Ottoman Empire
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Tweet A vast sultanate of southwest Asia, northeast Africa, and southeast Europe. It was founded in the late 1200s by Osman I and ruled by his descendants until its dissolution after World War I. Originally a small state ruled by Osman's Turkish clan, it spread rapidly in Anatolia and the Balkans, conquered Constantinople in 1453, and by 1517 gained control over Syria, Egypt and the cities of Mecca and Medina. |
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