1 00:00:11,200 --> 00:00:20,008 Laurie and Grandpa were reading quietly together on the couch, when Laurie suddenly jumped up. 2 00:00:20,009 --> 00:00:25,546 "I almost forgot! Our teacher gave us each a tulip bulb today. 3 00:00:25,547 --> 00:00:33,639 She said if we plant it now, it should bloom in the spring." Laurie reached into her backpack. 4 00:00:33,640 --> 00:00:43,224 "Perfect. I was just reading some poetry by an eighteenth-century Turkish poet," Grandpa said, smiling dreamily. 5 00:00:43,225 --> 00:00:50,694 Laurie stared at her grandpa. "I said I got a tulip bulb today." 6 00:00:50,695 --> 00:00:55,068 Grandpa turned to her with the dreamy smile still on his face. 7 00:00:55,069 --> 00:00:59,774 "Do you know where tulips come from?" he asked. 8 00:00:59,775 --> 00:01:01,571 "Holland?" 9 00:01:01,572 --> 00:01:13,560 "Nope. Turkey. And the word 'tulip' comes from the Turkish word for turban because tulip bulbs and buds look like turbans, don't they?" 10 00:01:13,561 --> 00:01:19,071 Laurie smiled as she examined the bulb in her hand. "You're right!" 11 00:01:19,072 --> 00:01:27,730 "The period from 1718 to 1730 is known in Ottoman history as the Tulip Era. 12 00:01:27,731 --> 00:01:35,431 It was a time of peace for the Turkish Ottoman Empire, when the arts, culture, and architecture flourished. 13 00:01:35,432 --> 00:01:42,231 And—your bulb reminded me of this—tulip mania swept over the empire. 14 00:01:42,232 --> 00:01:51,080 Everyone, including the ruler, Sultan Ahmed III, was absolutely obsessed with tulips." 15 00:01:51,081 --> 00:01:56,954 "How funny," Laurie said. "So is a sultan like a king?" 16 00:01:56,955 --> 00:02:01,954 "Yes, a sultan is the ruler of a Muslim empire. 17 00:02:01,955 --> 00:02:12,950 The Ottoman Empire began in 1300 when a Muslim prince named Osman claimed a small area of land in western Turkey. 18 00:02:12,951 --> 00:02:21,021 Osman fought to expand his territory, and after he died, his son continued the expansion. 19 00:02:21,022 --> 00:02:29,006 Many years and many wars later, the Ottoman Empire had conquered neighboring Muslim dynasties in the Middle East, 20 00:02:29,007 --> 00:02:32,740 and most of the Eastern Roman Empire too. 21 00:02:32,741 --> 00:02:39,490 By the seventeenth century, the Ottomans controlled parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia. 22 00:02:39,491 --> 00:02:46,131 And the empire was always ruled by a sultan who was a male descendant of Osman. 23 00:02:46,132 --> 00:02:57,254 Sultans had luxurious lives. They lived in the best houses, wore the finest clothes, and ate the most delicious foods in the empire. 24 00:02:57,255 --> 00:03:01,457 They were also extremely sheltered from their people. 25 00:03:01,458 --> 00:03:12,390 In the 1400s Sultan Mehmed II conquered the city of Istanbul, made it the capital, and ordered a huge palace to be built there. 26 00:03:12,391 --> 00:03:22,162 The palace was called Topkapi. It was like a mini city, with multiple buildings, courtyards, mosques, and towers. 27 00:03:22,163 --> 00:03:30,061 This huge palace kept the sultan almost completely separated from his officials, soldiers, and subjects. 28 00:03:30,062 --> 00:03:41,925 But things change from generation to generation, and in the 1700s Sultan Ahmed III didn't like feeling locked up in stuffy, old Topkapi. 29 00:03:41,926 --> 00:03:45,250 He loved to celebrate and have parties. 30 00:03:45,251 --> 00:03:51,702 And he wanted to do this outside the palace. His grand vizier at the time—" 31 00:03:51,703 --> 00:03:55,496 "What's a grand vizier?" Laurie interrupted. 32 00:03:55,497 --> 00:04:01,816 "The grand vizier was the highest official in the Ottoman Empire after the sultan. 33 00:04:01,817 --> 00:04:07,317 He represented the sultan and was also the ruler's main adviser. 34 00:04:07,318 --> 00:04:13,996 The grand vizier was so important that only the sultan could hire or fire him. 35 00:04:13,997 --> 00:04:24,599 So the grand vizier suggested that the sultan build new royal palaces, along with mosques and public fountains that could be enjoyed by everyone. 36 00:04:24,600 --> 00:04:30,191 Not only would this make the sultan happy, but it would make him popular! 37 00:04:30,192 --> 00:04:34,352 You've heard of the French Palace of Versailles, haven't you?" 38 00:04:34,353 --> 00:04:41,870 "Yep. Marie Antoinette lived there!" Laurie said, proud to know something important. 39 00:04:41,871 --> 00:04:48,230 "Apparently Sultan Ahmed III was fascinated by the culture of Versailles. 40 00:04:48,231 --> 00:04:54,843 He had heard of the fancy parties and great banquets there. 41 00:04:54,844 --> 00:04:59,564 He wanted to bring a bit of that to the Ottoman Empire. 42 00:04:59,565 --> 00:05:04,186 So he built fountains and mosques that could be lit up at night. 43 00:05:04,187 --> 00:05:08,062 And he built a new palace with beautiful gardens. 44 00:05:08,063 --> 00:05:11,025 The gardens were of course filled with tulips— 45 00:05:11,026 --> 00:05:20,337 tulips with round petals, tulips with pointed petals, tulips with brilliant yellow petals, and tulips streaked red and purple. 46 00:05:20,338 --> 00:05:28,648 Acrobats and entertainers performed in these gardens, while artists sketched, and poets wrote beneath the stars. 47 00:05:28,649 --> 00:05:40,581 And sometimes, on really special nights, the royal gardeners strapped candles onto the backs of turtles and released them in between the rows of tulips. 48 00:05:40,582 --> 00:05:45,059 The colorful flowers were illuminated all night." 49 00:05:45,060 --> 00:05:50,751 "That sounds like fun," Laurie said. "Were kids allowed to go?" 50 00:05:50,752 --> 00:05:56,744 "I'm sure the royal children were. At least until their bedtime. 51 00:05:56,745 --> 00:06:02,919 Sounds like a happy time to be living in the Ottoman Empire, doesn't it?" Grandpa asked. 52 00:06:02,920 --> 00:06:07,250 "Only if you're invited to the parties!" Laurie said. 53 00:06:07,251 --> 00:06:14,954 "Clever girl," Grandpa said, nodding. "Naturally the entire empire was not invited. 54 00:06:14,955 --> 00:06:22,932 And even though it was one of the wealthiest periods in Ottoman history, not everyone enjoyed such luxury. 55 00:06:22,933 --> 00:06:30,622 Peasants who were struggling to earn a living each day were unhappy. And so were the janissaries." 56 00:06:30,623 --> 00:06:34,093 "Who were the janissaries?" Laurie asked. 57 00:06:34,094 --> 00:06:43,257 "They were the Ottoman Empire's soldiers. During the empire's periods of conquest, they were quite respected. 58 00:06:43,258 --> 00:06:47,327 But in peace time, they didn't have anything to do! 59 00:06:47,328 --> 00:06:52,639 Some became gardeners or craftsmen, and others became restless. 60 00:06:52,640 --> 00:06:59,703 Eventually war broke out in the 1720s on the empire's borders with Iran. 61 00:06:59,704 --> 00:07:06,655 Ottoman troops went to Iran, but they failed to settle anything, and the Ottomans lost some territory. 62 00:07:06,656 --> 00:07:13,337 Unhappy with the sultan's weak military response, a group of janissaries revolted. 63 00:07:13,338 --> 00:07:18,775 The sultan was forced to resign and had the grand vizier executed. 64 00:07:18,776 --> 00:07:26,507 For a few weeks, there was chaos as the rebels burned palaces and destroyed signs of excess wealth. 65 00:07:26,508 --> 00:07:34,086 Finally the new sultan, Mahmud, put an end to the rebellion, but the happy times were over. 66 00:07:34,087 --> 00:07:44,914 Mahmud was occupied with wars against Iran and Russia for the rest of his reign, and didn't have much time for fancy garden parties." 67 00:07:44,915 --> 00:07:51,304 "No more tulips for the Ottoman Empire?" Laurie asked, looking down at the bulb in her palm. 68 00:07:51,305 --> 00:07:57,305 "Well, tulips are still a pride of Turkey and appear in lots of Turkish art. 69 00:07:57,306 --> 00:08:02,155 We could call them a legacy of Sultan Ahmed III's reign." 70 00:08:02,156 --> 00:08:05,078 Laurie put the bulb on top of her head. 71 00:08:05,079 --> 00:08:17,404 "I'm going to go plant my turban now," she said, giggling. "See you later, Grandpa."