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Between Religious and Secular: Impact of the Revolution on Religious Politics in the Ottoman Empire
Abstract
The paper deals in the ways in which the Young Turk Revolution of 1908 led to changes in the dynamics of power in the non-Muslim religious communities of the Empire. It will discuss the ways in which the revolution influenced ecclesiastic politics in Istanbul, Mount Lebanon, and Jerusalem. What was the impact of the revolution on the non-Muslim communities? How and why did these ethno- religious communities internalize the revolution? Why was the revolution more successful in creating new orders among certain ethno-religious groups? Why among other groups the attempt was unsuccessful? The cases of Istanbul (Armenians and Jews), Mount Lebanon (Maronite Church) and Jerusalem (Greeks, Armenians, and Jews) provide good examples of the ways in which the revolution shook the traditional foundations of these ecclesiastic powers. The paper contends that post-revolutionary ethnic politics in the Ottoman Empire should not be viewed from the prism of political parties only, but also through ecclesiastic politics, which was a key factor in defining inter and intra-ethnic politics. Interestingly, despite the fact that the revolution aimed at creating the modern secular Ottoman citizen whose loyalty was going to be to the state, it nevertheless strengthened the ethno-religious political centers of the ethnic groups. It did so by creating the space in which fierce competition began among the different actors within these communities for control over the power positions.
Discipline
History
Geographic Area
Ottoman Empire
Sub Area
Ottoman Studies