Editing Mahmud II (section)

==Reforms==
{{more citations needed section|date=July 2015}}

===Legal reforms===
Among his reforms are the edicts (or [[firman (decree)|firman]]s), by which he closed the Court of Confiscations, and took away much of the power of the [[Pasha]]s.
[[File:Khalili Collection Islamic Art CAL-0334.jpg|thumb|right|Poem in praise of the prophet [[Muhammad]], calligraphed and signed by Mahmud II<ref>{{Cite web|title=Calligraphic Panel|url=https://www.khalilicollections.org/collections/islamic-art/khalili-collection-islamic-art-calligraphic-panel-cal334/|access-date=12 April 2021|website=Khalili Collections|language=en-US}}</ref>]]
Previous to the first of the firmans, the property of all persons banished or condemned to death was forfeited to the crown; and a sordid motive for acts of cruelty was thus kept in perpetual operation, besides the encouragement of a host of vile [[delator]]s.

The second firman removed the ancient rights of Turkish governors to doom men to instant death by their will; the ''Paşas'', the ''Ağas'', and other officers, were enjoined that "they should not presume to inflict, themselves, the punishment of death on any man, whether Raya or Turk, unless authorized by a legal sentence pronounced by the [[Kadı]], and regularly signed by the judge." Mahmud also created an appeal system whereby a criminal could lodge an appeal to one of the Kazasker (chief military judge) of Asia or Europe, and finally to the Sultan himself, if the criminal chose to pursue the appeal even further.

About the same time that Mahmud II ordained these changes, he personally set an example of reform by regularly attending the Divan, or state council, instead of abstaining from attendance. The practice of the Sultan avoiding the Divan had been introduced as long ago as the reign of [[Suleiman the Magnificent|Suleiman I]], and was considered one of the causes of the decline of the Empire by a Turkish historian nearly two centuries before Mahmud II's time.

Mahmud II also addressed some of the worst abuses connected with the [[vakıf]]s, by placing their revenues under state administration (see [[Ministry of Evkaf]]). However, he did not venture to apply this vast mass of property to the general purposes of the government. His modernizations included the relaxation of much of the restrictions on [[alcoholic beverage]]s in the Empire, and the sultan himself was known to drink socially with his ministers.<ref name="Rogan2002" /> By the end of his reign, his reforms had mostly normalized drinking among the upper classes and political figures in the Empire.<ref name="Rogan2002" />

The financial situation of the Empire was troubling during his reign, and certain social classes had long been under the oppression of heavy taxes. In dealing with the complicated questions that therefore arose, Mahmud II is considered to have demonstrated the best spirit of the best of the [[Köprülü family|Köprülüs]]. A firma dated 22 February 1834, abolished the vexatious charges which public functionaries, when traversing the provinces, had long been accustomed to take from the inhabitants. By the same edict, all collection of money, except for the two regular half-yearly periods, was denounced as abuses. "No one is ignorant," said Sultan Mahmud II in this document, "that I am bound to afford support to all my subjects against vexatious proceedings; to endeavour unceasingly to lighten, instead of increasing their burdens, and to ensure peace and tranquility. Therefore, those acts of oppression are at once contrary to the will of God, and to my imperial orders."

The ''[[haraç]]'', or capitation-tax, though moderate and exempting those who paid it from military service, had long been made an engine of gross tyranny through the insolence and misconduct of the government collectors. The firman of 1834 abolished the old mode of levying it and ordained that it should be raised by a commission composed of the ''Kadı'', the Muslim governors, and the ''Ayans'', or municipal chiefs of ''Rayas'' in each district. Many other financial improvements were affected. By another important series of measures, the administrative government was simplified and strengthened, and a large number of sinecure offices were abolished. Sultan Mahmud II provided a valuable personal example of good sense, and economy, organising the imperial household, suppressing all titles without duties, and all salaried officials without functions.

===Military reforms===
{{Further|Ottoman military reforms#Reforms of Mahmud II}}
[[Image:Mahmudiye (1829).jpg|thumb|250px|''[[Ottoman ship Mahmudiye|Mahmudiye]]'' (1829), built by the [[Imperial Arsenal (Ottoman Empire)|Imperial Arsenal]] on the [[Golden Horn]] in [[Constantinople]], was for many years the largest warship in the world. The 201 x 56 [[kadem]], or {{convert|76.15|x|21.22|m|ft|abbr=on}} [[ship of the line]] was armed with 128 cannons on 3 decks and carried 1,280 sailors on board. She participated in numerous important naval battles, including the [[Siege of Sevastopol (1854–1855)]] during the [[Crimean War]].]]

Mahmud II dealt effectively with the military fiefs, the "[[Tımar]]"s, and the "Ziamet"s. These had been instituted to furnish the old effective military force, but had long ceased to serve this purpose. By attaching them to the public domains, Mahmud II materially strengthened the resources of the state, and put an end to a host of corruptions. One of the most resolute acts of his ruling was the suppression of the ''Dere Beys'', the hereditary local chiefs (with power to nominate their successors in default of male heirs), which, in one of the worst abuses of the Ottoman feudal system, had made themselves petty princes in almost every province of the empire.

The reduction of these insubordinate feudatories was not affected at once, or without severe struggles and frequent rebellions. Mahmud II steadily persevered in this great measure and ultimately the island of [[Cyprus]] became the only part of the empire in which power that was not emanating from the Sultan was allowed to be retained by ''Dere Beys''.

One of his most notable achievement was the abolition (through use of military force, execution and exile, and banning of the [[Bektashi]] order) of the [[Janissary]] corps, event known as [[The Auspicious Incident]], in 1826 and the establishment of a modern Ottoman army, named the [[Asakir-i Mansure-i Muhammediye]] (meaning 'Victorious Soldiers of Muhammad' in Ottoman Turkish).

Following the loss of Greece after the [[Battle of Navarino]] against the combined British-French-Russian flotilla in 1827, Mahmud II gave top priority to rebuilding a strong Ottoman naval force. The first steamships of the [[Ottoman Navy]] were acquired in 1828. In 1829 the world's largest warship for many years{{Citation needed|date=August 2019}}, the 201 x 56 [[Traditional Turkish units of measurement#List of units|kadem]] (1 kadem = 37.887 cm) or {{convert|76.15|x|21.22|m|ft|abbr=on}} [[ship of the line]] ''[[Ottoman ship Mahmudiye|Mahmudiye]]'', which had 128 cannons on 3 decks and carried 1,280 sailors on board, was built for the Ottoman Navy at the Imperial Naval Arsenal ([[Tersâne-i Âmire]]) on the [[Golden Horn]] in [[Constantinople]] ([[Traditional Turkish units of measurement#List of units|kadem]], which translates as "foot", is often misinterpreted as equivalent in length to [[Foot (unit)|one imperial foot]], hence the wrongly converted dimensions of "201 x 56 ft, or 62 x 17 m" in some sources.)

===Other reforms===
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During his reign, Mahmud II also made sweeping reforms of the bureaucracy in order to reestablish royal authority and increase the administrative efficiency of his government. This was accomplished by abolishing old offices, introducing new lines of responsibility, and raised salaries in an attempt to end bribery. In 1838 he founded two institutions aimed towards training government officials. In that same year, Mahmud II established the new reformed [[Ministry of Finance (Ottoman Empire)|Ministry of Finance]] which served as an official ministry of the previous [[defterdar]] position. In 1831, Mahmud II also established an official gazette, ''[[Takvim-i Vekayi]]'' (Calendar of Events). This was the first newspaper to be published in the [[Ottoman Turkish language]] and was required reading for all civil servants.<ref>A history of the Modern Middle East, Cleveland and Bunton p. 72</ref>{{full citation needed|date=March 2017}}

Clothing was also an essential aspect of Mahmud II's reforms. He began by officially adopting the [[Fez (hat)|fez]] for the military after the [[Janissary]] eradication in 1826, which signified a break from the old style of military dress.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Türk Giyim|last=Koçu|pages=113–114}}</ref> On top of this, he ordered civilian officials to also adopt a similar, but plain, fez to distinguish them from the military.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Quataert|first=D.|date=1997|title=Clothing Laws, State, and Society in the Ottoman Empire|journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies|volume=29|issue=3|pages=413|doi=10.1017/S0020743800064837|s2cid=54626714 }}</ref> He planned for the population to adopt this as well, as he desired a homogeneous look for Ottoman society with an 1829 regulatory law.<ref name=":0" /> Unlike past Sultanic clothing decrees and those of other societies, Mahmud II wanted all levels of government and civilians to look the same. He faced significant resistance to these measures specifically from religious groups, laborers, and military members because of traditional, religious, and practical reasons.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Records of travel in Turkey, Greece, etc|last=Slade|first=Adolphus|year=1854|location=London|pages=194|publisher=William Taylor}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Mahmud dönemide Sivas'ta esnaf teşkilâtı ve üretim-tüketim ilişkileri|last=Demiral, II|first=Ömer|year=1989|location=Ankara|pages=81|publisher=Kültür Bakanlığı}}</ref> Mahmud II's portraits also give a valuable insight into his clothing mentality, as he switched to a more European military style and fez after 1826.

On top of these reforms, Mahmud II was also critical in the establishment and flourishing of an Ottoman foreign affairs office. While he built upon [[Selim III]]'s foundational elements of international diplomacy, Mahmud II was the first to create the title of [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ottoman Empire)|Foreign Minister]] and Undersecretary in 1836.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sturmer|date=30 November 1836|title=HHS Turkei|journal=Sturmer's No. 206A-B|volume=v1/65}}</ref> He placed enormous importance on this position and equated salary and rank with the highest military and civilian positions.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Findley|first=C.|title=The Foundation of the Ottoman Foreign Ministry.|journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies|volume=3|issue=4|pages=405}}</ref> Mahmud II also expanded the Language Office and [[Translation Office (Ottoman Empire)|Translation Office]], and by 1833 it began to grow in both size and importance. After the reorganization of these offices, he also resumed Selim's efforts to create a system of permanent diplomatic representation in Europe. In 1834, permanent European embassies were established with the first being in [[Paris]].<ref name=":1" /> Despite the difficulties that came along with these actions, the expansion of diplomacy increased the transmission of ideas that would have a revolutionary effect on the development of bureaucracy and Ottoman society as a whole especially in regards to modernization.