Q. & A. 711 to 1707 with solved Papers css 1971 to date

Political and Cultural History of Islam
vowed to take his breakfast in Vienna on the 29th of September, and when the morning arrived, and the city was unsubdued, the inhabitants sent out prisoners to his tent, to tell him that his breakfast was getting cold, and they were afraid they had no better cheer to offer him but the produce of the guns on the battlements.
Such pleasantries relieved the tedium of mines and countermines, varied by the occasional sallies which the besieged made from time to time without much result. On October 9th the Turks effected a broad breach by the side of Karnthner gate, but three successive storming parties were repulsed, and the breach was repaired. On the llth another and greater breach was made, and for three hours the assailants fought hand to hand with the defenders, till at midday they were forced to abandon the assault. All thee next day the walls were the scene of protracted conflicts between the storming parties and the besieged, who still manfully resisted every effort of the Turks to gain a footing inside the defences. The Sultan was enraged, and his troops afflicted by the severe weather and bad food, and weary of daily defeat, became more and more discouraged, so that they had to be driven to the assault by their officer’s swords and whips. At last, on the 14th a final attempt was made. Every preparation had been made by both sides, and at nine o’clock the Janissaries and the flower of the Ottoman army came on to the attack.
The soldiers however were dispirited, and when the Wazir and his officers urged them on with stick and sabre, they cried that they would rather die by the hands of their own officers than face the long muskets of the Spaniards and the German spits, as they called the Lanzkechts’ long swords. Still when a breach had been made twenty-four fathoms wide the Turks were forced to the assault. The efforts of such unwilling men were of no avail against the resolute defence of the Spaniards and Germans of the garrison. As an instance of the courage of the besieged a story is told of a Portuguese and a German, of whom one had lost his right arm and the other his left in repelling the assault: the two then stood together side close to side, and thus made up a whole man between them. When even the halves of soldiers can fight, such exhausted energies as were left to the Turks might well succumb. The last assault had failed, and Sulayman ordered a retreat. The Janissaries set fire to their camp, and flung into the flames-it is to be hoped without the Sultan’s knowledge-the old people and children who were prisoners, and cut to pieces the remainder. After this disgusting and useless revenge,
Sulayman the Magnificent 833
they set out on their retreat, to the music of the salvo of artillery which the delighted garrison now discharged from the ramparts of Vienna, and the ringing of all the bells which during the siege had been silenced. Had they been nearer they would have heard the solemn strains of the Te Deum which was being celebrated in St. Stephen’s where the defenders were rendering their glad thanks for the victory.
Sulayman pursued his way, harassed by skirmishing bodies of Austrian cavalry, till he reached Pesth, and thence departed for Constantinople, where he made a triumphant entry, and proclaimed that he had pardoned the infidel, and that, as the city of Vienna was so far from his frontiers, he had not deemed it necessary to ”clear out the fortress, or purify, improve, and put it into repair”. Such was the view sedulously inculcated into the minds of his subjects, when the disastrous siege of Vienna was spoken of. Of the 20,000 or 30,000 men who fell in the siege, Sulayman would probably not be expected to say much. The 14th of October which saw the abandonment of the siege of Vienna, and the limit set to the rush of Turkish advance, is a famous day in German history: it is the anniversary of the peace of Westphalia and of Vienna, the battles of Hochkirchen, Jena, and Leipzig, and of the capture of Ulm.
Three years later Sulayman returned to the attack, followed by an even larger army; but the Emperor Charles V had now taken up the gauntlet, and his forces were too considerable for a rash engagement. Sulayman did not care to risk his kong tide of success, already once broken by his failure at Vienna, upon so hazardous a chance as an open battle with Charles; and after again ravaging the country with the lawless bands of Akinji, made peace at Constantinople in 1533; Hungary was divided between the two claimants, Ferdinand and Zapolya, and the Sultan retained his advantages. The peace was, however, very transitory, for in 1541 the Sultan led his ninth campaign, and after gaining many advantages over the Austrians compelled Charles V and Ferdinand to sue for peace, so in 1547 a truce was signed for five years. The Archduke Ferdinand was to pay a tribute of 30,000 ducats a year to his master the Sultan, and was proud to be addressed as the brother of his master’s wazir. Sulayman retained all Hungary and Transylvania, and had certainly corrfe out for the long struggle with the honours of war. Many of the Hungarian cities, however, stoutly resisted his domination, and their defenders performed prodigies of valour. When the five years were over, hostilities were punctually resumed,

834 Political and Cultural History of Mam

and continued un- ceasingly and unproductively until Sulayman’s death in 1566. Internal Reforms
Sulayman began his reign with a campaign to secure justice and virtue in order to gain for himself the loyalty of those subjects alienated by his father’s forceful policies No more unpopular measure had been pursued by Saleem than the one prohibiting trade with Iran - the Ottoman merchants suffered as much as their Persian counterparts. Now these prohibitions were ended, the goods that had been confiscated returned and compensation paid. Artisans and intellectuals brought to Istanbul from Azerbaijan and Egypt were allowed to return to their homes if they wished, although liberal incentives ultimately induced most to remain Sulayman attempted to build a system of justice to end the possibility of violent and arbitrary actions such as those of Saleem and Muhammad II, and he substituted a new emphasis on protection for the lives, property, and honour of individuals regardless of religion A day after taking the throne he decreed that soldiers should pay for all provisions taken along the paths of their campaigns in Ottoman or enemy territory. Taxes were levied only according to the ability to pay, with the extra taxes and confiscations of his predecessors prohibited.
The system of courts previously established was enlarged, and additional police and inspectors were charged with seeing that the court decrees and the laws were obeyed The administration was reorganized with officials admonished that violations of the rights of the subjects would be treated with severity. Dismissals came only for good reason, not because of the whims of the sultan and the higher officials of state Only merit was to be considered in the appointment, assignment, and promotion of officials, and palace intervention in administrative affairs was to end. Hundreds of legal scholars and jurists were brought into the sultan’s service. As the years went on, whether Sulayman was campaigning or in Istanbul, laws and law codes were issued that institutionalized and defined the structure of government as well as the rights and responsibilities of all members of the Ruling Class as well as the subjects of the sultan.’ CHARACTER AND ACHIEVEMENTS
Sulayman is perhaps the greatest figure in Turkish history. His personal qualities were superb: his wisdom, justice, generosity,
’ Stand Ford, P 87