Transfer of Ottoman Artillery Technology to the Duchy of Burgundy, 1457-1467

Year 2022, Volume: 14 Issue: 1, 159 - 181, 28.02.2022

Hilmi Kaçar

Abstract

Many historiographical studies have focused on the transfer of European military technologies to the Ottoman Empire and its adaptations there. By contrast, this article explores the transfer of Ottoman artillery technology to medieval Europe. Concretely, this study sheds light on the efforts of the Burgundian Duke Filip III (r. 1419-1467) to develop the firepower of his army, as he was inspired by the Ottoman cannons in the 1450’s. Different sources are examined in order to evaluate the quantity and quality of this technological transfer. Next to various chronicles of the period, several Burgundian financial documents are consulted in order to trace the expenditures for this technology transfer. By examining various sources about Ottoman cannonry in the 15th century, this article claims that the Ottoman technology was more advanced and innovative than its European counterparts. Hence, this article aims to refute some of the old beliefs in military and political historiography. Historians have generally tended to study the history of a culture or society in isolation from other cultures and civilizations. By contrast, this article underlines that the history of the modern world cannot be understood by exclusively focusing on one history or the other. It claims that the developments in the Ottoman and Burgundian cannon technologies were the result of the interaction that emerged from cross-cultural mobility of people and ideas during the various stages of world history. In sum, this article shows that a definite cultural interaction and geopolitical conflict existed between the Ottoman Empire and medieval Western European states.

Keywords

Ottoman artillery technology, Medieval Europe, Burgundy, Military History, Global History

OSMANLI TOP TEKNOLOJİSİNİN BURGONYA DUKALIĞI’NA AKTARIMI, 1457-1467

Abstract

Mevcut çalışmalar, Avrupa askeri teknolojilerinin Osmanlı’ya nasıl transfer edilip intibak sağladığı yönünde yoğunlaşmışlardır. Bu makalede ise Osmanlı top teknolojisinin ortaçağ Avrupa’sına aktarımı ve tesiri ele alınmaktadır. Osmanlı harp sanayiinin ve top teknolojisinin 15. yüzyılda Avrupalı muadillerinden daha gelişmiş ve yenilikçi özelliklere sahip olduğu farklı kaynaklar incelenerek ortaya konulmaktadır. Somut olarak bu çalışmada, Burgonya Dükü III. Filip’in 1450’lı yıllarda Osmanlı toplarından esinlenerek Burgonya ateş gücünü geliştirme çabasına ışık tutulmaktadır. Osmanlı’dan Burgonya’ya yapılan teknolojik transferin nicelik ve niteliğini belirleyip bağlamına yerleştirmek için farklı kaynaklar incelenmiştir. Dönemin farklı kronik yazarlarının yanı sıra Burgonya mali belgelerinde teknoloji aktarımı için yapılan harcamalar, top ustası ve zanaatkârların istihdamı gibi kayıtlar da takip edilmiştir. Ayrıca Burgonya saray çevrelerinde Osmanlı etkisinin, top teknolojisiyle sınırlı kalmayıp edebi ve tarihi anlatılarında yaygın olarak kullanılan Fatih Sultan Mehmed’in imgesi de mercek altına alınmıştır. Sonuç itibariyle ortaya çıkan bulgular, Batı’nın modern dünyanın tarihsel gelişiminin tek odak noktası olmadığına dair kavrayışı desteklemektedir. Ateşli silah ve top teknolojisi alanındaki gelişmelerin, insanların ve fikirlerin kültürlerarası hareketliliğinden ortaya çıkan etkileşimin bir sonucu olduğu ileri sürülmüştür. Bu nedenle Osmanlı ve ortaçağ Batı Avrupa dünyaları arasında jeopolitik çatışmanın yanı sıra kültürel etkileşimin de varlığına işaret edilmiştir.

Keywords

Osmanlı top teknolojisi, Ortaçağ Avrupa, Burgonya, Askeri Tarih, Küresel Tarih

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