History of Islamic Gunpowder Empires, 1301-1798

Catalog description

Pre-req: Completion of the Core Curriculum Research & Professional Writing requirement. Between the 14th-18th centuries large Islamic empires competed with one another and the European states for dominance in the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean regions. Those empires that succeeded were known for their creative use of military strategy and the new technology of gunpowder weapons. This course examines the Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal empires as well as other Islamic gunpowder states from this era, including their accomplishments, defeats, social order, leading historical figures, interactions with Europeans, changes in religious life and the economy, intellectual and cultural developments, and legacies in the modern Middle East and South Asia. Although this is an upper-division class, no previous background knowledge of Middle East history is necessary.