Ottoman Empire at its peak (c. 1683)
The Ottoman Empire near its territorial peak, on the eve of the second Siege of Vienna. Directly-governed territory stretched from the Atlas Mountains and the Carpathian basin to the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, complemented by an extensive ring of autonomous vassals and tributaries: the Crimean Khanate to the north, the Danubian principalities of Wallachia, Moldavia and Transylvania, the Sharifate of Mecca over the Holy Cities, and the Barbary regencies of Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli along the North African coast. Shown: the empire's core (orange), the approximate devshirme recruitment zone, neighbouring great powers in 1683 colour-coded, key battles that built and bounded the empire (Ottoman victories in red, defeats in blue), major political, commercial, and holy cities, the two Hajj caravan routes, the Via Militaris (the Istanbul → Vienna military road), and the Treaty of Karlowitz (1699) that closed the imperial peak. Sources: aourednik/historical-basemaps (world_1650, CC-BY-SA) for the polygons; Wikipedia and standard atlases for points and descriptions. Boundaries and routes are simplified for visualisation.
Map contents (77)
Ottoman territory · Holy Roman Empire · Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth · Tsardom of Muscovy · Safavid Empire · Venice · Spain · France · Mughal Empire · Devshirme recruitment zone · Battle — Ottoman victory · Battle — Ottoman defeat · Major city · City · Holy city · Hajj caravan route · Via Militaris (military road) · Treaty · Strategic chokepoint · Empire label · Ottoman territory & devshirme · Neighbouring states · Battles · Cities & holy places · Routes, treaty & landmarks · Ottoman Empire — direct rule (c. 1683) · Crete (Candia) · Devshirme recruitment zone (approx.) · Battle of Ankara (1402) · Battle of Varna (1444) · Siege of Constantinople (1453) · Battle of Chaldiran (1514) · Battle of Mohács (1526) · First Siege of Vienna (1529) · Battle of Preveza (1538) · Great Siege of Malta (1565) · Battle of Lepanto (1571) · Siege of Candia (1648–1669) · Second Siege of Vienna (1683) · Battle of Zenta (1697) · Istanbul (Constantinople) · Cairo · Aleppo · Damascus · Baghdad · Edirne (Adrianople) · Mecca · Medina · Jerusalem · Bursa · Izmir (Smyrna) · Salonika (Thessaloniki) · Sofia · Belgrade · Sarajevo · Athens · Buda · Nicosia · Famagusta · Alexandria · Tripoli (Lebanon) · Tripoli (Libya) · Basra · Mosul · Diyarbakir · Erzurum · Konya · Trabzon (Trebizond) · Jeddah · Mocha · Algiers · Tunis · Hajj caravan — Damascus route · Via Militaris (Istanbul → Vienna) · Treaty of Karlowitz (1699) · Bosphorus strait · Dardanelles strait
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