← Back to the front page

Distinctive Facts About The Mighty Ottoman Empire

Khalid Elhassan August 13, 2020 35 min

Battle of Ankara - Timurid Empire — Tamerlane gloating over the captured Bayezid I. Wikimedia

37. The Turks Become Soldiers of Islam

Eighth century AD Kyrgyz Turks. Horse Nomads Info

The conquering Arabs appreciated the martial qualities of the Turks. Apart from the hardiness bred into them by a hard life on the Steppe, the nomadic life had imparted to the Turks a combative spirit, equestrian skills, and great talent as horseback archers. So the armies of the Islamic Caliphate began recruiting the subjugated Turks into their ranks.

Rare among armies throughout history, the armies of the Islamic Caliphate made use of slave soldiers. The recently converted Turks were given the status of superior slaves of the state, and were free to rise through the ranks by promotion. By the end of the ninth century, most military commands in the Caliphate, as well as many high-ranking political offices, were held by Muslim Turks.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.