The Ottoman Empire ruled the near East, dominated the Mediterranean, and terrorized Europe for centuries. However, its origins are obscure. The Beginnings of the Ottoman Empire illuminates the founding of the Empire, drawing on Turkish, Greek, Arabic, and Latin sources as well as coins, buildings, and topographic evidence. Clive Foss takes the reader through the rugged homeland of Osman, the founder of the Ottomans, placing his achievement in the context of his more powerful neighbours, most notably the once mighty Byzantine Empire, then in the terminal stages of its decline. Foss then charts the progress of Osman's son Orhan, until the fateful moment in 1354 when his forces crossed into Europe and began their spectacular conquests.

About the Author
Clive Foss is Professor Emeritus at Georgetown University. He has taught at University of Massachusetts (Boston), University of Lyon, Harvard, Berkeley, and the University of South Africa. He has been Visiting Fellow at All Souls and Trinity College, Oxford. He worked at the Sardis excavation and has conducted extensive field studies in Turkey.

Reviews
The strength of this book is not in its conclusions but in its approach, particularly its focus on geographical landscape as a physical and conceptual site of historical investigation and study. This approach could prove inspirational for how we deal with other historical periods...it is innovative and evocative in its approach and a good addition to the interdisciplinary scholarship on the Ottoman-Byzantine world. * Maria Americo, The Classical Outlook *



Book Information
ISBN 9780198865438
Author Clive Foss
Format Hardback
Page Count 282
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 462g
Dimensions(mm) 223mm * 142mm * 20mm