romikgosai/squad_modified huggingface dataset:
Part of the Ottoman territories in the Balkans (such as Thessaloniki, Macedonia and Kosovo) were temporarily lost after 1402 but were later recovered by Murad II between the 1430s and 1450s. On 10 November 1444, Murad II defeated the Hungarian, Polish, and Wallachian armies under Władysław III of Poland (also King of Hungary) and John Hunyadi at the Battle of Varna, the final battle of the Crusade of Varna, although Albanians under Skanderbeg continued to resist. Four years later, John Hunyadi prepared another army (of Hungarian and Wallachian forces) to attack the Turks but was again defeated by Murad II at the Second Battle of Kosovo in 1448.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Who recovered Ottoman empire territories in the Balkans in the 1430s to the 1450s?
A: Murad II', '
Q: Władysław III of Poland was also the king of what?
A: Hungary', '
Q: What battle took place on 10 November 1444?
A: Battle of Varna', '
Q: In what battle did Murad II leave as the victory in 1448?
A: Second Battle of Kosovo', '
Q: On what date were the armies under Władysław III defeated by Murad II?
A: 10 November 1444']
The son of Murad II, Mehmed the Conqueror, reorganized the state and the military, and conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453. Mehmed allowed the Orthodox Church to maintain its autonomy and land in exchange for accepting Ottoman authority. Because of bad relations between the states of western Europe and the later Byzantine Empire, the majority of the Orthodox population accepted Ottoman rule as preferable to Venetian rule. Albanian resistance was a major obstacle to Ottoman expansion on the Italian peninsula.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Who was the son of Murad II?
A: Mehmed the Conqueror', '
Q: What city was conquered on 29 May 1453?
A: Constantinople', '
Q: What did the Orthodox Church get to keep in exchange for accepting the authority of the Ottoman empire?
A: its autonomy and land', '
Q: The Orthodox population of Constantinople preferred Ottoman rule instead of what?
A: Venetian rule', '
Q: What was the main obstacle to the expansion of the Ottoman empire into the peninsula of Italy??
A: Albanian resistance']
Suleiman the Magnificent (1520–1566) captured Belgrade in 1521, conquered the southern and central parts of the Kingdom of Hungary as part of the Ottoman–Hungarian Wars,[not in citation given] and, after his historical victory in the Battle of Mohács in 1526, he established Turkish rule in the territory of present-day Hungary (except the western part) and other Central European territories. He then laid siege to Vienna in 1529, but failed to take the city. In 1532, he made another attack on Vienna, but was repulsed in the Siege of Güns. Transylvania, Wallachia and, intermittently, Moldavia, became tributary principalities of the Ottoman Empire. In the east, the Ottoman Turks took Baghdad from the Persians in 1535, gaining control of Mesopotamia and naval access to the Persian Gulf. In 1555, the Caucasus became officially partitioned for the first time between the Safavids and the Ottomans, a status quo that would remain until the end of the Russo-Turkish War (1768–74). By this partitioning of the Caucasus as signed in the Peace of Amasya, Western Armenia, and Western Georgia fell into Ottoman hands, while Dagestan, Eastern Armenia, Eastern Georgia, and Azerbaijan remained Persian.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: During what years was Suleiman the Magnificent alive?
A: 1520–1566', '
Q: In what year did Suleiman the Magnificent capture Belgrade?
A: 1521', '
Q: Suleiman the Magnificent had an important victory in what battle in 1526?
A: Battle of Mohács', '
Q: After a victorious battle in 1526 in what present-day nation was Turkish rule expanded to?
A: Hungary', '
Q: In what siege was Suleiman the Magnificent stopped when attacking Vienna in 1532?
A: the Siege of Güns']
France and the Ottoman Empire, united by mutual opposition to Habsburg rule, became strong allies. The French conquests of Nice (1543) and Corsica (1553) occurred as a joint venture between the forces of the French king Francis I and Suleiman, and were commanded by the Ottoman admirals Barbarossa Hayreddin Pasha and Turgut Reis. A month prior to the siege of Nice, France supported the Ottomans with an artillery unit during the 1543 Ottoman conquest of Esztergom in northern Hungary. After further advances by the Turks, the Habsburg ruler Ferdinand officially recognized Ottoman ascendancy in Hungary in 1547.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: France and the Ottoman Empire united against what?
A: Habsburg rule', '
Q: Where did the French lay conquest in 1553?
A: Corsica', '
Q: The conquest of Nice was an effort by Suleiman and what French king?
A: Francis I', '
Q: What were the names of the Ottoman admirals who commanded the conquest of Nice?
A: Barbarossa Hayreddin Pasha and Turgut Reis', '
Q: What ruler recognized the Ottomans in 1547?
A: Ferdinand']
The stagnation and decline, Stephen Lee argues, was relentless after the death of Suleiman in 1566, interrupted by a few short revivals or reform and recovery. The decline gathered speed so that the Empire in 1699 was, "a mere shadow of that which intimidated East and West alike in 1566." Although there are dissenting scholars, most historians point to "degenerate Sultans, incompetent Grand Viziers, debilitated and ill-equipped armies, corrupt officials, avaricious speculators, grasping enemies, and treacherous friends." The main cause was a failure of leadership, as Lee argues the first 10 sultans from 1292 to 1566, with one exception, had performed admirably. The next 13 sultans from 1566 to 1703, with two exceptions, were lackadaisical or incompetent rulers, says Lee. In a highly centralized system, the failure at the center proved fatal. A direct result was the strengthening of provincial elites who increasingly ignored Constantinople. Secondly the military strength of European enemies grew stronger and stronger, while the Ottoman armies and arms scarcely improved. Finally the Ottoman economic system grew distorted and impoverished, as war caused inflation, world trade moved in other directions, and the deterioration of law and order made economic progress difficult.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Who argues that there was steep decline and stagnation after the death of Suleiman?
A: Stephen Lee', '
Q: In what year did Suleiman die?
A: 1566', '
Q: By what year was it argued that the Ottoman empire was merely "a shadow" of what it was in 1566?
A: 1699', '
Q: Beginning and ending with what years does Lee argue that the rules of the Empire were incompetent?
A: 1566 to 1703', '
Q: What factor caused inflation in the Ottoman empire?
A: war']
The effective military and bureaucratic structures of the previous century came under strain during a protracted period of misrule by weak Sultans. The Ottomans gradually fell behind the Europeans in military technology as the innovation that fed the Empire's forceful expansion became stifled by growing religious and intellectual conservatism. But in spite of these difficulties, the Empire remained a major expansionist power until the Battle of Vienna in 1683, which marked the end of Ottoman expansion into Europe.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Poor rule by what class of people strained the empire?
A: Sultans', '
Q: Europeans gained on the Ottoman empire in what type of technology? 
A: military technology', '
Q: What types of conservative beliefs slowed the expansion of the empire?
A: religious and intellectual', '
Q: What battle took place in 1683?
A: Battle of Vienna', '
Q: The empire ceased its expansion into what area after a battle in 1683?
A: Europe']
The discovery of new maritime trade routes by Western European states allowed them to avoid the Ottoman trade monopoly. The Portuguese discovery of the Cape of Good Hope in 1488 initiated a series of Ottoman-Portuguese naval wars in the Indian Ocean throughout the 16th century. The Somali Muslim Ajuran Empire, allied with the Ottomans, defied the Portuguese economic monopoly in the Indian Ocean by employing a new coinage which followed the Ottoman pattern, thus proclaiming an attitude of economic independence in regard to the Portuguese.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Avoiding the strength of Ottoman trade was accomplished with the discovery of what?
A: new maritime trade routes', '
Q: What did the Portuguese discover in 1488?
A: the Cape of Good Hope', '
Q: Where did the Ottoman and Portuguese have Naval wars in the 16th century?
A: the Indian Ocean', '
Q: Who did the Ottomans ally with in the Indian Ocean?
A: The Somali Muslim Ajuran Empire', '
Q: New coins were a proclamation of independence by the Somali Muslim Ajuran Empire from whom?
A: the Portuguese']
In southern Europe, a Catholic coalition led by Philip II of Spain won a victory over the Ottoman fleet at the Battle of Lepanto (1571). It was a startling, if mostly symbolic, blow to the image of Ottoman invincibility, an image which the victory of the Knights of Malta against the Ottoman invaders in the 1565 Siege of Malta had recently set about eroding. The battle was far more damaging to the Ottoman navy in sapping experienced manpower than the loss of ships, which were rapidly replaced. The Ottoman navy recovered quickly, persuading Venice to sign a peace treaty in 1573, allowing the Ottomans to expand and consolidate their position in North Africa.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Which Spaniard led a battle in 1571?
A: Philip II', '
Q: What battle did the Spanish win in 1571?
A: Battle of Lepanto', '
Q: What siege occurred in 1565?
A: Siege of Malta', '
Q: In what year did Venice sign a peace treaty with the Ottomans?
A: 1573', '
Q: After signing a peace treaty with Venice, in what region did the Ottoman empire expand?
A: North Africa']
By contrast, the Habsburg frontier had settled somewhat, a stalemate caused by a stiffening of the Habsburg defences. The Long War against Habsburg Austria (1593–1606) created the need for greater numbers of Ottoman infantry equipped with firearms, resulting in a relaxation of recruitment policy. This contributed to problems of indiscipline and outright rebelliousness within the corps, which were never fully solved. Irregular sharpshooters (Sekban) were also recruited, and on demobilization turned to brigandage in the Jelali revolts (1595–1610), which engendered widespread anarchy in Anatolia in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. With the Empire's population reaching 30 million people by 1600, the shortage of land placed further pressure on the government . In spite of these problems, the Ottoman state remained strong, and its army did not collapse or suffer crushing defeats. The only exceptions were campaigns against the Safavid dynasty of Persia, where many of the Ottoman eastern provinces were lost, some permanently. This 1603–1618 war eventually resulted in the Treaty of Nasuh Pasha, which ceded the entire Caucasus, except westernmost Georgia, back into Iranian Safavid possession. Campaigns during this era became increasingly inconclusive, even against weaker states with much smaller forces, such as Poland or Austria.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: What was the late 16th century war against Habsburg Austria known as?
A: The Long War', '
Q: During what years did the Ottoman war against Habsburg Austria occur?
A: 1593–1606', '
Q: What were ottoman irregular sharpshooters known as?
A: Sekban', '
Q: What was the population of the Ottoman empire at the beginning of the 17th century?
A: 30 million people', '
Q: A war occurring from 1603 to 1618 resulted in what treaty?
A: Treaty of Nasuh Pasha']
During his brief majority reign, Murad IV (1612–1640) reasserted central authority and recaptured Iraq (1639) from the Safavids. The resulting Treaty of Zuhab of that same year decisively parted the Caucasus and adjacent regions between the two neighbouring empires as it had already been defined in the 1555 Peace of Amasya. The Sultanate of women (1648–1656) was a period in which the mothers of young sultans exercised power on behalf of their sons. The most prominent women of this period were Kösem Sultan and her daughter-in-law Turhan Hatice, whose political rivalry culminated in Kösem's murder in 1651. During the Köprülü Era (1656–1703), effective control of the Empire was exercised by a sequence of Grand Viziers from the Köprülü family. The Köprülü Vizierate saw renewed military success with authority restored in Transylvania, the conquest of Crete completed in 1669, and expansion into Polish southern Ukraine, with the strongholds of Khotyn and Kamianets-Podilskyi and the territory of Podolia ceding to Ottoman control in 1676.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Who recaptured Iraq in 1639?
A: Murad IV', '
Q: Who had control over Iraq before it was recaptured in 1639?
A: the Safavids', '
Q: When was Kösem murdered?
A: 1651', '
Q: What years define the Köprülü Era?
A: 1656–1703', '
Q: What territory was conquered by the Köprülü Vizierate in 1669?
A: Crete']
This period of renewed assertiveness came to a calamitous end in May 1683 when Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa Pasha led a huge army to attempt a second Ottoman siege of Vienna in the Great Turkish War of 1683–1687. The final assault being fatally delayed, the Ottoman forces were swept away by allied Habsburg, German and Polish forces spearheaded by the Polish king Jan III Sobieski at the Battle of Vienna. The alliance of the Holy League pressed home the advantage of the defeat at Vienna, culminating in the Treaty of Karlowitz (26 January 1699), which ended the Great Turkish War. The Ottomans surrendered control of significant territories, many permanently. Mustafa II (1695–1703) led the counterattack of 1695–96 against the Habsburgs in Hungary, but was undone at the disastrous defeat at Zenta (in modern Serbia), 11 September 1697.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Which Grand Vizier attempted a siege of Vienna in 1683?
A: Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa Pasha', '
Q: What was the war that took place from 1683 to 1687 known as?
A: the Great Turkish War', '
Q: Which polish king led the fight against the Ottoman empire in the Battle of Vienna?
A: Jan III Sobieski', '
Q: What was the alliance against the late 17th century Ottoman empire known as?
A: the Holy League', '
Q: What treaty was signed 26 January 1699?
A: Treaty of Karlowitz']
After the Austro-Turkish War of 1716–1718 the Treaty of Passarowitz confirmed the loss of the Banat, Serbia and "Little Walachia" (Oltenia) to Austria. The Treaty also revealed that the Ottoman Empire was on the defensive and unlikely to present any further aggression in Europe. The Austro-Russian–Turkish War, which was ended by the Treaty of Belgrade in 1739, resulted in the recovery of Serbia and Oltenia, but the Empire lost the port of Azov, north of the Crimean Peninsula, to the Russians. After this treaty the Ottoman Empire was able to enjoy a generation of peace, as Austria and Russia were forced to deal with the rise of Prussia.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Oltenia is also known as what?
A: Little Walachia', '
Q: The Austro-Turkish war took place over what years?
A: 1716–1718', '
Q: The Austro Turkish War culminated in the signing of what treaty?
A: Treaty of Passarowitz', '
Q: The Treaty of Belgrade was the result of a war known as what?
A: Austro-Russian–Turkish War', '
Q: What port was lost by the Ottoman empire as a result of the Treaty of Belgrade?
A: port of Azov']
Educational and technological reforms came about, including the establishment of higher education institutions such as the Istanbul Technical University. In 1734 an artillery school was established to impart Western-style artillery methods, but the Islamic clergy successfully objected under the grounds of theodicy. In 1754 the artillery school was reopened on a semi-secret basis. In 1726, Ibrahim Muteferrika convinced the Grand Vizier Nevşehirli Damat İbrahim Pasha, the Grand Mufti, and the clergy on the efficiency of the printing press, and Muteferrika was later granted by Sultan Ahmed III permission to publish non-religious books (despite opposition from some calligraphers and religious leaders). Muteferrika's press published its first book in 1729 and, by 1743, issued 17 works in 23 volumes, each having between 500 and 1,000 copies.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: What is one university that was formed in the early 18th century of the empire?
A: Istanbul Technical University', '
Q: What type of school was established in the empire in 1734?
A: an artillery school', '
Q: In 1754 what man convinced the Grand Vizier to allow the use of the printing press?
A: Ibrahim Muteferrika', '
Q: Who was the Ottoaman Grand Vizier in 1726?
A: Nevşehirli Damat İbrahim Pasha', '
Q: In what year did an Ottoman press produce its first book?
A: 1729']
In 1768 Russian-backed Ukrainian Haidamaks, pursuing Polish confederates, entered Balta, an Ottoman-controlled town on the border of Bessarabia in Ukraine, and massacred its citizens and burned the town to the ground. This action provoked the Ottoman Empire into the Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774. The Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca of 1774 ended the war and provided freedom to worship for the Christian citizens of the Ottoman-controlled provinces of Wallachia and Moldavia. By the late 18th century, a number of defeats in several wars with Russia led some people in the Ottoman Empire to conclude that the reforms of Peter the Great had given the Russians an edge, and the Ottomans would have to keep up with Western technology in order to avoid further defeats.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: Which group supported by Russia entered Balta in 1768?
A: Ukrainian Haidamaks', '
Q: Near what region was Balta bording?
A: Bessarabia', '
Q: During what years was the Russo-Turkish war?
A: 1768–1774', '
Q: The Russo-Turkish War resulted in what treaty?
A: Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca', '
Q: The culmination of the Russo-Turkish war granted what to the citizens of Ottoman controlled Provinces in Moldavia?
A: freedom to worship']
The Serbian revolution (1804–1815) marked the beginning of an era of national awakening in the Balkans during the Eastern Question. Suzerainty of Serbia as a hereditary monarchy under its own dynasty was acknowledged de jure in 1830. In 1821, the Greeks declared war on the Sultan. A rebellion that originated in Moldavia as a diversion was followed by the main revolution in the Peloponnese, which, along with the northern part of the Gulf of Corinth, became the first parts of the Ottoman Empire to achieve independence (in 1829). By the mid-19th century, the Ottoman Empire was called the "sick man" by Europeans. The suzerain states – the Principality of Serbia, Wallachia, Moldavia and Montenegro – moved towards de jure independence during the 1860s and 1870s.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: During what years did the Serbian Revolution occur?
A: 1804–1815', '
Q: What Serbian monarchy was acknowledged in 1830?
A: Suzerainty of Serbia', '
Q: There was a war proclaimed against the Ottoman Sultan in 1821, who declared it?
A: the Greeks', '
Q: Some parts of the Ottoman Empire gained independence in what year?
A: 1829', '
Q: What did Europeans refer to the Ottoman empire as in the 19th century?
A: the "sick man"']
The Christian population of the empire, owing to their higher educational levels, started to pull ahead of the Muslim majority, leading to much resentment on the part of the latter. In 1861, there were 571 primary and 94 secondary schools for Ottoman Christians with 140,000 pupils in total, a figure that vastly exceeded the number of Muslim children in school at the same time, who were further hindered by the amount of time spent learning Arabic and Islamic theology. In turn, the higher educational levels of the Christians allowed them to play a large role in the economy. In 1911, of the 654 wholesale companies in Istanbul, 528 were owned by ethnic Greeks. Of course, it would be a mistake to ignore the geopolitical dimensions of this dynamic. The preponderance of Christian merchants owed not to any innate business sense on their part, although plenty of European observers were keen on making this point. In fact, in many cases, Christians and also Jews were able to gain protection from European consuls and citizenship, meaning they were protected from Ottoman law and not subject to the same economic regulations as their Muslim comrades.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: How many primary schools existed for Christians in the Ottoman empire in 1861?
A: 571', '
Q: How many Christian pupils were in ottoman schools in 1861?
A: 140,000', '
Q: Greeks in Istanbul owned how many wholesale companies in 1911?
A: 528', '
Q: There were how many wholesale companies in Istanbul in 1911?
A: 654', '
Q: Jews and Christians were offered protection in the form of what assistance by Europe?
A: consuls and citizenship']
The Crimean War (1853–1856) was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining Ottoman Empire. The financial burden of the war led the Ottoman state to issue foreign loans amounting to 5 million pounds sterling on 4 August 1854. The war caused an exodus of the Crimean Tatars, about 200,000 of whom moved to the Ottoman Empire in continuing waves of emigration. Toward the end of the Caucasian Wars, 90% of the Circassians were ethnically cleansed and exiled from their homelands in the Caucasus and fled to the Ottoman Empire, resulting in the settlement of 500,000 to 700,000 Circassians in Turkey.[page needed] Some Circassian organisations give much higher numbers, totaling 1–1.5 million deported or killed.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: During what years did the Crimean War take place?
A: 1853–1856', '
Q: On what date did the Ottoman empire issue foreign loans to deal with the cost of the war?
A: 4 August 1854', '
Q: Roughly 200,000 individuals of what group left Crimea during the war?
A: Crimean Tatars', '
Q: Roughly 90% of what group were pushed from their homes or ethnically cleansed during the Caucasian Wars?
A: Circassians', '
Q: Where did Circassians settle to when leaving their homes in the Caucasus?
A: Turkey']
As the Ottoman state attempted to modernize its infrastructure and army in response to threats from the outside, it also opened itself up to a different kind of threat: that of creditors. Indeed, as the historian Eugene Rogan has written, "the single greatest threat to the independence of the Middle East" in the nineteenth century "was not the armies of Europe but its banks." The Ottoman state, which had begun taking on debt with the Crimean War, was forced to declare bankruptcy in 1875. By 1881, the Ottoman Empire agreed to have its debt controlled by an institution known as the Ottoman Public Debt Administration, a council of European men with presidency alternating between France and Britain. The body controlled swaths of the Ottoman economy, and used its position to insure that European capital continued to penetrate the empire, often to the detriment of local Ottoman interests.

Questions and answers:
['
Q: What historian wrote that banks were the single greatest threat to mid-east independence? 
A: Eugene Rogan', '
Q: In what year did the Ottoman Empire declare bankruptcy?
A: 1875', '
Q: What was the administration that the empire used to control its debt called?
A: Ottoman Public Debt Administration', '
Q: Who served on the debt controlling administration of the Ottoman Empire?
A: European men with presidency alternating between France and Britain.', '
Q: European capital in the Ottoman empire resulted in what?
A: the detriment of local Ottoman interests']