Mehmed The Conqueror Episode 01 Mehmed gained unparalleled glory, prestige, and tremendous power as a result of the conquest of Constantinople, and he later began to see himself as the successor of the Roman Caesars and the leader of Islam in holy war. Although it is untrue that he had planned plans for his conquests, it is undeniable that his goal was to revive the Eastern Roman Empire and to expand it to its furthest historical reaches. Mehmed experienced a turning point in his life that was comparable to the conquest of Constantinople when he defeated the Turkmen leader Uzun Asan at the Battle of Bashkent in Erzincan on August 11, 1473. This victory cemented his dominance over Anatolia and the Balkans.
Mehmed The Conqueror Episode 01 At the same time that he acquired the name Kayser-i Rum (Roman Caesar), Mehmed also referred to himself as “the lord of the two lands and the two waters” (i.e., Anatolia and the Balkans, the Aegean and Black seas), a description that represented his conception of the empire. He undertook a number of operations or expeditions in the Balkans, Hungary, Walachia, Moldova, Anatolia, the island of Rhodes, and even as far away as the Crimean Peninsula and Otranto in southern Italy during the quarter-century following the fall of Constantinople. His intention to conquer Italy as part of his most recent endeavour to establish a global empire was made clear by this enterprise (1480). After starting a fresh campaign in Anatolia the previous spring, he passed away 15.5 miles (25 km) from
Mehmed The Conqueror Episode 01 Relationships between the autocrat and his eldest son Bayezid grew increasingly difficult during the tyrant’s final years because Bayezid didn’t always follow his directives. When Mehmed allocated around 20,000 towns and farms that had previously belonged to religious foundations or the landed aristocracy as military fiefs, it caused widespread unrest throughout the nation towards the end of his reign. As a result, after his death, the dissidents installed Bayezid as sultan instead of Cem (Jem), the sultan’s favourite son, and they started a backlash against Mehmed’s policies.
