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BBC The Ottomans Europe's Muslim Emperors 1 of 3

It was the world's last Islamic empire - a super-power of a million square 
miles. From its capital in Istanbul it matched the glories of Ancient Rome. And 
after six centuries in power it collapsed less than a hundred years ago.

Rageh Omaar, who has reported from across this former empire, sets out to 
discover why the Ottomans have vanished from our understanding of the history 
of Europe. Why so few realise the importance of Ottoman history in today's 
Middle East. And why you have to know the Ottoman story to understand the roots 
of many of today's trouble spots from Palestine, Iraq and Israel to Libya, 
Syria, Egypt, Bosnia and Kosovo.

In this first episode, the unlikely roots of the Ottomans are revealed. From 
nomadic horsemen, in a rural backwater of modern day Turkey, they became rulers 
of a vast empire spanning three continents. At an incredible speed they came to 
rule over Baghdad and Cairo in the south, where they controlled the holiest 
sites of Islam - Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem, and they reached deep into 
Europe, taking in Sarajevo and threatening the gates of Vienna. 

This is the forgotten story of how one dynasty, a single family, became Islamic 
rulers over huge swathes of the modern world.

BBC The Ottomans Europe's Muslim Emperors 2 of 3

Continuing his fascinating journey to rediscover the central role played by the 
Ottoman empire in Europe and the Middle East, Rageh Omaar explores the huge 
contrasts in the times of two very different Ottoman sultans. The most famous 
Suleiman the Magnificent in the golden age of the 16th century and the troubled 
reign of Abdul Hamid II in the 19th century when the Ottomans were dubbed 'the 
Sick Man of Europe'.

Rageh examines the cultural legacy as well as the physical, religious and 
political architecture of Ottoman rule to find out what a Muslim world run from 
Europe was really like. It reveals the backdrop to the relationship between 
Islam and Europe today, how the Ottomans became central in the power politics 
of Europe and what could have happened had they succeeded in their successive 
bids to seize Vienna, then a key European capital. 

BBC The Ottomans Europe's Muslim Emperors 3 of 3

In the final episode Rageh Omaar explains how the collapse of this Islamic 
super-power following the first World War has left problems for Europe and the 
Middle East that are still being felt today. Rageh also reveals how struggles 
at the heart of the Ottoman story have have recently been reignited on the 
streets they once ruled, from Syria to Turkey.

From its capital in Istanbul the Ottoman Empire matched the glories of Ancient 
Rome. Yet its achievements have been largely lost in the trauma of its last few 
years. Brutality, massacres and the carve-up of former Ottoman lands created a 
legacy of tension and conflict that continue to this day.

The heartland of the former empire - modern day Turkey - turned its back on its 
Islamic, Ottoman past. It underwent a social revolution led by military 
commander and secular visionary Mustafa Kemal- Ataturk. So why is Ottomanism 
back on the political agenda? And why are many politicians in the West hoping 
that Turkey can provide a role model as a modern, Islamic democracy?