Ottoman 1912 Comprehensive World History Vol 4 Byzantium and the Early Turks with Maps Ahmed Refik
Büyük Tarih-i Umûmî (Comprehensive World History) – Volume IV, The Migration Period, Byzantium and the Early Turks – Ahmed Refik, 1328 (c. 1912)
Description:
Büyük Tarih-i Umûmî (Comprehensive World History) is a six-volume comprehensive history of the world by Ahmed Refik and represents an important late Ottoman attempt to present world history through a modern, systematic and accessible historical narrative. The series moved beyond a simple chronology of rulers and wars, approaching history through the development of civilizations, societies, political institutions and intellectual life. Its richly illustrated presentation, with numerous historical images, plates and maps, also distinguishes the series from many other Ottoman Turkish history books of the period and makes it particularly significant in the history of late Ottoman publishing and historical education.
Ahmed Refik Altınay (1881–1937) was one of the most productive and influential historians and popular writers of the late Ottoman and early Republican periods. Widely remembered by the epithet “Tarihi Sevdiren Adam” (“The Man Who Made History Loved”), he played an important role in bringing historical subjects to a broader reading public through an engaging and accessible style. Originally trained as a military officer at Kuleli Military High School and the Ottoman Military Academy, he later taught history and geography, served as a professor of Ottoman History at the Darülfünun, and was among the founding members of the Turkish Historical Society.
The fourth volume turns to the major political and cultural transformations that followed the ancient world, beginning with the Migration Period and the Late Roman era. It examines the movement of peoples across Europe and the resulting transformation of the political landscape, before turning to the history of France and the reign of Charlemagne (Charles the Great), whose period occupies an important place in the formation of medieval Western Europe.
A substantial portion of the volume is devoted to the Byzantine Empire, including its political and historical development and the period of Latin rule in Constantinople. The narrative then extends into the history of the Early Turkic states and the Turks, placing their emergence within the wider historical developments of Eurasia and the medieval world. The history of Eastern Europe (Avrupa-yı Şarki) is also examined as part of this broad historical framework.
Published in 1328 (c. 1912) by Kitabhane-i İslâm ve Askerî (İbrahim Hilmi) in Istanbul and printed at Agob Matyosyan Matbaası, the volume contains numerous historical illustrations and maps. As with the other volumes of Büyük Tarih-i Umûmî, these visual materials form an important part of the presentation, illustrating historical events, places and geographical developments and contributing to the distinctive character of this richly illustrated Ottoman world-history series.
Key Features:
• Title: Büyük Tarih-i Umûmî (Comprehensive World History) – Volume IV
• Author: Ahmed Refik Altınay (1881–1937)
• Series: Fourth Volume of a Six-Volume Comprehensive World History
• Subject: The Migration Period, Byzantium, Medieval Europe and the Early Turks
• Historical Coverage: The Migration Period, Late Roman history, France, Charlemagne, the Byzantine Empire, the Latin rule in Constantinople, the Early Turkic states, the Turks and Eastern Europe
• European History: France, Charlemagne and the political transformations of medieval Europe
• Byzantine History: Byzantine political and historical development, including the period of Latin rule in Constantinople
• Turkic History: Early Turkic states and the historical development of the Turks
• Eastern European History: History of Eastern Europe (Avrupa-yı Şarki)
• Publication Year: 1328 (approximately 1912)
• Place of Publication: Istanbul
• Publisher: Kitabhane-i İslâm ve Askerî (İbrahim Hilmi)
• Printer: Agob Matyosyan Matbaası
• Language: Ottoman Turkish
• Illustrations: Numerous historical illustrations and visual plates
• Maps: Numerous historical and geographical maps
• Historical Significance: An important Ottoman Turkish synthesis of the major political and cultural transformations between the ancient and medieval worlds, with particular attention to Byzantium and the early history of the Turks
• Author Significance: Ahmed Refik Altınay was a prominent late Ottoman and early Republican historian, professor of Ottoman History at the Darülfünun, and a founding member of the Turkish Historical Society
• Collectible Significance: Particularly valuable for collectors and researchers of Ottoman Turkish books, Byzantine history, early Turkic history, medieval Europe, historical geography, cartography, Ottoman publishing and the intellectual history of the late Ottoman period