REL 231 - History of the Christian Church
Course Notes
Week 14
Notes on Chapter 14
The Ottoman Empire started with a band of Turks who were driven out of their original homeland by the Mongols. In 1288 the warrior chief Osman took control of territory in Asia Minor (what is now Turkey) and established his Empire.
The Ottoman Turks continued to spread into the territory of the Byzantine Empire, and took Constantinople in 1453. What had been the Byzantine Empire now became the Ottoman Empire, with Islam as the dominant religion.
The most famous of the rulers was probably Süleyman the Magnificent (Süleyman is the Arabic form of Solomon), who reigned 1520-1566
The Ottoman Turks continued their invasions Westwards, taking all of Greece, and Europe as far as Vienna. Vienna was besieged in 1683. At this point the other European nations, particularly Poland, rallied and came to the aid of Vienna. The Ottoman Turks were driven back, and the Empire began a slow decline.
In 1829 Greece won a War of Independence.
At its greatest extent, the Ottoman Empire included Egypt, but that country was "taken under protection" by the British in 1882.
It became clear that the Ottoman Empire was so corrupt and losing power that the European nations referred to it as "The Sick Man of Europe"
With the outbreak of WWI the Ottomans decided to join Germany against the rest of Europe. When Germany lost the war the Ottoman Empire was divided up, leaving just Turkey to the Ottoman Turks. One consequence of the break-up of the Ottoman Empire was the formation of Arab states, and also the eventual formation of the State of Israel. The Arab nations had believed that the Europeans, particularly the British, had promised that all the region would be given to the Arabs. When Jews were allowed to settle there also, the Arabs saw it as a betrayal of promises made to them, and the stage was set for the present situation in the Middle East.
The textbook presents material in geographical order, not chronological - this can be confusing if one does not realize what is going on.
For instance, WWI (The "Great War", the "War to End all Wars" - as it was called at the time), 1914-1918, is not dealt with until pages 421-423;
WWII is skipped over somewhere on page 427, but the 1989 Fall of the Berlin Wall, symbol of the division between Eastern and Western Germany (a direct consequence of WWII) is highlighted on page 417.
The textbook may give the impression that the Churches in Germany were only Protestant. In fact each German State had supported Churches for both Roman Catholics and Protestants (Lutheran or Calvinist, depending on the State). This is still the case - a "Church Tax" of 10 per cent of a German's income tax is deducted from one's pay unless one makes a written declaration that one is Atheist, Moslem, or other religion. The tax is used to support Roman Catholic and Protestant Churches and clergy in proportion to the numbers of taxpayers declaring whether they are Catholic or Protestant.
Up until WWI there were about 30 German States, with one Emperor or Kaiser.
After WWI government by an elected parliament was instituted, but in 1925 Adolf Hitler reorganized the Nazi party, and in 1932 the Nazi party was elected to the majority of seats in the parliament.
In 1933 Hitler was appointed as Chancellor of Germany, with Hermann Goering as Prussian Prime Minister and Goebels as Minister of Propaganda. Later that year Hitler was granted the powers of a dictator. Leading German scientists, writers, academics, teachers, and those of Jewish descent started to leave Germany. Secret police and Nazi workers infiltrated society, and anyone who spoke out against the regime "disappeared" or was beaten up. The first concentration camps were set up, ostensibly to re-educate dissidents or undesirables - such as Jews, Gypsies, Poles, minorities, homosexuals, or anyone who spoke out - but really to work and starve them to death and eventually to shoot or gas them by the thousands.
Hitler continued to build up military forces, re-introduced compulsory military service, and appointed himself War Minister in 1938. In 1939 Germany invaded Belgium, Poland, Bohemia, and Moravia. Britain and France sent forces to aid the invaded countries, and World War II began.
Pages 416, 420. At the conclusion of WW II Germany was divided into two parts - "West Germany", (BRD - BundesRepublic Deutschlands, or FRG - Federal Republic of Germany) guided by an alliance of American, British and French forces; and "East Germany" (DDR - Deutsche Democratische Republic) under the domination of Soviet Russian forces.
As the capital city, Berlin was also divided into two parts. The communists built the "Berlin Wall" to enforce separation between the two sectors. People from East Berlin were shot and killed by the communists if they attempted to cross into West Berlin. Visitors from West Berlin had to go through one processing station, called "Checkpoint Charley", where they gave up their passports and were assigned to the company of a "guide" who stayed with them to make sure they did not speak to any East Berliners. I myself went through that process because it was the only way to get to the Pergamon Museum, which housed many treasures from Mesopotamia, including the rebuilt Ishtar Gate of Babylon. It was a chilling procedure.
Copyright © 2005 Shirley J. Rollinson, all Rights Reserved
