Role of trade in reviving Istanbul after the Ottoman Conquest

Mehmed the Conquerer was obsessed with the idea of turning Istanbul into a financial and a political metropolis. Istanbul was seen as a dead city under Byzantine rule right before the conquest as it was empty with ruins and a population of 50,000. Fatih still wanted to keep whatever was available and gave the order not to ruin any structures while invading.
After the conquest the rebuilding process started right away. His aim was to reconstruct Istanbul as the new capital city of the Ottoman Empire. Placing all sorts of people from various religions/ethnicities was desirable for the new glorious capital so population from Silivri and Galata were brought up to Istanbul with the Sürgün method. German and Italian Jews were encouraged to settle here while Muslim Turks from Konya, Larende, Ereğli were placed by force.
Trade along with industry played a massive role on reviving Istanbul as Fatih’s goal was to turn Istanbul into one of the world’s centres. Places for trade called Bedesten were built just like the way they existed in other big Ottoman cities. These central commercial buildings served the city on selling fabric, textiles, guns/armor and various goods. The first bedestan built in 1456 had 140 shops inside. The richest merchant would reside here sending his men/merchants either with ships or caravans to other countries in purpose of bringing export articles. He would also sign deals with the traveling merchants on sharing the profits of the sold goods. Bedestens first had a Muslim majority merchants with Armenian, Jewish and Greek minority but the following years were in the favour of minorities. This “Büyük Bedesten” would later be called as “Kapalıçarşı” being the trade centre of Istanbul containing around 1000 shops. Cities with Bedestens are considered as the metropolis in the Ottoman history. Comparison between the big cities and the small cities was discussed by Evliya Çelebi in his Seyahatname. Carvenserails, hans and zaviyes built on the routes eased the caravan trade. Mehmed the Conquerer later wanted his erkan to build these institutions wherever they wanted. Other religious institutions such as medrese, mosque and mekteb were also built for the purpose of regenerating commerce. These commercial centres were constructed for the hegemony on the trade routes.
Istanbul was becoming one of the most convenient harbours in the beginning of the 16th century. Trade goods such as olive oil, wine, dried nuts, salt, wheat, iron and leather were imported via ships to the ports as the exchange would cost less. In order to augment the respect of the Islamic Empire in the world arena, Fatih was reforming Istanbul as the new merchant capitalist centre. The enlarging population of 500.000 people, Istanbul was hosting the wealthy capitalist entrepreneurs along with merchants providing them investment opportunities. State was putting privileges on some of the goods’ trade like grain, cotton, wool, wax and leather by banning the transactions along with the free trade on some individuals in order to profit wealthy banker capitalists, famous merchants and known shipowners. These speculations would bring up difficulties on keeping the prices under control against the European merchants who would bid higher prices causing frauds in the market. In order to prevent such causes the state would keep an eye on their clients’ ships while they were approaching to find the best coast for themselves.
Brining wealthy foreigners into the empire with the purpose of enrichening the country was pursued by the state as an effective method. Istanbul as all world cities do attracted people from all around the world. Greeks from Venetian colonies had the capital so chose this attractive destination for commerce. Some of the Greek Orthodox were involved in maritime trade near the Golden Horn they later settled around the Galata neighbourhood right across forming their own residency. Formerly Genovese owned Black Sea was now also under Ottoman rule. This was another opportunity for the Greek merchants to bring furs, dried fish, timber, caviar etc to Istanbul and sell luxury goods such as sweet wine to Black Sea settlers in return. One of the famous Greek families was called The Marmaretos who were the leaders of the Istanbul community living in Galata.
A Jewish family who was forced to transition into Christianism but secretly keeping their beliefs also took an important role on the capitalist history of Istanbul. Marranos were the owners of spice trade in Portugal but later prosecuted first to Italy. With their capital earned from all over the Europe they settled in Istanbul transferring their earnings into the banks and commerce of the Ottoman Empire via Istanbul market. They were also free to practice their own religion under Ottoman guardianship after the Pope’s attempt of seizure on Marrano’s wealth. Affiliation of the non-muslim communities into the commerce and trade expanded Ottoman rule and increased Istanbul’s popularity along with success in the world arena during its reconstruction. Ottoman millet system was the functioning mechanism that kept minorities practice their beliefs privately only paying taxes while vastly flourishing the Ottoman trade economy. Even though this system led to the rise of minorities and collapse of the Empire, during Mehmed the Second’s rebuilding days it helped immensely.
Fatih’s approaches on trade and commerce play a precise role on the revival of Istanbul right after the conquest. Building institutions which promote commercialism controlling the routes throughout the city, providing a consumerist population of a great number in this newly institutionalised Istanbul was a smart move. Apart from this taking advantage of the minorities such as Armenians, Greeks, Jews while they were deported and ensuring their capital into the Ottoman state and market is also a right type of an act for constructing the greatest economic capitalist centre of all times.
References
İnalcık, Halil. Devlet-i Aliyye Osmanlı İmparatorluğu Üzerine Araştırmalar -1
p.280–297 124–127
İnalcık, Halil. Fatih Sultan Mehmet Tarafından İstanbul’un Yeniden İnşaası p.215–225
Osmanlı Araştırmaları. Fetihten Sonra İstanbul’un Osmanlı-Türk Kenti Olarak Yeniden İnşası http://os-ar.com/print.php?sid=105 (accessed on: april 10th 2017)
Fetih Sonrası İstanbul’un Türk-İslam Şehri Özelliklerine Göre Yeniden İnşası
http://akademikperspektif.com/2014/06/11/fetih-sonrasi-istanbulun-turk-islam-sehri-ozelliklerine-gore-yeniden-insasi/ (accessed on: april 11th 2017)
World History in Context. History of World Trade Since 1450, 2006
http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/whic/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?zid=8802f7574361206751af6f99f59e8fdf&action=2&catId=&documentId=GALE%7CCX3447600140&userGroupName=seat24826&jsid=74065f6d9aed7ce55027062767d1a049 (accessed on: april 10th 2017)
Rozen,Minna. A History of the Jewish Community in Istanbul: The Formative Years, 1453–1566 p.62–69
Cook, M.A (eds.) Studies in the Economic History of the Middle East p.207–210
https://books.google.com.tr/books?id=PDNACwAAQBAJ&pg=PA207&lpg=PA207&dq=istanbul+merchants+1453&source=bl&ots=k0bxpSjPvb&sig=3k_lTE0qUSm0Zx5CQ0NuRm0dgE4&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi544CUlZvTAhXKCsAKHR1HCkoQ6AEIOjAF#v=onepage&q=istanbul%20merchants%201453&f=false (accessed on: april10th 2017)
Greene, Molly. Edinburgh History of the Greeks, 1453 to 1768 p.
https://books.google.com.tr/books?id=rOkkDQAAQBAJ&pg=PT93&lpg=PT93&dq=istanbul+merchants+1453&source=bl&ots=IIGz-I2OEV&sig=rAlJSryXpNEBdBVjAWKtMiTU2R8&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi544CUlZvTAhXKCsAKHR1HCkoQ6AEILjAC#v=onepage&q=istanbul%20merchants%201453&f=false
(accessed on: april 10th 2017)