ABSTRACT
The Ottoman empire in 1880 extended from Bosnia to Arabia and from the Zagros mountains to'Algeria. However, it is not intended to devote equal attention to the wh'ole of that territory but to concentrate on the central Ottoman lands. In 1800 Algeria, Tunisia and Libya were autonomous and only a brief account wilf be given of their fortunes. Little will be said also of the Sudan, which was independent in 1800 but conquered by Egypt in the nineteenth century; and Arabia will receive modest attention. The Balkan lands, which are usually referred to as Rumelia, although the term is not conterminous with the Balkan countries, were of great importance to the Ottomans and are given due
One major problem which besets any writer on the modern history of the Near East is what place to give to the activities of the European powers. To ignore their role is to distort the history of the Near East, yet to understand it fully requires a detailed consideration of purely European problems and space which is not available; and the effort distracts attention from the changes within the Near East which are the central concern of this book. Some compromise is essential but no compromise is likely to please.
