The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-01-30
The Gradual Waning of the Crescent.

The Gradual Waning of the Crescent.
Suppose the conditions of peace to be
fairly reported, what will he left of the OF
toman power How does the extent Of the
Sultan's authority compare with that Of
earlier members of his dynasty whose rc-
sources were a danger to Europe The
truth Is that the present ruler, as regards
hrcadtlr Of dominions, will remain n more
formidable potcniatc than BAJA2rr or Mo-
IfAMNrD H.. and may fairly vie with any of
his house prior to the reign of SoLYMAN the
Magnificent.
Ii is worth willie to trace the successive
strokes 10y which the Turkish empire has
been curiailcl since the acme Of it, great
ness under SoLYNAN and his son. SELlM H.
in the sixteenth century Let us bear in
mind that at the latter epoch. besides all
his present dominions- except Crctc-thc
Sultan controlled almost the whole of Hun
gary, n large part Of Poland. all the south
prn provinces ~ Russia skrtlng the Black
sen. together with Austrian Croatia, the So
called military frontiers, and Independent
eerVia ON the west and Russian Georgia on
the east The first signs of decadcncc In
the aggressive power of Turkey were the
double defeats Of SoLYMAS before Vienna in
1929 and 1892. and his repeated repulses by
the Hungarians at the fortress OF Sziget,
one OF which cost the Sultan his life. The
next blow was struck at Lepanto In 1871,
where the Turkish fleets lost the prestige
and dominance which, since the downfall Of
Rhodes they had maintained throughout
the Mediterranean. About n century later,
under the impulse Of a remarkable family
Of statesmen. the Ottoman armies under
took to renew aggressive movements, but
they were routed before Vienna by the
heroic Pole, john SOBITsKI. In the subse-
quent war against Austria, whose troops
were commanded by the famous generals.
Prince EUGENE and LOUIS of Baden. the
Turkish strength on the middle Danube was
destroyed. With the loss of fortresses in
this quarter, the hope Of Ottoman aggran-
dizemcnt north OF the river seems to have
been abandoned; and at the peace of Carlo
WITT in 1899 MUsrAPHA III. surrendered
nearly all his Hungarian possessions to
Austria Azov TO PETER the Great, Podolia
md the Ukraine to Poland, and the Morea
10 Venice. No terms which at the present
juncture Russia could hope to see ratified
by the European powers could possibly ap-
proach in severity the conditions Of the
peace Of Carlowitz.
During the whole of the last century
Turkey was at war, now with Russia, now
with Austria. Notwithstanding some par
tial successes, such as the reconqucst OF tn
Morea in l7l5, the general result OF this
long contest was disastrous to the Ottoman
sovereign. He lost, for instance, the Crimea
and all his outlying possessions north OF the
Black sea, and by the treaty concluded with
RnGcta Mt Iocc N thn npins for xrac
made the frontier between the two empires
The present century has witnessed series
of rebellions usually followed by the con-
ression Of partial independence to provincial
governors. Thus. in 1905, Serva rose under
the leadership Of CzERNY GEORGE, and sub
sequently achieved notable measure of
eelf-government. The instruction Of ALI
pasha at Janina in 1922 was crushed. but the
Greek revolution which followed was sue
cessful. We should remark however, that
It was not until the Turkish Egyptian fleet
had been destroyed at Navarino, and the
Russian armies, under DIEBIrsH, had
crossed the Balkans and arrived at Adrian
oplc, that the Porte would acknowledge the
Independence Of Greece.
Three years after the treaty OF Adriano-
pie, namely, in 1882, began the perlous con-
test Of the Sultan with his too powerful vas
Ral, MEHEMEr ALI, the Viceroy OF Egypt.
In this struggle MAHMoUD III. was repeat
edly defeated, and the quarrel was only
ended after the lapse OF seven years, and
when the loss Of the Sultan's Asiatic do
minions seemed inevitable, by the direct in
lervcntion Of England and her allies on be-
half Of the Porte This action constitutes
IN epoch in European diplomacy. The OIL
rial admission, in fact, Of Turkey into the
political system of Europe dates no further
back than the treaties of 1910 and ls4l. To
the same principle must be referred the ac-
rcptance Of the integrity Of Turkey as car
hinal principle Of International policy on the
part Of the Western powers. Thirteen years
after its adoption this principle led to the
rrimcan war, which resulted in the discom-
nture Of Russia and the apparent rehablita-
ton Of the Ottoman power But IT has been
dsavowed aud set at naught by the attitude
Of England since Russa's rescissiOn Of the
treaty OF Paris, and throug hout the present
conflict.
1t is now five centuries and half since
the crescent appeared in eastern Europe.
Two centuries remain to be completed, II
the Turks are 10 exhibit tenacity equal to
that shown by the Moslem conquerors in
Spain. Whatever may be the terms Of the
present peace, it is certain that the Sultan
Will retain in Europe a far more defcnsble
position and more substantial resources
than belonged to the Spanish Moors in the
fourteenth century, relegated TO the king
dom Of Granada. Let us remember, too,
that the Greek Emperors, without allies
and almost without resources outside the
walls Of their capital, maintained them
Selves for some three hundred years at
Constantinope Very different are the
means at the command of the Ottoman
ruler. His European provinces will still
equal in area those controlled by BAJAzET
aud fall but little short Of those pos
se-scd by MoHAMMED II. when he under
took the conquest Of STEAMBOAT. In Asia
b. keeps tho whole Of tho superb inherit
lance which SELM, the first Ottoman
raliph, made over in 1920 to SoLYMAN, and
which. for the first time in the history Of the