ABSTRACT
The Ottoman Empire has long served as the particularly egregious example of the dangers of a pre-modern society where militaristic values and demands predominated, and civilians were subordinated to the military class, a situation which ‘discourages independent and original thinking, which in turn precludes innovation’.1 By this definition, the economy was also driven predominantly by the demands of the military. When a ‘high percentage of its [society’s] surplus is committed to nonproductive enterprises, usually related to the military, economic adjustment is consequently difficult and progress slow’.2
