Iraq Under Ottoman Rule: History, Religion, and Legacy

Introduction: Ottoman Conquest and Strategic Purpose

Ottoman rule in Iraq began in 1535 and lasted until World War I. During this period, Iraq became a central player in Ottoman religious, economic, and political developments. It was important to Ottoman interests in protecting its lands from eastern threats — primarily those of modern-day Iran. Iraq also helped the Ottomans increase economic trade and resist Shiite influence on their own Sunni Muslim population. Thus Iraq served Ottoman ends of political security and protection from the Persians, a reality reflected in the constant turmoil in the region.

It is also noteworthy that the Ottomans at times struggled to administer Iraq. Although the Mamluks encouraged stability, this proved impermanent, and Ottoman ineffectiveness is reflected in the growing British influence in the area. As World War I drew near and the Ottomans allied with the Central Powers, it became clear that Britain would be at war with the Ottoman Empire. Ottoman interest in Iraq was thus lost through the war, and British colonial interests and military power gained control. Because the Ottomans had not properly addressed governance of Iraq and had encouraged divisions among different religious and tribal groups, Iraq continued to maintain a splintered religious and political society that colonialism did not — and could not — cure.

The Ottomans handed over a territory that could only be ruled through dictatorship, and thus the political hardships of Ottoman rule meant that Iraq would become a colonized land in which the fundamental problems of political governance were never resolved. The progression of Ottoman influence in Iraq meant that Iraq was not able to develop as its own political entity, resulting in years of political and religious frustrations that are still manifesting today.

Iraq came under Ottoman rule in the sixteenth century as the Ottomans brought the holiest cities of Islam under their domain, wresting them from the Persians. The central Ottoman concern regarding Iraq was that the Ottoman Empire feared Persian power from the east and sought to create a Sunni buffer state in opposition to the Shiite Persians. The Ottomans held important territories in what would become modern-day Turkey and Syria, and Persia posed a direct threat to them. Iraq therefore served a clear political purpose for the Ottoman Empire, encouraging the Ottomans to take control of the area. Creating a buffer state would not only promote international stability and security, but the political conquest of Iraq would help cement Ottoman control over Sunni territory and heighten Ottoman influence in the eastern portion of their empire while securing their borders from their main eastern threat.

Religious and Economic Dimensions of Ottoman Control

This political purpose extended into the religious sphere as well, since the differences between Sunnis and Shiites directly influenced Ottoman policy toward Iraq. After the death of Muhammad, a schism occurred, splitting Islam into two groups that would become known as Sunnis and Shiites. Iran — known as Persia in the Ottoman era — was the center of Shiite Islam, while Arabs were predominantly Sunni. Although Iraq had a substantial Shiite population, it was primarily situated in a Sunni context. Because the Shiites of Persia were enemies of the Ottoman Empire, the Ottomans feared Shiite influence penetrating their Sunni heartlands in modern-day Turkey, a critical region for the empire. Controlling Iraq would therefore serve not only as a political buffer but also as a religious one, with religious implications spreading directly into the political sphere.

Furthermore, early Ottoman control of Iraq carried significant economic importance. Major east-west trade routes passed through modern-day Iraq, encouraging the Sultan to control the land and regulate commerce. According to one source, "control of the trade routes passing through the Red Sea and up the Tigris and Euphrates rivers was an important element in the Sultan's efforts to ensure that east-west trade would continue to flow through his territories" (Iraq History Page). This was partly because newly opened trade routes through Africa threatened to divert commerce away from Ottoman-controlled eastern routes. The economic significance of what would become modern-day Iraq was therefore a key motivation for its incorporation into the Ottoman Empire.

Persian Threats and the Struggle for Authority

From the early Ottoman conquest of Iraq in the sixteenth century, there was continued conflict between the Safavid Empire in Iran and the Ottomans that consistently kept Iraq at the center of religious and political contestation. The Safavid Empire declared Iran to be a Shiite state and set its sights on the holy places within Iraq, coveting the prestige that would come from controlling important sites of Islamic and Arab culture, such as Baghdad (Library of Congress 2007). This meant that the initial Ottoman conquest of Iraq was never secure, but remained subject to continual threats from Persia — as demonstrated in 1623, when Persia conquered Iraq before eventually being expelled. The persistent potential for Persian conquest made Iraq vital to the Ottoman Empire's political, religious, and economic interests in its eastern half.

Because the Ottomans were constantly threatened by Safavid influence in Iraq, their authority was weakened and they faced a recurring loss of control in the region. In the seventeenth century, the Ottoman Empire weakened considerably, allowing for increased independent rule across Iraqi territories. Local Iraqi tribes succeeded in acquiring power, and one figure, Afrasiyab, purchased the governorship of Basra and allowed Western influence to permeate Iraq through British, Dutch, and Portuguese merchants. This introduction of Red Sea trade in Basra by the British perhaps shaped British attitudes toward their future endeavors and eventual colonization of modern-day Iraq.

It is also important to note that these local leaders bore some responsibility for the Persian conquest of most of Iraq, as the Baghdad governor Bark Su Bashi revolted and allied with the Safavids in order to strengthen his own position relative to the Ottoman Empire. The result was religious and political conflict in Baghdad which, while temporarily allowing for Persian control, eventually saw the Ottomans restore their authority over Iraq. They would retain that control until the modern era by virtue of the Treaty of Qasr-i-Shirin, which ended the conflict between the Sultan and the Persian Empire. However, indirect conflict continued in the seventeenth century — including competition for control over Basra — as the Ottomans were forced to focus much of their attention and resources on Europe, where they faced warfare and waning political influence.

This notion of the Ottoman Empire as the "sick man of Europe" — holding significant territory but exercising diminishing political control — was both a cause and a consequence of conditions in Iraq. Weak sultans such as Ibrahim I pursued porous policies that spread instability to Iraq and encouraged disunity and opposition to Ottoman influence in the region. This contributed to political and economic problems and heightened the risk of religious tension between Shiites and Sunnis. That tension was exacerbated by the pro-Sunni stance of the Ottomans and the pro-Shiite stance of the Persians, creating deep religious cleavages between the two communities. The Persians encouraged the Shiites and the Ottomans encouraged the Sunnis, so that whichever power held sway, the opposing community was oppressed. These divisions would influence Iraq far into the future and into the modern day.

Works Cited

"Iraq's History Page." 22 Apr. 2007 <http://www.angelfire.com/nt/Gilgamesh/history.html>.

Rayburn, Joel. "The Last Exit From Iraq." Foreign Affairs 85 (2006): 29. 22 Apr. 2007.

Roberts, Sam. "How the Middle East Got That Way." New York Times Upfront 139 (2007): 24. 22 Apr. 2007.

Shagoury, Michael. "Four Centuries of Modern Iraq." The Middle East Journal 57 (2003): 700. 22 Apr. 2007.

"The Ottoman Period, 1534–1918." Iraq: Historical Setting. Library of Congress Country Study. 22 Apr. 2007.