, mostly after the defeat at Navarino (1827), became more and more conscious of the need of renewing the fleet.

In this context, a new and relevant object was represented by the presence of the U.S. The seafarers’ experiences countering enemies without and rivals within, illustrate their battle to become acknowledged as legitimate servants of the ruler of Rum, the Ottoman sultan.īetween the Congress of Vienna (1815) and the Crimean War (1853-1856) the Levantine Mediterranean was the theatre of several European countries’ navies, interested not only in trading with the Porte, but also in the political changes happening in that area. Finally, Turgud Reis failed to succeed Hayreddin as Kapudan (grand admiral) despite his expertise, because of the opposition of Grand Vizier Rüstem Pasha who obtained the position for his own brother, Sinan Pasha. Hayreddin Pasha, the most successful Ottoman corsair seafarer, became Kapudan (grand admiral) of the Ottoman Mediterranean fleet during the reign of Süleyman. Seydi Ali Reis was appointed Mısır Kapudanı after Piri Reis’ failure to conquer Hormuz and subsequent execution. Piri Reis eventually became Mısır Kapudanı with responsibilities in the Indian Ocean in 1547. First, Kemal Reis and his nephew Piri Reis sailed the Mediterranean as corsairs before entering Ottoman service during the reign of Bayezid II.

This paper analyzes the “Ottomanness” of five prominent seafarers, mainly relying on contemporary narrative sources, some of which are autobiographical in nature.

The Ottoman Age of Exploration by Giancarlo Casale