COMPARATIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF REFORMS IN THE OTTOMAN AND HAGBURG EMPIRES IN THE 18th CENTURY

Abstract

The article is devoted to a comparative study of the features of the political system, socio-economic development, and reform processes in the Ottoman and Habsburg empires in the 18th century. The structure of power, the role of elites, the religious factor, and the degree of centralisation in both states are analysed. It is determined that the Ottoman Empire functioned as a military-bureaucratic state with elements of decentralisation, while the Habsburg monarchy was a complex conglomerate of territories with different legal systems, administrative traditions, levels of economic development, and strong positions of the local nobility. Particular attention is paid to the reasons and content of the reforms. It is shown that in the Ottoman Empire it was during this period that the first serious attempts were made to modernize the state, reform the army, administration, and diplomacy. It was found that the reforms were mainly military-technical in nature and were aimed at overcoming the crisis and restoring military power, but they did not yield quick results, were not systemic in nature, and encountered resistance from traditional forces. In contrast, in the Habsburg Empire, the reforms of Maria Theresa and Joseph II, inspired by the ideas of the Enlightenment and caused by the War of the Austrian Succession, which showed the weakness of the administrative apparatus and financial system, covered the administrative, legal, economic, educational, religious, and social spheres and were aimed at centralising the state, increasing the efficiency of management, and strengthening the army. A more effective state apparatus was created, the education system was reformed, and the privileges of certain social groups were limited. It is concluded that, despite the scale of the reforms, both empires did not achieve full modernization: the Ottoman Empire due to fragmentation, lack of financial resources, political instability, and strong resistance from traditional groups, the conflict between reformers and Janissaries, who sought to preserve their privileges, was particularly acute, and the Habsburg Empire – due to resistance from the nobility, clergy, and part of the population, uneven implementation of reforms, national contradictions, and excessive bureaucratization. The reforms of the 18th century became an important stage in the transformation of both states, showed the desire of the rulers to adapt their states to the new conditions of international politics and changes in world development, created the basis for further transformations in the 19th century, but could not finally overcome internal crises, completely stop the decline of the empires. After the death of Joseph II, some of his reforms were partially cancelled or softened.