Before the Ottomans gained control of this land, it was under Hapsburg rule. This Ottoman encroachment on Hapsburg land caused a fear in the Hapsburg Empire that the Ottomans would eventually dominate Europe. Ottomans fear is clearly seen in The Turkish Letters . Busbecq, the Hapsburg ambassador to the Ottomans, shows that the Ottomans are much stronger than the Hapsburgs. Three particular strengths are the Ottoman concept of the equality of opportunity, a more disciplined military and the versatile Ottoman battle practices.
Equality of opportunity is a concept that everyone in a society has an equal chance to succeed.
This concept was a much more viable system for fermenting strong leaders in the military and bureaucracy than the Hapsburg system. Since the Hapsburgs always had leaders from certain families, non-artistocrats with great leadership qualities were left out of the government, and did not assist the Hapsburgs. Since the Ottomans did not discriminate, they had many more strong leaders than the Hapsburgs. History and common sense both show that the more capable leaders an organization has, the stronger that organization will be. To better illustrate Busbecq s contrasting of militaries, some more context on the Hapsburg military must be given.